Friday, March 29, 2013

Flourless Chocolate Honey Cake with Berries and Whipping Cream


If there's one thing I appreciate, it's a good dessert. If you've been around for a while, I'm sure you've figured that out by now. Chocolate is my go-to and probably always will be because of the insane things you can do with it and the fact that I pretty much always have it in my house.


For some reason, I feel more relaxed when my fridge is somewhat empty (but it drives my hubby crazy). Maybe it's because I don't feel paralyzed by options: Open the fridge, grab the one thing on the shelf. Eat that. Pretty simple. Plus, our old-school fridge has too many hidden nooks for stuff to get forgotten and rotten. I get ticked enough when I go to the grocery store and pay more than I wanted to. Then to turn around a few days (*weeks) later and throw it away? Aaarrrgh.


Chocolate, however is the lucky one that's always welcome! And conveniently, doesn't get lost or forgotten.


This flourless cake is sweetened only with honey. When my hubby cleans up his diet, mine also does by default because I really don't want to eat a whole dessert on my own. Not to mention all the dirty looks Nick would give to me as I'm happily munching away...


Baking this sweet dessert in a vintage springform pan is the ultimate in romance. The pan was larger than the original recipe called for, so the cake is quite a bit thinner.


I'd recommend refrigerating the cake for at least a few hours before serving. As it cools, the cake increases in density, becoming almost truffle-like. Topping with a fluffy cloud of whipping cream (the real stuff only, please!) and berries lightens it up considerably. The cream and berries take a flourless cake which are notorious for being rich and transform it to something that is substantial but feels somewhat wispy.


Flourless Chocolate Honey Cake with Berries and Whipped Cream
Adapted from Lauren's Latest 
Yield: 8 servings

Flourless Chocolate Honey Cake
4 ounces bittersweet chocolate, roughly chopped
1 stick unsalted butter, cut into 8 pieces
3 large eggs
1/2 cup honey
Heaping 1/2 cup cocoa powder, sifted
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Topping
1 cup whipping cream
Scant tablespoon honey
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups seasonal berries (I used blackberries, blueberries, and pomegranate arils)

For the cake:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Generously butter the bottom and sides of a 9-inch round springform or cake pan.

Place a small pot over medium high heat with about an inch of water in the bottom. Bring to a simmer. Lower heat if necessary to keep it from madly boiling.

Put chopped chocolate and pieces of butter in a heatproof bowl and set over simmering water. Stir with a wooden spoon until melted and smooth. Remove from heat.

Stir in eggs, one at a time, beating until fully combined. Add honey, cocoa powder, and vanilla, stirring until uniform in color and smooth in texture.

Pour into buttered pan and bake for 20 minutes or until middle is set when you gently shake it.

Place pan on a cooling rack and allow to come to room temperature before topping with whipped cream.

For the topping:
Using a stand mixer or hand mixer with whisk attachment, beat whipping cream until it forms soft peaks (how to determine when you have soft peaks). The whipping cream will not be as glossy as that picture shows.

Add the tablespoon of honey and 1/2 teaspoon of vanilla extract. Continue to beat until you have medium peaks.

Store in a covered container in the refrigerator until cake cools.

Once cake has cooled to room temperature or cooler, spoon the whipped cream over the cake and spread over the surface, leaving a 1-inch border.

Cover with berries and serve.

Leftovers will keep covered in the refrigerator for a few days.
 




38 comments:

  1. Heather @ Post RoadApr 2, 2013, 8:45:00 PM

    YUM!!!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Yes ma'am! Too bad it was gone by the time you got here!

      Delete
  • Sam @ Thrive 360 LivingApr 5, 2013, 8:10:00 PM

    Oh my word...this cake looks AMAZING! I'm a bit baking impaired so I'm not sure I can pull it off but I sure want to try. Maybe I can get my mother-in-law to make it for me :-). Pinning for sure! Love your beautiful pictures too.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Believe me, Sam, I have plenty of failures under my belt, but this one would be pretty hard to mess up. Even better if you can get someone else to make it for you though :)

      Thanks for coming by!

      Delete
  • Nancy @ Live love laughApr 6, 2013, 3:55:00 PM

    I am always looking for gluten free recipes...where I don't have to use gluten free flour (expensive and heavy), so this seems perfect!
    ~Nancy

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    Replies
    1. I tend to avoid most gluten free flour mixes as well. Thanks for coming by Nancy!

      Delete
  • I think most people buy too much food at a time and waste a lot. I definitely get more inspirations the less I have in the fridge. This cake is truly wonderful. I am not a big dessert person, but I do love chocolate. I like the lightness of the topping . Thanks for sharing it with us on foodie friday.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I think I'd probably waste less if I went to the grocery store twice a week, but I really dislike grocery shopping and once a week already feels like a chore!

      Thanks Diane!

      Delete
  • sally @ sallys baking addictionApr 7, 2013, 5:25:00 PM

    I love that it is only sweetened with honey! This cake is a must make. It looks SO rich and decadent. I need to make this... like yesterday. ;)

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    Replies
    1. I love avoiding sugar when I can Sally! Even better when I don't have to compromise taste to do it :)

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  • So cool that you used honey as a sweetener. Love your blog! My hubby's name is Nick, too :)

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    Replies
    1. Thanks Ashley! I like using honey when I can. Although sometimes it affects the flavor or texture too much...Thankfully you can get away with it here.

      Thanks for coming by :)

      Delete
  • So, a few days ago I googled "Chocolate Honey Cake", and low and behold your recipe showed up at the top. Decided to give it a try tonight, and thought I was gonna be the first hotshot to actually follow the recipe and leave feedback...but did not have enough butter. So, I further adapted it, using 2tblsp butter/6 tblsp plain yogurt. Chilled it in the fridge as you suggested, tastes divine. Thanks for this!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I love your modification! I'm so glad you loved it and divine is how I remember it tasting :)

      Thanks so much for your comment!

      Delete
  • This looks delish! I need dairy-free so must use margarine instead of butter (I'm guessing that substituting applesauce for butter won't work for this one...?). When you say "Stir in eggs, one at a time, beating until fully combined" - beat with an electric beater, or just with a spoon/whisk?

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    Replies
    1. A spoon or whisk is all you need, Marnie! I'm not a fan of margarine, but coconut oil might be an acceptable dairy-free substitute. Hope it works :)

      Delete
  • I will try this. I don't have any bittersweet chocolate in my cupboard right now (?!), but some quite sweet Enjoy Life chocolate chunks, so I will taste the batter and then decide if I need any honey. I like you blog, and found some pretty tasty looking recipes. Thanks!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Yes, you might be able to eliminate the honey, but that will depend on the size of your sweet tooth! Thanks so much for being here, fellow Finn :)

      Delete

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