If you were looking for a chocolate cake that represented the excesses of the 1980s, I cannot think of a better one than this! No frosting, but with those ingredients, who needs frosting?
The Famous Silver Palate Chocolate Cake
Since Julee Rosso and Sheila Lukins introduced the world to this cake decades ago it has become part of our national baking repertoire. It’s like a pound cake, but with dark chocolate. This cake manages to be both light and airy, while wonderfully rich and delicious, at the same time. Because the eggs provide so much structure, you can easily cut thin slices without having the cake fall apart.
Tips for Making Bittersweet Chocolate Cake
Making this bittersweet chocolate cake takes a little bit of baking skill, but is completely do-able. The parts that people may have trouble with are melting the chocolate, beating the egg whites, and folding the egg whites into the batter. Here are a few tips to help:
Whipping egg whites: When separating the eggs, make sure there are no bits of egg yolk in your egg whites. Any amount of fat in the egg whites will keep them from whipping up properly. Make sure your equipment — bowls and whisks or beaters — are spotlessly clean and free of any fat residue. Start on low speed and slowly increase the speed of your mixer.Melting chocolate: Use chocolate meant for baking, not chocolate chips which have added stabilizers. Chop or grate the chocolate fine to make it easier to melt evenly. Add water to the chocolate before you heat them. Make sure that the bottom of the top bowl of your double boiler does not touch the water below it.Folding beaten egg whites into the batter: Lighten the batter first by stirring in a third of the whipped egg whites until smooth. Then gently fold the remaining egg whites in, a third at a time, and do your best to not deflate the egg whites.
We don’t recommend using chocolate chips for this recipe.
More Glamorous Dessert Recipes
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Generously butter the sides and bottom of a 9-inch or 10-inch springform pan. Add a few tablespoons of the sugar and gently shake so that all the sides and bottom of the pan are coated with sugar. Tap out the excess sugar. Place chocolate and 4 tablespoons of water together in the top metal bowl of the double boiler. Slowly melt the chocolate over barely simmering water, whisking it until smooth. If the chocolate gets too thick, and looks like it will firm up, whisk in a tablespoon more of water. Whisk in a pinch of salt. Let cool until just warm to the touch. Stir one third of the beaten egg whites in to the chocolate egg mixture to thin it. Gently fold in the remaining beaten egg whites, a third at a time until the egg whites are completely incorporated. Be careful at this stage not to over-mix.
