A flourless chocolate torte puts the chocolate flavor front and center. There is no flour to dilute it and not enough sugar to overpower it.
The texture is fudge-y and sturdy, while somehow seemingly light at delicate at the same time. A recipe like this is basically the same as a flourless chocolate cake, essentially interchangeable.
Once the chocolate torte is removed from the oven, the center collapses (as intended), making a well in the center that is begging to be filled with whipped cream, a chocolate ganache, or in this case, strawberries.
Jump to:
Recipe
Equipment
- 1 8x4 or 9x5 loaf pan May have to cook 5 minutes longer in a smaller pan.
Ingredients
Chocolate torte
- ⅓ cup butter 76 grams
- 3 ounces chocolate 85 grams, dark or bittersweet bar (not chocolate chips)
- 2 large eggs, separated
- ¼ cup packed brown sugar 55 grams (light or dark)
- 2 tablespoon white granulated sugar 24 grams
- ⅛ teaspoon cream of tartar see notes for substitutions
- ⅛ teaspoon kosher salt
Roasted strawberries
- 1 lb fresh strawberries see note for garden fresh vs store-bought
- 2 tablespoon white granulate sugar
- 2 tablespoon lemon juice
- ⅛ teaspoon vanilla extract add after roasting
Optional
- cocoa powder or powdered sugar for dusting
Instructions
Prep work
- Preheat the oven to 350℉. Lightly grease a 9x5 (or 8x4) loaf pan and line it with parchment paper, allowing the paper to come up 2 of the sides (this helps pull the torte out of the pan).
- Separate the egg yolks and egg whites.
Make the chocolate batter
- In a large bowl, whisk together the egg yolks and brown sugar until the color starts to pale (see post for photos). This is easily done by hand and takes about a minute.
- Cut the butter into small cubes and chop the chocolate (this helps them melt faster). Fill a small pan with an inch or two of water and heat until almost simmering. Place a heat proof bowl over the top and add in the butter and chocolate. Stir until fully melted, then remove the bowl from the heat. (This method prevents the chocolate from overheating, which can ruin it's texture and make the fat separate out).
- Pour the chocolate mixture into the bowl with the egg yolks & brown sugar. Whisk until smooth and incorporated.
Whip the egg whites
- In a stand mixer with the whisk attachment or with a hand-beater, beat the egg whites, sugar, cream of tartar, and salt (on medium-high speed). It will start out foamy, then form soft peaks, then stiff peaks. Whip until it reaches firm peaks (it holds it's shape while the top weeps slightly over).
- Look at your bowl of chocolate batter - if it's stiffened from cooling, re-stir it until it's soft again.
- Scoop half of the whipped egg whites into the bowl with the chocolate batter. Gently fold in until mostly incorporated. (Don't stir or beat it - the idea is to gently fold it so the egg whites keep the air we just whipped into them). Then add the remaining egg whites and fold in until fully incorporated and white streaks are gone.
- Pour the batter into the prepared pan. Level it out, smoothing out the stop.
Bake the chocolate torte for 20-25 minutes at 350℉
- Bake the torte for 20-25 minutes. The torte will puff up and the top might crack (that's intended). The center should be between 185℉ and 205℉ (the lower temperature will have a softer center). Meanwhile, prepare the strawberries for roasting.
- Remove the torte from the oven and let cool in the pan for 10 minutes. The center will deflate within 1 minute - this is expected!! After 10 minutes, you can lift it out with the parchment paper handles and it will keep its shape.
Roast the strawberries
- While the chocolate torte is baking, prepare the strawberries. Wash them, cut the tops off, then cut in half or in quarters (depending on how big they are).
- On a small sheet pan, mix the cut strawberries with the lemon juice and sugar. (I do this right on the pan, rather then using another clean bowl). Spread the strawberries out and set aside until the torte is done.
- Once the torte is removed from the oven, place the tray of strawberries in at the same temperature. Bake for 15 minutes - they will turn soft, and the lemon juice & sugar will turn syrupy.
- Remove from oven, stir in the vanilla extract, and let cool. (Don't add the extra early, because the flavor bakes off when exposed to the heat).
Serve the chocolate torte with strawberries
- When ready to serve, top the torte with strawberries. Cut until slices, and serve.
