Chocolate and Lime Cake

Yesterday was my flatmate's birthday, and so I thought I'd make her some red velvet cupcakes. I'd bought the food colouring and everything. But at the last minute I noticed that it required buttermilk!! I know this is a common baking ingredient, especially in America, but it's not exactly easy to get here. Maybe Waitrose stocks it, but I didn't check. I do remember reading in one of my cookbooks that milk and lemon juice can substitute for buttermilk, but it wasn't the time to experiment. So I flipped through Nigella Kitchen and found a recipe for Flourless Chocolate and Lime Cake. It wasn't difficult although the egg whisking did create a bit of a mess (my fault), and the result was dark, dense, tangy and velvety, all at the same time. 

Nigella's original recipe only calls for one lime, however I found that I couldn't taste it enough so I used one more. Probably just my southeast Asian tastebuds, so feel free to use just one lime if you prefer.

Flourless Chocolate and Lime Cake 

Adapted from Kitchen by Nigella Lawson

(this cake is gluten-free)

150g dark chocolate, broken into pieces

150g unsalted butter

6 eggs

250g caster sugar

100g ground almods

4 teaspoons sifted cocoa powder

zest and juice of 2 limes

Preheat the oven to 180°C. Line the base of a 23 cm round cake tin and butter the sides.

Melt the chocolate and butter together, either in a bowl over a pan of simmering water, or in the microwave. Next beat the eggs and sugar together until pale in colour and moussy-looking. (Nigella says it should have tripled in volume, but I think my mixing bowl was too small to accomodate this) 

Now mix the ground almonds and the cocoa powder together, then fold into the egg mixture gently. Add the slightly cooled melted chocolate and butter next, and then the lime zest and juice. Make sure all the components are evenly mixed, but be gentle!

Pour the cake mixture into the prepared cake tin and then bake for around 40-45 mins. It's not a sponge-y kind of cake, so it should still feel wobbly in the centre. After it's cooled down, dust it with icing sugar and serve.

As you can see, my cake cracked a bit in the rush to get it out of its tin. It was a surprise cake, you see.


The cake stand in the pictures is a beloved purchase, which I endured much mocking at the hands of my friends for. They couldn't understand why anyone would need a cake stand. Well, as you can see, every dog has its day. And besides, it's so pretty!