It’s something of a family joke that if there’s ever a flourless chocolate cake (or torte) on the menu, my brother will order it, regardless of whatever seasonal treats or house specialties may be on offer. And I get it: Flourless chocolate cake always feels extra special, elegant but not precious, the appropriate ending for a nice dinner with your favorite person (your sister).
Genevieve Ko’s flourless chocolate cake recipe is indeed special and elegant, with the Genevieve touch of being so simple to make — no fancy equipment or advanced baking skills required. You might even have all the ingredients on hand already: butter, chocolate chips, cocoa powder, sugar, eggs, vanilla. This cake would be wonderful for Passover, but it’s a solid closer for any meal. Just ask my brother.
Featured Recipe
Flourless Chocolate Cake
Imagine serving that beautiful cake after Rick Martínez’s tangy, luscious weeknight chicken Marbella, a no-marinade-needed take on the Silver Palate classic. That would be an incredible one-two punch to win friends and influence people.
Roasting a whole fish is always impressive and surprisingly easy to do. (Really!) It’s the way to go for anyone worried about dry, overcooked fish, as the skin and bones insulate the fish from the heat source. I use Lidey Heuck’s recipe for whole roasted branzino as a template for roasting any fish of about the same size, swapping out the herbs for whatever I’ve got (or just omitting them entirely).
To go with your beautiful fish, how about this cucumber-cabbage salad with sesame? David Tanis’s recipe dresses the crisper-drawer all-stars with a salty-sour, nuoc-cham-ish dressing. “This salad is crazy delicious,” writes KCB, a reader. “I love everything single thing about it and the dressing is drinkable.”
I consider any breakfast beyond “cup of coffee with milk splashed in” to be impressive, and would surely be stunned by the sight of Rick Martínez’s huevos enfrijolados (eggs in spicy black beans). The beans get a good kick from canned chipotles in adobo, but I’ll still want some Tapatío or Valentina to Jackson Pollock over the finished dish.
Let’s end where we started: with something sweet. Joan Nathan’s almendrados (almond-lemon macaroons) need 12 hours in the fridge to dry out before baking, so they get that perfect dense, chewy texture. You could, in theory, start chilling this four-ingredient dough, then whip up Genevieve’s cake tonight and have cookies and leftover cake tomorrow. Happy weekend!