Notes
Nutrition
The method I use in this recipe for making this type of a flourless chocolate torte is actually from the Bake from Scratch magazine, which is why it's no surprise it turns out so well. They have a recipe that they call a flourless chocolate cake (basically interchangeable!), using a loaf pan.
I liked that it made a small number of servings, so I used that recipe as a base and adapted it from there.
Does the type of chocolate matter?
For some types of recipes, you can save some money and buy any type of chocolate. But a flourless chocolate torte really benefits from good tasting, high quality chocolate.
That's because the flavor isn't diluted by flour, overpowered by too much sugar, or masked by other flavors. For a little insider tip, skip the baking bars in the baking aisle and look at the fancy chocolate bars in the snack aisle instead.
The chocolate bar should be tasty on its own, not bland or waxy. Look for a bar with a high cocoa percentage and few additives. Theo dark chocolate bars are my go-to for a recipe like this. They don't have any added soy lecithin (an emulsifier).
Serious Eats has an incredibly helpful article about the best chocolate bars for baking, ranging from milk chocolate to extra dark. Their favorites are Theo, Green & Black, Equal Exchange, and Chocolove - all of these would be great to use for this chocolate torte recipe.
Don't use chocolate chips, which are waxy and not what you're looking for in this recipe. Also avoid "candy coating" discs, which are also waxy and don't taste great.
Fresh vs roasted strawberries
Have you ever noticed a majority of strawberry recipes minimally cook the strawberries, if at all? While other fruits get sweeter, less bitter, or develop caramel flavors when cooked, strawberries don't.
That's because a strawberry's flavor is at its absolute best when picked ripe and uncooked. Research shows that strawberries, in particular, lose a lot of their flavor when exposed to heat.
One of the major categories of compounds that contribute to a strawberry's flavor are esters. They make up about 43% of the organic volatile compounds, and they have a very low boiling point. It's even lower than alcohol, which means those flavors cook off very quickly.
When to use fresh strawberries
If you have garden ripe strawberries (or a good source from the farmers market), that are soft, juicy, and bursting with flavor... just cut them in half and add them to the top of the chocolate torte.
They will already be soft enough to cut through with a fork, and sweet and tart enough to balance out the bitter chocolate notes.
When to use roasted strawberries
Large supermarket strawberries are usually very firm and lacking in flavor. (Farmers market strawberries can be this way as well, or they can be perfect. It depends on the farmer and the weather.)
These types of strawberries are picked too early and lacking a good flavor and texture, so they do benefit from cooking, which is why I turned to roasting.
I mix them with some lemon juice and sugar to add some tart and sweet flavors in (that they should have had in the first place). As an added benefit, it makes a syrupy juice that delightfully coats the strawberries.
If you want to be really fancy, add ⅛th teaspoon of rose water after you remove them from the oven. It adds a touch of their floral notes in, that are missing when they are picked too early.
You can follow the direction from my roasted strawberries recipe, and leave the oven at 350.
Making the chocolate torte
Tortes are made with little to no flour, sometimes using a nut flour instead. This makes the texture denser and heavier than a typical light-fluffy cake. Chocolate tortes made without flour are fudge-y with a rich chocolate flavor that's hard to match in a regular chocolate cake.
The trick to getting the texture of a flourless chocolate torte just right, is to add whipped egg whites into the batter. Whipping the egg whites incorporates air into them, which add height when baking, and helps create that iconic crackled crust.
Once it's removed from the oven, the center collapses, creating a little boat on top of the chocolate torte. It seemed like a wasted opportunity to not fill it with something - like whipped cream, a chocolate ganache, or in this case, strawberries.
Let's go through each step, with pictures, so you can get this right on the first try!
Step 1: Whisk the egg yolks and sugar to add air
The egg yolks and brown sugar are whisked until it turns pale in color. It lightens in color as air is incorporated into the mixture.
Air is a key 'ingredient' for a flourless chocolate torte, because there isn't flour to give it structure or baking powder to make it rise. Instead, we use air as the structure to give it some height.
Step 2: Melt the chocolate & butter
Chocolate is often melted in a double boiler, which is super easy to do at home with what you already own.
