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Caprese Chocolate and Almond Torte
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This flourless chocolate cake from Capri, Italy (where it is called torta caprese), gets its rich, almost brownie-like texture from ground almonds and a generous amount of egg. Before grinding the nuts, we toast them to intensify their flavor and accentuate the deep, roasted notes of the chocolate. We preferred the cake made with bittersweet chocolate containing 70 to 80 percent cocoa solids. You can, of course, use a lighter, sweeter bittersweet chocolate, but the cake will have less chocolate intensity. Serve slices warm or at room temperature dolloped with unsweetened whipped cream.
10
Servings
Tip
Don’t forget the reduce the oven to 300°F after toasting the almonds. Also, don't overbake the cake or its texture will be dry and tough. Whereas most cakes are done when a toothpick inserted at the center comes out clean, a toothpick inserted into this one should come out with sticky, fudgy crumbs, similar to brownies.
1 hour 10 minutes
20 minutes active
233 grams (2⅓ cups) sliced almonds
5 large eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
8 ounces bittersweet chocolate (see note), roughly chopped
199 grams (1 cup) packed dark brown sugar
½ teaspoon table salt
Ingredients
-
233
grams (2⅓ cups) sliced almonds
-
5
large eggs
-
2
teaspoons vanilla extract
-
8
ounces bittersweet chocolate (see note), roughly chopped
-
199
grams (1 cup) packed dark brown sugar
-
½
teaspoon table salt
Directions
-
01Heat the oven to 350°F with a rack in the middle position. Spread the almonds in an even layer on a rimmed baking sheet and toast in the oven until golden brown, 8 to 10 minutes, stirring once about halfway through. Cool to room temperature.
-
02While the almonds cool, reduce the oven to 300°F. Mist the bottom and sides of 9-inch round cake pan with cooking spray, line the bottom with kitchen parchment, then mist the parchment. Crack the eggs into a liquid measuring cup and add the vanilla; set aside.
-
03In a food processor, process 185 grams (2 cups) of the almonds until finely ground, 20 to 30 seconds. Add the chocolate and pulse until the chocolate is finely ground, 10 to 15 pulses. Add the sugar and salt, then process until well combined, about 30 seconds, scraping the bowl as needed. With the machine running, gradually pour in the egg mixture. Continue processing until the batter is smooth and homogenous, about another 15 to 20 seconds. Remove the blade and scrape the bowl.
-
04Pour the batter into the prepared pan, then sprinkle evenly with the remaining 48 grams (⅓ cup) almonds. Bake until the center feels firm when gently pressed and a toothpick inserted at the center comes out with moist, fudgey crumbs attached, 30 to 35 minutes.
-
05Let cool in pan on a wire rack for 30 minutes. Run a knife around the sides of the cake, then invert onto a rack. Peel off the parchment and reinvert the cake onto a platter. Serve warm or at room temperature.
Reviews
November 9, 2022
great desert
easy and delicious
Hi Norma,
If you substitute the almonds with almond meal, it will alter the texture of the cake.
Best,
The Milk Street Team
I am planning to make this for a friend who is allergic to gluten and dairy. Could you suggest a chocolate frosting for this cake?
Can't go wrong with a classic ganache I suppose but this cake doesn't need icing, and is best served warm I think. I think a chocolate sauce would pair better with this dense cake. (The cooler this cake gets the more dense it seems. A very short zap in the microwave warmed it up beautifully when enjoying later I found.) I might try a bourbon whipped cream myself. My family and guests enjoyed this one. I will be making it again.
I have a small food processor so I put ingredients separately in the food processor and finished by mixing with my stand mixer. When I baked the cake the middle was still liquid after 40 minutes but I took it out anyway. (I didn’t want to overbake it.) I waited 30 minutes for it to cool. When I inverted it the center oozed out. I put it back in the pan and baked it for 30 more minutes. It was done then. My family loves it but I was wondering what I could do to have a better result.
What should the internal temperature be when the cake is done? I have trouble finding that sweet spot when baking brownies as well when it comes to over-cooking them or ending up with a gooey center.
