Easy Chocolate Cake is made with only 8 ingredients and no butter

Sometimes nothing beats a slice of homemade cake, and chocolate is many people’s favorite flavor.

While some recipes involve complicated layers and buttercream icing, Nigella Lawson has something much simpler that’s worth trying.

Sharing a recipe from her cookbook Nigellisima, the British chef revealed her secret ingredient for a “melting” cake: olive oil.

The naturally dairy-free and gluten-free formula features ground almonds instead of flour and olive oil to replace butter.

Nigella said: “Although I came up with the idea for this recipe after having dinner with someone who genuinely couldn’t eat wheat or dairy, it’s so delicious that I now make it all the time for those whose lives and diets aren’t so unfairly restricted, myself included.”

Easy Chocolate Cake Recipe

Ingredients

150 ml olive oil (more for greasing)

50g good quality cocoa powder (sifted)

Two teaspoons of vanilla extract

150 g ground almonds (or 125 g flour)

Half a teaspoon of baking soda

A pinch of salt

200 g caster sugar

Three big eggs

Method

First, preheat the oven to 170°C/150°C fan/gas mark 3, then grease a 23cm (9-inch) springform pan with a drizzle of olive oil and line it with a round of baking paper.

Then sift the cocoa powder into a bowl and add 125ml of boiling water to form a smooth, still slightly runny paste. Add the vanilla extract for a touch of sweetness and flavour, then leave the mixture to cool.

Take another small bowl and mix the almonds (or flour if using) with the baking soda and a pinch of salt. Sea salt flakes are great for a final touch of flavor.

Now add the sugar, olive oil and eggs to a bowl and beat vigorously for three minutes (or a little longer if whisking by hand), to form a pale, airy and thick cream.

Reduce the speed if using an electric mixer, then pour in the cocoa mixture, whisking as you go. When all the chocolate mixture is incorporated, you can slowly pour in the ground almond (or flour) mixture.

Lightly swirl the bowl with a spatula, then pour the cake mixture into the greased pan and bake for 40 to 45 minutes or until the sides are set and the center still looks slightly moist on top.

Once inserted into the cake, a skewer should come out almost completely clean, with a few sticky chocolate crumbs clinging to it.

Remove the cake from the oven and let it cool for 10 minutes on a wire rack, still in its pan. Slowly and carefully lift the edges of the cake using a small metal spatula and remove it from the pan.

Let cool completely or enjoy while still warm with ice.