cooking ala mel

healthy recipes and the occasional craft

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Valentine’s Day, a few days late

Earlier this week, I had three tests, so Valentine’s Day passed with little celebration.  With the end of the week, things have calmed down, so I made Alex bête noire, a very dense, rich, flourless chocolate cake with a raspberry syrup for over top.  I made it for his birthday, also, but without the syrup – he loves this dessert!  Usually I make it in a cake pan, but to make up for Valentine’s Day, I figured I’d make it in little tart pans.

This is so rich…I couldn’t finish my tart – I still feel full!

I halved the original recipe so we wouldn’t have too many tarts – it made three!

 The raspberry syrup was the perfect complement to this dish – sweet, but slightly tangy – it made it feel a bit lighter!

Alex has been begging me to make chicken tenders (recipe here), so I made it tonight since he was getting his Valentine’s dessert!  I roasted up some potato fries with onion and garlic and some brussel sprouts with balsamic, too.

 I used Town House crackers this time; we didn’t have Ritz…and I think I liked it better!  They were so juicy tasting.


Bête Noire
makes 12-14 servings

8 ounces unsweetened chocolate
4 ounces of semi or bittersweet chocolate
½ cup water
1 1/3 cups sugar
2 sticks butter at room temperature, cut into small pieces
5 extra large eggs at room temperature

Preheat the oven to 350ºF with the rack in the center of the oven.
Butter a 9-inch round cake pan (not springform) and place a circle of parchment or wax paper on the bottom, covering it completely. Butter the paper.

Place both chocolates in the bowl of a food processor and process until the chocolate is in tiny pieces. Place the sugar and water into a small saucepan and bring it to a rolling boil. Cut the butter into pieces. Crack the eggs into a measuring cup or a small bowl with a spout. With the processor on, add the boiling sugar syrup to the chocolate, then add the butter piece by piece. Finally, add the eggs. Process only until the mixture is very smooth. Pour the batter in the prepared pan. Set the pan into a slightly larger pan or a sturdy jelly roll pan. Set both in the oven and pour hot water into the larger pan. 
Bake for 25-30 minutes. Let cool in the pan for 10 minutes and then run a sharp knife around the sides to release the cake. Cover with plastic wrap and unmold onto a cookie sheet. Invert a serving plate over the cake and flip it over, so the plate is on the bottom and the cake on top. 
This does not freeze, but, will keep refrigerated for a week.

Note:  For mini tarts, follow the same directions, but reduce the cooking time to about 15-17 minutes.
Raspberry Syrup

1 pint frozen berries
1 T cornstarch
1 T sugar (or 2 packets truvia)
enough warm water to fill bottom of pan

Cook raspberries down over medium heat. Bring to just a boil.
Let cool for a minute. Strain the seeds.
Keep in refrigerator. When ready to serve, warm slightly to remove chill. Serve at room temperature with chocolate dessert.