Olives & Okra logo

Torta Caprese

Torta Caprese

By 33 Comments

Torta Caprese

I’ve had chocolate on the brain lately. For days, I’ve thought about nothing but a dense chocolate cake. Maybe a thick gooey dark chocolate brownie. Ice cream with hot fudge sauce. A chocolate lava cake.

Dark chocolate, too.

Something downright sinful.

Torta Caprese-1

After days of want and turmoil, I finally decided on Torta Caprese, a flourless chocolate cake named after Capri, an island in Southern Italy in the region of Campania. In this recipe, finely ground almonds replace the flour and the six eggs form the dense body. It’s obviously a chocolate cake, but it’s sometimes known as a chocolate almond cake. I always think of it as a dense chocolate cake—that’s why I settled on making a Torta Caprese.

Torta Caprese-4

The torta can be made with either unsweetened bitter chocolate or semi-sweet chocolate. I have a large bag of semi-sweet baking morsels, so I used those today but normally I would use unsweetened bitter chocolate morsels and add a little extra sugar (about 1/4 a cup). I melted the semi-sweet chocolate morsels then added a bit of Americana, 2 tablespoons of Hershey’s Special Dark Chocolate cocoa (we’re addicted to it here).

There are variations of this recipe, too. I’ve had Torta Caprese that’s a yellow cake with the chocolate chips left whole. It looks like an oversized chocolate chip cookie. You can also add a shot or two of chocolate or orange liqueur.

Torta Caprese-2

Here’s how I make Torta Caprese. Start by melting the chocolate morsels. Set them aside to cool. Pulse the almonds in a food processor until finely ground. Separate the egg yolks from the egg whites (I refrigerate the egg whites until I’m ready to use them).

Torta Caprese-3

In a mixing bowl, cream together the butter and sugar until fluffy, then add egg yolks, cooled chocolate, dark chocolate cocoa, and almonds. Mix well. In a separate bowl, beat egg whites until stiff peaks form. Gently fold the egg whites into the batter, a couple of heaping spoonfuls (a wooden spoon) at a time.

The cake is baked in a 10-inch springform pan, a cheesecake pan, coated with baking spray (I use Baker’s Joy). You can also butter and flour the pan and line the bottom with parchment paper. Baking spray seems like an easier choice.

Torte Caprese-6

Bake the torta at 350 degrees for 40-45 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean. Let the cake cool in the pan for about 10 minutes, then transfer it to a cooling rack. Once the cake is completely cool, sprinkle confectioner’s sugar over the top.

I enjoy my cake with an ice-cold glass of skim milk. Yes, I know; it’s a contradiction—skim milk and chocolate cake. It works for me!

Torta Caprese
Print

Torta Caprese

This rich flourless chocolate cake is named after the southern Italian island of Capri.

Course Dessert
Cuisine Italian
Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 45 minutes
Total Time 1 hour
Servings 12
Author Olives & Okra

Ingredients

  • 12 oz almonds
  • 8 0z semi-sweet chocolate
  • 2 tbsp Hershey’s Special Dark Chocolate cocoa
  • 1 cup unsalted butter room temperature
  • 3/4 cup granulated sugar
  • 6 eggs separated

Instructions

  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray springform pan with baking spray or line with parchment paper.

  2. In a food processor, finely grind almonds. Melt chocolate and cool to room temperature.

  3. Beat softened butter with sugar until fluffy. Beat in egg yolks, one at a time. Add almonds, melted chocolate, and cocoa powder; mix well.

  4. In a medium bowl, beat eggs whites with a mixer on high speed until stiff peaks form. Fold in eggs whites, a couple of heaping spoonfuls at a time.

  5. Pour batter into a pan. Bake for about 45 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool in pan for 10 minutes. Transfer cake to a wire rack and cool completely. Sprinkle confectioner’s sugar over top of the cake.

 

Disclosure: Some of the links in this post are affiliate links. This means that if you click on a link and buy the product, I will receive a very small commission of the sales price at no cost to you.

Reader Interactions

Comments

  2. Garlic + Zest says

    this looks amazing – in fact, I may steal your recipe for a dinner party I’m having this weekend! It would be perfect for our dessert!

    Reply

  8. Ashleigh says

    Such a great dessert recipe, I can’t wait to try it! I’ve never been good at making cakes, but I’ll have to give this a go. Thank you for sharing!

    Reply

  13. Winnie says

    It a wonderful looking cake! Rich and very chocolaty 🙂 And also – gluten free(!) which make it perfect for our little niece 🙂

    Reply

  21. Jann Olson says

    My sister in law would go ape over this! She is a chocolate lover. Me, I’m more of a white cake kind of girl. lol! Must admit, it does look yummy and I’d have to try a small slice. Thanks for sharing with SYC.
    hugs,
    Jann

    Reply

  23. April R - Uncookie Cutter says

    I think this looks absolutely delish! I haven’t made it yet, but I will be featuring it as one of my extra recipes on You Link It, We Make It party tomorrow. Hope you join us again!

    Reply

  24. knockoffcrafter says

    At first glance I thought this was a cheesecake! I’m really intrigued by this recipe and am pinning for later! I bet the almond gives the cake a really unique flavor.. thanks so much for sharing this! This is a new one for me! And thanks so much for linking up with us at You Link It We Make It – we hope to see you again soon.

    Reply

  26. em21053 says

    What a delicious looking dessert!! It looks amazing and I want a piece right now!! 🙂 Thanks for sharing on My 2 Favorite Things on Thursday! Hope to see you again tomorrow!! Pinned!

    Reply

Leave a Reply

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.