• Yield: Serves 6 to 8

  • Time: 20 min prep, 35 minutes cooking, 55 min total


Imagine dark, outrageously rich chocolate mousse crossed with your favorite chocolate fudge and you'll know what makes this easy-to-do cake so enticing. Dolloped with whipped cream, it is a fine Mother's Day dessert.

Ingredients

  • 6 ounces bittersweet chocolate (I prefer Lindt Excellence, Valrhona, Callebaut, or Ghiradelli, in that order)

  • 2 ounces unsweetened chocolate

  • 1 stick (4 ounces) unsalted butter

  • 1/2 teaspoon almond extract

  • 2 teaspoons vanilla extract

  • 4 large eggs

  • 1 cup sugar

  • Generous pinch salt

  • 1/4 cup flour

  • Whipped cream (optional)

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Line the bottom of an 8-inch springform pan with a round of parchment or waxpaper.

2. Melt chocolates and butter in a small stainless-steel bowl set in a small saucepan of simmering water. Stir in the extracts and vanilla, and cool to room temperature.

3. With plastic spatula, beat together eggs, sugar, and salt until creamy. Stir in the flour and chocolate until smooth. Pour into the pan and bake 35 minutes or until a knife inserted in the center comes out with a few streaks.

4. Cool on a cake rack, then release sides of the spring form and set cake on a cake plate. Serve topped with whipped cream if desired.

Lynne Rossetto Kasper
Lynne Rossetto Kasper has won numerous awards as host of The Splendid Table, including two James Beard Foundation Awards (1998, 2008) for Best National Radio Show on Food, five Clarion Awards (2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2014) from Women in Communication, and a Gracie Allen Award in 2000 for Best Syndicated Talk Show.