February 9, 2015
3 Ingredient Flourless Chocolate Cake
by Kirbie
I am totally in love with this 3-Ingredient Flourless Chocolate Cake.
Whether you’re searching for a Valentine’s Day or other special occasion dessert to bake, or you are just in the mood for some chocolate, this cake is the answer. I made a version of this a few years ago, but I decided to fiddle with the recipe and baking method and I love this version even more.
It’s pretty easy to make, with only three basic ingredients you likely have already, and it comes out looking pretty impressive.
It has a bit of a rustic shape to it because it deflates a little after it comes out of the oven. But I actually like the puffy souffle look.
In fact, just reading this post is making me dream about the cake. Okay, I’m going to take a break from this post and go eat a slice. In the meantime, here are some preparation photos for reference when you decide to make this cake.
Alright, I’m back. I already ruined my goal of no late-night snacking. Oh well, it was worth it.
It’s a good thing I didn’t decide to share this cake with anyone. It’s all mine ours.
- 6 large eggs
- 12 oz semisweet or milk chocolate chips
- 6 tbsp unsalted butter
In the bowl of a stand mixer, crack in eggs. Whip on high speed for about 8 minutes, or until eggs are at least triple in volume (if you are mixing by hand or with a handmixer, you'll have to whip the eggs longer). The whipped eggs batter will turn a very pale yellow and if you spoon some up and drop it back in, it should mostly hold its shape (see photos above).
In a large glass bowl, add the chocolate chips and butter. Microwave at 30 second intervals and stir in between, until chocolate is completely melted and a smooth paste forms. Mine was done at 1 minute and 30 seconds. Be careful not to overcook the chocolate or it will burn. You can also melt the chocolate in a double broiler.
Preheat your oven to 350°F.
Slowly add the egg mixture into your chocolate bowl, adding about 1/5 of the mixture at a time. After you add the egg mixture, use a large spatula and stir in a clockwise direction until no egg streaks remain. Then add more egg mixture and repeat, until all the egg mixture is incorporated. Make sure you mix the egg in by hand, and not with a mixer. Otherwise you will deflate the eggs too much and the cake will not rise properly. The whipped eggs are the key to your cake structure.
Grease and line a 6 or 7 inch round springform pan with parchment paper. (Note: I do not know if this cake will rise properly without a springform pan). Pour batter into pan. Bake for about 40-50 minutes, until top of cake is puffy and cracked and fully cooked. Remove cake from oven and let it cool in pan, until it's cool enough to serve and decorate. The cake will deflate and flatten slightly once it begins to cool.
Nutrition Facts
3 Ingredient Flourless Chocolate Cake
Amount Per Serving (1 slice)
Calories 343 Calories from Fat 220
% Daily Value*
Total Fat 24.4g 38%
Saturated Fat 14.1g 71%
Polyunsaturated Fat 1g
Monounsaturated Fat 3.9g
Cholesterol 162.4mg 54%
Sodium 54.4mg 2%
Total Carbohydrates 27.6g 9%
Dietary Fiber 3g 12%
Sugars 24.4g
Protein 7.8g 16%
Vitamin A 9%
Calcium 2%
Iron 4%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.
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That looks terrific! Sounds like it has all the good ingredients in there…like lots of chocolate, mmm 🙂
haha, yup!
I need this cake in my future! Yum.
it’s really good!
OMG looks great. and so easy?!
yes! just make sure you whisk the eggs enough!
no sugar required?
no because there is already so much chocolate. just make sure you dont use bittersweet or really dark chocolate.
I am going to make this! Thanks!!
you’re welcome!
I tried something like this before, but it sank horribly. Any tips?
make sure you whip the eggs long enough to 3 times the volume, and when the egg batter drips down from the mixers, they should hold their form and not sink in. Also make sure you stir in the chocolate by hand, as you don’t want to ruin the eggs. the eggs are the key to the cake structure. I give pretty detailed instructions, so I would recommend you follow them closely.
I just made this! Hand mixed for like 15-17 min. Took it out of the oven at 50 min. No cracks. Looks perfect. Hope it doesn’t sink too-too much.
i hope it worked out! i worry about handmixing, but I know people who have done it successfully
This looks yummy, but unfortunately I’m lactose intolerant. Can I substitute olive oil for the butter in this recipe?
i dont think so. maybe canola or vegetable oil. but i’ve found that olive oil doesn’t work well as a substitute. it changes the texture and the taste if you add too much to cakes.
Maybe coconut oil.
You can use ghee in place of butter! It is just clarified butter so the milk solids have been removed.
Use a dairy free spread instead. You will also need to make sure the choc chips are dairy free too, I have been caught out before with that
Butter only contains trace amounts of lactose. I am also lactose intolerant and was thrilled to find out that butter is virtually lactose free!
You can use Earth Balance It’s just like butter for cooking & eating ? You can also get Vegan chocolate chips
Sounds good. I love chocolate; so I think I’ll make it one of these days.
enjoy!
Looks delicious! Can i use the batter for brownies as i don’t have a springfoam pan?
this really isn’t brownie batter and i’m actually not sure how well it works without the springfoam, as that type of pan really helps cakes rise, especially in a situation like this where you don’t have any baking powder in the recipe
I just stumbled upon your recipe and decided to give it a try last night. It turned out great! I used a hand mixer and beat the eggs for about ten minutes (giving myself a couple breaks to rest my hand and the mixer which was getting quite warm). I also don’t own a spring form pan and just used a regular cake pan. While I can see the benefits of the spring form pan, I didn’t have any problems, and I just made sure to grease it well so that it would slide out without falling apart too much. I like that this is a fluffier flourless chocolate cake. While I love the denser, almost cheesecake like versions, this was really nice, and like real cake!
