Chocolate Cream Cake

A creamy, indulgent chocolate cream cake that's easy to make: a soft, chocolatey flourless base, a quick cream, and grated chocolate over everything.

Ingredients for chocolate cream cake (9½-inch / 24 cm round pan)

For the base

• 4 large eggs, at room temperature.
• 200 g sugar (1 cup).
• 100 g dark chocolate.
• 100 g milk chocolate.
• 100 g almond flour (1 cup).
• ½ teaspoon baking powder.
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract.

For the cream

• 350 ml heavy cream.
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract.
• 40 g instant vanilla pudding mix, such as Jell-O (4 level tablespoons).
• 225 g cream cheese (one package; I used a 25% fat cream cheese).

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C).
2. Melt the chocolates together in the microwave in short bursts until fully melted (stir between bursts).
3. In another bowl, whisk the eggs, sugar and vanilla. Add the melted chocolate and whisk until combined. Add the almond flour and baking powder and whisk into a smooth batter.
4. Line the pan with parchment paper, pour in the batter and bake for 25–30 minutes (check after about 25 minutes and add more time if needed). Let it cool completely, then make the cream.
5. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk, whip the cream cheese for about a minute to avoid lumps. Add the heavy cream, pudding mix and vanilla, and whip for a few minutes, until you have a stable cream.
6. Spread the cream over the base and smooth it with an offset spatula. Cover and chill for at least about 3 hours. Once it has chilled, grate chocolate over the top and dig in.