I would also love the answer to this question. This cake takes way longer to bake (at least in my oven) than the recommendation. Testing the temperature would make it easier to achieve the right bake.
Hi Kimberly and Kathleen -
We don't have a recommended temperature for this cake. Since, as you've noticed, some ovens are hotter than others, we recommend using the visual clues here - firm when pressed in the center and a toothpick yields moist, fudgy crumbs (like brownie crumbs). I would err on the side of pulling it out sooner rather than later since it will continue to cook a bit while it cools down.
Best,
The Milk Street Team
Hi Kimberly and Kathleen -
We don't have a recommended temperature for this cake. Since, as you've noticed, some ovens are hotter than others, we recommend using the visual clues here - firm when pressed in the center and a toothpick yields moist, fudgy crumbs (like brownie crumbs). I would err on the side of pulling it out sooner rather than later since it will continue to cook a bit while it cools down.
Best,
The Milk Street Team
There's something wonky going on here with your sliced almond measurements. In the INGREDIENTS list, you call for 2⅓ cups (233 grams). This converts to 1 cup = 100 grams (so ⅓ cup = 33 grams, and 2 cups = 200 grams). Yet, in step 3, you call for 2 cups (185 grams); and in step 4, you call for ⅓ cup (48 grams). This doesn't jibe. Help, please! p.s. All of this differs from your "A Tough Nut to Crack" article as well (https://www.177milkstreet.com/2020/10/weighing-nuts), but I'm guessing that you've since redefined the weights of nuts, in general. Thank you.
Hi William -
You are absolutely right! In Step 3, the 2 cups should be equal to 200 grams (technically 198 grams, but it's no problem to round up) and the 1/3 cup in Step 4 should be equal to 33 grams. Since this recipe was developed, we have some more extensive testing and created ingredient measurement standards which you see in the article, "A Tough Nut to Crack." Those will be our standards going forward. Thanks for pointing out the discrepancy to us!
Best,
The Milk Street Team
With only two of us at home now, I'm wondering whether I could get good results from scaling this down (e.g. 3/5 since there are 5 eggs) or freezing leftovers. If I scaled it down, what's your estimate of how much the baking time would reduce?
I saw someone else’s question about using almond extract...but didn’t see the answer. I was thinking of substituting almond extract for the vanilla extra — (still use the toasted almonds of course). Has anyone else done that? I’m thinking it would be great..
Hi Tonya -
If you only process the nuts for about 20 seconds, as instructed in the recipe, they should simply be finely ground. For better control over the food processor, we often find using the pulse button and giving it several pulses allows us to check consistency without going too far.
Best,
The Milk Street Team
I am currently making this for Thanksgiving and I am wondering if I could freeze this for 2 days or refrigerate it for a couple of days? Which would be best? Thanks in advance!
Hi Jacqueline -
We haven’t tested freezing this recipe so we don’t know the exact outcome. That being said, this cake is really best served warm on the day it’s baked to ensure you get the right fudge-y texture so we worry freezing or refrigerating would negatively impact that texture.
Best,
The Milk Street Team
Could I start with whole raw almonds vs slivered? easier to buy in bulk...am assuming measurements would be roughly the same? thoughs anyone?
Hi Char -
You probably can use whole almonds, but you will have to make some adjustments. First of all, make sure to use the same weight of whole almonds as sliced almonds (233 grams), including when the almonds get divided in the recipe. Toasting whole almonds vs. sliced won't yield the same amount of toasted flavor since there is more flat surface area on sliced almonds that will get toasted. Next, it will obviously take much longer to grind whole almonds until they are finely ground. Whole almonds won't break down as evenly as sliced almonds so you may end up with some pieces that are larger and/or smaller than others. Lastly, you don't really want to garnish the cake with whole almonds. So, while it likely *can* be done, we would probably advise against it due to all of the variables and changes that it would present.
Best,
The Milk Street Team
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Your First Issue
Question, can I skip the roasting & grinding of almonds and use almond flour?