CHRISTMAS SPICED CHOCOLATE CAKE

CHRISTMAS SPICED CHOCOLATE CAKE

There are few more popular ways to end a dinner party than with a fallen chocolate cake – the cakes are so called because they are compact and flourless and, when cooling out of the oven, their rich centres drop and dip a little. It is into this dip, not so dramatic as to be called a crater, that you drop or scatter the sticky nut topping.I serve this with Cointreau Cream, made simply by whisking 250ml double cream until softly whipped, whisking in about 45ml of Cointreau (or Triple sec or Grand Marnier, of course) to taste at the end.
- Nigella Lawson

Ingredients

For the cake
150 gram(s) dark chocolate (chopped)
150 gram(s) butter (soft)
6 medium egg(s)
250 gram(s) granulated sugar
1 teaspoon(s) vanilla extract
100 gram(s) ground almonds
1 teaspoon(s) cinnamon sticks
1 pinch of ground cloves
1 zest of clementines
4 teaspoon(s) espresso coffee

For the topping
1 juice of clementines
15 gram(s) butter
1 tablespoon(s) caster sugar
¼ teaspoon(s) cinnamon sticks
50 gram(s) flaked almonds

Method

Take anything you need out of the fridge to bring it to room temperature. The only truly important thing, however, is that the eggs aren’t cold, so if they are, just put them into a bowl (I use the KitchenAid bowl I’m going to whisk them in later) and cover with warm water for 10 minutes.
Preheat the oven to 180°C/gas mark 4. Butter the sides and line the bottom of a 23cm springform tin.

Melt the chocolate and butter together in a heatproof bowl, in a microwave according to the manufacturer’s instructions, or suspended over a pan of simmering water, and set aside to cool slightly.
Beat the eggs, sugar and vanilla together until thick, pale and moussy. They should have at least doubled in volume, even tripled. If you’re using a freestanding mixer, as I do, this is effortless.
Gently fold in the ground almonds, cinnamon, cloves, clementine/satsuma zest and espresso powder, taking care not to lose the air you have whisked in, then, finally, pour and scrape in the melted, slightly cooled, chocolate and butter, folding gently again.
Pour into the prepared tin and bake in the oven for 35–40 minutes, by which time the top of the cake should be firm, and the underneath still a bit gooey.
Remove from the oven, and sit it on a wire rack, draped with a clean tea towel, to cool completely.

To make the topping for the cake, put the clementine/satsuma juice into a small, preferably non-stick, frying pan with the butter, sugar and cinnamon and melt everything together, then let it sizzle for a minute or so and begin to caramelize before adding the almonds.
Stir everything together, and occasionally tip the pan to keep it all moving; what you want is for all the liquid to disappear and the nuts to look shiny and be coated thinly in a fragrant, orange-scented toffee.
Remove to a plate and cool.

Unspring the cake and transfer to a cake stand or plate; I am brave enough to take it off its base sometimes, but don’t if you’re scared. Remember this cake, however intense and elegant within, has a rather ramshackle rustic appearance on the outside.
Scatter with the almonds, mainly letting them pile up in the centre of the cake, but drop a few here and there all over the top. And serve with the cointreau cream.

MAKE AHEAD TIP:
Make the chocolate cake up to 3 days ahead and store in an airtight container. Make the nut mixture and store, on baking parchment, in small airtight container or wrap in a loose “bag” of foil.

FREEZE AHEAD TIP:
Make and freeze the chocolate cake up to 1 month ahead. Thaw overnight in a cool room.