Lavender Flourless Chocolate Cake
This show-stopping Lavender Flourless Chocolate Cake is the perfect end to a Passover dinner or Seder. It’s also perfect for any time you want a gorgeous, gluten-free, chocolatey dessert!!
It’s light and airy, fudgy and rich…everything a chocolate cake should be!
This cake is easy to make and requires very few ingredients. This is an unpretentious cake…nothing fancy or frilly but every bite will make you jump for joy. From the crispy crust on top to the rich dense cake, you and everyone you serve it to will be happy participants!
The difference-maker for this dessert is the infusion of lavender in both the cake and the whipped cream. We often think of lavender in a sachet or some kind of cloying air-freshener. So to consider it in food seems a little out there. I’m here to tell you that it’s amazing! Using edible lavender to blend with the sugar for the cake produces a balanced flavor similar to mint and rosemary. Infusing the whipped cream three different times produces this delightful herbal whipped cream with a purplish tint to it. All in all, I highly recommend that you set aside your preconceived notions and give this wonderful cake a try!
While this isn’t a difficult or complicated recipe, it’s good to do a little advance preparation. I like to begin by infusing the heavy cream because it needs to sit for a while to get the full flavor of the lavender. In a small saucepan, heat 1/2 cup heavy cream. When it starts to simmer, add 1/2 tablespoon of lavender. Let it simmer a bit and then cool it down and then refrigerate it for at least one hour. That’s why you need to plan ahead!
With the remaining 1/2 cup of heavy cream, and another 1/2 tablespoon lavender and stir to combine and let it sit in the refrigerator while you make the cake.
To begin the cake, start by melting the butter and chocolate chips together. Once melted and smooth, set aside to cool.
Place the sugar in the bowl of a food processor and add 2 tablespoons of lavender. Pulse it until the lavender has been finely chopped. Transfer it to a shallow bowl and rub the lavender sugar with your fingers to really get all of the oils out of the lavender and into the sugar. Run it through a sieve to remove any uncut lavender buds.
Beat the egg whites until soft peaks form and then slowly add the lavender sugar. Continue to beat until medium peaks form.
To the cooled chocolate, add 6 egg yolks and vanilla and stir together. Add 1/3 of the egg whites to the chocolate and gently stir. Continue two more times until all of the egg whites are mixed in, being careful not to stir too hard and deflate the egg whites.
Transfer to a prepared springform pan and bake for 45 minutes.
In the meantime, make the lavender whipped cream. Take the two heavy cream infusions from the refrigerator and combine them. Add the last 1/2 tablespoon of lavender and let sit for one minute. Strain the cream. Using a stand or hand mixer, whisk the cream for two minutes until it starts to look thicker. Add confectioners’ sugar and then beat until the cream is stiffer.
Once the cake has cooled completely, remove the sides of the springform pan and set it on a serving dish.
Dust the top of the cake with cocoa powder, spoon some lavender whipped cream over and top with fresh berries.
All that’s left now is to enjoy this beautiful flourless cake!
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Lavender Flourless Chocolate Cake
Makes: 8 servings
Prep Time: 30 minutes
Bake Time: 45 minutes
Total Time: 1 hour & 30 minutes
Ingredients
Lavender Flourless Chocolate Cake:
- 6 tbsp unsalted butter
- 12 ounces semi-sweet chocolate chips
- 1/2 cup + 2 tbsp sugar
- 2 tbsp dried edible lavender
- 6 eggs, separated and at room temperature
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- Pinch of salt
- Cocoa powder for dusting after baked, optional
Lavender Whipped Cream:
- 1 cup heavy whipping cream
- 1 & 1/2 tbsp dried edible lavender, divided in 3 equal parts
- 1/4 cup confectioner’s sugar, ideally sifted
Instructions
Prep the Cream for the Lavender Whipped Cream:
Put 1/2 cup of the heavy whipping cream in a small saucepan. Heat over medium-low heat. When it starts simmering add 1/2 tablespoon of lavender. Let it simmer for 2 minutes. Remove from heat. Let it cool down to lose steam and then chill in the fridge for at least an hour or while you are making the cake. With the remaining 1/2 cup of heavy whipping cream, add 1/2 tbsp dried lavender, stir to combine and let sit in refrigerator while making the cake.
To Make the Cake:
Preheat oven to 300°F. Grease the sides and bottom of an 8” or 9” springform pan. If you have parchment paper on hand, cut a piece the same size of your pan and line the bottom.
Place a large ceramic or glass bowl over a skillet and fill the skillet half way thru with water. Melt butter in bowl. As soon as butter has melted add the 12 ounces of chocolate chips. Stir until melted. Set aside to cool down.
In the meantime, place the sugar in the bowl of a food processor and add 2 tablespoons of lavender. Pulse various times until most of the lavender has been finely chopped, about 10 pulses of 5 to 8 seconds. The sugar will have a very fine grain. Take care of not pulsing the sugar so much that it pulverizes. Transfer to a large bowl or deep plate and with your hands rub the sugar with the lavender for a couple of minutes. Pass sugar through a sieve to remove uncut lavender buds. Set aside.
Beat the 6 egg whites either using a stand mixer or using a hand electric mixer on medium-high speed just until soft peaks form, about two minutes. Slowly add the lavender sugar while still beating, 1 tablespoon at a time. Beat just until the sugar has fully incorporated and the egg whites are fluffy but still are not on the meringue stage, about a minute. Set aside.
To the now cooled down chocolate, add the 6 egg yolks, vanilla, and the pinch of salt and stir together. Add 1/3 of the sugar-egg whites mixture to the chocolate-egg yolk mixture and very gently stir together. Add 1/3 more of the egg whites and this time gently mix in a folding motion until all the egg whites have incorporated, being careful of not deflating the whites too much. Add the remaining 1/3 of egg whites and repeat.
Pour the cake batter in the springform pan and bake for 45 minutes. Remember that at the end the cake will be tall and puffy but it will deflate and crack on top once you take it out of the oven. Let it cool down completely before releasing from the pan.
You can serve the cake in the bottom of the springform pan, placing it over a nice serving plate to prevent crumbling the cake too much. If you want, try to carefully separate the cake from the parchment paper below using a big silicon spatula or turn the cake upside down into a plate, remove the paper and then turn it over again into your serving plate.
Dust with plenty cocoa powder for serving and spoon some lavender whipped cream on top and some fresh berries if desired.
To make the Lavender Whipped Cream:
Take the 2 chilled cream containers from the fridge and combine both creams. Add the remaining 1/2 tablespoon of lavender. Stir until all lavender buds seem under the cream. Let it sit for 1 minute. Strain the cream. Mix with a stand mixer or hand electric mixer, using the wire attachment to beat in medium speed for about two minutes, until the the cream looks thicker and fuller and wires start to leave some indentation behind. Decrease speed and slowly add sifted confectioners’ sugar while mixing, one or two tablespoons at a time. Return to original speed and beat for 1 more minute, until stiffer and indentations appear to be deeper. Do not over mix or you will end up with butter. Spoon over cake.
Recipe adapted from Dev Amadeo
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