Allow me to introduce you to my favorite recipe for the flourless chocolate cake. It is the real thing. No gluten. No extra spices or flavorings. No added sugar. No extra ganache needed on top. Just a fabulously rich, decadent chocolate cake that will leave you and your friends swooning.

And the best part is….there are only THREE ingredients.

My kind of cake. :)

And after watching it disappear with a few groups of friends this weekend, I think it’s everyone’s kind of cake!

Flourless Chocolate Cake Recipe
(Adapted from Cooks Illustrated)

Ingredients:

• 8 large eggs, cold
• 1 lb. semisweet (or bittersweet) chocolate, coarsely chopped
• 16 Tbsp. (2 sticks) unsalted butter, cut into 16 pieces
• optional toppings: powdered sugar and/or berries

Method:

Adjust an oven rack to the lower-middle position and heat the oven to 325 degrees. Line the bottom of an 8-inch springform pan with parchment paper or waxed paper and grease the sides of the pan. (Be sure to grease the sides really well!) Wrap the outside of the pan with 2 sheets of heavy-duty aluminum foil and set it in a large roasting pan. Bring a kettle or pot of water to boil.

In a stand mixer using the whisk attachment, beat the eggs at high speed until the volume doubles (about 5 minutes).

Meanwhile, melt the chocolate and butter together. You can either do this on the stove (by placing the chocolate and butter in a large heatproof bowl, set over a pan of almost-simmering water until smooth and very warm – about 115 degrees on an instant-read thermometer – stirring occasionally. Or you can do this in the microwave (by heating the chocolate in a microwave-safe bowl at 50% power for 2 minutes, then stirring, the adding the butter, and continuing to heat at 50% power and stir in 1-minute intervals until the mixture is well-melted and smooth). Then fold about a third of the beaten eggs into the chocolate mixture using a large rubber spatula until only a few streaks of egg are visible. Fold in half of the remaining egg foam, and then the last half of the foam, until the mixture is totally homogenous.

Scrape the batter into the prepared springform pan and smooth the surface with a rubber spatula. Place the roasting pan on the oven rack and pour in enough boiling water to come about halfway up the sides of the springform pan. Bake until the cake has risen slightly, the edges are just beginning to set, a thin-glazed crust (like a brownie) has formed on the surface, and an instant-read thermometer inserted halfway into the center reads 140° F, 22-25 minutes. Remove the springform pan from the water bath and set on a wire rack; cool to room temperature. Cover and refrigerate overnight to mellow and firm. (The cake can be refrigerated for up to 4 days.)

About 3o minutes prior to serving, carefully remove the sides of the springform pan, invert the cake onto a sheet of waxed paper, peel off the parchment paper, and reinvert the cake onto a serving platter. If desired, lightly dust the cake with powdered sugar and top with berries. To slice, use a sharp, thin-bladed knife, dipping the knife into a pitcher of hot water and wiping the blade before each cut.

Ali’s Tip:

Feel free to experiment with different types of chocolate for this recipe! I imagine different variations of dark chocolate would be wonderful too!