Bittersweet chocolate & sweetly floral, almond-like blooms make this Plum Blossom Flourless Chocolate Torte a perfect send off for winter, welcoming spring.

Flourless chocolate torte with foraged plum blossoms.

You know you want it.

As the last weeks of winter burst into a riot of blooms and perfumes – daffodil, daphne, flowering quince, magnolia, forsythia – my intentions are focused on the spring ahead.  Garden planning, seed sowing, landscaping, lambing, and so much foraging…  If I am not careful, I find myself so overly focused on the months ahead that I don’t appreciate the gifts of the moment.  And at this very moment, the finest gift from Mother Nature just might be the plum blossoms.  Sometimes white and sometimes pink, these blooms send off the softest floral and sweet almond notes into the ether.

Here in the Pacific Northwest, plums are everywhere – wild, cultivated, Asian, Italian, ornamental…  I suppose they like it here.  Good thing too, because I like plums.  But before the fruits hang heavy on the branches, the first offering of the year is her delicate flowers.  I have a couple cultivated, albeit ancient, plum trees on the farm, but this year I was inspired by Jennifer and Danielle at Gather (check out their plum blossom truffles here) to harvest the blooms of my ornamental purple leaved plum.  As the tree burst into bloom the weekend before my Nitty Gritty Man’s birthday and his request was for a flourless chocolate torte – plum blossom flourless chocolate torte it is!

Harvesting a few branches to bring inside was an easy task.  Send me with a pair of sharp garden nippers to stand in the froth and perfume of a flowering tree any day.  Inside the kitchen, I set about removing enough flowers to infuse into cream and butter.  What a delight!  The subtle floral and almond notes that wafted while the cream simmered were heavily!  As for the finished torte?  If springtime and bittersweet chocolate had a torrid love affair that resulted in a love child, it would taste like this plum blossom chocolate torte.  The papery thin outer layer of the torte cradles a silky and unbelievably soft inside.  The torte is not dense; rather it is light, moist and fine.  The bittersweet chocolate is deftly accented by the almost exotic floral and almond flavors.  The flavor is as intangible as a soft breeze – real and present but ethereal none-the-less.  Cooled and dusted with unsweetened cocoa and garnished with a smattering of blooms, this plum blossom chocolate torte is the perfect way to send winter off with a gentle kiss.

{NOTE: Please make sure the blossoms you use are free from spray and roadside pollution.}

Interested in learning more about common wild medicinal plants?  Check out my new book The Backyard Herbal Apothecary!

Plum Blossom Flourless Chocolate Torte Recipe

Plum Blossom Flourless Chocolate Torte

nitty gritty life

Silky soft plum blossoms perfume this light yet decadent flourless bittersweet chocolate torte.

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Course Dessert

Servings 8 generous slices

Ingredients

  

• 2 cups loosely packed plum blossoms flowers only
• 1/2 cup butter one stick
• 2/3 cup heavy cream
• 12 oz good quality bittersweet chocolate
• 2/3 cup organic granulated sugar
• 8 eggs
• pinch of salt
• unsweetened cocoa for dusting and blossoms for garnish

Instructions

 

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees (F).
• Butter the bottom and sides of a 9" springform pan, outfitted with a round of parchment on the base.
• Remove plum blossoms from stems.
• In a small saucepan, combine cream, butter and plum blossoms and bring to low simmer over low to medium heat. Reduce heat and simmer very gently, stirring often for about 15-20 minutes or until the cream mixture is fragrant. Remove from heat and strain into a bowl through a fine mesh sieve. Discard spent blooms.
• Meanwhile place the sugar, salt and eggs into a bowl and whisk (preferably with an electric mixer as this will take awhile) until the mixture is thick, pale and ribbon-y, 5-8 minutes.
• In a double boiler over gentle heat, combine the infused cream/butter mixture and the chocolate. Stir until melted and glossy.
• Temper the egg mixture by adding some of the chocolate. Fold the mixture together in thirds until evenly mixed, being careful not to lose too much volume.
• Pour mixture into the prepared spring form pan. Bake for 35-40 minutes, until the top is somewhat dull and only the inner third wobbles somewhat when moved. It will NOT appear fully cooked when you remove it from the oven. It will however set upon cooling.
• Allow to cool for about 30 minutes before gently running a thin spatula or butter knife between pan wall and torte. Carefully remove the outer ring. Continue to cool completely.
• Lightly dust with unsweetened cocoa and garnish with plum blossoms.