Flourless Chocolate Cake
You are going to fall in love with this gluten-free flourless chocolate cake. It is has a rich, truffle-like texture packed with chocolate in every bite. Gluten-free and so good you will end up eating more than you want to.
The best part about this deliciously rich flourless cake is that it doesn’t require any flour alternatives. It can be made ahead of time, takes minimal effort, and looks great decorated with fruit and served with whipped cream or ice cream on the side.
If you decide to give this recipe a try, let me know! Leave a comment below and rate it – it’s really helpful to me and the other readers. And don’t forget to take a picture and tag it #thegourmetlarder on Instagram. I love seeing what you come up with! 🙂
RECIPE HIGHLIGHTS
- EASE: Easy.
- GREAT FOR: Everyday baking, afternoon tea, friends and family visiting.
- TASTE: A rich chocolate flavour.
- TEXTURE: This cake has a dense, crumbly truffle like centre.
- QUANTITY: 12 slices (23cm / 9inch springform pan)
- TIME: 1 hour 30 minutes
INGREDIENTS
For this flourless chocolate cake recipe all you need are these 6 ingredients:
- Dark or milk chocolate bar – choose your favourite chocolate for that beautiful rich flavour.
Chocolate recommendations: bars – Lindt Excellence dark 70% bar 100g, Montezuma’s darkside 51% bar 90g, Menier dark cooking chocolate 100g, Green and Black’s Organic dark Chocolate 100g, 1kg bags – Callebaut dark chocolate, Callebaut milk chocolate, Callebaut white chocolate.
- Butter – adds structure and flavour. I use salted butter for most of my baking as it intensifies the flavours, but feel free to use unsalted if you prefer.
- Medium eggs – builds structure and richness to a recipe. Make sure they are at room temperature before use.
- Cocoa powder – adds a rich chocolate flavour and builds structure.
Cocoa recommendations: Dr. Oetker fine dark cocoa powder or not as dark – Sevenhills wholefoods organic cacao powder
- Caster or granulated white sugar – adds sweetness and structure to the bake.
- Vanilla extract or paste – adds flavour and enhances the other ingredient flavours in the recipe.
– Vanilla recommendations: pure vanilla extract or vanilla paste or vanilla pods.
TIP:
Here I want to add how just a pinch of salt can make a difference to eating cake. With the addition of salt, all the intrinsic flavours of the chocolate are brought to the surface faster. In a seemingly absurd or contradictory way, salt intensifies the mouth’s ability to taste sweetness. It is the sodium that sends signals to move glucose into the sweet taste receptor cells in our tongue. The result is that salt not only alerts our ‘salt sensitivity’, but also our ‘sweet sensitive’ taste buds.
I recommend Maldon Sea salt flakes or Cornish sea salt.
SUBSTITUTIONS
VEGAN OPTIONS
- Butter: I recommend Naturli vegan block or Flora plant-based block butter alternative.
SUGAR-FREE AND LOW-CALORIE OPTIONS
- Sugar-free or calorie reduced options: try alternatives such as coconut sugar, honey, natural erythritol, xylitol, stevia or fructooligosaccharide powder instead. There are also sweetener mixes available, that are 70% calorie reduced and low in carb.
- Brown sugar suggestions: Pure Via Baker’s soft brown sugar or Sukrin Gold’s natural brown sugar alternative.
WHAT VARIATIONS CAN I MAKE?
- Quality chocolate – makes all the difference in flavour.
Flavoured recommendations: Lindt Excellence dark orange or Raspberry chocolate bar
- Coffee – is another great flavour to add. Mix 1 tablespoon of coffee powder with 2 tbsp hot water until dissolved and stir into the chocolate once melted.
If you experiment, I would love to know how you get on and share it with the other readers.
NUTRITION
Serving: one cake slice
Nutrition information can vary for a recipe based on factors such as precision of measurements, brands, ingredient freshness, or the source of nutrition data.
I strive to keep the information as accurate as possible but make no warranties regarding its accuracy.
I encourage you to make your own calculations based on the actual ingredients used in your recipe, using your preferred nutrition calculator.
STORAGE AND FREEZING
This cake will keep well in an airtight container for 4-5 days in the fridge. Remove 1 hour prior to serving to allow the cake to come to room temperature.
Freezing: Wrap the cake in a layer of clingfilm and freeze for up to 3 months. Defrost at room temperature. Dust and decorate the cake before serving.
© THE GOURMET LARDER. All images and content are copyright protected. If you want to share this recipe, please do so using the share buttons provided. Please do not republish the recipe or its content in full instead, include a link to this post for the recipe. Further information can be found in my FAQ’s.
EQUIPMENT SUGGESTIONS
For this recipe, it is optional to use a electric hand or stand mixer, it can be made without. Other recommendations include:
I think I have said it before that I am not a big fan of plastic, so I like this type of glass measuring jug for calculating my liquids.
