Chef Alon Balshan takes baking cues from—and creative liberties with—his aunt Louise’s classic cake recipe.
Chocolate babka , honey bar , rugelach — there ’s no famine of delicious Jewish sweets . WhenPassoverrolls around in the spring , though , the star of the dessert table is most likely a flourless coffee cake .
For the uninitiated , Passover ( this year , April 15 - 23 ) is the holiday that lionise the exodus of the Jews from slavery in Egypt . The eight - day fete prohibit eatingfermented grain — pale yellow , oat , spelt , barley , rye and any food or beverage Cartesian product that contain them are take from the house before the vacation start up . The one exclusion : matzo . Made from a combining of flour and H2O , matzo is symbolic of the unleavened flatbread that Jews carried with them into the desert as there was no time to let the loaves rise before they scarper .
A flourless chocolate bar , then , avoids the wheat issuing entirely . And Alon Balshan ’s recipe deliver a effete adaptation for the holiday ( or anytime , really ) .
Aunt Louise’s Flourless Chocolate Cake|Photo courtesy of Alon’s Bakery
Balshan , owner ofAlon ’s BakeryinAtlanta , make cue for his flourless chocolate cake from his aunt Louise . Her patty was n’t flourless , but it was her signature tune sweet that he was warm of . “ I grew up on that patty and I get laid that cake . We all did in the family . It ’s an inspiration . I made it my own and kind of unlike , but that ’s where the inspiration come from , ” says Balshan .
Balshan now serves a flour - free Riffian on Louise ’s cake ( it ’s even forebode “ the burnt umber Louise ” in her laurels ) . His bar features a rich deep brown base with a custard topping , into which Balshan blends in cobnut praline and library paste . “ The patty is more of a cremeux , which is like a custard cocoa , so it ’s got a velvety texture , ” explains Balshan . He sell it twelvemonth - unit of ammunition but it becomes especially popular during Passover when people entertain or tote dainty to hosts ’ habitation .
“ The bar is more of a cremeux , which is like a custard chocolate , so it ’s mother a velvety grain . ”
“ I tend to think that the whole concept of flourless cocoa patty evolve from nut flour cakes that have existed for one C in the Mediterranean , ” tell Tori Avey , founder of hereponymous formula website , who geeks out on nutrient history . Flourless cakes remind Avey of her travelling to the Mediterranean where springtime treats like torta caprese and tenerina ( a brownie - similar cake ) make economic consumption of Prunus amygdalus and other ballock . “ Almonds have a deep association with springtime in Italy , and that also seduce almond flour cakes a nice seasonal choice for Passover , ” she says .
When it comes to make a flourless chocolate cake , there are unlike methods to sleep together about . Some formula call for broil the cake in a water bath which protects the patty and helps it broil evenly . Othersrely on cocoa powder . Balshan ’s recipe , however , uses potato starch . There ’s no wrong method acting and it ’s ultimately up to you which one you prefer . “ Certain techniques can avail these type of cakes from becoming overly heavy and dense , ” says Avey . “ In my own almond flour chocolate bar , the egg whites are close down in to keep the batter gracious and light . ”
Avey also incorporates almond flour into herchocolate crepitation cakerecipe . “ Adding almond flour lightens up the texture of the cake and really gives it a skillful rotter , plus on a nutritionary level it adds prissy protein and healthy fat to balance out the dinero in the recipe — so your profligate sugar wo n’t spike quite as much as it would with a nut - detached flourless cake , ” she says .
To make Balshan ’s chocolate flourless cake , you ’ll needpotato starchfor the soufflé base , which adds body and grain in stead of wheat flour . The custard topping requires precision , but the solution is an lenient treat that ’s totally worth it — whether you ’re celebrating Passover or simply get your bake on in the kitchen .
Aunt Louise’s Flourless Chocolate Cake Recipe
The drinking chocolate soufflé :
Ingredients:• 300 Gram burnt umber , 62 percent• 200 Hans C. J. Gram butter• 110 grams eggs yolks• 115 Hans C. J. Gram powdered sugar• 12 Hans C. J. Gram potato starch• 150 grams egg white• 50 grams sugar
Directions:1 . hot up the oven to 500 degrees.2 . dissolve the chocolate with the butter , bestow the egg yolks , powdered sugar , and white potato starch . combine well.3 . Whip egg whites with sugar to a soft efflorescence . close up into the batter , then scoop into flexible mould about 3 inches in diameter . You should leave space for about half the height of the mold to top with emollient afterward . Alternately : use a 10 - inch band and put about 1 - in batter.4 . Bake individuals to about 5 minutes ( the cake will seem soft and not baked , but it is done ) . For large cakes bake 7 moment . Let cool completely .
The umber cremeux :
Ingredients:• 165 grams milk• 165 grams gravid cream• 40 grams sugar• 65 grams egg yolks• 70 grams chocolate , 62 percent• 20 grams unsweetened chocolate• 120 grams Milk River chocolate• 20 gramshazelnut paste
Directions:1 . ignite up milk and pick to a strong simmer , then cut heat to low.2 . In a disjoined trough , mix the egg yolk with sugar for about 5 minutes by hired man . Add some blistering liquidity into the egg yolk concoction , then gradually incorporate into the red-hot milk and cream . Do not halt mix and keep on a crushed heat , cook to 181 degrees ( must be very quick or your egg will overcook and curdle).3 . Add the chocolate immediately into the custard and blend with a pin blender . Add the hazelnut paste and keep mixing until completely legato and homogenized . While still hot , bring to the cooled cake , you should have about a half - inch of cream above the cake.4 . Freeze until bent , then unmold from pan . It ’s ready to serve .
