chocolate souffle cake

Swoon.

I actually made this in the dead of winter, one of those weekends when it felt like the snow would never let up and I needed something comforting, rich and totally decadent. I'd just whipped these up for a friend's birthday, but this time around, I wanted a lighter, fluffier texture and a classic chocolate flavor.

And this was incredible. Frankly, you could probably guess that anything called a Chocolate Souffle Cake would be pretty delicious, but this was even better than I expected. Somewhere between a cake and a souffle, this recipe mixed the best of both.

chocolate souffle cake

INGREDIENTS

3/4 cup unsalted butter

1 cup sugar

6 ounces semisweet chocolate, chopped

4 egg yolks

6 egg whites

Confectioners' sugar, for dusting

DIRECTIONS

Heat oven to 300 degrees. Spray an 8-inch springform pan with cooking spray (or use a nonstick springform pan). Melt chocolate and butter over simmering water in a double boiler, about 7 minutes, stirring frequently. Set aside and allow to cool.

Whisk yolks with 2/3 cup sugar on a high speed, until they are pale yellow and form thick ribbons when the beater is raised. Set aside.

In an electric mixer, whip egg whites with remaining 1/3 cup sugar until they form soft peaks, about 5 minutes. While the egg whites are beating, add the chocolate to the yolk mixture.

Mix about 1/3 of the egg whites into chocolate mixture, stir to combine, then quickly fold in the remaining egg whites. Pour the batter into the prepared pan, and place on a baking sheet. Bake for 45 to 50 minutes, and and allow to cool in the pan. When the cake is completely cool, gently run a knife around the edges of the pan and release the spring. Dust with confectioners' sugar and serve.