This small pan is a great size for boiling small amounts of liquids and it has pouring lips built into the rim of the saucepan which makes it easy to use.
I find these small one litre glass bowls useful for mixing small amounts of ingredients.
These spatulas are so useful for baking. I use them everyday and not just for baking. Good rigid handles, excellent for scraping out bowls, dishes and frying pans. The large spatula is not flat, it has a raised centre, which makes it very strong.
These springform pans make removing cakes from them after baking a doddle. I personally tend to line them as often as possible to ensure that my cakes don’t break for added security.
The Gourmet Larder is an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.
TIP: I highly recommend using metric measurements and a digital kitchen scale, rather than cup measurements. If you have ever ended up with dry, dense or crumbly baked goods, it might be because of inaccurate volume measurements, not all measuring cups are made equally. All my recipes on this blog are carefully developed so that you can easily recreate them in your own kitchen with success, using metric measurements. It is also a lot easier, less messy and you will get far better, consistent results. 🙂
If you are interested in understanding conversions, here you will find the best conversion chart.
RECIPE TIPS
When adding the egg whites to the chocolate mix, first add two dessert spoons of the egg whites and gently stir through. This will make it easier to fold in the remaining egg whites and less air will be lost.
Sudden temperature changes can cause cakes to sink in the middle, to prevent this avoid opening the oven door before 3/4 of the baking time, even if you need to rotate your cake.
Use good quality chocolate and Dutch cocoa powder to get the best results in taste and finish.
This cake will sink slightly in the centre, but still looks amazing. If you want to disguise it simply dust with icing sugar or cocoa powder and decorate with fresh fruit.
Flourless Chocolate Cake
- 23cm / 9inch springform pan
INGREDIENTS LIST
- 400 g dark chocolate (minimum 50% cocoa solids)
- 200 g butter
- 7 medium eggs (seperated)
- 30 g unsweetened cocoa powder (plus extra for dusting)
- 150 g caster sugar
- 1 pinch fine sea salt
- 1 tsp pure vanilla extract or 1/4 tsp of vanilla paste
Preparation
- Preheat the oven to 140°C fan / 320°F / Gas 3.Grease and line a 23cm (9inch) springform pan with butter and baking/parchment paper.
- In a medium-sized heatproof bowl, melt the butter and chocolate in the microwave for a few seconds or over a pan of gently simmering water (double boiler method), stirring occasionally. Once smooth, glossy and completely melted set aside to cool slightly.
- Separate the egg yolks and whites between two large mixing bowls. Whisk the egg whites for 2 to 3 minutes until soft peaks form.
- Add the sugar and vanilla to the yolks and beat until pale and the sugar has dissolved. Approxiamately 5-6 minutes.
- Sift the cocoa powder into the egg yolk mixture with a pinch of salt and gently stir to combine.
- Add the melted chocolate mixture to the egg yolks and stir until well combined.
- Add 2 dessert spoons of egg whites into the chocolate mix and gently stir through, then gently fold in the remaining egg whites. Be careful not to over mix or all that precious air you whisked into them will be lost.
- Pour the batter into the prepared baking pan.
- Baking: Place it on the medium shelf of the oven and bake for approximately an hour or until an inserted skewer comes out clean.
- Allow the cake to cool for 10 minutes in the pan before removing the outer ring, leaving it to cool on a wire rack. I like to leave the base of the pan on until it is completely cooled, as it is quite a crumbly cake and can easily break.Serve with a dusting of cocoa powder or icing sugar and fresh berries.
Notes & Tips
- When adding the egg whites to the chocolate mix, first add two dessert spoons of the egg whites and gently stir through. This will make it easier to fold in the remaining egg whites and less air will be lost.
- Sudden temperature changes can cause cakes to sink in the middle, to prevent this avoid opening the oven door before 3/4 of the baking time, even if you need to rotate your cake.
- Use good quality chocolate and Dutch cocoa powder to get the best results in taste and finish.
- This cake will sink slightly in the centre, but still looks amazing. If you want to disguise it simply dust with icing sugar or cocoa powder and decorate with fresh fruit.
www.thegourmetlarder.com
PLEASE LET ME KNOW HOW IT TURNED OUT FOR YOU!
If you tried this Flourless Chocolate Cake or any other recipe on my website, please let me know how you got on in the comments below. I love hearing from you. Also, please leave a star rating whilst you’re there!
Don’t forget to subscribe to my newsletter, so that you don’t miss out on more delicious recipes and follow me on social media below.
HUNGRY FOR MORE? FOLLOW ME!
PIN THIS RECIPE FOR LATER
If you liked this flourless chocolate cake recipe,
take a look at my inspirational recipe collection for more ideas.
Don’t forget to subscribe to my newsletter, so that you don’t miss out on more delicious recipes and follow me on social media.
HAPPY BAKING!
