Let’s say you love chocolate (I do!) but you have no self-control. Or you have a small family (I do!) and don’t like eating the same dessert three nights in a row. Or you’re looking for a gluten-free treat to share with one lucky friend. (Jason, I’m thinking of you!) Readers, I am here to help you: you want a flourless chocolate cake for 2.
I’ve got just the right recipe for you: a flourless chocolate cake in a petite serves-two size. It’s small but mighty: it packs a wallop of a chocolate punch.
I started with my favorite full-size recipe and scaled it back, so this one uses only one egg, less than 2/3 cup of chocolate chips (in total!) and 2 1/2 tablespoons each of cocoa powder and butter. It’s tiny! You can mix it in one small bowl, and have it mixed and out of the oven within 30 minutes. Sure, it has to cool before you can put the final glaze on – but that doesn’t take so long, either.
You’ll need a small shallow cake pan or pie plate for this; I find that one of the pans from a Wilton Easy Layers set. The 6-inch shallow pan is absolutely perfect for a flourless chocolate cake for 2.
I try to give volume and weight measurements for my recipes. I’ll tell you right out, with this one, it’s much much easier to use the scale. These are small quantities, so if you have a scale that measures in grams, use it. You’ll like the results.
preparation
Preheat the oven to 375˚F (190˚C). Lightly grease a shallow 6″ cake pan. Cut a circle of parchment to fit the pan, leaving two “handles” sticking out a bit. Lay that in the bottom of the pan, and grease it as well. Make sure the sides of the pan are well greased, because this cake will stick if it possibly can.
mix the cake
Put the chocolate and the butter in a microwave-safe bowl, and heat on medium power only until the butter is melted and the chips are soft. Stir the mixture until the chips melt completely. You can also do this in a small pan on the stovetop over very low heat. Put the melted chocolate/butter mixture to a small mixing bowl.
Add in the sugar, salt, and vanilla, and stir well. Add the egg, and beat it briefly, until the mixture is smooth. Add the cocoa powder, and stir gently, only until it’s all combined. Transfer the batter to the prepared pan.
bake
Bake the cake for 13 minutes. If you use a different pan, your timing may be different. The top will have formed a thin crust, and it should register at least 200˚F (93˚C) on an instant-read thermometer inserted into its center. Remove it from the oven, and cool the cake in the pan for 5 minutes.
remove from pan and cool
Gently loosen the edges of the pan with a very thin spatula or nylon spreader, and turn it out onto a waxed paper coated plate (here’s where those parchment handles help!) Remove the parchment paper from the bottom of the cake, then invert it onto a serving plate. You could, of course, just invert the thing onto a serving plate, remove the parchment, and proceed with it in an upside-down position – but I did not. Use a light hand; this cake will crumble at the edges if handled roughly.
However you position it, allow the cake to cool completely.
glaze
To make the glaze: combine the chocolate and cream in a small microwave-save bowl. Heat until the cream is very hot, then remove and stir until the chocolate melts and the mixture is completely smooth.
Spoon the glaze over the cake, spreading it to the edges. Let the glaze set for an hour or two before serving the cake.
Flourless Chocolate Cake for 2
Ingredients
- ⅓ cup semisweet chocolate chips (57g)
- 2½ tbwp unsalted butter (38g)
- ¼ cup granulated sugar (50g)
- generous pinch salt
- scant ½ tsp vanilla extract
- 1 large egg
- 2½ tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder (14g) [Dutch process if available]
- GLAZE
- ¼ cup semisweet chocolate chips (37g)
- 2 tbsp heavy cream
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375˚F (190˚C). Lightly grease a shallow 6″ cake pan. Cut a circle of parchment to fit the pan, leaving two “handles” sticking out a bit. Lay that in the bottom of the pan, and grease it as well. Make sure the sides of the pan are well greased, because this cake will stick if it possibly can.
- Put the chocolate and the butter in a microwave-safe bowl, and heat on medium power only until the butter is melted and the chips are soft. Stir the mixture until the chips melt completely. You can also do this in a small pan on the stovetop over very low heat. Put the melted chocolate/butter mixture to a small mixing bowl.
- Add in the sugar, salt, and vanilla, and stir well. Add the egg, and beat it briefly, until the mixture is smooth. Add the cocoa powder, and stir gently, only until it’s all combined. Transfer the batter to the prepared pan.
- Bake the cake for 13 minutes. If you use a different pan, your timing may be different. The top will have formed a thin crust, and it should register at least 200˚F (93˚C) on an instant-read thermometer inserted into its center. Remove it from the oven, and cool the cake in the pan for 5 minutes.
- Gently loosen the edges of the pan with a very thin spatula or nylon spreader, and turn it out onto a waxed paper coated plate (here’s where those parchment handles help!) Remove the parchment paper from the bottom of the cake, then invert it onto a serving plate. You could, of course, just invert the thing onto a serving plate, remove the parchment, and proceed with it in an upside-down position – but I did not. Use a light hand; this cake will crumble at the edges if handled roughly.
- However you position it, allow the cake to cool completely.
- To make the glaze: combine the chocolate and cream in a small microwave-save bowl. Heat until the cream is very hot, then remove and stir until the chocolate melts and the mixture is completely smooth.
- Spoon the glaze over the cake, spreading it to the edges. Let the glaze set for an hour or two before serving the cake.