You take a heat proof bowl (like metal or glass), and sit it on top of a smaller pan with simmering water. See an example of this from Bon Appetit. The steam from the water heats the bowl, gently, melting the chocolate and butter together.
Is this really necessary? Technically, no. But practically, yes. It's the most fool-proof way to melt the chocolate. A microwave can overheat it, which can cause the chocolate to separate out the fat, causing a greasy mess.
Step 3: Combine chocolate & egg yolk mixtures
Once the chocolate and butter are melted and mixed together, pour it into the bowl with the egg yolks and brown sugar. Gently mix it together, trying to keep the air incorporated (aggressively stirring can deflate the airy batter).
Step 4: whip egg whites to firm peaks
Next, we're essentially creating a meringue, but don't let that intimidate you!
To do that, whip the egg whites, sugar, cream of tartar and salt in a stand mixer (or hand mixer) on medium high. This step is necessary to add more air into our flourless chocolate torte.
Cream of tartar and sugar both help stabilize the whipped air. King Arthur explains more in their article, What is cream of tartar and do I really need it to whip egg whites?
"While sugar helps stabilize those whipped egg whites as you beat more air into it, there’s still a risk of collapse. Cream of tartar is an added safeguard; it gives more stability to that foam structure."
The main reason cream of tartar stabilizes the whipped egg whites is because of its acidic nature. If you don't have cream of tartar, you can use a 1:1 replacement with lemon juice or even vinegar, according to King Arthur Baking.
Lastly, don't add extra cream of tartar, because it can impart a metallic, tinny flavor.
Whip the egg whites until they have firm peaks. What is that? It's when you remove the whisk and turn it upside down and the egg whites hold their shape but the peak folds over at the tip. Stiff peaks hold their shape without the tip flipping over (and that stage is also fine for this recipe).
The Kitchn has a helpful visual guide of soft, firm, stiff, and overwhipped egg whites. Don't overwhip them, or they can turn grainy.
Step 5: Fold whipped egg whites into the batter
The important thing at this point is to keep the air in the batter - you don't want to deflate it.
First, make sure the chocolate batter is still smooth and creamy, and that it hasn't stiffened up enough that it might be hard to fold in the egg whites. If it has stiffened, give it a few stirs to soften it back up.
Then gently fold in half of the whipped egg whites. It will look like it doesn't want to mix in, but keep carefully folding (not aggressively stirring). When it's almost incorporated, you can add in the remaining egg whites and fold it all together until fully mixed.
Pour the chocolate torte batter into the prepared loaf pan. It will only fill about an inch up the sides.
Step 6: Bake torte for 20-25 minutes at 350F
Bake the chocolate torte for about 20-25 minutes - the top will look dried out and will probably crack (but not always). The center will be between 185-205F. It will be softer and fudgier on the lower end of that temperature range. I baked one until it was 207F and it will still dense, fudgy, and delicious.
If you don't have an instant-read thermometer, I suggest getting one. I have the one from Thermapen, which is the gold standard (but also pricey). That said, I've gone through cheaper ones that break down, so it's up to you.
In short, an instant read thermometer has changed my baking for the better. I never have overcooked brownies, undercooked banana bread, or wonder if the crumbs clinging to a toothpick indicated doneness or not. It's a game-changer in the best way, and worth every penny.
More recipes & resources
If you love a good chocolate torte, I have some other recipes for you to check out. They might also be called flourless chocolate cakes, because they are essentially the same thing.
- A similar chocolate torte, but it fits in a 9" springfoam pan, from Joy of Baking
- A chocolate torte with almond flour and some brandy, from Annika Eats
- A flourless chocolate cake with bourbon-soaked cherries and chipotle, from Grill Girl
- A flourless chocolate cake topped with a chocolate meringue, from Olive & Mango
And finally, you can find a flourless chocolate cake bakeoff from The Pancake Princess.
If you're looking for more chocolate desserts in summer, try this chocolate cherry tart with a layer of ganache on a french cookie crust.
More strawberry recipes
Strawberries pair well with more than just chocolate. Try one of these recipes while strawberries are in season.
If you're wondering what else is currently in season, check out my calendars to see what produce is in season each month (and coming up soon).
Leave a Reply