chocolate truffle tart

Well I’m sure the author of this cake, Tessa Kiros, doesn’t call it Ludo’s Cake, but after one bite I couldn’t think of it as anything else. It tasted just like Ludo’s breakfast.

When I was a nanny in Rome my mamma italiana, Paola, would make a gluten free cake for lovely little Ludo (not so little anymore at 18! Time flies!). A cup of tea and a slice of cake would be breakfast for all of us for the week.

Now I know this sounds like a terribly unhealthy breakfast to most English speaking people, but the Italians are doing something right, just think about all the press surrounding the Mediterranean diet? And I'm not so convinced coco pops and cheerios have any less sugar than this wonderful chocolate cake anyway.

Ludo's cake is made slightly differently from this recipe (it’s a bit simpler and uses gluten-free flour), but the end result tastes identical: scrumptiously delicious. That’s why Ludo would have to fight Jacopo and I to get a fair share of her cake.

Now it's about time I posted this cake recipe. My lovely colleague Holly (an expert in shoes, rants and yule logs), has been asking me for this recipe ever since I brought her a slice for morning tea. I promised to post it long, long ago and I’ve been remiss.

Sorry Holly. I hope that the posting of this recipe makes up for the crappy new desk you’ve been relegated to – unfortunately Holly’s promotion meant a demotion in terms of desks – don’t ask!

Chocolate Truffle Tart (Ludo's Cake)

Recipe from Falling Cloudberries by Tessa Kiros.

Ingredients:
100g butter
100g caster sugar
100g semi-sweet dark chocolate, chopped very finely
3 eggs, separated
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
20g plain flour (or gluten free for Ludo!)
40 hazelnut meal
Method:
1. Preheat oven to 180’C
2. Butter and flour a 20cm springform cake tin.
3. Melt butter over low heat. Add sugar and chocolate and stir until chocolate has completely melted and the sugar dissolves.
4. Scrape into mixing bowl and leave to cool for 30 minutes.
5. Add egg yolks and vanilla and whisk well with an electric beater.
6. Sift in flour and whisk to combine.
7. Fold in hazelnut meal.
8. In a separate bowl, whip egg whites until very fluffy, then fold through chocolate mixture, a spoonful at a time.
9. Pour into cake tin and bake for 35 minutes or until a skewer comes out clean and the cake feels a little cracked on the top. Cool for 15 minutes before removing from cake tin.

Serve with espresso or hot chocolate and just try it for breakfast! You won’t be disappointed.

Buon appetito PaJaLu!


Tags: morsels and musings food blog food and drink australia recipes dessert cake torta chocolate chocolate cake torta cioccolata dessert recipes italian recipes italian food italian breakfast