Chocolate Chestnut Cake
Updated Sept. 26, 2022

- Total Time
- 1 hour
- Rating
- Comments
- Read comments
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Ingredients
- 4ounces/115 grams chocolate (64 percent cacao or less)
- 4ounces/113 grams unsalted butter
- 4large eggs, separated
- ½cup/100 grams sugar plus 2 tablespoons for topping
- ⅛teaspoon salt
- ¼teaspoon cream of tartar
- ½cup/55 grams chestnut flour
- ½cup/85 grams chopped cooked chestnuts (use canned or vacuum-packed)
- 1cup heavy cream, for topping
- Chocolate curls or cocoa powder, for garnish
Preparation
- Step 1
Heat oven to 375 degrees. Melt chocolate and butter in a bowl set over boiling water until chocolate is nearly completely melted, then remove from heat and whisk mixture until smooth.
- Step 2
In a mixing bowl, whisk egg yolks with half the sugar (¼ cup/50 grams) and the salt until pale and thick. Stir in the warm chocolate and set aside.
- Step 3
Put egg whites in a clean bowl with cream of tartar and beat until fluffy, then add remaining ¼ cup/50 grams sugar and beat until whites are stiff but not dry.
- Step 4
Stir chestnut flour and chopped chestnuts into the chocolate batter, then fold in ¼ of the whites to lighten mixture. Fold in remaining whites and scrape batter into an unbuttered 8-inch springform pan, smoothing top if necessary.
- Step 5
Bake for 25 to 30 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the center of the cake comes out almost clean. Cool on a rack. It may sink and crack a bit on top — this is fine. Run a knife around the edge of cake to free sides and remove form. Transfer to a serving platter. (Cake may be stored, covered, at room temperature for up to 3 days.)
- Step 6
To serve, whip cream with 2 tablespoons sugar to a very soft consistency. Spoon over top of cake and quickly spread with a spatula. Sprinkle with chocolate curls or cocoa powder.
Private Notes
Comments
Oh dear, like others I have not located chestnut flour (not at Whole Foods in Ann Arbor, FYI) and it is too late to order online. I have the whole chestnuts and understand the cake is not the same without the flour but at the 11th hour…mix chestnuts with another flour? Hazelnut? Almond? Help! no time to test!
Delicious cake; just grind chestnuts finely in the food processor if you cannot find chestnut flour. I put some parchment paper on the bottom of my springform pan, and the cake came out very easily. You do need to run a knife around it before opening the pan, otherwise the cake will break.
I made this cake with 64% cocoa chocolate bar and almond flour. I had a 10 inch springform pan so I did 1.5 times the recipe. I couldn't find chestnut flour. My grocery store did have canned chestnuts. They looked and smelled totally gross so I was very uncertain about this cake.
Well, it was absolutely delicious! The chocolate is just the right intensity, the chestnuts give a nice texture. The inside was very moist.
Very disappointed in the recipe, chestnut flour is way TOOOO extreme, not available in any store! we made flour from fresh chestnuts! in the end the chocolate overwhelmed the chestnut flavor. would love to do another chestnut recipe as they have a delightful taste but this recipe was very disappointing also the cake was DRY...
Please specify dark chocolate, bittersweet or ? Thank you
I have made this many many times without chestnut flour. Just take an average single package of roasted chestnuts (110 grams in the US) and toss it in the cuisinart. Process until dust. Done!
