Jamie Magazine
By Will Torrent
1 hr 30 mins
Not Too Tricky
serves 10
Recipe From
Ingredients
50ml Armagnac
Zest of 1 orange
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1 tsp mixed spice
½ tsp ground nutmeg
A pinch of ground cloves
130g semi-dried prunes
250g 70% dark chocolate
200g salted butter
5 free-range eggs, separated
100g caster sugar
75g plain flour
75g ground almonds
Cocoa powder, for dusting
Method
A twist on a brownie – loaded with boozy prunes. The longer you soak the fruit, the better!
- You can do this step well in advance, otherwise, make it the night before. Place the Armagnac in a pan with the spices, finely grate in the orange zest and bring to the boil. Pop the prunes in a bowl, pour over the spiced Armagnac, cover with clingfilm and place in the fridge.
- When ready to make the cake, line a 20cm cake tin and preheat your oven to 180°C/350°F/gas 4.
- Break up the chocolate into pieces and put with the butter in a bowl over a pan of simmering water. Stir occasionally, until melted, then take off the heat.
- Separate the eggs. In a spotlessly clean bowl, whip the egg whites with 1 tablespoon of the sugar until it forms hard peaks. Place the yolks and remaining sugar in another bowl and whisk for about 5 minutes, until you can draw a figure of 8 in it and it retains its shape.
- Pour the melted chocolate into the whisked yolks and stir to incorporate. Roughly purée the prunes in a food processor, then fold them into the mixture.
- Combine the flour and ground almonds in a bowl, then fold into the chocolate mixture. Carefully fold in the egg whites, in three stages, so you don’t lose any of the air you have whisked into it.
- Once everything is thoroughly mixed in, pour the mixture into the tin and bake for about 1 hour, until a skewer inserted in the centre comes out clean.
- Leave the cake to cool slightly before turning out onto a plate and dusting with cocoa powder. Delicious served with more hot Armagnac-soaked prunes on the side.
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