Chocolate

Dark chocolate and almond cake

8
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Nothing beats a square of this rich, gooey kladdkaka, a dark chocolate and almond cake recipe from Sweden. Enjoy it washed down with a cortado – a Spanish coffee that consists of equal parts espresso and warm milk (often steamed, but not too frothy).

Almonds are fantastic for our wellbeing and are bursting with skin-friendly nutrients, such as vitamin E. Nuts can be expensive to buy in small packets from the supermarket, so Liz recommends buying whole almonds online in bulk. Not only does this work out cheaper, it also means you’ve always got a handful of almonds for a delicious wellbeing snack.

Ingredients

  • 120g unsalted butter
  • 240g caster sugar
  • 2 large eggs
  • 1 tsp vanilla bean paste
  • 4 tbsp cocoa powder, sifted
  • 100g ground almonds
  • 1 tsp blood orange zest
  • 2 tbsp flaked almonds
  • 1 orange, zest, to garnish

Method

  1. Grease and line a 20cm x 20cm square tin. Preheat your oven to 190°C/375°F/gas mark 5.
  2. In a saucepan, melt the butter and leave to cool. In a mixing bowl, whisk together the sugar, eggs and vanilla bean paste for 3-4 minutes until light and fluffy. The mixture should hold its shape for a couple of seconds when you trail the whisk across the surface.
  3. Gently fold in the cocoa powder, ground almonds and orange zest until just incorporated. Finally, add the cool, melted butter and mix again until you have a thickish batter. Pour the mixture into the prepared tin and sprinkle over the flaked almonds.
  4. Bake for 20-25 mins. It will puff up a little and there should be a very slight wobble in the centre, even though the sides are firm. Allow the cake to cool slightly then remove from the tin and decorate with the orange zest. Cut into squares to serve.