Mini Chocolate Hazelnut Cakes with Sea Salt

 https://web.archive.org/web/20171110135836/http://www.sweetamandine.com/2010/03/deed-is-done.html

Adapted from Gourmet, November 1997

I have one very important thing to tell you before you begin: Do NOT over bake these cakes. Do not. Please. If you do, you won’t get that smooth, creamy interior that, in my opinion, is the hallmark of a truly fine flourless chocolate cake. Instead, you’ll end up with a consistency that is decidedly more brownie-like. While that’s not the worst thing in the world, if you wanted brownies, you would just make brownies, right? The key here is to remove the cakes from the oven as soon as a thin crust has formed over the tops. I’m going to tell you the exact same thing in the recipe in just a moment, but it’s so important, that it bears repeating.

115g high quality bittersweet chocolate

115g unsalted butter

50g sugar

3 large eggs

45g unsweetened cocoa powder

85g hazelnuts

Coarsely ground Sea salt

Preheat the oven to 375 F and generously butter a 24-cup mini muffin pan. (You can, as I mentioned, also bake this cake in an 8-inch tart pan with a removable bottom. If you decide to go this route, you will want to butter the pan, line the bottom with a round of parchment paper, and butter the paper.)

Toast the hazelnuts in the oven for about 7-8 minutes, and rub them with a cloth dish towel to remove the loose skins. Once they have cooled, grind them in a food processor until medium-fine. (Mine were on the finer side.)

Chop the chocolate into small pieces, and melt it together with the butter in a double boiler (or heat-safe bowl) placed over a pot of barely simmering water. Stir until smooth, remove the mixture from the heat, and whisk in the sugar. Add the eggs and whisk well. Sprinkle the cocoa powder and the ground hazelnuts over the chocolate mixture and whisk until just combined. Pour the batter into the pans, and sprinkle a pinch of sea salt onto each one. Bake for approximately 9 minutes (20 minutes if you’re making a single, 8-inch cake), or until the top has formed a thin crust. Cool in the pans for five minutes, and then remove the cakes. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Makes 24 mini cakes.

Note: These cakes freeze well, and I actually like their consistency even better once they have been frozen and thawed.