Loading ...Flourless Chocolate and Vanilla Marble Cake
by the Editors of Fine Cooking
from Absolutely Chocolate: Irresistible Excuses to Indulge
(Taunton Press, 2009)
Serves 16
This dense, luscious flourless chocolate and vanilla marble cake has a texture a little like fudge and a little like cheesecake. A small slice goes a long way. To slice this moist marble cake neatly, use a hot knife (run it under hot running water and dry it), and wipe the blade clean between slices.
convert Ingredients
For the vanilla batter
8 ounces cream cheese, softened to room temperature
2/3 cup granulated sugar
1 large egg
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
For the chocolate batter
10 ounces bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped
5 ounces (10 tablespoons) unsalted butter, cut into 6 pieces
3 large eggs
1/3 cup granulated sugar
1 tablespoon dark rum or espresso
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
Pinch table salt
Unsweetened cocoa powder, for dusting
Method
1. Position an oven rack in the middle of the oven and heat the oven to 300°F (150°C). Lightly grease a 9-by-2-inch round cake pan and line the bottom with parchment.
2. In a medium bowl, beat the softened cream cheese with an electric mixer until smooth. Add the sugar and continue beating until well blended and no lumps remain. Add the egg and vanilla and beat just until blended. Set aside.
3. In a medium bowl, melt the chocolate and butter in a large metal bowl over a pan of simmering water or in the microwave. Whisk until smooth and set aside to cool slightly. Using a stand mixer fitted with the whip attachment (or with a hand mixer), beat the eggs, sugar, rum or espresso, vanilla, and salt on medium high until the mixture is pale and thick, 3 to 4 minutes. With the mixer on low, gradually pour in the chocolate mixture and continue beating until well blended.
4. To combine and bake the marble cake, spread about half of the chocolate batter in the bottom of the pan. Alternately add large scoopfuls of each of the remaining batters to the cake pan. Using a knife or the tip of a rubber spatula, gently swirl the two batters together so they’re mixed but not completely blended. Rap the pan against the countertop several times to settle the batters.
5. Bake the marble cake until a pick inserted about 2 inches from the edge comes out gooey but not liquid, 40 to 42 minutes; don’t over-bake. The top will be puffed and slightly cracked, especially around the edges. It will sink down as it cools. Let the cake cool on a rack until just slightly warm, about 1 1/2 hours. Loosen it from the pan by holding the pan almost perpendicular to the counter; tap the pan on the counter while rotating it clockwise. Invert the cake onto a large flat plate or board, then remove the pan and carefully peel off the parchment.
6. Sift some cocoa powder over the cake (this will make it easier to remove the slices when serving). Invert the cake again onto a similar plate so that the top side is up and let cool completely. Cover and refrigerate until very cold, at least 4 hours or overnight, or freeze.
Make ahead and freeze: Wrap the cooled cake (unmolded as directed in the recipe) in plastic and refrigerate until firm and well chilled. Slide the cake from the plate and wrap it again in plastic. Freeze for up to a month. To serve, unwrap the cake and set it on a flat serving plate that’s been sprinkled with a little more cocoa powder. Cover with plastic wrap and thaw in the refrigerator overnight or at room temperature for an hour or two.
Recipe © 2009 The Taunton Press, Inc. All rights reserved.
© 2009 Leite’s Culinaria, Inc. All rights reserved. Terms of use.
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