Chocolate Truffle Torte with Raspberry Sauce

Chocolate truffles are my favorite candy. The creamy mouthfeel of ganache as it melts on your tongue, combined with the deep richness of dark chocolate, is in my opinion, one of the most wonderful simple pleasures of life. This cake echoes a chocolate truffle, both in its texture and in the layers of flavor created by combining dark chocolate and strong coffee.

This torte works best if made in advance. It should sit in the refrigerator for at least 6 hours before slicing and serving, so it may be easiest if you make it the night before your big event.

Be careful as you serve this cake; I mean it when I say each slice is profoundly rich. The raspberry sauce helps to mitigate the richness, but you would do well to serve it alongside whipped cream or vanilla ice cream to help balance the flavor. I am a card-carrying member of club chocoholic, and I can still only savor one thin slice of this cake per day.

Start by preheating your oven to 300 degrees F. Thoroughly grease a 10-inch springform pan; consider lining the bottom with a piece of parchment paper cut to fit, as this will make cake removal much smoother.

Combine the coffee, salt, and sugar in a saucepan over medium heat; stir until the sugar has dissolved completely, and set aside. For this step you are welcome to use leftover coffee from your morning brew, but if you wanted to take things to the next level, I recommend making a strong cup using the pour-over method. The stronger the coffee you use, the more the flavor will come through in the final product.

Break apart your chocolate bars into their pre-apportioned pieces. I like to chop mine into much smaller pieces, as it makes the melting process faster. Place these in a heat-safe bowl and melt the chocolate. You can either do 30-second increments in your microwave, stirring between each increment — this method takes about 4 minutes total — or you can place the bowl over a pot of boiling water on your stove and stir continuously. Either way, your chocolate is ready once it is creamy, and no chunks remain. Pour this creamy chocolate into a mixing bowl and stir in the warmed sugar-coffee concoction.

Melt your butter. Once it is melted but not hot, pour it into the bowl containing your chocolate; mix thoroughly. Beat your eggs and egg whites together in a separate bowl, allowing them to become frothy. Once they have gained some rise, beat them into your chocolate mixture. Mix on medium speed for about 1 minute; all of the rise in this recipe comes from your eggs!

Pour the batter into your prepared springform pan. Here, you have a couple of different options. (1) Wrap the bottom of your springform pan tightly in aluminum foil, place it in a larger baking dish, and fill the baking dish halfway with boiling water, thus making a bain-marie (water bath) before placing it on the center rack of your oven. Alternatively, you could (2) place the springform pan on the middle rack of your oven; on the lower rack of your oven, directly below the springform pan, place a 9″ by 13″ pan filled with boiling water. The goal of both of these methods is to increase the humidity of your oven and reduce the amount of temperature variation your torte experiences while it bakes — thus avoiding the creation of cracks in your torte. The second method is significantly easier, but is more likely to form cracks. I used this second method for the pictures you see, as I did not have a pan large enough to hold my 10-inch springform pan. Did the torte crack? Yes. Did it still taste fine? Also yes. As I am a home baker and not a professional, I’m still satisfied with the outcome.

Bake the torte for 45-50 minutes in your 300 degree F oven. The cake will appear very wet in the center when it is done. Remove it from the oven and allow it to come to room temperature before placing it in the refrigerator to cool for 6 hours or overnight.

While you are waiting for your cake to cool, prepare the raspberry sauce. Place your raspberries, sugar, lemon juice, and water in a saucepan over medium heat. (The berries may need some encouragement to break down; feel free to smoosh them with a fork or a potato masher.) Allow the raspberries to break down, and bring the mixture to a boil. Simmer for 1-2 minutes, until it has thickened slightly, before removing from heat. Allow to cool completely before drizzling over slices of cake.

Once the cake and sauce are cool, slice (very thinly!) and serve. The cake will stay fresh in the refrigerator for 5-7 days.

I hope you enjoy this recipe! If you make it at home, please tag #WhiskAverseBaking on social media or leave a comment below.

Chocolate Truffle Torte with Raspberry Sauce

Rich dark chocolate is balanced with the fruity tang of raspberries to create a creamy, elegant dessert.

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Prep Time 20 minutes mins

Cook Time 50 minutes mins

Resting time 6 hours hrs

Total Time 9 hours hrs

Course Dessert

Servings 16 slices

Equipment

• 10-inch springrform pan

Ingredients

  

Torte

• ½ cup brewed coffee
• ¼ teaspoon salt
• ⅔ cup granulated sugar
• Four 4-oz. bars 60% cacao Ghiradelli chocolate
• 1 cup butter melted
• 3 whole eggs
• 3 egg whites

Sauce

• 2 cups raspberries fresh or frozen
• ¼ cup water
• ¼ cup granulated sugar
• 1 teaspoon lemon juice

Instructions

 

Torte

• Preheat oven to 300 degrees F. Thoroughly grease a 10-inch springform pan.
• Combine coffee, salt, and sugar in a saucepan over medium heat; stir until the sugar has dissolved completely, and set aside.
• Break each chocolate bar into six pieces. (Feel free to chop these pieces smaller; the smaller the pieces, the faster your chocolate will melt.) Place the pieces in a large, microwave-safe bowl.
• Using 30-second increments, melt chocolate in the microwave. Remove from the microwave and stir between each heating increment. Onceit is creamy with no residual chunks, pour into a mixing bowl.
• Using an electric mixer, slowly mix melted butter into the chocolate.
• Stir in warm sugar-coffee mixture.
• Beat together your eggs and egg whites in a separate bowl. Slowly pour them into your main batter and stir until completely combined.
• Pour batter into the prepared springform pan and place on the middle rack your preheated oven. Fill a heatproof 9 x 13 pan with boiling (or nearly boiling) water and place it on the lower rack of your oven, directly beneath the cake.
• Bake for 45-50 minutes. The cake will still appear slightly wet, but this is okay!
• Allow the cake to cool to room temperature, then place in the refrigerator overnight before serving.

Sauce

• Place all ingredients in a saucepan over medium heat. Use a fork or a potato masher to help the raspberries break down into a sauce.
• Bring to a boil; simmer for 1-2 minutes, until the mixture has thickened.
• Remove from heat. Strain through a mesh sieve and allow to cool.
• Drizzle over individual slices of cake.

Notes

For easier removal, place a round piece of parchment at the bottom of your springform pan before pouring in the batter.

Feel free to use a double boiler method to melt your chocolate before adding it to the cake. Take care not to allow any water to come in contact with your chocolate, in order avoid the chocolate seizing.

Using a true bain-marie water bath should prevent deep cracks from forming in your finished torte. This, however is optional; the cracks will not impact the taste of the final product.

Keyword cake, chocolate, torte, truffle