Flourless Chocolate Cake (Gluten Free)

So I have a little confession to make. I have never baked a gluten – free recipe before. To be fair, I am not gluten intolerant and therefore have had no real reason to, but at the minute I am all about pushing the boundaries and trying new things.

And you know what? I absolutely loved it. Relatively easy to make with only a few more steps than a traditional chocolate cake of this type, the extra effort produces wonderfully dense, moist and gooey chocolate heaven. No-one will notice the lack of flour and after trying this out, I am seriously considering replacing this as my go-to chocolate cake recipe.

It does require a little preparation (total time from ingredients to table is 3-4 hours) so not exactly something you can whip up last minute. However, I have heard from a reputable source that this cake freezes perfectly and requires only around 10 minutes thawing time before eating. It is therefore a great recipe to make when you have a little more kitchen time, freeze in portion sizes, and you will never be caught short if a friend pops over for a cup of tea or when you want to serve a little something with coffees after supper. Perfect as the star of the show or as an after dinner treat.

One last thing I would mention, due to the lack of flour in the recipe it does sink in the middle. I personally don’t mind this but if you want to make it into a showstopper dessert to serve to guests, I would suggest filling it with fresh raspberries or your favourite fruit.

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    Ingredients:
    300g plain chocolate, broken into pieces
    225g salted butter, cubed
    225g caster sugar
    6 eggs, separated
    2teaspoons vanilla extract
    1 tablespoon icing sugar to decorate
    Optional: fresh raspberries to decorate

    Method:

1. Preheat oven to 180celcius.
2. Grease a 23cm cake tin and line with baking parchment. Set aside.
3. Melt the chocolate over a double-boiler or using 30 second bursts in the microwave
4. Stir in the butter until both are melted and combined.
5. Stir in the caster sugar until combined.
6. Add the egg yolks and vanilla extract until the batter is smooth and silky.
7. Add 2-3 tablespoons boiling water to the batter, combine and set aside.
8. In a separate bowl, whisk the egg whites until they form stiff peaks.
9. 1/3 at a time, fold the egg whites into the chocolate batter trying to keep as much air in as possible.
10. Pour batter into cake tine and bake for 45-55minutes, until a knife inserted into the centre comes out clean.
11. Allow to cool completely in the tin and then refrigerate for a minimum of 2 hours.
12. Once ready to serve (or freeze) allow to warm to room temperature and remove from cake tin. Cut into slices or bite-size pieces.
13. Decorate with fresh raspberries and sifted icing sugar.

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