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Cakes
flourless gluten-free nut cake
Hazelnut Torte (Flourless, gluten-free nut cake, using eggs, sugar, hazelnuts, pecan or walnuts, without shortening)
Originated from: Italy, Europe and North America
Occasion: Any time & special times
Contributed by: Taken from "The Joy of Cooking" by Marion Rombauer Becker (1943)

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Ingredients

For batter
1 cup sugar
12 egg yolks
1/4 pound hazelnut meats
1/4 pound pecan or walnut meats
8 egg whites
1/4 teaspoon salt

For layering and topping
1 cupful cream, whipped (flavored with vanilla or sherry)
1 pint strawberries

Alternative
Coffee or caramel icing




Directions

Sift: 1 cup sugar.

Beat: 12 egg yolks.

Add the sugar gradually and beat these ingredients until they are very creamy.

Grind in a nut grinder: 1/4 pound hazelnut meats and 1/4 pound pecan or walnut meats.

Whip until stiff but not dry: 8 egg whites and 1/4 teaspoon salt.

Fold them lightly into the other ingredients.

Bake the cake in 2 layers in a moderate oven 325 degrees F.

When it is cold spread between the layers: whipped cream flavored with vanilla or sherry.

Spread the cake with coffee or caramel icing (optional).



N.B. One-half the amount of this cake served in the following manner, makes a wonderful dessert for 8 people: bake the cake in one layer. Garnish it with 1 cupful cream, whipped and 1 pint strawberries.


Notes

The recipe in this entry was taken from "The Joy of Cooking" by Marion Rombauer Becker. The cookbook was published in the U.S. in 1943. The complete cookbook is available free on line at www.archive.org.... P.S. I tried out this recipe and it is very good. The cake is moist and one can hardly notice that it has no flour. I did add two teaspoons of vanilla to the egg whites prior to beating them, and that added a bit more flavor to the cake, but this extra flavor would not have been necessary had I layered the cake which I did not. In any case, if one is looking for a gluten-free flourless nut cake this could be it. Photo and notes: Mary Melfi.

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