Flourless Chocolate-Brazil Nut Cake

We pretty shamelessly took this recipe right out of a magazine and modified it ever so slightly (the original called for using hazelnuts) to serve as dessert at our Christmas eve dinner.

The recipe called for Frangelico, which I quite frankly hadn't heard about before. It turns out to be an Italian hazelnut liquor containing 24% A.B.V. and not at all difficult to obtain around these parts. When I went to a nearby provider of bottled drinks and asked for it I was informed that not only could he sell me Frangelico, but he could also sell me a knock-off brand for far less... since the recipe only called for 125 mL (1/2 cup) of it I opted for the real thing as that was also available in a handy 375 mL (1.5 cups) bottle (mind you, this was still a bit more expensive than 1 quart (1L) of the knock-off brand - but I didn't feel the need to stock up on this liquor).

Ingredients:
- 325 g (11.5 oz) 60% cocoa (bittersweet chocolate)
- 170 g (1 ¹/₂ sticks) unsalted butter
- 6 large eggs
- 2.5 dL (1 cup) golden brown sugar
- 125 mL (¹/₂ cup) Frangelico (divided)
- 145 g (5 oz) finely ground Brazil nuts [1]
- 1 tsp coarse salt
- 2.5 dL (1 cup) heavy whipping cream

The chocolate and the butter was melted and stirred together on a warm water-bath (2 portions, mainly due to size of bowl used).

In a separate bowl the the eggs, golden brown sugar and half of the Frangelico was whisked together, then the chocolate butter mixture was whisked in. The ground brazil nuts and the salt was stirred into the mixture, which was then poured into a round silicone baking form placed inside a springform of slightly larger diameter for added support.[2]

The baking form was covered with a lid of foil, placed in a large baking pan which was filled with water so the water outside the springform was about level with the batter inside the silicone form. The cake was baked in the oven at 175 C (350 F) for about 1.5 hours. It was allowed to cool somewhat before moving it from the form to a plate, on which it was chilled in the fridge for several hours before serving with whipped cream whipped with the other half of the Frangelico. [3]It's excellent!! ... but quite heavy and this makes for a lot of servings - fortunately it stays good for days in the fridge (we might even think it's better the day after).

[1] We actually think that grinding the nuts less finely might add a nice crunch to the cake.
[2] A springform can be used instead of the silicone form - then you just have to wrap it carefully with foil, so no water seeps in.
[3] The recipe actually suggested topping with toasted nuts, we forgot this part, but might want to try that next time.