If you watch my Instagram stories, you’ll know that this cake was a rather happy accident. I was making the flourless chocolate cake from the cookbook for a friend’s birthday. In my extremely overtired state, I forgot to add almond meal. The result? Well, it could have gone either way. However, luckily enough for me and the people I was serving it to, it ended up as this delicious flourless chocolate cake without nuts.
Flourless chocolate cakes generally rely on a quantity of almond meal to keep them propped up. This is fine, unless you’re catering to a nut free crowd that is also gluten free. Flourless chocolate cakes are unrivalled in their rich fudgy quality, so it is understandable that people would want the best of both worlds. This flourless chocolate cake without nuts (inadvertently) is exactly that.
I have given this recipe a new direction as of May 2026. My skills as a recipe developer are constantly improving (at least I think so) and I like to update recipes to reflect that when I feel they could benefit.
Recipe notes for your flourless chocolate cake
- I find it very easy to overcook a flourless chocolate cake – particularly the edges of the cake. While the centre is fudgy, the edges can be over-baked and dry. To counteract this, I do a few things. First, I wrap my springform tin edges in two pieces of foil. This helps ensure that the edges don’t cop too much full on heat. I daresay you could use cake strips if you have them, but I don’t.
- Secondly, I bake the cake on 170C/338F. This is just a little lower than a flourless chocolate recipe generally calls for, but I find it helps minimise the dry edges.
- It can be hard to tell if the cake is cooked because the top looks crispy and crackly but the underneath may not be. My solution to this is to underbake the cake just a little timing wise and to make it the day before. The texture changes enormously from an overnight rest in the fridge and it becomes a fudgy, dense and rich cake.
- Aforementioned overnight rest means that underbaked cake innards won’t spill out as you slice the cake fresh. It can also be a little easier to slice the cake in terms of the crispy top.
- On the top of the crispy top: be careful and gentle! This is a ‘fallen’ style chocolate cake which means that the top will shatter and crumble a little as you slice the cake. It is almost like a meringue top to a chocolate cake. Slice carefully and have hand spare to hold the crust in place while you slice. It’s worth it, I promise!
Ingredient notes
I recommend a 45% dark chocolate that contains sugar for this recipe. We’re not using a whole lot of sugar so we need sweetness to come from the chocolate as well.
Personally, I am salted butter girl through and through. Chocolate desserts always benefit from a bit of salt and I actually use both salted butter and a pinch of salt. Do what works best for you but add salt in some format for best results.
I have used light brown sugar in my dairy free flourless chocolate cake, so I am sure you could use it here. I don’t recommend coconut sugar as it contributes a unique flavour and is less hygroscopic than brown sugar (meaning it contributes less moisture to your cake).
Personally, I use Dutch processed cocoa for all my chocolate recipes. I think it adds the richest and deepest chocolate flavour.
Sadly, there is no substitute for the eggs in this recipe. They contribute volume, leavening, texture and flavour.
Other gluten free chocolate cake recipes
- Easy gluten free chocolate cake
- Gluten free chocolate olive oil cake
- Dairy free flourless chocolate cake
- Gluten fee vegan chocolate mug cake
- Gluten free vegan chocolate cake
Flourless chocolate cake without nuts
Ingredients
- 150 g butter (either salted or unsalted)
- 300 g 45% dark chocolate
- 125 g caster sugar
- 6 extra large eggs, room temperature 45-55g per egg, weighed out of shell
- 20 g Dutch processed cocoa powder
- 1 teaspoon vanilla bean paste (optional)
- Pinch of salt, to taste
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 170C/338F. Grease and line a 24cm springform tin. Place it on an oven tray – this will help make sure you can evenly lower it in and out of the oven.
- Place the butter and chocolate in a large heatproof bowl over a small pot 1/4 filled with water. Turn the heat to medium and allow the steam to melt the chocolate and butter, stirring intermittently until melted and combined. Set aside.
- Separate the egg yolks and whites in super clean bowls, ensuring no yolk gets into the whites. Use the whisk attachment of your mixer to whip the egg whites until frothy, then add the sugar. Whip for 3-5 minutes or until the bowl can easily be inverted upside down without slippage.
- Add the egg yolks, cocoa powder, salt and vanilla bean extract to the melted chocolate mixture and stir just to combine.
- Use a silicone spatula to spoon about a cup of the whipped egg white into the chocolate mixture. Begin folding to combine. Once that first bit is folded in, add more in 2-3 batches until you have folded in all the whipped egg white.
- The mixture should be fluffy, voluminous and a consistent medium chocolate brown colour. There should be no streaks of egg white or of melted chocolate. Be sure to scoop the bottom of the bowl as there is often extra melted chocolate lurking there.
- Pour the cake batter into the lined springform tin and place it into the oven. Cook for 30-40 minutes. It can be tricky to determine if a flourless chocolate cake is fully baked but it is also easy to over-bake a flourless chocolate cake. I recommend pulling it out of the oven if in doubt.
- Allow the cake to cool completely before serving. For best results, allow it to sit in the fridge overnight. Slice with a hot knife – it is very fudgy.
Notes
- See tips and tricks in the body of the post.
Hiya!
I made this today and have ended up with a very wet, very oily result. Any ideas as to what went wrong?
I followed the recipe to the letter, measured everything out by weight, baked for exactly an hour at 180°. It rested on the bench until just warm, then went into the fridge for a full 2 hours before I cut a test piece. A lot of the butter came out of suspension and ended up on the tray under the springform.
The taste is fantastic but the consistency just isn’t there. Any insight?
Hi Katie, I’m sorry it didn’t work out for you!
With all those variables accounted for I’d be inclined to wonder if there was an issue with the eggs. The egg whites need to be thoroughly whipped to aerate the mix and hold everything up. Did they whip to firm peaks?
I haven’t made this one in a while so I’ll add it to my list and see if I can identify if there’s any other cause for the leakage!
Hi, just wondering about the addition of coffee, is it necessary as I don’t really like the taste of coffee. Thanks!
Hi Kathryn,
The coffee is optional but it does really enhance the chocolate flavour. I don’t taste it but I have had someone say they could so feel free to substitute it with water instead 🙂
6 eggs 700g or extra large in size at room temperature
Is that 700 grams IN the shell or OUT of the shell?
Hi Monika,
In Australia the packs of eggs have an average weight on the packet. Extra large eggs are generally labelled as being 700g in weight per carton. So basically just extra large eggs 🙂