Video
Flourless Chocolate Hazelnut Torte
Tender, melt-in-your-mouth chocolate hazelnut cake with complex flavor from roasted hazelnuts and dark chocolate. It's gluten-free by nature since it is a flourless cake and it's topped with Nutella whipped cream. This cake is sure to impress at your next dinner party!
Ingredients
Chocolate Hazelnut Cake Batter:
- 7 oz (200g) dark chocolate (ideally 60-70% cocoa), coarsely chopped
- ½ cup (113g) unsalted butter
- 5 large eggs, at room temperature
- ¾ cup (150g) granulated sugar, divided
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 1 ⅔ cups (165g) ground roasted hazelnuts
- ½ teaspoon pure vanilla extract optional
Nutella Whipped Cream:
- ¾ cup (180ml) 35% heavy whipping cream
- 2 teaspoon skim milk powder
- 1 teaspoon (4g) granulated sugar
- 2 teaspoon (4g) cocoa powder (I prefer this Dutch cocoa or this one)
- 2 tablespoon (30ml) Nutella or other chocolate hazelnut spread
Topping:
- cocoa powder for dusting
- chopped roasted hazelnuts
- dark chocolate curls
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 350°F. Lightly butter the sides of an 8-inch round non-stick springform pan and line the base with a round of parchment paper.
- Combine chocolate and butter in a heatproof bowl set over a saucepan with ½-inch of barely simmering water and stir until melted and smooth. Set aside to cool for 10 minutes.
- Prepare the hazelnuts. Place 165g roasted skinned hazelnuts in a food processor and pulse until they are very fine and resemble bread crumbs. See notes in the article above for how to roast and skin your hazelnuts.
- Make the cake batter. Separate 4 of the eggs. Place the whites in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment (or in a large bowl if using a handheld mixer). Place the yolks in another large bowl and set aside. Beat the egg whites on medium speed for about 3 minutes until they reach soft peaks. Gradually beat in ¼ cup (50g) of sugar until they hold firm peaks. If using your stand mixer, you will need this bowl again so transfer these whipped egg whites to another bowl and set aside.
- Add the one whole egg, ½ cup (100g) sugar and salt to the bowl with the 4 egg yolks (or combine everything together in the stand mixer bowl that had the egg whites in it) and beat on high speed for 5 minutes until very pale yellow and thick. The mixture should reach the ribbon stage, so that it falls back on itself in billowy folds. Gently fold in cooled chocolate mixture and ground hazelnuts.
- Gently fold the whipped egg whites into the chocolate mixture in 3 batches using a spatula until combined. Pour the batter into your prepared pan and smooth out the surface. Bake for 25-30 minutes until it puffs up and feels firm to the touch. Turn off the oven and leave the cake inside with the door closed for 10 minutes. It will crack at the surface and should not be wobbly in the center when ready, but trust that it will be fudgy and moist once cooled. Transfer pan to a wire rack to finish cooling. It will collapse slightly.
- Make the topping. Combine cream, skim milk powder, sugar and cocoa powder in a large bowl and beat until it reaches soft peaks. Add the chocolate hazelnut spread and beat until it is smooth and forms firm peaks. Spread it over the cooled cake, dust generously with cocoa powder and top with chopped roasted hazelnuts and chocolate curls before serving.
