It's Daring Bakers' time again.The February 2009 challenge was hosted by Wendy of WMPE's blog and Dharm of Dad ~ Baker & Chef. They chose a Chocolate Valentino cake by Chef Wan; a Vanilla Ice Cream recipe from Dharm and a Vanilla Ice Cream recipe from Wendy as the challenge.
Flourless chocolate cake has been a favorite dessert since I first tasted it in the 70's. One particular restaurant used to serve it slightly warmed with clotted cream--yum! Raspberries are a standard garnish, but such decadence can really stand on its own. Not being much of an ice cream fan, I made a simple Irish cream whipped cream to go with this rich, moist, mouthful of heaven.
Many flourless cakes rely on nuts for their texture, but this recipe was more like a souffle, depending on whipped egg whites for its texture. I baked it in a 10 inch springform pan, shortening the baking time to 22 minutes. It was perfect. Thanks Wendy and Dharm for a straightforward pick. I believe that less is more and a 3-ingredient recipe really challenges one to focus on technique.
Chocolate ValentinoPreparation Time: 20 minutes
16 ounces (1 pound) (454 grams) of semisweet chocolate, roughly chopped
½ cup (1 stick) plus 2 tablespoons (146 grams total) of unsalted butter
5 large eggs separated
1. Put chocolate and butter in a heatproof bowl and set over a pan of simmering water (the bottom of the bowl should not touch the water) and melt, stirring often.
(I had to include a photo of my double boiler. One of the attendant benefits of aging is that you inadvertently become a collector of antiques. This double boiler was a wedding present to my parents--that makes it 61 years old, so maybe it isn't technically antique, but vintage. Mom passed away last June and it is one of the mementos that I kept. While she didn't bake often, she was a great cook and passed on the "food" gene. Happy Valentino, mom.)
2. While your chocolate butter mixture is cooling, butter your pan and line with a parchment circle then butter the parchment.
3. Separate the egg yolks from the egg whites and put into two medium/large bowls.
4. Whip the egg whites in a medium/large grease free bowl until stiff peaks are formed (do not over-whip or the cake will be dry).
5. With the same beater beat the egg yolks together
6. Add the egg yolks to the cooled chocolate.
7. Fold in 1/3 of the egg whites into the chocolate mixture and follow with remaining 2/3rds. Fold until no white remains without deflating the batter.
8. Pour batter into prepared pan, the batter should fill the pan 3/4 of the way full, and bake at 375F/190C9. Bake for 25 minutes until an instant read thermometer reads 140F/60C. Note – If you do not have an instant read thermometer, the top of the cake will look similar to a brownie and a cake tester will appear wet.
9. Cool cake on a rack for 10 minutes then unmold.
Irish Cream Whipped Cream
1 half pint whipping cream
2 tbs strong coffee, cooled
1 tbs Irish cream liqueur
2 tbs confectioners' sugar
Begin whipping the cream. As it begins to thicken, add the liquids and sugar. Continue whipping until soft peaks form.
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