Ingredients
- 100 gr. caster sugar
- 75 gr. plain flour
- 75 gr. ground almonds
- Cocoa powder , for dusting
- 50 ml Armagnac
- Zest of 1 orange
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1 tsp mixed spice
- 1/2 tsp ground nutmeg
- A pinch of ground cloves
- 130 gr. semi-dried prunes
- 250 gr. 70% cocoa dark chocolate
- 200 gr. salted butter
- 5 free-range eggs , seperated
Method
- You can do this step well in advance, otherwise, make it the night before.
- Place the Armagnac in a pan with the zest and spices 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.
- Place the chocolate and butter in a bowl over a pan of simmering water.
- Stir occasionally, until melted, then take off the heat.
- 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′, until you can draw a figure of 8 in it and it retains its shape.
- Pour the 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 mixed in, pour the mixture into the tin and bake for about 60′, 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.