This flourless chocolate olive oil cake recipe is greatly inspired by Thalia Ho, author of the delicious food blog Butter and Brioche. Her recipe for a Flourless Chocolate Olive Oil Cake with a Citrus Coffee Cream envokes different flavour profiles that inspired me to experiment with ingredients that speak to me! A few Instagram posts sparked a deep desire for me to indulge in a sinfully rich and experimental chocolate olive oil cake. I am glad I finally made one!
Olive oil is normally an ingredient reserved for savory dishes. A milder, often flavourless vegetable oil is preferred for baked goods so as to not impact the overall taste.
Personally, the addition of olive oil to this cake adds a depth of richness that cannot be mimicked with any other oil. This Flourless Chocolate Olive Oil Cake is quite an opulent dish, with each flavour making a bold statement.
OLIVE OIL IS GOOD FOR THE SOUL
Olive oil brings a richness to this recipe, by enhancing the chocolate flavor and lending itself to the moistness of the cake. The cake itself has a fudge-like texture, with the grittiness of the almond flour peaking through. The olive oil also lends the cake a slightly fruity flavour, which leads me to believe this flourless chocolate olive oil cake would pair well with a full-bodied red wine.
I use almond flour in this recipe – and I also provide the ingredients in grams versus cup measurements. You can easily convert the gram measurements to cups, as this cake is not finicky in measurements.
In addition, the almond flour does not need to be sifted, and it is okay if there are some lumps. I find that the grittiness of the almonds adds a delightful element to the cake.
And finally, I wanted to top this cake off with something that would not overpower the already bold ingredients. Instead, I wanted something light, yet able to hold its own amongst all the other aromas. The spiced honey chantilly cream is inspired by a bottle of spiced honey I had sitting in my pantry.
The flavour of the honey is reminiscent of a winter morning. Hints of clove and cardamom are intertwined with the sweet floral element of this raw honey. If you do not have spiced honey at home, you can easily add cardamom to whatever honey you have on hand. To add a little extra element to this flourless chocolate olive oil cake, I serve each slice with a dollop of the spiced honey chantilly cream and a scoop of creamy vanilla bean ice cream.
Finally, I serve this cake with crushed pistachios and dried organic rose petals. You can certainly omit the rose petals, although they do not have a real flavour that stands out. Instead, it is the texture that adds a nice element of surprise to the overall fudge-like texture of this cake. I personally enjoyed adding the rose petals on top as it was very reminiscent of Laura Esquivel’s Como Agua Para Chocolate.
FLOURLESS CHOCOLATE OLIVE OIL CAKE WITH SPICED HONEY CHANTILLY CREAM
Bold. Rich. Nutty. Fruity. Sensual. A cake to be savoured.
Flourless Chocolate Olive Oil Cake
The dense and fudgy texture stems from the use of almond flour, while the chocolate flavour is elevated in intensity due to the olive oil. Finally, this cake is topped off with crushed dried rose petals and pistachio. Served with a spiced honey chantilly cream and vanilla ice cream.
Ingredients
- 128 grams almond flour
- 80 grams cocoa powder, sifted
- 1/2 tsp cardamom powder
- 1 tsp fleur de sel
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1 cup sugar
- 1/2 + 1 tbsp cup extra virgin organic olive oil
- 1/2 + 1 tbsp cup coffee (I use espresso)
- 64 g dark chocolate, roughly chopped
- 3 eggs (room temperature)
- 1 tsp vanilla bean paste (optional)
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
Spiced Honey Chantilly Cream
- 1 cup full cream (35%)
- 2 tbsp icing sugar
- 2 tbsp spiced honey *
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
Instructions
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Pre-heat the oven to 350 f. Grease and line a 9-inch springform pan. I like to line the bottom with parchment paper.
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In a large sized mixing bowl (or stand mixer), combine the granulated sugar and olive oil. Whisk until just combined. Add in the eggs, one at a time, whisking for 1 minute after each addition.
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Melt the dark chocolate in a double boiler or in the microwave. Add the tempered chocolate to the egg mixture.
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In a separate mixing bowl, whisk together the almond meal, cocoa powder, baking soda, salt, and cardamom powder.
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Add half of the dry ingredients into the bowl with the olive oil mixture. Whisk until just combined, then, add in the remaining half of the dry ingredients. Whisk until smooth (you may want to fold it using a spatula). Pour in the brewed espresso and whisk until the batter is smooth and glossy. Pour the batter into the prepared cake pan.
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Bake, for 35 to 40 minutes, or until a cake skewer inserted into the middle comes out with few moist crumbs attached to it. Remove from the oven and let the cake cool in its tin for 15 minutes. Remove the cake from springform pan, sprinkle the dried rose petals and pistachios on top, and let it cool completely. Slice and serve with the chantilly cream and/or vanilla ice cream.
Spiced Honey Chantilly Cream
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Using a handheld electric whisk, whisk the cream, honey, sugar and vanilla on high speed, until you reach firm peaks. Place the bowl in the refrigerator to chill the cream before serving. Chantilly cream will keep up to 3 days in a well-covered glass bowl.
Recipe Notes
* If you do not have spiced honey at home, you can easily substitute regular honey (I prefer raw!), and add 1/4 to 1/2 tsp cardamom powder (to taste)
** I purchased my organic rose petals from an organic store nearby. Often times Persian and Indian grocery stores carry them as well. You do not need to use it if you do not want too!
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THIS FLOURLESS CHOCOLATE OLIVE OIL CAKE IS A COMBINATION OF RICH, DEEP AND BOLD AROMAS. THE ADDITION OF CRUSHED PISTACHIOS AND DRIED ROSE PETALS ADDS AN ELEMENT OF SENSUALITY, WHILE THE SPICED HONEY CHANTILLY CREAM COMPLEMENTS THE OVERALL NUTTINESS AND FRUITINESS OF THE CAKE.
