Flourless Chocolate Hazelnut Cake

Who doesn’t love chocolate? No one I hope. Luckily, it is the school holidays and I have somehow managed to upload another recipe post – on chocolate.

So today I wanted to talk about my life as a fifteen year old girl. On a usual school day, we wake up and have breakfast (obviously). Then we go to our classes where we listen (although not all the time), learn and do work. However, out of everything that happens at school, the best part is when we see people who make us feel alive. I might be the only person who feels this way, and I am most likely the first person to say that l actually enjoy school.

Everyone is extremely witty, smart, genuine, funny and kind, so usually in the morning, before classes start, there are people who you talk to that have the ability to brighten your day. During these conversations, you laugh at silly things, you smile and I guess you feel happy.

Even in class when you’re doing work with the person next to you; having the opportunity to fill them in on your weekend, let out what’s annoying you or share your story on how you might be having a bad day at school (we all have these from time to time), is honestly the best feeling. These people simply listen and they make you feel like there’s not a worry in the world. Other brilliant moments are when someone manages to create a pun or joke from the content we’re learning, and when it’s not even funny, you simply laugh.

I often ask myself, what’s the purpose in life? I don’t know if there’s a proper or even correct answer to that question, but I guess, in general, you’re meant to feel happy. At school, happiness is created through the people, the environment and the conversations. If you haven’t found anything that makes you feel happy yet, you eventually will – because I always say that everyone is destined to do something amazing in their life. In fact, even though we don’t realise it, we all do something amazing every day, whether it’s for ourselves or for other people.

Baking also makes me feel happy, so these flourless chocolate hazelnut cakes (I know it is a very long name) are moist and have a wonderful, rich flavour. I topped these with dark chocolate shards, white chocolate, caramelised nuts, and fresh raspberries. They are also delicious with chocolate ganache or simply on their own – it’s completely customisable. So I baked these in mini loaf pans (found here), but you can use a 20cm pan or two 10cm pans to create a layered cake.

To end with, I know that happiness may be a hard thing to define as it can mean different things for different people, but we should all, at some time in our lives, feel genuinely happy. There is also this quote known as “the 3 C’s of life” (unfortunately chocolate is not included in the trio), and it goes like this:

“The 3 C’s of life: Choices, chances, changes. You must make a choice to take a chance or your life will never change”.

We are all faced with choices and some may be easier than others, but when most people make decisions, they often choose the one they have to pick, not the one they want to pick. The hardest thing is not knowing what will happen after you make the choice.

Then there are people out there who may influence you to make a certain decision, simply because it is the better, safer and easier option – but they’re not the ones making the decision, you are. Sometimes the option that may seem like the biggest risk or craziest idea at the time, can often be the best one. If you take a risk, try new things and step out of your comfort zone, you will change, grow and something amazing might happen to you.

Flourless Chocolate Hazelnut Cake

Makes 8 mini loaf cakes or a 20cm cake.

Ingredients

• 200g dark chocolate (see notes for more details)
• 150 butter, chopped
• 6 eggs separated
• 2/3 cup caster sugar
• 1 ½ cups hazelnut meal

Method

1. Preheat oven to 170°C/150°C fan-forced. Grease cake pan (mini loaf pan, 20cm pan or 2x10cm pan). Line base and side with baking paper.
2. Combine chocolate and butter in a small saucepan over low heat. Stir until melted. Set aside to cool slightly.
3. Place egg yolks and sugar in a bowl. Using an electric mixer, beat until thick and creamy. Add chocolate mixture. Beat to combine. Add hazelnut meal. Beat to combine.
4. Place egg whites in a bowl. Using an electric mixer, beat until soft peaks form. Using a metal spoon, stir one-third of egg whites into chocolate mixture. Gently fold remaining egg white through chocolate mixture.
5. Pour mixture into prepared pan. Bake for 30 minutes in mini loaf pans or  for 1 hour in 20cm pan. Stand in pan for 10 minutes. Turn out onto a wire rack to cool.
6. Decorate with ganache, chocolate shards, raspberries or caramelised decorations, then eat and enjoy.

NOTES: If you want a very rich cake – use 200g of 70% dark chocolate. I like to use 50g of Cadbury Dark Chocolate 70% cocoa solids (Old Gold) and 150g of Cadbury dark chocolate original (this is only 45% cocoa solids). You can use 200g of Cadbury dark chocolate original for a less rich cake.

Click here to learn how to make caramelised decorations.
Cake recipe adapted from Taste.