A friend that I have known since grade school recently told me via Facebook that one thing she remembers about me back in the day is that my mom always packed my lunch and I always ate my dessert first.

WHO, ME? I think she must be confusing me with someone else. It’s not possible. That I would prefer what my mom would pack to a school lunch? And eat the best part first? Okay, that was probably me. Self control, especially when it comes to food, has never been my strongest point.

So in keeping with my earliest established habits, I’ll tell you about a dessert from this weekend. This dessert came after a meal of epic proportions. Roasted ducks, duck fat fries, duck liver spread, roasted vegetables, and wine wine wine wine wine. Over the next few weeks I’ll be handing out the details of the cook-fest we had out at my friends’ house this Saturday, but for now, let’s just take a look at Adam’s chocolate torte.

The simplest things are often the best. You know, like eating a piece of bread smeared with butter, or some pasta with just olive oil and parmesan. In this case, it’s a dessert with just chocolate, eggs, and butter. That’s the whole ingredient list.

Here is the process, mostly in Adam’s own words, since he can tell it far better than I.

Begin by heating the oven to 350 degrees. Also, grease a round cake or pie pan (a good trick is to cut a piece of parchment to fit in the bottom of the pan and then just butter the side) and set it aside.

Separate five eggs and add just a pinch of kosher salt in the yolks.

Then get out a double boiler, or make one for yourself. Just use a saucepan and perch a glass bowl over it so that it just rests on top. Bring a few cups of water to a low boil beneath the glass and slowly melt the butter and two pounds of chocolate: one bittersweet and one semi-sweet, stirring with a spatula as you go.

While that’s going, whip the egg whites to stiff peaks.

Here’s where it gets fancy. Temper the yolks by putting some of the chocolate into the yolks and mix it in. Add a bit of chocolate at a time until the yolks are about 50/50 and then mix that back in with the rest of the chocolate.

At this point take the bowl off of the hot water and gently fold the whites into the chocolate mixture with a silicone type spatula. Slow and gentle is key. You want to retain some of that texture from the egg whites.

When it all is the same consistency, pour it into the pie pan and place the pie pan in a water bath so the water comes half-way up the sides.

Megan’s note: I generally hate things that have to do with water baths and will avoid said recipes like the plague, but Adam has convinced me that I need not be afraid. The water bath is no big deal, nor is cooking chocolate on a double boiler, which I also usually avoid, mostly out of laziness.

Bake at 350 for 30 minutes. When it’s done, carefully remove it from the water bath and place a plate/serving dish upside down on top. It’s best if this is a flat surface for easy cutting (like a nice cutting board worked well for us). In a single motion, flip the pie pan and serving dish over so that when it’s cool you can remove the pie pan and reveal your masterpiece. However, be very gentle; it’s really delicate.

Simply Spectacular Chocolate Torte

1 ½ sticks of unsalted butter
1lb of good quality dark chocolate (I used ½ lb. of bitter sweet and ½ lb. of semi-sweet, but you can use all bitter if you want)
5 eggs

We topped ours with whipped cream, but Adam has been known to use fresh fruit or an artful piece of cooked sugar. You could use a chocolate glaze, a dusting of powdered sugar, whatever makes your toes curl.

http://www.lawrence.com/users/meganstuke/photos/2011/feb/28/208922/

Adam prefers to whip cream by hand, even though our friends’ kitchen came equipped with a professional KitchenAid mixer.

2 C whipping cream
2 T powdered sugar

Whip vigorously with a whisk or use the mixer until it forms stiff peaks. Careful not to turn it into butter.

http://www.lawrence.com/users/meganstuke/photos/2011/feb/28/208923/

Spread it on thick. This is not a time for restraint. (5 eggs, 2 sticks of butter? Forgetaboutit.)

http://www.lawrence.com/users/meganstuke/photos/2011/feb/28/208924/

He dusted it with cocoa powder just for pretty’s sake, and we started crying, for it was so beautiful.

I brought the leftover torte home from our party and set it on the kitchen table for Mr. Meat and Potatoes, and apparently flourless chocolate torte is close enough to brownies because every time I walked by it on Sunday there was a little less of it. I can’t say enough about how popular this thing was in our house.

Let me just note that if you are gluten free, this is FOR YOU. It’s rich but not too dense. I loved the whipped cream on top because it didn’t interrupt the smoothness of the texture, so eating it reminded me of what eating satin would be like, if one could eat satin.