Orange Chocolate Almond Flour Cake

"Mishti mukh karo"  or "have something sweet"...

In India, where my family comes from, every occasion is celebrated with something sweet. Birthdays, anniversaries, promotions- you name it. Beginnings are no different. So, to keep with tradition, my first post on this blog features something sweet. As some of you know, I haven't had a great track record with keeping blogs alive...but then again, none of them had such sweet starts.

This chocolate cake is one of my absolute favorites. This, along with it's cousin the flourless chocolate cake, is my go to dessert. It's easy, it's gluten free, processed sugar free, and it's a total crowd pleaser. Rich enough to have as dessert but simple enough to enjoy with a cup of coffee...you really don't need an excuse to whip this thing up. Recipe below the break!



Recipe:


Step Zero, aka, HULK SMASH!

Usually I make this cake with a mix of unsweetened and semi-sweetened Ghiradelli chocolate chips. This time around we used some left over Lindt Easter Bunnies. Great excuse to channel one's inner Hulk and swing a hammer while yelling "HULK SMASH!!!!"

Round up the usual suspects...err, ingredients: 8 oz. chocolate (usually I use dark, but vary according to taste) 1 orange- zested and juiced 1 cup butter (2 sticks, I use unsalted and cut it into small pieces) 1 cup almond meal (find at Whole Foods, Trader Joes, or pulse your own using a food processor and almonds like I do) 1/2 cup honey 6 eggs (optional glaze)
1/4 cup cocoa powder 2 tbsp butter 2 tbsp milk 2 tbsp honey
Preheat oven to 375 degrees and grease a 9 inch round cakepan.
In a double boiler (if you don't have a double boiler, any non-reactive sauce pan will do, but be careful to scrape the bottom as you stir) over medium heat, melt the butter and the chocolate until it's all one deliciously goopy liquid. Gently stir in the honey, use a heatproof spatula to stir, scraping the bottom of the pan. Stir in orange zest and orange juice, continue stirring until uniformly mixed.
Remove pan from heat but continue gently stirring. Add almond meal and mix well. Almond meal is gluten free, so it's impossible to over mix this cake. Once mixture is cool, switch your spatula for a whisk. Don't skip the cooling step or you'll end up with scrambled eggs in your cake!
Add one egg at a time, whisking vigorously after each addition.

Pour mixture into greased pan and place in oven. Cake will take about 35- 40 minutes but I like to err on the lower side. You want this cake to be moist, almost like one large truffle. It'll be done when a toothpick stuck in the center comes out clean.

You can serve it plain or add the following glaze to the top...warning, this glaze is completely improvised. If you try it and it's too runny, increase your cocoa powder, if it's too chunky, add in some more milk....it's impossible to go wrong with chocolate, milk, and honey so fiddle with it until you like what you have!

In a small bowl or measuring cup, mix two tablespoons of melted butter with 4 tbsp cocoa, 2 tbsp honey, and 2 tbsp milk. Fiddle with the amounts until you have a consistency you like (some prefer a runny glaze, others want more of a frosting texture, whatever...it all tastes good!). Pour glaze onto center of cake and use butter knife to spread. Set glazed cake in fridge to cool until glaze hardens into fudge like consistency.
The last step? Slice and stuff your face. I dare you to stick to your resolve with this one!