I’m so glad you enjoyed it! thanks for taking the time to leave a comment!
I plan to make this again. It was great but, it has been awhile. This time I m more disciplined about my chocolate sooooo. I m trying it with Dark Chocolate; possibly with Coconut oil too. Maybe, both seperately first to just see. Afterall, I can always share with my “taste -tester grandchildren”. They are so willing to assist.
haha, that’s great you have such willing taste testers! I’d love to hear your results with coconut oil
Could I double this and use a larger pan? Need to feed 10
yes that should work! you’ll probably need an 8 or 9 inch pan. Baking time may be a few minutes longer as well
Seems to be a nice recipe and so yum.!! Will try soon..!!
hope you like it!
YUM!!! Thanks for sharing it 🙂 But I was wondering if I could use normal chocolate bars and not chocolate chips
? and is it okay with glass springform pan?
Thanks
yes to the chocolate. I’ve never used a glass springform pan before, but I think it should work!
hi can you make a microwave version becaus i dont need that much and dont wanna use so many eggsthanks
you’re in luck since I already did! https://kirbiecravings.com/2015/02/4-ingredient-flourless-chocolate-mug-cake.html
Can I use a 9 inch springform pan instead? It’s all I have.
You can but you’ll have to make adjustments. If you use the recipe as is, your cake will be much, much thinner in a 9 inch pan and will also bake in less time.
can i make mini cakes in mini cake pans?
I haven’t tried, so I’m not quite sure of the results. I don’t think the cake will rise as much without a springform pan.
I made heart shaped cupcakes and they turned out a little flat and more like a brownie but tasted really good. . Only had to cook them about 11 min. too. They were a big hit!
Do you use warm or cold eggs?
cold or room temperature should both work
This cake came out amazing!!!! I finally ventured to make it and can’t believe how easy ,successful, and delicious it is….And it’s gluten free!!! Great recipe and directions— thank you!!! It will be a new family fave.
yay!! so glad you enjoyed it. thanks for the lovely comment!
Any suggestions on making a day ahead and storing? Should it be refrigerated or left at room temperature in an airtight container? Thanks!
If it’s only one day ahead, either room temp or refrigeration will work. In both cases, do store in a container so it doesn’t get dry.
reading some of testimonies here, and i m so excited to try.
This is what i ve been looking for. Thank you ????????
you’re welcome!
Hi, Kirbie! Thank you for this recipe, it was really fun and easy to do (and I even overdid it a bit, by beating the whites separately and then adding the yolks one by one). A friend once showed me a one-pot recipe for what he calls a mudcake, but this one is at least as good, except foolproof. I’ve used a silicone pan and then I made gummy roses with Sheridan’s and a silicone rose muffin mold (since all my small shapes are currently used as ice trays), as well as sesame seeds, coconut flakes and tiny confectionery hearts, using your recipe for wine gummy bears https://kirbiecravings.com/2016/12/wine-gummy-bears.html
Here’s a pic: https://i66.tinypic.com/2rdfera.png It was a complete hit!
thank you for sharing your photo. It’s so beautiful with the fruit decoration son top!
I used bittersweet chocolate chips and made the cake in 4oz ramekins so they were single servings, this recipe made 6 and they only took 10-15 minutes to cook. They turned out perfect, they look amazing and didn’t fall!
i love the idea of individual servings!
Can I use a blender instead of whisking it?
The key to the structure of the cake are the whipped eggs, which works best with a mixer. I have not tried with a blender but I think it would be harder to achieve the texture needed
This is a delicious recipe and so easy! I used some paper and some foil cupcake liners in a muffin tin and it worked in both. I sprayed the foil cupcake liners with oil just to be sure they would pop out easily and they did. They flatten out when they are cooling so it is more like a 2-Bite Brownie consistency which was perfect. It only took about 11 minutes to cook. It made 16 cupcakes. I probably could have filled them more and have made 12 bigger ones. I used one 300g package of chocolate chips which is about 10 oz. instead of 12 oz. and it worked just fine, I think.
Very yummy and to think there was no flour or extra sugar in the recipe! I wish I knew the calorie count on these. It is so easy to keep popping them in your mouth.
I’m glad you got these to work. There are a lot of online recipe nutrition calculators out there which you can use to get an approximate calorie count
I had trouble with the fluffing of the eggs the first time o made this awesome recipe, the adjustment I needed (I think cz it’s humid where I live) I meringue the egg whites and then blended the egg yolk and mixed them in on high very slowly. IT WORKED PERFECT! I did 2 8inch round with straight sides. I iced the middle with raspberry jam that I warmed and added a little fresh raspberries. Topped with the other 8in., glazed with raspberry sauce, dusted with powdered sugar and chocolate curls. It was the fanciest dish at the party!!! Thank you so much for this beauty!!!
I’m happy this worked out for you!
I just made this today and it is delicious! I didn’t have any chocolate chips but used two Lily’s sugar free milk chocolate bars, they melted with the butter beautifully. I didn’t have a springform pan but baked this in my cake pan baking stone and it turned out perfect. It took around 35 minutes and looked like the picture only not as raised. I made a simple sugar free ganache and drizzled over it and had a piece with coffee! Thank you for this wonderful recipe.
your version sounds great. so glad this worked out for you!
I have made this cake for Passover and it was a big hit! And so easy to make too. Can this cake be made a day ahead? How should it be stored? Thanks!
Yes it can be made a day ahead. If just one day ahead, it should be okay kept at room temperature. If you plan on storing leftovers, you will need to keep it in the fridge.