This torte is just divine. It has everything a dessert should have – dark chocolate, salted butter, dark rum – and it is flourless. The bourbon sauce adds the final elevating touch. I first served this dessert at Under The Over, the restaurant I ran at Kemps Corner, Mumbai, in the 1990s.

  • Serves

    8

  • Cook Time

    2h

    Prepare tart day before for it to set overnight

Ingredients

For Mocha Fudge Tort

  • ½ kg semisweet dark chocolate, chopped up (or use chocolate nibs)
  • 400 gm butter (I prefer salted as it enhances flavour)
  • ½ cup brown sugar
  • 40 ml dark rum
  • 2 tbsp instant coffee powder
  • 1 tsp vanilla essence
  • 7 large eggs

Bourbon Sauce (400 ml)

  • 3 large egg yolks
  • 50 gm brown sugar
  • 225 ml milk
  • 100 ml bourbon or whisky
  • 50 ml water
  • 1½ tbsp cornstarch
  • 1 tsp vanilla
  • ½ tsp grated nutmeg
  • ½ tsp cinnamon powder

Preparation

For Mocha Fudge Torte

  1. Heat oven to 350℉ or 180℃. Melt the chocolate, coffee, butter, rum and vanilla on low heat, stirring constantly till well combined and melted. Remove from heat.
  2. Separately, beat the eggs with a hand mixer or manually till thick and foamy, and then add into the molten chocolate and butter mixture.
  3. Continue beating or whisking till well combined.
  4. Pour into a 9-inch buttered springform pan and bake in centre of the oven for 30-40 minutes or until a crust forms around cake’s top edges but its centre is still soft and wobbly. It will look underdone. You want that. Don’t overcook.
  5. Remove from oven and let cool to room temperature. It will sink as it cools. Cover and refrigerate overnight until firm.

For Bourbon Sauce

  1. Lightly whisk egg yolks in a stainless steel bowl.
  2. Dissolve cornstarch in water and add to egg yolks. Continue whisking.
  3. Whisk in sugar and milk, cinnamon and nutmeg, and cook over moderate heat till the sauce just comes to a boil and thickens. Make sure you keep whisking.
  4. Remove from heat and whisk in bourbon and vanilla. Cover with plastic wrap directly in contact with sauce to keep a skin from forming on surface.
  5. Let it cool to room temperature. Either serve chilled immediately or refrigerate, covered. It will keep for a month or more, refrigerated and covered.

To Serve

  1. Make a frosting, add berries and a coulis on top, or add ice cream – whatever you want. Or eat it plain and as is, or smothered in bourbon sauce.
Rahul Akerkar

Rahul Akerkar

Rahul Akerkar, the chef-founder of Qualia in Mumbai, was Scroll Food’s Chef of the Month for June. He started his culinary journey 35 years ago in the US, returning to India in 1989. Since then, he has been busy changing the way we eat. Known for setting industry trends with his creative, ingredient-driven cuisine, and warm attentive hospitality, Rahul’s award-winning restaurants secured his position as one of India’s first successful, chef-restaurateurs. In his career, he has won many accolades – he was featured in Asiaweek’s Survey of “Kitchen Gods” in 2001 and was 28 on San Pellegrino’s List of Asia’s 50 Best Restaurants in 2013. More recently, he won Chef of The Year at the Times Food Awards 2016, Mumbai. He has been guest chef in several kitchens around the world, authored numerous articles, and frequently consults to the food and hospitality industry.

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