This is a vegan interpretation of Queen of Sheba: a rich, delicate chocolate cake that’s more often known by its French name, Reine de Saba.
It has a unique, light texture that sort of dissolves in your mouth. The flavour is predominantly chocolate, balanced by gentler notes of almond and coffee. You can drizzle over coffee or almond liqueur for a dessert version.
A strong 70%+ chocolate will produce an intensely flavoured cake, but a dark chocolate that’s lower in cocoa (say, 30-50%) actually works really well because it allows the second layer of flavours to shine through.
Like sacchertorte, to which it bears more than a passing resemblance, it has a glossy ganache-style icing. The version here is very easy to make and also easy to apply without dripping most of it down the sides!
The recipe is full of almonds and relatively light on flour. I have used whole almonds with their skins on for the cake itself and the topping, for colour and flavour but also because the skin, which is so often removed, is where most of the nut’s beneficial flavonoids are.
It’s a beautiful yet simple cake – impressive enough for a dinner party, but not so fancy that you couldn’t just make it for yourself to enjoy with morning coffee.
The recipe is for a small, 6 inch, cake like the one pictured. Double the quantities for an 8 or 9 inch diameter cake and increase the baking time a bit.
The only golden rule is not to overdo the almond extract, which is just there to accentuate the natural flavour of the almonds.
Queen of Sheba…
Ingredients
- 85 g whole almonds
- 75 g golden caster or light brown sugar
- 60 g self-raising flour
- 1.5 tbsp ground flaxseed
- 80 ml brewed coffee
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1/8 tsp almond extract
- 80 g dark chocolate
- 60 g coconut oil
for the icing
- 80 g dark chocolate
- 20 ml maple syrup
- 30 g icing sugar
- a few whole almonds
method
- Set the oven to 190°C/375°F and very lightly oil or line a 6 inch round cake tin.
- Toast the almonds by spreading them on a tray and placing them in the oven for five or more minutes while it is getting up to temperature. They should be starting to toast but nowhere near burnt. Set aside to cool for a few minutes before grinding to a rough almond meal texture using a coffee grinder or powerful blender.
- Mix the flaxseed, coffee (which can still be warm), vanilla and almond extracts in a cup or bowl and set aside.
- Melt the chocolate and coconut oil (I use the microwave for this as it’s very quick).
- Mix the ground almonds, sugar and flour together in a large bowl, then pour on the coffee mixture and the melted chocolate mixture and stir through until well combined.
- Transfer to the tin and bake for thirty to forty minutes until it has puffed up and is firm to touch in the centre. This cake will rise like a light brownie rather than a sponge cake and will settle a bit when you remove it from the oven.
- While the cake is cooling prepare the ganache icing by melting the chocolate and maple syrup together with 20 ml of water in the microwave until it is close to boiling point. Whisk until smooth and then whisk in the sifted icing sugar.
- Allow the icing to cool and thicken a little, but you should ice the cake while both it and the icing are still warm, to achieve a smooth finish.
- Before it sets, sprinkle a few chopped whole almonds across the top of the cake.
- Allow the cake to cool completely before cutting.
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