Chocolate Almond Cake

This is the Mediterranean dessert that proves you don't need flour to create something utterly luxurious—almond flour makes it naturally tender and gluten-free, while dark chocolate and cocoa powder deliver serious indulgence with surprising restraint.

Ingredients:

• 150g almond flour
• 100g dark chocolate (70%), chopped
• 85g unsalted butter
• 100g caster sugar
• 3 large eggs, separated
• 30g unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1/2 tsp sea salt
• 1/4 tsp almond extract (optional)

Method:

1. Preheat oven to 180°C. Grease and line a 20cm round cake tin.
2. Melt chocolate and butter together over a gentle heat or in a microwave, stirring until smooth. Let cool slightly.
3. Whisk egg yolks with 75g of the sugar until pale, then fold in the chocolate mixture, vanilla, and almond extract.
4. Gently fold in almond flour, cocoa powder, and salt until just combined.
5. In a separate bowl, whisk egg whites until soft peaks form, then gradually add the remaining sugar while whisking until stiff and glossy.
6. Carefully fold the meringue into the chocolate mixture in two additions—don't overwork it.
7. Pour into the prepared tin and bake for 25–30 minutes until a skewer inserted into the centre comes out with just a few moist crumbs.
8. Cool in the tin for 10 minutes, then turn out onto a wire rack.

Full recipe at Cookie and Kate →

Chef's tip: Don't skip folding the meringue in gently—those air bubbles are what give this cake its wonderful, almost soufflé-like crumb that feels far lighter than it has any right to be.