Vegan chocolate torte with amaretto
Vegan chocolate torte with amaretto
Regardless of where you stand on the upcoming Valentines day, it’s always nice to bake someone a cake or get someone to bake you a cake, isn’t it? This fudgy and very indulgent vegan chocolate torte with amaretto is perfect for the occasion, especially that it is so easy to make that even complete kitchen newbies can manage it. All that is required of you is to blend the ingredients in a food processor, add melted chocolate, pour the mixture into a baking tin and then wait.
Waiting is by far the most challenging bit about this recipe 😛 . First you need to wait till the cake is baked (doh!) and then you need to wait some more, until it is stone cold, before you are able to cut it neatly. In fact, allowing it to set in the fridge is your best bet. Yes, I know that’s hard…
If you are not an amaretto fan and are a bit exasperated at the sight of another amaretto dessert (I used it in this tart and these cookies too), don’t worry. You can simply swap it out for almond milk or strong coffee to intensify the chocolate flavour that little bit more.
I love amaretto and I am hell bent on using it all up before we move house in 8 weeks. We are in the process of agreeing on the completion date with our sellers and it looks like we can start moving towards the end of March, which is just awesome. We are insanely excited and I’ve already fallen down the Pinterest rabbit hole of looking at furniture, kitchen designs and colour schemes. Not that we will be in a position to afford anything other than a bed and a cooker (as the sellers are taking the old one with them) to begin with, but one can dream, eh?
I might even enrol in an interior decoration course at a local cultural centre in a bid to give my ideas a bit of a structure, as I find that I am being pulled in opposite directions. On one hand, I like simple, light and airy Scandinavian-inspired aesthetics, but on the other I feel that some rooms of our-to-be Victorian home would benefit from some dark colours, saturated velvets and dark wood. Sometimes, it is harder when you get to work with a completely clean slate, don’t you think? I’m not complaining though, I know that we are very lucky and I cannot wait to roll my sleeves up.
- 200 g / 7 oz vegan dark chocolate (I used 70% cacao)
- 300 g / 10.5 oz silken tofu (I used Clearspring)
- 100 ml / 1/3 cup + 4 tsp amaretto liqueur* (I used Disaronno)
- ¼ tsp salt
- 60 g / ¼ cup smooth almond butter
- 25 g / ¼ cup cacao powder
- 200 g / 1 cup sugar (use coconut sugar for refined sugar-free version)
- 150 g / 1½ cups almond meal
- 1 tbsp tapioca starch (or cornstarch)
- 2 tbsp toasted almond flakes, to decorate (optional)
- Preheat the oven to 180° C / 355° F. Grease a round tin (I used a 20 cm / 8″ round tin) with a little bit of olive oil or line the bottom of the tin with a circle of baking paper.
- Place broken up chocolate in a glass bowl over a water bath (bain-marie). Make sure the glass bowl doesn’t touch the water. Simmer on a very low heat until the chocolate has melted. Take the bowl off the pot and allow the chocolate to cool down a little.
- Blend silken tofu, amaretto, salt, almond butter, cacao and sugar in a food processor, until smooth.
- Add in melted and slightly cooled off chocolate and blend again.
- And finally blend in almond meal and tapioca until you get a smooth and thick batter.
- Working quickly (the chocolate thickens the batter as it cools), spoon the batter into the prepared tin and even out the top.
- Bake for 40 mins. Remove from the oven and let the torte cool down COMPLETELY before chilling it in the fridge for 4-8 hours (an overnight fridge stay is recommended).
My recipe is inspired by this recipe.
I've just put another in the oven for a family Christmas thing and have realised too late that I forgot the cornstarch!! We'll see how it turns out, but even if we end up eating goo, I think it will still be a hit!
Yes, you do want to keep it in the fridge afterwards ideally although if the ambient temperature is low, it should be fine out of the fridge for a few hours also. Hope this helps! x Ania
I am delighted to hear that and thanks for taking the time to review and rate this recipe - much appreciated! Stay safe! Ania
I can’t find any silken tofu where I live. They only sell firm tofu hier in stores. Could I use these instead of silken tofu?
Thanks!!
I have not tried but I reckon it would be fine, perhaps use a bit less tofu and soften it by blending it with some plant milk to achieve the right (silky smooth and like very thick cream) consistency. I hope that helps and that it will come out well. x Ania
I bear it in mind when I think of new recipes to create. For this particular cake though, I am pretty confident that could replace nut butter with 50% banana puree and 50% oil and replace ground up almonds with all purpose GF flour mix. They should both work well. I will try it when I have some time on my hands for experimentation - currently in DIY hell so not in a position to try. So glad you like my banana cake, it's one of our favourites too! x Ania
I'm looking to try this soon but I can't find Almond Meal in the UK could I use almond flour or ground almonds instead?
Almond flour will work fine! Good luck! Ania
I can't reply to your comment for some reason but I wanted to let you know that this freezes and defrosts perfectly. I defrosted it in the fridge overnight and couldn't tell the difference from when it was fresh. My family devoured the 'test' one I made so I've just baked another one for my friend!
It's delicious made with cashew butter and I love the almondy kick!
Thanks for an amazing recipe :D
This cake is intense. It is not for the faint of heart. You want something rich? Something full of chocolate goodness? Something so wonderful you feel like you need not eat anything sweet for the rest of the week? - This cake has got you covered.
SUPER easy to make and full flavour points through and through.
I served mine about 15-20min after being out of the oven when it was still warm with some vegan vanilla ice cream. Although after leaving it in the fridge for a day or so it is still awesome. I even took a little into work and the general rating was about 13 out of 10 stars.
Awesome Ania!!
Could you use other nut butters such as cashew butter?
Can it be frozen and defrosted without affecting the texture? If not, how long will it keep please?
Thanks Ania!
P.S. I arrived at the Stroud Vegan Fair too late to catch your talk - please keep us all updated with any others you are planning to attend in the Bristol area! Good luck with your house move too.
I'm glad you are planning to make it for your friend and I hope she/he will love it! Yes, you can totally use cashew butter instead of almond one. I have not tried freezing it so I cannot be sure, sorry. It keeps about 2-3 days in an air-tight container in the fridge - it probably keeps longer in all honesty (as there are no eggs or milk in it), but I am pretty sure the flavour will not be the same after a few days. Hope that helps! Ania
P.S. What a shame we've missed each other! It would have been lovely to meet you! We did not hang around for too long as the room was really cold and I could feel that I was coming down with something. Another time! And yes, I will keep you posted, for sure. Thanks re: house move! x
What you see in the photos is thick coconut yoghurt by a company called The Coconut Collaborative. It's tangy and not overpowering in my opinion. Hope that helps! Ania
I'm not well versed in what is and isn't paleo, unfortunately, but I feel that a steamed sweet potato and an extra tbsp of tapioca might work well too. However, the recipe will most likely need some tweaking. Hope that helps! Ania