It’s time to publish this recipe. Because chocolate is comforting and does you good, even when the weather isn’t playing along. And then, it’s a recipe that comes straight from Italy, so with a bit of luck it will bring us good fortune and some sunshine (yes, yes, we believe it!).
It’s a recipe I saw in the magazine “Pâtisserie et compagnie” (issue 9). I immediately stuck a “to make” post-it on it (I won’t tell you about my post-it consumption :D). The little touch of originality is the addition of orange blossom (because hazelnuts are fairly common, after all!).
I really liked this cake and I was surprised by the orange blossom, which brings a real little extra (and yet I’m not a fan of orange blossom). A friend who doesn’t like it either and was reluctant to taste it ended up liking it and even went back for seconds. That says it all 🙂 The texture, however, is different from what I usually make (probably due to the ground hazelnuts). The whole thing is moist and soft, and even though I have a preference for the traditional chocolate fondant, this cake deserves to be tried!
Ingredients & Method
1 component · Full recipe
Cake
Ingredients
- 160 g (5.6 oz) dark chocolate
- 200 g (7.1 oz) eggs
- 130 g (4.6 oz) sugar
- 100 g (3.5 oz) softened butter
- 200 g (7.1 oz) ground hazelnuts (or almonds)
- 30 g (1.1 oz) orange blossom water
- a pinch of fleur de sel
Method
1
Preheat the oven to 160°C / 325°F.
2
Separate the egg whites from the yolks and whisk the whites to stiff peaks.
3
Melt the chocolate in the microwave or over a bain-marie.
4
Beat the softened butter with the sugar until light and creamy.
5
Add the egg yolks, a pinch of fleur de sel, then the ground hazelnuts, and finally the melted chocolate.
6
Gently fold in the egg whites. Mix carefully with a spatula.
7
Add the orange blossom water and mix again.
8
Pour the batter into a 20 cm (7.9 in) round cake tin (don’t forget to grease and flour it if it’s not silicone!).
9
Bake for about 20–25 minutes. A crust should form on the outside, but the cake should still be soft in the centre (it should spring back gently when touched).
10
Leave to cool slightly, then unmould.
11
Serve dusted with icing sugar, for example with whipped cream (homemade, of course!).
12
This cake is even better the next day.
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