Chocolate Cloud Cake
Summer is almost over and autumn officially starts less than a month from now. There is still time for an Indian summer, and I hope we have one, but enough already about tomatoes, peaches, and corn!
How about switching the subject to a much more exciting ingredient: chocolate. Or should I say a more popular ingredient—in my experience chocolate is certainly the hands-down winner. My most recent example was a couple weeks ago at a birthday party. There were four cakes (one was chocolate), a fruit cobbler, and a fruit galette. All beautiful, by the way, and very delicious. I tasted each of them. Which one was gone at the end of the night? Yup, the chocolate one. (I know because I took the plate home.) One Thanksgiving at home a couple of years ago someone brought a box of See’s candy; no one even tried my apple OR pumpkin pie. Unless you’re competing in The Great British Bake-Off it shouldn’t be a contest, though. I don’t want you to make this luscious cake because you want to be the one with the most popular dessert at the party. After you taste it you will be disappointed that there aren’t any leftovers for you to take home! I want you to make it because I am confident that this cake will become a favorite in your recipe collection, and it is an easy one-layer cake to make.
This exceptional dessert is gluten-free. The beaten egg whites give it a slightly chewy texture similar to that of a pavlova. The whipped cream adds moisture and lightens it up, unlike its denser gluten-free cousin. Perfect for those Indian summer nights that we hope to be having very soon.
Photo by: Lucy Alexander
Cake:
8 oz. bittersweet chocolate chopped
6 eggs
½ cup unsalted butter at room temperature
2 tablespoons of Grand Marnier
1 cup sugar
Zest of one orange (grated—about 1 tablespoon)
1 ½ cups heavy whip cream
3 tablespoons of powdered sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Unsweetened cocoa powder to sprinkle
Preheat the oven to 350°
Line the bottom of a 9” springform pan with parchment paper. Do not butter the bottom or the sides of the pan. Set aside.
Melt the chocolate in a heat-proof bowl set over a saucepan of gently boiling water. Make sure the water isn’t touching the bottom of the bowl. You want the chocolate to melt slowly. When the chocolate is melted, take it off the heat and stir in the butter, one tablespoon at a time. Set aside to cool a bit.
To a medium bowl add four egg yolks with two whole eggs. Put the remaining egg whites in a separate bowl. Whisk to break the whole eggs and yolks, adding a ½ cup sugar to combine. Next, add the warm chocolate mixture, whisking along with the Grand Marnier and the orange zest. Set aside.
Using a handheld mixer, beat the remaining egg whites until soft peaks form, about two minutes. While slowly adding the remaining sugar (1/2 cup), continue to beat the egg whites until they become glossy and thick and not quite stiff. Add ¼ of the beaten whites to the chocolate mixture, gently folding them in until they are incorporated. Then add the rest of the egg whites, gently folding them too. Then pour the entire batter into the prepared springform pan. Place on a baking sheet and put into the center of your preheated oven. Cook for 35-40 minutes until the center is firm. Do not overcook. Set the cake on a rack in the pan while it cools. You will see the middle deflate and start to crack. Don’t worry—that’s what you want.
When the cake is completely cool, run a knife around the edges of the cake, gently peel back the parchment paper from the bottom of the cake, and place it on a platter. Now make the whipped cream.
Put the heavy cream, the powdered sugar and the vanilla in a large bowl and whip until soft peaks form. Fill the center of the cake with the whipped cream and sprinkle the unsweetened cocoa powder over the top to finish.
Photo by: Lucy Alexander