This flourless cake is deceptively simple to make, and is great for serving (I am not kidding) 10-15 people with one eight-inch cake. Very rich, kind of a middle ground between true fudge and a true cake. It’s dense and rich, but something you eat with a fork instead of your fingers. This is also a good choice for those with gluten intolerance.
On the more amusing story side, I was about to take a single photo of this when my older brother stopped me and said “WAIT! You need garnish!” Well, I am far from trying to argue with him since our mother would have been very disappointed had we not had garnish. Originally it was going to be a fluted strawberry, but after a trip to the grocery store, there was not a single out-of-season strawberry to be had in any of the three nearest grocery stores. So we ended up making “holly berries” with sliced maraschino cherries and mint leaves instead. Then he fluted a cherry half to use for the “slice” picture. Moral of the story – never get between a caterer’s kid and garnish 
To make this confection, you will need:
1/2 cup (4 ounces) of semisweet or dark chocolate. Chocolate chips or baker’s chocolate (the semi-sweet, NOT the unsweetened) both work equally well. If you have the option, use higher quality chocolate, because that is the essence of this cake.
1 stick (1/2 cup) butter
3/4 cup sugar
3 large eggs
1 tablespoon vanilla
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
(another 2 tablespoons cocoa powder and/or powdered sugar for dusting if you’d like)
You’ll also want an 8-inch round pan, pan spray (or butter) and waxed paper.
For this recipe, you’ll want to use or create a double boiler. If you have one, great. If not, easy fix. Put a saucepan with a few inches of water in it on the stove over low heat. Put a Pyrex (or heat-resistant glass) bowl that is large enough to sit over the saucepan and not fall in over the water. When the water simmers, you’ve got a double boiler. The idea here is to heat what’s in the bowl (or top of the double boiler) very gently, using steam rather than direct heat. This prevents the water in the chocolate from entirely evaporating and “seizing” (creating little unmeltable balls of cocoa butter).
Set up your double boiler or pan and bowl and turn the stove on low. While you’re waiting for water to simmer, cut a circle of waxed paper to fit in the bottom of your pan. Spray or butter the pan very well, set the waxed paper in, then spray or butter the paper.
In the bowl or top of the double boiler, melt the chocolate and butter together, stirring reguarly until they’re almost entirely melted. Turn off the heat. Use a whisk or a fork to stir in the sugar, eggs, vanilla, and cocoa powder. Pour the batter into the prepared pan and bake at 375 for 20 – 25 minutes. The cake will not rise very much, and will become bubbly on top. When there is a crust and it no longer jiggles when you shake the pan, it’s done. Pull it out of the oven and let cool for 5-10 minutes.
Turn the cake out of the pan. Do this by setting your serving dish across the top of the pan, then turn the whole thing over so the cake slides out onto the dish. If this doesn’t work, run a small knife along the edge of the pan. If even this doesn’t work, dip the pan into hot water for a few seconds to melt the edges. Remove the waxed paper.
Refrigerate for at least 20 minutes. Sprinkle cocoa and / or powdered sugar over the top. Serve with whatever garnish you choose- whipped cream, ice cream, raspberry sauce, and fresh berries all go well.
Once entirely cooled, you can store this cake in a sealed container in the fridge for up to two weeks (if it lasts that long!). For easier cutting, try dipping your knife in a glass of hot water. This will melt the cake as you cut it, and help get cleaner-looking edges. Or just have everyone dig in with a fork. Either way.
Never let 2 caterer’s kids loose w/ garnish on Christmas eve w/o a proper outlet – Nary a fresh strawberry was to be found on south hill that night, hence the very finely fluted mareschino cherry accompanying this glorious dish – it took an engineer to come up with that one.