Flourless chocolate, hazelnut & prune torte
Ingredients
75 g (3oz) unsalted butter, cut into cubes, plus extra to grease
100 g (3½oz) whole hazelnuts, blanched
75 g (3oz) caster sugar
125 g (4oz) good quality gluten-free plain chocolate, broken into small pieces
2 tsp. rum, optional
3 medium eggs, separated
75 g (3oz) prunes, chopped
Icing sugar, to dust
Instructions
Preheat oven to 180°C (160°C fan) mark 4. Grease and line a 20.5cm (8in) round tin with baking parchment. In a food processor, whiz 75g (3oz) of the hazelnuts with 1tbsp of the caster sugar until ground to a fine powder. Set aside.
Next, put the chocolate, butter and rum, if using, into a small pan and melt gently over low heat. Set aside to cool slightly.
Put the egg yolks and the remaining caster sugar into a large bowl and the egg whites into a separate large bowl. Using a handheld electric whisk, beat the whites until they hold soft peaks. Next, beat together the yolks and sugar mixture until thick and moussey, about 3min
Using a large metal spoon, fold the chocolate mixture into the yolk bowl followed by the whizzed hazelnuts. Stir a spoonful of whites into the chocolate mixture, then carefully fold in the rest. Empty mixture into the prepared tin, level the surface, then sprinkle over the prunes and the remaining whole hazelnuts.
Bake for 25-30min or until cake is risen and feels springy to the touch. Take out of oven and allow to cool completely in tin. Take out of tin, peel off the paper and transfer to a serving plate. Dust with icing sugar and serve in slices with cream or ice cream, if you like.
Enjoy!
