Sweet Lady Jane?s Almost Flourless Chocolate Cake Recipe

Sweet Lady Jane?s Almost Flourless Chocolate Cake

SERVES 8 TO 10

Jane Lockhart uses top-quality chocolate to make this fudgy, toothsome treat. She garnishes it with strawberries, but you could substitute almost any seasonal fruit with good results. You can make the cake up to 1 day in advance.

1 ½ lb. semisweet chocolate, chopped
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
6 large eggs, separated
1 ½ Tbs. all-purpose flour
1 ½ Tbs. granulated sugar
1 cup heavy cream, whipped
Sliced or quartered strawberries for garnish

Preheat oven to 350F. Butter a 9-inch springform pan, and line bottom with parchment paper. Butter paper.
Combine chocolate and butter in top of a double boiler set over hot but not boiling water. Stir until both are melted, smooth and glossy. Remove from heat, and set aside.
Beat egg yolks using an electric beater on high speed until yolks are thick and creamy, for about 5 minutes. Reduce speed to low, and slowly add flour. Mix in chocolate and butter mixture.
Beat egg whites in a separate bowl until stiff but not dry. Add sugar, and beat 1 minute more. Spoon about one-third of beaten whites into the chocolate mixture to lighten it. Gently fold in remaining whites, and pour into pan.
Bake until slightly set around edges but still jiggly in center, for about 20 minutes. Remove from oven to cool on a wire rack. When completely cooled, cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 2 hours or overnight.
Fill a sink or a large bowl with about 1 inch of hot tap water. Carefully set bottom half of pan holding chilled cake in water, taking care not to allow water to spill over top. Let cake sit to soften for 20 seconds. Set on a work surface, and gently remove outside of pan. Invert cake onto a large plate, and remove bottom of pan and parchment paper. Turn cake upright onto a serving plate or platter. Fill center of cake with whipped cream, garnish with strawberries and serve.