Chocolate Decadence

Happy pre-Valentine’s day!

Nothing screams a love-centered day like chocolate. Today, I’m sharing a dessert with you thatdefinitely matches its name: Chocolate Decadence. Rich, smooth dark chocolate combines with hints of vanilla and orange to create a thick, mousse-like cake. A touch of coffee enhances the depth of the melt-in-your-mouth chocolate flavor. One bite of this can send someone to heaven (ok, that might be a slight exaggeration… but only slight!). If you need to know how it tastes, just look at the name: it’s like biting into the richest and creamiest chocolate you have ever had!

It is best when chilled overnight and then slightly frozen, so this recipe is coming out just in time for you to make it for Valentine’s day! However, this isfantastic for any elegant occasion. This would be a great dinner party dish to impress your guests (or your sweetheart!).

Chocolate Decadence

Adapted fromEating Well

Serves: 10        Serving Size: 1/10 of cake     Calories/Serving: 155

Ingredients:

• 7oz 60-70% bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped (about 1 1/3 cups)
• 1/3c unsweetened natural cocoa powder (not Dutch)
• 2tbl all-purpose flour
• 1/3c and 1/4c. Splenda, divided
• 1/3c sugar
• 1/8 teaspoon salt
• 1/4tsp granulated instant coffee
• 1/2tbl finely grated orange zest
• 1c nonfat milk
• 2 large egg yolks, at room temperature
• 1tsp vanilla extract
• 3 large egg whites, at room temperature
• 1/4tsp cream of tartar
• 2 strawberries, thinly sliced into 10 pieces (optional)

Instructions:

1. Preheat your oven to 350°F. Make sure your rack is at the lower 1/3 area.
   Line the bottom of a 9 inch round metal cake pan with parchment paper and coat the sides of the pan with cooking spray.
   Put a kettle of water on to boil for Step 6.
2. Place chocolate and cocoa powder in a large bowl.
3. Combine flour, 1/3c sugar, 1/3c splenda and salt in a small saucepan. Whisk in a little bit of the milk in order to form a smooth paste. Mix
   in the remaining milk. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly with a
   wooden spoon to prevent burning until the mixture begins to bubble. Boil gently,
   stirring constantly, for 2 minutes or until the mixture is thick (won’t take longer than 2 and 1/2 minutes). Pour the hot mixture immediately over the chocolate and
   cocoa, making sure to get all out it out of the pan. Stir with a spatula until the chocolate is completely melted and smooth, scraping down the sides as needed. The
   batter will be nice and thick. Stir in egg yolks, coffee, orange zest, and vanilla (it is at this point that your kitchen begins to smell AMAZING).
4. In a medium bowl, beat the egg whites and cream of tartar with an electric mixer on high until soft peaks form. Gradually
   sprinkle in the remaining 1/4c splenda, beating on high speed until stiff peaks form.
5. Gently fold about one-fourth of the egg whites into the
   chocolate batter to lighten it. Then fold in the rest of the egg whites, until no white streaks are left and mixture is a lighter brown than before. Scrape the batter into the cake pan.
6. Set the cake pan in a larger baking pan and place on the
   oven rack. Pour enough boiling water into the baking pan to come about halfway up the side of the cake pan (you are essentially creating a water bath). Bake until the surface of
   the cake is slightly crusted and springs back when gently pressed, 20 or so minutes. The cake’s inside will still be gooey.
7. Remove the pans from the oven. Take the cake pan out of the water bath and allow to cool for about 2 hours (it is hard, but resist touching it1!). Cover with plastic wrap
   and refrigerate overnight.
8. This cake can sometimes be a bit tricky to get out. Here is what I did. Set some water to boil.  Soak the blade of a thin knife in a cup of
   very hot water until warm. Slide the knife around the sides of the pan (it is ok if some of the cake comes loose; after all, this cake is very delicate so some might break off). Get a plate, and place wax paper on it. Turn the pan upside-down on the plate. Now, get a kitchen towel you don’t care about and carefully pour the boiling water over it. Place that rag on top of the metal cake pan back, and allow it to sit there for 30 minutes. After 30 minutes, the cake should have separated from the pan by itself. If it hasn’t, repeat the step with another hot rag and let sit for another 30 minutes. Tap the top a few times if you want.
9. Once the cake is out of the pan, take off the parchment paper on top and put in the freezer for about 1 hour before serving. When not frozen, it can be refrigerated (for up to two days). I find it easier to just freeze it and take it out about 20 minutes beforehand, because it is easier to slice that way and I think it tastes amazing cold (the chocolate flavor is more pronounced). To slice it, dip a sharp knife in hot water and wipe it dry before cutting each
   slice.If wanted, garnish with strawberry slices.