My friend Mary Frances from LOVE the Secret Ingredient has shared this wonderful recipe for Silky Chocolate Cake. Seriously now, when you read that recipe name didn’t you want to taste it? All I could think of was silky? cake? I’m in!
I’ve been following Mary Frances’ blog for a long time now and her recipes are always “doable” if that makes any sense. We’ve all read recipes on blogs where you have to stand on one foot and stir with your pinky while whistling Dixie but you won’t get that with recipes from lovethesecretingredient.net. Your result usually looks just like her photos. (usually because it’s not her fault if you trip while taking something out of the oven and it falls on the floor.)
You can connect with Mary France on Facebook and Twitter or keep up with her blog via email.
I looked at the photo of the cut slice above and wanted to taste that mousse-like cake and now I must go to the kitchen and make one. Enjoy! Without any further palaver, here’s Mary Frances!
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This is a great recipe for keeping the LOVE going after Valentine’s Day. I have been making this cake for nearly 20 years now and it is a true winner, dare I say orgasmic – full of rich chocolate and butter. You can just sink into it.
Every time I make this cake for a dinner party, guests always either pick at the crumbs on the serving plate or ask for seconds. It is rich, rich, rich and totally yummy. And it’s easy to make. Enjoy!
- 2 sticks plus 2 tbs. (9 ounces) unsalted butter, cut into tablespoons
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- ½ cup water
- ½ pound bittersweet chocolate, coarsely chopped (I use Scharffen Berger)
- ½ cup all-purpose flour
- 3 large eggs, beaten
- Confectioners’ sugar, for dusting
- Extra butter to butter the pan
- Preheat the oven to 350°. Wrap the outside of an 8 or 9 -by-3-inch round springform pan in heavy-duty foil, then generously butter the inside of the pan. Set the springform in a roasting pan.
- In a saucepan, combine the butter with the granulated sugar and water and bring to a boil over moderate heat, stirring. Remove from the heat. Add the chocolate and stir until smooth and all the chocolate is melted; let cool.
- In a medium bowl, whisk the flour with the eggs until blended. Add the chocolate mixture to the egg mixture and whisk until smooth. Pour the batter into the prepared springform pan. Pour enough hot (not boiling, but hot) water into the roasting pan to reach one-third of the way up the side of the springform. Bake the cake for about 1 hour and 10 minutes, or until the top is crusty and a cake tester inserted in the center comes out with a few moist crumbs attached. Let the cake cool in the springform on a rack for 20 minutes. Then remove the foil and the side of the pan and let the cake cool completely. Dust the cake with confectioners’ sugar just before serving.
- Serve with lightly sweetened whipped cream with some vanilla. A few fresh raspberries are also a nice addition.
My immense thanks to Mary Frances for sharing this delicious cake with us!
{ 73 comments… read them below or add one }
Terrific looking cake! My wife makes one that’s similar to this. I really like the simple topping of confectioner’s sugar – that’s plenty sweet enough for me. Really nice post – thanks to both of you!
john@kitchenriffs recently posted..Irish Soda Bread
Hi Mary Frances, great to meet you!! This is such a great recipe and looks so silky. Bookmarking it.
Hi Minnie, nice to meet you! If/when you make the cake, I’d love to hear how you like it!
Oh, this does look wonderful. Now that the heat has gone away from us here in Adelaide I can safely put the oven on. We have a birthday dinner coming up – this is just what I need.
Amanda recently posted..Confess Your Condiment Crime & Win a Beerenberg Prize Package!
Like Pavlov’s dog, I saw the name of your post on my email, and my mouth started to water… you are so right! The name just makes me want to bake one and share it with people I love
looks amazing… absolutely amazing
WOW! I am all for silky chocolate cake! I bet my dear husband will love this.
What an easy dessert! I will be whipping this up at a dinner party soon. Simply decadent!
Lovely – I adore chocolate anything and especially a dense thick rich chocolate cake! Beautiful
there’s always room for cake like this
Oh! I soooo would love to make this! Can you tell me though if there is a version of the recipe out there with the measurements in metric? Thanks…
there isn’t.. I use a scale and switch it back and forth.. I’d be happy to convert if you need it though.
Hi Maureen. Oh thank you ever so much for your offer! I would be eternally grateful if you could do that for me!
I suppose it would be asking too much to request a slice be sent to me huh? Cause I would love one. Guess I’ll have to make it! Lovely cake.
If I were driving by, I would bring a whole cake
This cake looks really moist and silky. I could not avoid — yes, I am salivating!
LOL I know whast you mean!
What a decadent looking cake!
Oh my goodness yes please may I have a fork. Actually scrap that, can I eat it with my fingers and lick the plate?
Oh this just looks so delicious!!
That does look delicious. I have a flourless chocolate cake which I make which looks just like Mary’s.
and you didn’t share the url? tsk.. is it on your blog?
The texture of this cake looks heavenly!
definitely fits the silky name
This is one serious chocolate cake! I want!
my husband said, “Can we have cream and ice cream with it?” :eyeroll:
I can tell from the picture alone just how moist, rich, and decadent this cake is. Please send me the rest of the cake after you send Barbara at Creative Culinry the slice she asked for.
will do!
