Reine de Saba (Chocolate Almond Cake)

Reine de Saba (Chocolate Almond Cake)

Cakes & Muffins, Desserts
Dinner Party, Chocolate

Serves 6

The famed Reine de Saba (Queen of Sheba), a rich cake of chocolate and almonds under a glossy chocolate ganache icing. This cake more than compensates for its unassuming appearance with a magnificent depth of flavor. The rum works beautifully with the chocolate in this cake, but cognac or strong dark coffee make a fine substitute in both the cake and the icing.

Ingredients #

  • For the Cake: #

    • 4 oz. high quality semisweet chocolate, chopped
    • 2 tbsp. dark rum (such as Meyer’s)
    • 1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, room temperature
    • 2/3 cup sugar
    • 3 egg yolks
    • 3 egg whites
    • 1 tbsp. sugar
    • 1/3 cup blanched almonds, toasted, cooled, and ground to a fine powder in a food processor
    • ½ tsp. almond extract
    • 3/4 cup cake flour, sifted

  • For the Icing: #

    • 2 0z, high quality semisweet chocolate, chopped
    • 2 tbsp dark rum
    • 5 tbsp butter

Instructions #

Make the Cake: #

Butter and flour an 8” cake pan thoroughly. Preheat your oven to 350 F.

In a glass or metal bowl over (not in) a small saucepan of barely simmering water, melt the chocolate and the rum until completely smooth. Remove from heat and set aside.

Use the paddle attachment of your mixer to cream the butter and 1 cup sugar together for several minutes. They should form a very pale and fluffy mixture.

In a separate bowl, beat the egg whites and a pinch of salt until soft peaks form. Add the 1 ½ tbsp. sugar and beat until stiff peaks form.

Mix the cooled melted chocolate into the butter-sugar mixture. Stir in the almonds and the almond extract. When fully mixed, stir in one-fourth of the egg whites to lighten the mixture. Carefully fold in the remaining egg whites a dollop at a time, alternating with thirds of the flour, until all of the egg whites and flour have been added. Make sure no white streaks of egg white remain in the batter.

Turn the batter into the prepared pan. Use a rubber spatula to push the batter up the rim of the pan. Bake in the center of a thoroughly preheated oven for 20-25 minutes, until the cake is puffed up and the outer 3” are fully set. The center should still move slightly if shaken – it’s important not to overbake this, or it will be dry.

Allow the cake to cool in the pan on a rack for 10 minutes. Run a small knife around the edge of the pan and turn the cake out onto a rack (place the rack upside down on top of the cake and then carefully flip it and the cake pan together). Let the cake cool for an hour or two – it must be completely room temperature if it is to be iced.

Make the Ganache Icing: #

When the cake is nearly cool, place the chocolate and rum in a small bowl over (not in) barely simmering water. Stir occasionally until the chocolate has melted into a very smooth cream. Remove the bowl from the hot water and beat the butter into the chocolate one tablespoon at a time. Add a tiny pinch of salt. Continue stirring until the icing cools somewhat and is thick enough to spread on the cake.

Pour the icing over the surface of the cake and use a small metal spatula to cover the entire top of the cake and push a bit of icing over the edge to form drips down the sides of the cake. You should end up with a smooth, slightly glossy top. If it does, you’re done!

But sometimes the ganache will set up too quickly, and it won’t be perfectly smooth — don’t worry! Smooth it off as well as you can, and sprinkle the finished cake lightly with cocoa powder.