Ski chalet recipe of the week: Nutella Cake
Undoubtedly one of the best parts of a ski holiday is the cake that awaits you as you return to your chalet, jelly-legged and exhausted from a day on the slopes. For a whole week chalet hosts provide mouthwatering cakes and afternoon delights ready to be devoured in front of a roaring fire as you sit back, relax and soothe your aching limbs.
For those who have battled with cakes at altitude before, you’ll know that the thin atmosphere and lower boiling point of water at altitude can wreak havoc with traditional baking recipes. These days, not only can altitude be an issue, but intolerances too. It’s no secret that good quality gluten free ingredients are tricky to come by on the mountain, so it’s out with the old and in with innovation when it comes to baking in Heaven.
This Nutella cake recipe is the ultimate in chalet cakes; the replacement of flour with ground hazelnuts makes it gluten free and you don’t need to worry about rising. Don’t be fooled by it’s heavenly exterior though, the inside is gooey, dense and utterly sinful!
Ingredients
- 6 large Eggs
- 2 pinches Salt
- 125g Unsalted Butter, softened to room temp
- 400g Nutella (1 large jar)
- 1 tbsp Water
- 200g Ground Hazelnuts
- 225g Dark Chocolate
- 125ml Double Cream
- Chocolate Buttons
Method
- Preheat oven to 180°, and grease a cake tin.
- Separate eggs, and in a large bowl whisk the egg whites to a stiff peak, but stop before they become dry.
- In a separate bowl, beat together Nutella and butter, add 100g of ground hazelnuts, 100g melted dark chocolate (best way to melt is using a bain marie) water and egg yolks and beat until smooth.
- Slowly add egg whites, folding in carefully to keep as much air in as possible.
- Pour the mixture into the greased tin, and place in the centre of the oven for about 40mins, or until the cake has started to pull away from the sides.
- Once in the oven, make a ganache by heating cream (don’t let it boil!) and mixing in the remaining 125g of chocolate and a pinch of sea salt. The chocolate will melt into the cream, but keep mixing or whisking until the mixture is thick and glossy.
- When the cake is out of the oven and completely cooled, pour the ganache over the cake and leave to set slightly before decorating with chocolate buttons.
Yummy!