Did you say silky chocolate? Yum!
Laura (Tutti Dolci) recently posted..salted caramel-cashew bars
yeah the title caught me first to
Maureen & Mary Frances, I KNEW there was a reason I hadn’t decided on my birthday cake yet. (It was two days ago and I was still thinking, ha!) Thank you for ending the debate. This one’s going in the oven tomorrow!
Kimby | a little lunch recently posted..Spring Fling (My Second Blogiversary)
Yay! Happy birthday, Kimby!
Forgot to mention two things, Maureen… first, I really like your email notifications. (Cheerful, concise, & a pleasure to open.) Second, I love your Easy Recipe plug-in (prints off coherently; doesn’t waste paper or time!) I’m serious about making this cake tomorrow — the recipe is on my fridge NOW… aka my staging area.
Thanks again to Mary Frances!
Aww Kimby, thanks so much for saying that.
Oo, exciting Kimby. I hope it was just the right treat for your day!
Mmmm I saw the title and died a little – after looking at the recipe I am a complete goner
Cheers
CCU
CCU recently posted..Guest Post #1: Pasta Puttanesca
Uru, you need to make this and give it your own special twist! swooning just thinking about it.
The cake seems so dense and rich that it reminds me of a truffle. I’d love to give it a taste.
that’s it… truffley !
Love this, it looks rich and delicious and fudgey! Thank you team for sharing.
fudgy, custardy, moussy.. really good
Silky is about right! What an amazing looking cake!
Kari @ bite-sized thoughts recently posted..Carrageenan, more non-dairy milk reviews, and homemade cashew nut milk
I couldn’t agree more!
Another lovely recipe Maureen, it totally looks like a super rich and delicious cake. I love the contrast of the powdered sugar in it too, very pretty.
Eva Taylor recently posted..Celeriac Velouté (or soup)
She’s a pretty nifty baker, that Mary Frances!
So decadent! Thanks for sharing.
Wasn’t she nice for sending this fantastic recipe?
Sigh! This looks fantastic, nay, orgasmic! Thanks MF and Maureen
and this was an orgasmic gimme
That does look like a really yummy chocolate cake. My knowledge of the imperial system isn’t the best but it does seem there’s an enormous amount of chocolate and butter in this cake – it certainly would be rich, rich, rich. I’m moving house today and the previous occupant in the new house has not organised having her phone line disconnected so I can’t get connected. I’m not sure how long I’ll be without internet! The joys! xx
oh my.. I feel SO sorry for you. nothing is worse than moving day!
That’s true. It’s not an everyday cake! I hope your move went well – there are always so many “joys” with that…
That looks like an amazing chocolate cake. Honestly, you can’t beat a good chocolate cake.
it’s almost custard like.. yum
I love chocolate cake and recently made it too. Oh I feel like I’m going to start craving for one after seeing this cake. Looks so delicious!
Nami | Just One Cookbook recently posted..Egg Salad Sandwich Bento たまごサンド弁当
Nami, I loved your Meyer Lemon Cake! maybe we should make both
I was interested and then totally captured when I read mousse like ! I am excited to give this a try .
I looked at the photo closely and I wanted a bite
This cake looks absolutely delicious!!
I so much want a slice with my morning coffee… I am at the in laws for the weekend but I may just have to make it anyway :0!!
Oh and I am adding you to my foodie friends blogroll, stop by and say hi
GourmetGetaways recently posted..Lemon Caper Flathead – Julie Goodwin Recipe
Thanks, I’ll return the favour
I wanted a piece of cake for breakfast but my husband woke me up and said he’d cooked. …so no cake 
The cake looks so moist and decadent, a perfect chocolaty treat!
Gourmantine recently posted..Hazelnut time
I loved it
Yes, anything silky and chocolate definitely catches my attention. I’d love a slice of this right now!
that looks sooooo delicious!
Thanks so much for coming by and that cake is a definite winner. Someone else has already made it so it’s definitely been tested and re-tested.
Hope you don’t mind that I posted this absolutely wonderful, still oohing & aahing over it cake so soon after it appeared here. Truly a recipe to be shared — thank you!
Kimby | a little lunch recently posted..Cake Walk (Silky Chocolate Cake)
I’m thrilled!!
I’m such a chocoholic. This one is on my to-do list for sure!!
Jen @ Jen’s Favorite Cookies recently posted..Grasshopper Cookies
I’m having the biggest chocolate and cake craving this week and here is your gorgeous chocolate cake. I want a slice so bad right now. Pinning it to give it a try. Thanks for sharing Maureen.
Oh Nancy, I’d love to see how you photograph this one
That cake looks so decadent, and rich!! It almost has a flour less look to the cake, or like a dense brownie:-). It seriously looks amazing, and I bet even better with a tall glass of milk:-) Hugs, Terra
I don’t care what we say it’s like as long as I get an extra piece to go with my glass of milk
Oh my. I need this cake in my life!
Kiran @ KiranTarun.com recently posted..Lemongrass Egg Curry
I did too and it was beautiful!!
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