“What’s the occasion?” That’s the common reaction to wearing a new outfit, flaunting a new hairstyle or using the “good dishes.” My family knows something is up if I serve freshly baked cookies, a picture-perfect fruit tart or an elaborate chocolate cake for dessert.
The “occasion” usually is any cause for celebration, anything that brings together family and friends. It could be a birthday or an anniversary, but just as easily it could be a job promotion, a good report card or a bon voyage.
All a small, sometimes last-minute gathering needs to make it exceptional is a simple meal followed by a special dessert. After rounds of “l’chaim” and exchanges of “mazel tov,” everyone at the table can dig in to the meal, knowing that something sweetly special is waiting as the finale.
Flo Braker’s Fabulous Flourless Chocolate Torte
Serves 12
Cake:
4 oz. unsalted butter cut into 1⁄2-inch slices
4 oz. semisweet chocolate, coarsely chopped
2⁄3 cup granulated sugar
finely grated zest of 1 orange
1 Tbs. Grand Marnier
3 large eggs
11⁄2 cups (6 oz.) walnuts, finely ground
Glaze:
3 oz. unsalted butter cut into 1⁄4-inch slices
6 oz. bittersweet chocolate, coarsely chopped
1 Tbs. honey
Decoration:
3 walnut halves, lightly toasted
edible gold leaf, optional
Before baking, center a rack in the oven and preheat to 375 degrees. Butter
8-by-2-inch round cake pan, then flour it, tapping out the excess flour. Line the bottom with parchment.
To make cake, in a small heavy saucepan, melt the butter and chocolate over very low heat, stirring with a silicone spatula until smooth. Transfer mixture to a large bowl. While it’s still warm, add sugar, orange zest and liqueur and stir to mix. Let cool five minutes. Stir in eggs 1 at a time, blending in thoroughly after each addition. Stir in the ground nuts. Pour the batter into the prepared pan. Bake until cake feels soft in the center, about 25 minutes. Do not overbake. The chocolate becomes firm as it cools. Transfer to a wire rack and cool 15-20 minutes.
Tilt and rotate the pan while gently tapping it on the counter to release the cake sides. Cover with a sturdy round of cardboard, invert the cake onto it and lift off the pan. Peel off the parchment liner and discard it. Let cake cool completely.
To make glaze, half fill a bowl with hot water (120 degrees). Put the butter and chocolate in a 1-qt. bowl and place it over the hot water. Stir occasionally with a rubber spatula until the mixture is smooth, shiny and liquid. Remove the bowl from over the hot water, and gently stir in honey. Use the glaze right away before it begins to set.
Place the cake on its cardboard round on a work surface. Using a metal icing spatula, apply a thin coating of glaze over the top and sides of the cake. This will hide imperfections and allow the glaze to flow more smoothly over the cake. Place the cake still on its cardboard round on a wire rack over a rimmed baking sheet. Pour the glaze onto center of cake, and gently tilt it to help the glaze flow over the top and down the sides. Set on another rack or serving plate. When the glaze has set, place the 3 walnut halves on the top of the cake, placing them in the center in the shape of a triangle. If desired, using a small, clean sable paintbrush, apply tiny pieces of gold leaf, or small dabs of gold leaf randomly, on the top of the cake.
Louise Fiszer is a Palo Alto cooking teacher, author and the co-author of “Jewish Holiday Cooking.” Her columns alternate with those of Faith Kramer. Questions and recipe ideas can be sent to j. or to [email protected].