Passover Dark Chocolate Nut Cake
Submitted by Penguin56
Passover dark chocolate nut cake uses no flour at all. Twelve whipped eggs carry a rich batter of melted chocolate and chopped almonds, baked in a tube pan for a deep, fudgy Seder-friendly dessert.
YIELD
1 cakePREP
30 minCOOK
40 minREADY
1 hrsFlourless by design, not by accident. This Passover cake leans entirely on beaten eggs, both yolks and whites, to carry the weight of dense melted chocolate and two cups of chopped almonds. No matzo meal, no potato starch, nothing but eggs doing structural work.
The yolks get whipped until thick and lemon-colored with sugar to build a stable base, the whites get whipped separately with vanilla and almond extracts, and the two get folded together gently to keep all that airy lift alive. The hybrid of unsweetened and semisweet chocolates gives this cake its deep, almost bitter edge that plays against the sweetness of the nuts.
Warming the bowl in warm water before beating whites is a detail worth honoring. Cold whites whip to less volume, and volume is everything in a flourless cake.
Pro Tips
- Separate eggs cold, but whip whites at room temperature. Cold separates cleanly, warm whips higher.
- Fold one third of the whites into the yolk mixture first to lighten it, then fold the rest. Adding it all at once deflates the batter instantly.
- Line the tube pan with greased waxed paper. Flourless cakes stick like glue without it.
- Don’t open the oven before 35 minutes. A blast of cool air will collapse the rise.
Variations
- Swap the almonds for toasted pecans or walnuts for a richer nut profile.
- Add a teaspoon of instant espresso powder to the yolk mixture to deepen the chocolate flavor without making it taste like coffee.
- Serve dusted with confectioners’ sugar and a handful of fresh berries for a cleaner, lighter presentation.
Ingredients
Directions
Set a large mixer bowl in a sink filled with 2 inches of warm water.
Separate eggs (you should have about 1½ cups whites).
Pour the whites into the warm mixer bowl and place yolks in a smaller mixer bowl (or let separated eggs stand, covered, at room temperature for 30 minutes).
Meanwhile, in a small, heavy saucepan, partially melt unsweetened chocolate and semisweet chocolate pieces over low heat.
Turn off heat and stir (chocolate will continue to melt).
Cut a waxed paper liner for the bottom of a 10” tube pan, cutting it ½ inch wider than the pan and the center hole slightly larger than the tube.
Grease pan thoroughly.
Place liner in pan and grease liner.
Beat egg yolks with an electric mixer on high speed for about 4 minutes or until they’re thick and lemon colored.
Add the ⅔ cup sugar, beating until very thick.
Stir in the melted chocolate and chopped nuts.
Thoroughly wash and dry beaters.
Beat egg whites with vanilla and almond extract until foamy.
Gradually add the ¼ cup sugar to egg whites, beating until soft peaks form.
Lighten egg yolk mixture with about 2 cups beaten egg whites.
Add to the remaining egg white mixture and fold together to combine.
Turn batter into prepared pan.
Bake at 350℉ (180℃) F for about 40 minutes or until top springs back when lightly touched.
Run a knife around the edge of the pan and center to loosen.
Cool in pan for 1 hour.
Invert onto cake plate. Remove waxed paper.
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