Heavenly chocolate cake
Serves 6-8

Gluten-free, wheat-free, sugar-free, yeast-free, soya-free, peanut-free, corn-free, vegetarian, lactose-free

 

This is my favourite chocolate cake of all times. It’s simply heavenly. I often make it when we have guests as it never lets me, or the guests, down.

 

Cake

100 g plain xylitol chocolate

150 ml double cream

75 g xylitol

3 large eggs

50 g ground almonds

1 tsp vanilla extract

 

Topping

100 ml double cream

75 g xylitol

100 g plain xylitol chocolate

1 tsp vanilla extract

 

1. Pre-heat the oven to 160C/325F/gas mark 3. Line a 20 cm round spring-form cake tin with non-stick baking paper.

2. Put the chocolate for the cake in a heat-proof bowl together with the cream, vanilla extract and 50 g of xylitol. Balance the bowl over a saucepan which has some water in it. Heat gently to melt the chocolate. Stir occasionally.

3. When the mixture is smooth, take the bowl off the saucepan and stir in the ground almonds. Set aside.

4. Take another bowl and whisk the eggs and 25 g of xylitol with an electric whisk until their volume has tripled.

5. Fold the whisked eggs and xylitol into the chocolate mixture. Use a metal spoon.

6. Pour the cake mixture into the baking tin and put it in the oven for about 25 minutes.

7. Meanwhile, make the topping. Put all the ingredients in a heat-proof bowl. Balance the bowl over a saucepan which has some water in it and heat gently. Stir occasionally.

8. When the mixture is smooth, take the bowl off the saucepan and set aside to cool to room temperature.

9. When the cake is ready, take it from the oven and let it cool in the tin.

10. After the cake has cooled, place it on a serving plate and spread the topping over it. The topping will set better if you put the cake in a refrigerator for an hour or two.

 

* Substitutions

If you want to make this cake lactose-free, use Lactofree cream instead of ordinary double cream.

 

Serving ideas

Serve on its own or with Vanilla cream and raspberries.

 

Try something different

If you prefer your chocolate cake less dark, use xylitol-sweetened No Added Sugar Alternative to Milk Chocolate or fructose-sweetened milk chocolate instead of plain xylitol chocolate (see the Chocolate section for more details).


  
Chocolate is the answer. Who cares what the question is.

- Author unknown