Patch Picks—Passover Calls for a Decadent Chocolate Dessert

Many people know that The Torah commands Jews not to eat or possess chametz during the week of Passover. Chametz is any of the five grains, including wheat, spelt, barley, oats and rye, which have come into contact with water for more than 18 minutes.

That can lead to some interesting recipes that involve creative cooking, and like most cooks who experiment in the kitchen, many people who observe Passover cringe at the memories of their mother’s mock-granola for breakfast or matzo meal desserts that went wrong.

So what, you can’t cook with leavening or flour? There is a timeless dessert that is good all year round, but it happens to be kosher for Passover, and you won’t miss the flour.

This year, consider skipping the chemistry experiments that end in bland or flat cakes, and celebrate Passover with a decadent dessert that has a rich flavor and chewy texture.

Children and adults will all love this cake, which is made by melting bittersweet chocolate with butter and adding eggs. If you’re feeling fancy, add whipped cream, berries or a sprinkling of confectioner’s sugar to the platter before serving.

If you don’t already have a cake pan that is kosher for Passover, it’s a great excuse to go shopping for a tart pan that is wide and shallow. Add it to the collection of kitchen utensils and pots and pans that are stowed away and only used for this special holiday.

Chocolate flourless cake

1/2 cup boiling water

1/4 teaspoon salt

3/4 cup white sugar

18 ounces of bittersweet chocolate chopped into small pieces

1 cup unsalted butter, cut into six pieces

3 eggs

3 egg whites

-Preheat oven to 300 degrees

-Combine salt and sugar in a small bowl. Whisk the boiling water, and pour the sugar combination in while whisking over medium heat until dissolved. Set aside.

-Melt the chocolate pieces over a double boiler or in the microwave set on medium power.

-Pour the melted chocolate into the bowl of a stand mixer. 

-Beat the butter into the chocolate slowly, adding butter piece by piece.

-Once combined, beat in the hot sugar water.

-Slowly beat in the eggs and egg whites one at a time.

-Pour the batter into a greased tart or cake pan, and bake for 45 minutes or until the top forms a thin crust. Let cool completely before removing from pan. Invert onto a serving platter and garnish with confectioner’s sugar and berries, if desired.