Torta Caprese – Italian Cake

I have made Torta Caprese before, with a video too, but I really wanted to try it again, to see if using some potato starch in the recipe would make the cake a lighter texture.

Torta Caprese is a chocolate cake made with almonds, and sometimes with some hazelnuts too.  It is very easy to make and so tasty to eat.  For this one I used just ground almonds/almond flour.  The addition of potato starch was supposed to make a lighter texture and it did just that.  The use of that, rather than plain flour which might do the same thing, means that the cake remains gluten free.  So it is fine for those with a gluten intolerance.

The recipe is actually very easy to make, it just has quite a few steps.  But the effort is well worth it and the resulting cake is very good indeed.  Mine tasted great, and was very light too which is just what I was aiming for.  It had a lovely chocolate flavour, and the almond flavour came through too.  So I was very pleased with the outcome.

Ingredients:

• 170g(6 ounces) grated dark chocolate
• 170g(1 1/3 cups) icing sugar
• 14g(2 tbsp) cocoa powder
• 170g(1 2/3 cups) almond flour/ground almonds
• 170g(1 1/2 sticks) softened unsalted butter
• 25g(2 1/2 tbsp)potato starch
• 4g(1 tsp) baking powder
• seeds from 1/2 vanilla pod
• 5 medium egg yolks(large in USA)
• 5 medium egg whites(large in USA)
• pinch of salt
• Extra icing sugar for dusting.

Method:

1. Preheat the oven to 190C/170C Fan/375F.
2. Grease a 23cm/9 inch springform pan and dust with potato starch around the base and sides.
3. Beat the butter and half the sugar together for 6 minutes, until light and fluffy(I used a hand mixer).
4. As you beat it add the vanilla seeds too.
5. Add the eggs and beat for about another 3 minutes until combined and fluffy.
6. In another bowl place the almonds, baking powder, chocolate and salt and sift in the potato starch and cocoa powder.
7. Mix it all together until evenly combined.
8. In another bowl add the egg whites to the remaining sugar and whip until it reaches stiff peaks.
9. In three additions add 1/3 of the egg white and 1/3 of the almond mixture to the butter and egg yolks and fold in until combined.
10. When the three additions are done and all is combined place the batter into the cake tin and spread across the base an level it off.
11. Bake in the oven for 45 minutes, until a skewer in the middle comes out clean.
12. Remove from the oven and allow to cool in the tin.
13. Remove from the tin and turn upside down, then sprinkle with a dusting of icing sugar before serving.