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Sharing a simple Flourless Chocolate Espresso Cake for your mid-week chocolate fix. Don’t let the flourless detail scare you away, this chocolate cake is insanely delicious. Made using dark chocolate and olive oil for richness, sweetened simply with only a touch of sugar, made airy with whipped egg whites, and studded with chocolate chunks. Top with honey whipped ricotta for a sweet creamy balance to the rich, fudgy, molten-like cake. Trust me, this is SO GOOD, and extra chocolatey. Bonus? This cake is even gluten-free!

side angled photo of Flourless Chocolate Espresso Cake with 3 pieces of cake stacked on top of each other to expose the chocolate

The true gift of Valentine’s Day? Chocolate…all the chocolate. Don’t get me wrong, I’d love some pretty flowers, jewelry, or a restock of my favorite skincare products. But to me, nothing beats a warm chocolate cake. I mean, right? Baking up something sweet for someone you love is a true way to really show them how much you care.

Enter this cake. It’s great for Valentine’s Day (do you celebrate?), but equally great for any other day you’re craving a little chocolate. This is that go-to, super easy, insanely rich, but not too sweet, chocolate cake. It melts in your mouth and is truly “roll your eyes'” back delicious. And the crazy thing? This cake is completely flourless making it naturally gluten-free.

Promise it’s not too good to be true.

Flourless Chocolate Espresso Cake batter before baking

The back story…

This cake took me some time to get right, but the extra effort was worth it. The keys to success? Good chocolate, good extra virgin olive oil, a decent amount of eggs, and apparently no flour.

For the chocolate, I usually use an organic chocolate bar from Whole Foods that’s 85% dark chocolate. If you want a sweeter cake, try using a 70% dark chocolate bar.

As for the olive oil, I love using Brightland olive oil, especially when baking. It adds the perfect, subtle fruit flavor and creates a cake that is extra moist. If that’s not easily available, any extra virgin olive oil will work well. Alternately, you can use melted butter in place of the oil, but we love this cake best when baked with olive oil. Shocking, I know, but it works.

Flourless Chocolate Espresso Cake batter before baking

To make this flourless chocolate cake…

You need only a few simple, pantry staple ingredients. High-quality chocolate, extra virgin olive oil, eggs, sugar, espresso powder, vanilla, and cocoa powder. Just seven ingredients.

You’ll want to melt together the chocolate and olive oil. I normally just do this in the microwave, but you can easily melt over low heat on the stove. I like to melt the chocolate and oil together in a large mixing bowl that will fit the remaining ingredients. The fewer dishes the better.

Once melted, simply whisk in the egg yolks, sugar, cocoa powder, espresso powder, a pinch of salt, and the vanilla.

Flourless Chocolate Espresso Cake just after baking, sitting on parchment paper

Next, take those eggs whites and whip them until stiff peaks form. This step is key to a lighter cake with a slightly crinkly top. It takes no effort at all and creates a truly luscious flourless cake. Gently fold the whipped egg whites into the chocolate mixture.

The real secret of this cake is the final ingredient, a handful of semi-sweet or milk chocolate chunks. Stir these into the cake batter, then bake, and in less then thirty minutes your kitchen will have hints of espresso and rich chocolate in the air.

The smell alone is better than any bakery…but the cake itself? Every bite is truly to die for.

overhead photo of Flourless Chocolate Espresso Cake with 1 slice cut

That’s not all…there’s whipped ricotta too.

This cake is rich. It’s not light and fluffy like a layer cake, but much more thick and fudgy instead. To balance the richness out, I knew I needed some kind of creamy topping. You can, of course, simply top with a dollop of whipped cream or a scoop of ice cream, but why not try something a little more special?

Whipped ricotta…with honey and vanilla too. It’s creamy, lightly sweetened, and heavy on the vanilla…and tastes heavenly. The perfect compliment to this fudgy chocolate cake.

Flourless Chocolate Espresso Cake with 3 pieces of cake stacked on top of each other

This cake can be served slightly warm or at room temperature. If you’d like to prepare the cake a few days ahead of time, it stores really well. Just be sure to keep it covered and in a cool place. There’s also no need to refrigerate this cake. Making it the perfect make-ahead dessert for everything from Valentine’s Day, to Easter, to Mother’s Day, and any other occasion in between.

Like maybe some mid-week Tuesday night baking? Hey, it’s mid-February, we have plenty of snow falling here in Colorado, and that’s the perfect excuse to bake up this delicious cake.

Flourless Chocolate Espresso Cake with spoon going into cake to take a bite out of cake

Looking for other Valentine’s Day inspired desserts? Try these sweet lemon rose shortbread cookies. They’re an oldie, but one of my favorite cookies.

If you make this Flourless Chocolate Espresso Cake be sure to leave a comment and/or give this recipe a rating! Above all, I love to hear from you guys and always do my best to respond to each and every comment. And of course, if you do make this recipe, don’t forget to tag me on Instagram! Looking through the photos of recipes you all have made is my favorite!

Flourless Chocolate Espresso Olive Oil Cake with Honey Whipped Ricotta.

Author: Tieghan Gerard
Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 30 minutes
Total Time 45 minutes
Servings: 8
Calories Per Serving: 522 kcal

Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.

