Passover-Friendly Chocolate Cake Recipe

A good Passover dessert recipe — at least one that's for something other than coconut macaroons – can be difficult to find. For one thing, during Passover no flour can be used. For another, if you're planning a meat-based meal such as a nice smoked brisket, the laws of kashrut that apply year-round dictate that the rest of the meal cannot contain any dairy. This chocolate cake is not only flourless, but is also kept kosher-friendly by using vegan butter and no milk. "The reasoning behind keeping the cake dairy-free," recipe developer Catherine Brookes says, "is so it could be enjoyed [by those keeping kosher] as part of a multiple-course meal that also features meat."

While you may be a bit dubious about using a plant-based dairy substitute if you don't follow a vegan diet, Brookes assures us that the cake made with this ingredient still has a "lovely soft, rich texture." She says the dessert is "deliciously rich, chocolaty, and decadent" and adds, "I don't think anyone would notice this was dairy-free."

This cake only requires six ingredients. In addition to the vegan butter, you'll need some semisweet chocolate, although you might want to check and make sure this is Passover kosher. You'll also be using eggs and both kinds of sugar — white and brown — as well as some cocoa powder to make the cake extra-chocolaty.

Begin your preparations by preheating the oven to 320 F. Melt the butter substitute and chocolate together in the microwave in 30 second bursts, stirring in between each one.

Separate the eggs, then beat the whites in one bowl until they form soft peaks. Brookes says this may take about 5 minutes, although it could take longer if you do it by hand instead of using an electric or stand mixer. Still, it's great exercise for your arm if you do! These whipped egg whites are a crucial part of the cake — as Brookes explains, they're what makes it rise without any leavening due to the fact that the air bubbles expand in the oven. She says this is what gives the cake a texture she describes as "not dissimilar to a souffle, perhaps a little more heavy and cakey."

The yolks, too, have their part to play, so beat them in a different bowl along with both types of sugar. Again, this should take about 5 minutes, at the end of which time the yolks should appear pale and fluffy.

Measure your cocoa powder into a sieve or sifter, then sift it into the sugar/yolk mixture and fold it in until the mixture is well-combined. Fold in the melted chocolate, as well. It should have had time to cool off a bit by now — you never want to add anything hot to eggs since it might cook them before they go into the oven and scrambled egg cake is not what we're going for here.  Finally, fold in the egg whites, then your batter is done.

Pour the batter into an 8-inch round pan that's been greased and lined with parchment paper. The oven should be hot enough by now, so bake the cake for an hour or up to an hour and 20 minutes. Once it's done, the top should look crackly and it should pass the "toothpick test" — you know, the one where you stick a wooden toothpick down into the middle of a cake and it comes back free of unbaked batter.

Let the cake cool in the pan for 15 minutes, then gently detach it from the pan and cool it completely on a wire rack. It needs little in the way of adornment, perhaps just a sprinkling of powdered sugar and maybe a few fresh berries on top. Brookes does say, though, "You can also add a glaze or top [it] with ganache, if desired."