When I was a kid, I remember making the most decadent, delicious, and rich flourless chocolate cake. I helped my grandmother put ganache on the top, and sneaked a little off the top with my finger when she wasn’t looking. We always called that kind of sampling “quality control tasting.”

I still love this type of confection. I mean, who doesn’t like chocolate? For me, it’s a great go-to dessert for guests – similar to my grandmother’s – topped with a side of homemade whipped cream and fresh raspberries. And there’s the added bonus of it being a super quick and easy recipe. Plus it is gluten free.
Instead of just baking it in a traditional oven like grandma’s, I wanted to see what kind of results I would get baking it in a CVap® Cook and Hold Oven. So I devised a challenge for myself in order to compare the two.
I made a double batch of the batter and placed equal amounts in individual, fluted removable-bottom tart pans. I set the CVap oven at 160°F Vapor/350°F Air (legacy 160°F +10 browning) and the conventional oven at 350°F.

The Results
The results were very interesting! The cake in the CVap oven baked in 16 minutes. The cake in the conventional oven took almost 20 minutes. More importantly, when I had three adults conduct a blind taste test, they all preferred the cake baked in the CVap oven! Some of the comments about CVap flourless cake were that it “had a chocolatier taste,” “the texture was lighter and smoother,” and “the top exterior top was more eye appealing.”

I found that the conventional cake rose, and then dropped once out of the oven. This is a normal occurrence with flourless chocolate cakes. What I liked about the CVap version was that the top had a better texture and the cake did not drop, giving it better eye appeal. It certainly makes a good case for baking in a CVap Cook and Hold Oven.
And when you add the ganache…calling it icing on the cake doesn’t do it justice!