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Ingredients

WHIPPED RICOTTA

US Customary - Metric

Instructions

  • 1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Grease a 9-inch spring-form pan and line the bottom with parchment paper. 
    2. In a medium bowl, melt the dark chocolate and olive oil in the microwave until melted and smooth. Let cool 5 minutes. Whisk in the 5 egg yolks, sugar, cocoa powder, espresso powder, salt, and vanilla until combined.
    3. In a large bowl, using an electric mixer, whip the egg whites on medium speed until stiff peaks form. Fold half of the whipped egg whites into the chocolate mix until just combined, fold in the remaining egg whites. Gently stir in the chocolate chunks. Transfer the batter to the prepared pan, spreading it in an even layer. Bake 25-30 minutes, until the center is no longer jiggly. Remove from the oven and let sit 10 minutes.
    4. To make the honey whipped ricotta. In the bowl of a food processor, combine the ricotta, honey, and vanilla. Pulse until smooth and creamy, about 2-3 minutes. Taste, adding more honey if needed to sweeten. Store leftovers in an airtight container at room temperature for up to one week.
    5. Serve the cake warm or at room temp, dusted with cocoa powder and dolloped with honey whipped ricotta. Store leftovers in an airtight container at room temperature for up to one week.

Notes

Whipped Egg Whites: if you prefer, you can skip whipping the eggs all together and just use 5 whole eggs. Your cake will not have a crinkly top, but will still be delicious. 
Olive Oil Substitute: you can use an equal amount of melted butter in place of the olive oil. 
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Comments

  1. Sorry ignore my other comment. If I have a 10×10 or 9×13 pan can I use one of those and how long should I bake it for?

    Reply

    1. Hey Julia,
      That would be fine to use, I would just keep an eye on the cake and start checking for doneness at 30 minutes. I hope you love the recipe, please let me know if you have any other questions! xTieghan

      Reply

  3. 5 stars
    I was so lucky to have had this cake baked for my birthday. It’s the most decadent chocolate cake I’ve eaten and I can’t wait to bake it for family. Delectable!

    Reply

  4. 5 stars
    I made this for my wife’s birthday. Everyone loved it, my sister-in-law even saying it was the best homemade chocolate cake she’d ever eaten. Even my three year old chowed down, though I think the ricotta threw him when he was expecting a more sugary frosting.

    Reply

    1. Hey Daniele! Yes, instant coffee will be just great. I use it often! 🙂 Please let me know if you have any other questions. I hope you love this recipe! Thank you!! xTieghan

      Reply

  6. 4 stars
    This recipe was really tasty, except there wasn’t much of an espresso flavor. It was essentially non existent, to be honest, but I think adding a tablespoon and a half or even two tablespoons would give it that full coffee flavor. Was easy to make otherwise and was really delicious.

    Reply

    1. Amazing! I am really glad this recipe turned out so well for you, Ally! Thank you for trying this!! xTieghan

      Reply

  7. I received notice I’m getting furloughed from my airline so I decided to make this cake to feel better aaaaand I can honestly say it DEFINITELY made me feel better. Thank you for such an easy and equality delicious cake.

    Reply

    1. I am so glad this could make you feel better!! Thank you for trying this, Lola!! I hope you’re doing well! xTieghan

      Reply

  8. We’re not much on Valentine’s Day, but this sure did make a fantastic special dessert for our 10 year anniversary! Your recipes are always so perfect in flavor combinations. Thank you Tieghan!

    Reply

  9. 5 stars
    This cake was insanely delicious! ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
    Cannot wait to make it again. Thank you!!

    Reply

  10. 5 stars
    I made this yesterday for a small dinner double date with my brother-in-law and it was a hit! It was the first time I made something flourless and also whipped egg whites to a stiff peak (took a while) but the cake turned out fudge and moist while still light. I ran into a problem taking it out of the springfoam- probably because I used olive oil spray to grease the pan instead of baking spray. I had a few cracks on the top due to a high oven temperature and probably a sudden drop in temperature when i took it out so next time I may take a cheesecake style approach of a water bath or leaving it in the off oven to cool. Overall, everyone LOVED it!

    Reply

  11. 5 stars
    I’m not a huge chocolate cake fan but this recipe intrigued me with it’s flourless ingredients. I am SUCH a fan of how this turned out. It’s super decadent and packed with flavor. I think my favorite part of was overloading the whipped ricotta honey on top of each slice. Was a huge win for my household! Definitely recommend!

    Reply

  12. This recipe looks so delicious! I’ll be making for a birthday next week! Is the 7 oz of dark chocolate by weight? Thanks!

    Reply

    1. Hi Tommy! Yes, or you could base it on how many ounces a bar is. I hope you love this recipe! xTieghan

      Reply

  13. 5 stars
    Great recipe! I didn’t have vanilla and used instant coffee no espresso on hand- still delicious! THANK YOU!!

    Reply

  14. Hi!

    This cake looks amazing but I was wondering, is it possible to use liquid espresso instead of a powder? And if not, where could I buy the espresso powder? Do you have any suggestions? Thanks!

    Reply

  15. 5 stars
    Made this last night as a dessert for an italian date night and I think it was the best dessert i’ve ever had in my whole life.. this cake is out of this world!

    I dusted it with powdered sugar, and served it warm so the chocolate chunks were melted inside I also topped it with a dollop of homemade whipped cream (didnt have ricotta) .. Served it also with a small scoop of trader joe’s cookie butter ice cream on the side and lightly drizzled the whole plate with some dulce de leche sauce. Absolute fire.

    Reply

    1. Hi Aly! Thank you so much! I am so glad this turned out so well for you! Also, yes to the cookie butter ice cream!! xTieghan

      Reply