Abruzzi Hazelnut Chocolate Cake

I have an uncanny memory for the source and location of recipes. Not a skill set that will ever make me rich, I suspect, but handy in the kitchen, given that I easily own at least one hundred cookbooks plus magazines, notebook, recipe box. Let’s see… Is it in the recipe box? A particular cookbook? A magazine? It’s rather like a database in my head. It doesn’t help much, however, when one remembers that the desired recipe is in a small, worn and tattered paperback that belonged to one’s mother-in-law, when the cookbook no longer sits on the shelf. Abruizzi Black Cake was the only recipe we made from this particular volume, and when the book fell apart, it was discarded. Probably. This happened long enough ago that I don’t really have a clue what happened to it, to be honest. 

Would the internet come to my rescue, yet again? Keying in “Abruizzi Black Cake,” the first hit was for a web service entitled Eat Your Books. (https://www.eatyourbooks.com) An organized  place where one can document their collection of cookbooks online, then search digitally by recipe, ingredient, etc. Which I never knew I needed, given my uncanny memory for exactly the same thing. On the site, I could see just enough to know that the recipe came from The Home Book of Italian Cooking, (https://www.amazon.com/Mama-Mia-Italian-Cookbook-Cooking/dp/0883652161 and contained hazelnuts, chocolate and pantry ingredients. And yes, I already knew that much. But given that I no longer had the book, the remainder of the recipe would remain a mystery for the ages. Unless I wanted to hunt the book down and order it. Which I didn’t, because really, all I wanted to do was bake a cake… 

Never one to admit defeat, I simply made a cake. I mostly remember that we had made this cake for company, it included hazelnuts and dark chocolate and was well liked by all. I suspect the cake I turned out is not remotely like the original, which I recall as being richer and denser. Given the title, it probably had considerably more chocolate, melted and mixed throughout the batter. It was probably made with butter… but as long as I was starting from scratch, so to speak, I may as well make it with my preferred olive oil. My version is also lightened with well beaten eggs, minimal sugar and applesauce substituted for part of the oil. 

My cake, now renamed Abruzzi Hazelnut Chocolate Cake, turned out to be light, moist and delicious, redolent with the richness of nuts and the slight bitterness of dark chocolate. The top is drizzled with chocolate glaze, a riff on a recipe from www.food.com. (https://www.food.com/recipe/chocolate-glaze-that-hardens-when-cool-155392) Topped with a sprinkle of chopped hazelnuts, it is a beautiful cake.  Quick and easy to make, with a better nutrition profile, too. Slices are wrapped and nestled into my freezer, waiting to be the night’s dessert. Maybe at some point I’ll change my mind on ordering the paperback, but for now I’m making this cake when I crave that yummy Italian Nutella flavor combo.

Print Recipe

Abruzzi Hazelnut Chocolate Cake

Light yet rich hazelnut chocolate cake, glazed with chocolate and sprinkled with hazelnuts.

Prep Time35 minutes mins

Cook Time25 minutes mins

Total Time1 hour hr

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: Italian

Keyword: cake, chocolate, hazelnut

Servings: 10

Ingredients

Cake

• 2 large eggs
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1/3 cup olive oil
• 1/4 cup applesauce
• 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 cup whole wheat pastry flour
• 1/2 cup almond flour
• 1/4 cup hazelnuts, ground to meal consistency
• 1 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1/2 cup almond milk
• 2 1/2 oz dark chocolate, shaved

Glaze

• 1 tbsp coconut oil
• 1 1/2 tbsp cocoa powder
• 1/2 cup confectioner's sugar
• 1/2 tsp vanilla
• 121/2 to 3 tbsp hot water

Garnish

• 2 tbsp finely chopped hazelnuts

Instructions

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Lightly grease and flour a 9-inch round cake pan and set aside.
• Combine the eggs and sugar in mixer bowl and beat on medium speed until light and fluffy. Mix in the olive oil, applesauce, and vanilla. 
• Combine the flours, hazelnuts, baking powder, and salt. Using low speed, add gradually to the mixer bowl alternately with the almond milk to make a well mixed batter. Fold in the shaved chocolate by hand, then pour the batter into the prepared pan.
• Bake for 20-25 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Remove to a cooling rack. When cake is cool, run a table knife around the edge, then turn the cake out onto a serving plate.
• Mix the confectioner’s sugar with the cocoa powder. Stir in the coconut oil and vanilla. Slowly stir in the hot water until a pourable consistency is reached. Drizzle over the cake in a decorative pattern, then sprinkle with the chopped hazelnuts. 

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