Chocolate torte is the ultimate dessert for chocolate lovers, packed with cocoa powder and solids for extra depth.
Most recipes call for large quantities of eggs, sugar, butter and chocolate for perfect results, but this low-calorie recipe calls for two alternatives.
Dr Clare Bailey and Justine Pattison shared the recipe for chocolate torte in the cookbook Fast 800 Easy Recipes – a collection of quick and simple recipes to make your 800-calorie days even easier.
Described as a “deliciously light chocolate cake with an ingredient that no one will guess”, the torte is also naturally gluten-free and “tastes luxurious without being too rich”.
The formula calls for two unique additions – pitted dates and a tin of black beans – to bulk out the rich filling.
Chocolate tort recipe
Ingredients
100g dark chocolate (at least 70 percent cocoa solids)
100g coconut oil, plus extra for greasing
100g soft pitted dates
One 400g can of black beans
Three large eggs
1/4 tsp cocoa powder, for dusting
Method
Chop the chocolate and place it in a heatproof bowl over a pan of gently simmering water – ensure the bowl doesn’t touch the water. Alternatively, heat the chocolate in a microwave in short bursts until melted.
Remove the chocolate from the heat and leave it to cool for 20 minutes. Preheat the oven to 190C/ fan 170C/ Gas 5. Grease and line the base of a 20cm loose-based cake tin with baking parchment.
Add the chopped dates, oil, and black beans to a food processor and blend everything until well combined. Separate the eggs, reserve the whites in a bowl then add the yolks to the mixture, and blitz until smooth and creamy.
You may need to remove the lid and push the mixture down several times. Add the cooled, melted chocolate and 100ml cold water in slow, steady streams until thoroughly combined.
Stir in a heaped tablespoon of the egg whites and stir gently into the chocolate mixture to soften; then transfer the mixture to the bowl with the remaining egg whites.
Fold the whites in gently using a large metal spoon until thoroughly combined. Spoon the mixture into the prepared cake tin and spread it to the sides.
Bake the mixture in the centre of the preheated oven for 25 minutes or until risen and firm to the touch. Remove from the oven and allow to cool for 30 minutes, then remove the torte from the tin.
Sift over the cocoa powder to dust and cut the tort into 12 small wedges to serve at just 187 calories per serving.
