French Chocolate Cake with Raspberry Coulis

Serves 10-12

This is typical of a French homemade cake – dense, dark, and delicious. The texture is very different from a sponge cake and is excellent served with cream or fruit coulis.

Ingredients

• ¾ C superfine sugar, plus some for sprinkling

• 10 oz semisweet chocolate, chopped

• ¾ C unsalted butter, cut into pieces

• 2 t vanilla extract

• 5 eggs, separated

• ¼ C flour, sifted

• Pinch of salt

• Confectioner’s sugar, for dusting

Raspberry Coulis

• ½ C sugar

• 3 T water

• 1lb fresh raspberries or 1 (12 ounce) bag frozen raspberries, thawed

• 1 t kirsch (optional) or 1 t framboise eau-de-vie (optional)

Instructions 

CAKE

Preheat the oven to 325F. Generously butter a 9 ½ inch springform pan, then sprinkle pan with a little sugar and tap out the excess.

Set aside 3 tablespoons of the sugar. Place the chocolate, butter and remaining sugar in a heavy saucepan and cook over low heat until the chocolate and butter have melted and the sugar has dissolved. Remove the pan from the heat, stir in the vanilla extract and let the mixture cool slightly.

Beat the egg yolks into the chocolate mixture, beating each in well, the stir in the flour.

In a clean grease free bowl, using an electric mixer, beat the egg whites slowly until they frothy. Increase the speed, add the salt and continue beating until soft peaks form. Sprinkle over the reserved sugar and beat until the whites are stiff and glossy. Beat one-third of the whites into the chocolate mixture, then fold in the remaining whites.

Carefully pour the mixture into the pan and tap the pan gently to release any air bubbles.

Bake the cake for 35-45 minutes until well risen and the top springs back when touched lightly with fingertip. (If the cake appears to rise unevenly, rotate after 20-25 minutes.) Transfer the cake to a wire rack, remove the sides of the pan and let cool completely. Remove the pan base. Dust the cake with confectioner’s sugar and transfer to a serving plate.

COULIS

Heat the sugar and water in a small saucepan over medium heat, stirring from time to time, until the sugar dissolves completely, about 5 minutes.

Put the raspberries and the sugar syrup in a blender and puree.

Strain through a fine mesh sieve to remove the seeds and stir in the kirsch or framboise, if using.

The sauce keeps well, tightly covered, in the refrigerator for 4-5 days and freezes perfectly for several months.