These were made for Paula's birthday as she once told me that, like me, she loves the combination of chocolate and cherry (and she's quite fond of a little bit of alcohol). So I've happily named them after her.
Don't be put off by the slightly unusual method - it's actually very easy to do. There's no flour, or any of the usual substitutes you'd find such as ground almonds, but you will need a whole lot of eggs. The texture is dense and incredibly chocolatey - it's a bit like a baked chocolate mousse.
If you don't fancy cherries, you could soak some sultanas in rum instead, or use hazelnuts for a bit of crunch.
Don't be put off by the slightly unusual method - it's actually very easy to do. There's no flour, or any of the usual substitutes you'd find such as ground almonds, but you will need a whole lot of eggs. The texture is dense and incredibly chocolatey - it's a bit like a baked chocolate mousse.
If you don't fancy cherries, you could soak some sultanas in rum instead, or use hazelnuts for a bit of crunch.
Ingredients:
300g dried cherries
Cherry brandy (or vodka)
8 medium egg whites
4 medium egg yolks
80g caster sugar
250g dark chocolate (70% cocoa)
60g unsalted butter
75g Milky Bar
How to make it:
1. Put the cherries in a dish and pour over just enough alcohol to cover them. Cover the dish with cling film and leave overnight.
2. Preheat the oven to 180°C/Gas 4.
3. Grease a traybake tin with butter, then line with greaseproof paper.
4. Place the egg whites in a large clean bowl (any grease at all will stop the whites whisking properly) and add half the caster sugar. Using an electric whisk, whisk until they form stiff peaks and then set aside.
5. Bring a medium-sized saucepan of water to simmering point, and place a large bowl over the pan so the base of the bowl doesn't touch the water below. Put the egg yolks and the remaining caster sugar into the bowl and whisk until you reach the ribbon stage (forming thick ‘ribbons’ that fall off a spoon). Remove the bowl and put to one side.
6. Break the chocolate into pieces and put into a bowl with the butter. Microwave for up to 2mins until everything is melted, stopping about every 30 secs to stir.
7. Take the egg yolk mixture and stir in the melted chocolate and butter, then fold in the whisked egg whites and the cherries.
8. Pour the mixture into the lined baking tin and place in the oven for about 12mins. Test with a cocktail stick - there should still be a bit of mixture sticking to it as you don't want it to be dry.
9. Allow the cake to cool completely in the tin while you melt the Milky Bar in the microwave in the same way as before.
10. When the cake is cool, use a teaspoon to drizzle the chocolate over the top of the cake. Allow it to set before you slice the cake into squares (you can put it in the fridge if you want to speed up the process).
Adapted from 'Cookery School' by Richard Corrigan
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