This is one of those go-to recipes that will make you look like a professional pastry chef. This six ingredient cake comes together in no time, doesn’t require high end chocolate, is guaranteed to wow even the most jaded critic and make you look like a total pro.
The inspiration for this recipe comes from Laura Calder’s “Picnic Chocolate Cake”, in her excellent cookbook Paris Express. The original actually calls for ¼ cup of flour, but this new version substitutes a cup of ground pecans or walnuts for the flour. This takes it out of the cake category and slides into the torte world. Toasting the nuts before grinding will release a little more of the volatile oils and give it a nice, roasted nut flavor which will further tweak the pleasure centres.
Making a truly chocolate-y chocolate cake can mean sourcing the finest chocolate known to humanity, and we’re not discouraging that, but sometimes it can get a little expensive. For this cake we’ve used Chipits Dark Chocolate chips and been literally floored by how damn fine the end result tastes.
I always find using a springform pan for these kinds of desserts. It makes the job a little easier. In this case we will use a nine-inch. Just trace the size of the bottom and cut it out of your parchment. The circumference of a nine inch pan is twenty eight inches (you’re welcome). The width of the side strip can be measured by using the pan minus an inch, so about two inches thick as the cake will not rise all the way up. Lastly, before applying the parchment, butter the pan a bit to keep the paper in place.
Photo by lindsay Cotter on Unsplash
The beauty of the springform pan is that it allows you to take the cake out of it completely hassle free. Once the cake comes out of the oven, place it on a wire rack for half an hour, then unlatch the rim and let totally cool. This lovely torte doesn’t need much embellishment, but a little fresh orange or clementine zest works beautifully as a garnish.
Serve it with cold whipped cream and let everyone think you’ve started a new career as a top tier pastry chef.
Chocolate Pecan Torte
Makes 1 nine-inch torte
1 ½ cups 70% dark chocolate chips
1/4 cup ground pecans or walnuts
¾ cup butter
2 tablespoons fresh orange juice
pinch salt
4 eggs
1 cup sugar
orange zest
whipped cream
Preheat oven to 350 F. Prepare springform pan by buttering base and rim and lining with parchment paper. In a double boiler melt chocolate and butter and stir until combined. Remove from heat and add orange juice and salt. Set aside. As it cools combine eggsa and sugar and beat for three minutes until creamy and fluffy. Add chocolate mixture and mix until well combined. Pour into prepared pan and bake for 35-40 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out mostly clean. The centre will continue to cook a bit as the cake sets and cools. Place cale on wire rack and let cool for half an hour. Remove rim and side parchment and let cool to room temperature before cutting. To serve, invert on a plate, remove bottom parchment, and replace torte bottom side down on serving plate.
To serve garnish with grated orange zest and a scoop of cold freshly whipped cream.