This bittersweet chocolate torte comes from heaven. Heaven at the time was a small café in Tuscany Italy where we ordered coffee and innocently picked up the menu. Torta di Cioccolato–we’d like to try that. One bite and, OMG–this is incredible, I think I’ve died and gone to heaven, I must have this recipe!
In heaven angels not only bring espresso and dessert, they bring you dessert recipes. When I asked what was in the divine chocolate torta, our server returned from the kitchen in 3 minutes bearing a handwritten recipe.
Blessed and chocolate-intense, made with four simple ingredients–dark chocolate, unsalted butter, eggs and organic cane sugar—this flourless bittersweet chocolate torte takes just 30 minutes to put together. Turn on the oven, melt the chocolate and butter, prep the pan, whip egg whites and yolks with sugar, fold everything together and pop in the oven. Heavenly easy.
Serve your bittersweet chocolate torte naked—no whipped cream, no sauce—the same way they serve it in the shady outoor Tuscan cafe. Come to think of it, we were practically naked when we sat down to torta di cioccolato bliss, with hair still wet from bathing in the village’s Fosso Bianco thermal pools.
Bittersweet Chocolate Torte recipe details:
- On grid paper in script, the original recipe calls for 300 grams of sugar for one torte. I’ve reduced that original amount by half. (2/3 cup is about 150 grams.) That sounds drastic, huh? Maybe, but the vote around here is for less sugar, especially with quality chocolate. For a sweeter (and slightly more gooey) torte, go with 1 cup sugar; whip ½ cup with the yolks, and ½ cup with the whites. This chocolate torta is so addicting you’ll be baking it more than just one time–so experiment with both amounts of sugar.
- Choose the best quality dark chocolate you can afford—the better the chocolate, the more heavenly (and costly) the torte. Our angel server said the pastry chef uses Perugina 70% cacao “fondante.”
- Here in the US, Callebaut 70% bittersweet (affiliate link) and Guittard 70% (affiliate link) are both good choices and easy to buy on Amazon. (Affiliate links.) Most recently I made this torte with an exquisite handcrafted bean-to-bar 70% from the new Ritual Chocolate factory here in Park City. Trader Joe’s 72 % cacao dark chocolate is OK—but for this recipe the flavor of their regular dark chocolate is better.
- You’ll need a 2 x 9-inch cake pan because the batter rises to the very top before deflating. If you only have short cake pans, divide the batter in half, for 2 very short (thin) cakes.
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P.S. You might want to try these heavenly vegan Chocolate Truffles made with coconut oil and dark chocolate.
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Bittersweet Chocolate Torte
Ingredients
- 4 ounces unsalted butter
- 10 ounces bittersweet chocolate (70%), chopped
- 6 eggs , separated
- ⅔ cup organic cane sugar, 1/3 cup for whipping egg yolk and 1/3 cup for the egg whites
- 1 tablespoon cocoa powder , optional
- 1 teaspoon powdered sugar , optional
Instructions
- Brush a 9 x 2-inch round cake pan with melted butter or spray generously with cooking spray. Line the bottom of the pan with parchment paper. Preheat oven to 340° F.
- Melt butter and chocolate in a large bowl on top of a pot of barely simmering water. Set aside but keep warm.
- In a clean bowl with a clean whip, whip the egg whites on medium speed until foamy. Continue beating, gradually drizzling in the first 1/3 cup of sugar until the peaks are almost firm, yet tip over just a bit. Do not whip until the egg whites are dry.
- Transfer to a bowl and set aside.
- Beat the egg yolks with the remaining sugar in the mixing bowl until the eggs are very thick and pale yellow and the mixture falls from the beaters like a “ribbon.”
- Fold the yolks into the butter and chocolate mixture. Gently fold in the egg whites.
- Pour into the prepared pan.
- Bake 20 to 25 minutes, until the torte is just set in the middle. The cake will rise to the top of the pan and deflate as it cools. Let cool in the pan about 2 hours.
- Gently invert onto a cardboard or something flat. (I use the bottom of a springform pan.) Remove the parchment paper and immediately re-invert onto a serving platter. Using a fine sieve, dust lightly with cocoa powder. If you wish, cover the center 6 ½-7 inches with something round and dust a white powdered sugar outer ring.
This sounds fabulous. Great pictures. What a fun story too. · 1 June, 2015
Oh thank you all– this is one yummy torta that is for sure! · 1 June, 2015
Your travels are always delicious. Great get with this recipe. GREG · 1 June, 2015
This is absolutely stunning Letty – I love the way you decorated with cocoa and confectioners’ sugar! · 1 June, 2015
Thanks Jane. When you make it–IG it! · 1 June, 2015
Do you think a springform pan would work? · 2 June, 2015
Ginny: A 9″springform pan will be perfect! · 2 June, 2015