Chocolate Crackle Cake

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line the bottom of your cake pan with parchment paper. Grease the parchment paper and inner walls of the pan with nonstick cooking spray.
  
  
• Melt the butter or margarine in a saucepan over medium heat. Cut the chocolate into large chunks and add it to the pan. Stir until melted. Add milk or almond milk, vanilla and salt and stir until everything is melted together and smooth.
  
  
• Remove from heat. Pour chocolate mixture into a large mixing bowl.
  
  
• Separate the eggs. Using an electric mixer, beat the egg whites along with ½ cup of the sugar until soft peaks form.
  
  
• In a separate bowl, beat the egg yolks with the other ¼ cup of the sugar till the mixture turns creamy and light yellow.
  
  
• Break up any chunks in the blanched almond meal with a fork or your fingers, then fold the almond meal into the melted chocolate mixture.
  
  
• Fold egg yolk mixture into the batter.
  
  
• Fold half of the beaten egg whites into the batter, then fold the remaining egg whites until just combined.
  
  
• Mixture should be light and airy from the egg whites. Do not over-mix. Fill prepared baking pan with chocolate cake batter. Smooth the surface of the cake with a spatula or spoon.
  
  
• Place in the oven and bake the cake at 350 degrees F for 45 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the cake comes out clean. Remove cake from oven and let it return to room temperature.

  Cake will deflate slightly and the top of the cake will “crackle” as it cools. If you prefer a cold dessert, chill cake in the refrigerator overnight.
  
• Before serving, dust the top of the cake with powdered sugar.
  
  

Raspberry Coulis

• Combine raspberries, sugar and lemon juice in a food processor and puree ingredients together.
  
  
• Strain mixture into a bowl through a fine mesh sieve, pressing down on the solid ingredients and agitating the mixture to extract as much syrupy juice as possible.
  
  
• Dispose of the solids. The syrup is your coulis.

  Store coulis in a sealed container in the refrigerator.
  
• Use a long sharp knife to cut the cake. Place each slice on a dessert plate drizzled with raspberry coulis, garnished with fresh raspberries and mint leaves.