Grain-Free, Sugar-Free Dessert
If you’re looking for a grain-free, sugar-free dessert that will wow guests, this is it. If you’re looking for a low-carb dessert to enjoy with your family, this is it. This chocolate-walnut torte recipe is so easy but looks like something that took all day. I love that!
Rich & Creamy
This torte is rich. The original recipe says it serves 12. I cut my torte into much smaller pieces. You can always have seconds! I like to say the texture it a cross between fudge and chocolate cake. I guess that makes it similar to a fudge brownie. The other thing I’ve noticed, if you are lucky enough to have left overs, it’s even more delicious the next day!
Tips for your Chocolate-Walnut Torte:
If you can find red walnuts, use those. Red walnuts aren’t as bitter as regular walnuts. They’re a great option for this recipe (or any recipe). Due to the rich, creamy texture of this torte, homemade whipped cream is an excellent addition. YUM.
The mixing and baking of this torte is pretty quick and easy but make sure you give yourself extra time. You really want it to cool all the way before adding the chocolate sauce. Once the chocolate sauce is added you want time for it to completely cool before serving. I like to make it in the morning and then let it rest in the fridge until serving time which is usually dinner. I may make it a day ahead the next time since it’s so good the next day.
- 1 1/2 cups Walnuts (red walnuts if you can find them)
- 3/4 cup Swerve Confectioner's Sweetener
- 1/4 cup Cocoa Powder
- 1/2 tsp. Baking Powder
- 1/4 tsp. Pink Himalayan Salt
- 1/2 cup Butter (Kerrygold is a good choice)
- 4 oz. Unsweetened Baking Chocolate
- 5 Large Eggs
- 1/2 tsp. Vanilla Extract
- 1/2 cup Unsweetened Almond Milk (Califia Farms is a good choice)
- 1/2 cup Heavy Whipping Cream
- 2 1/2 oz. Enjoy Life Sugar-Free Chocolate Chips (I like dark chocolate)
- Walnut Pieces (optional, for decoration)
- Preheat your oven to 325 degrees.
- Grease a 9-inch round cake pan. Line the bottom with parchment paper and grease the parchment paper too.
- Place 1 1/2 cups of walnuts into a food processor. Process until the walnuts are finely ground.
- Add the swerve sweetener, cocoa powder, baking powder and salt to the food processor and pulse a few time to combine the ingredients.
- In a medium - large bowl, place butter, cut into chunks and the unsweetened chocolate broken into smallish pieces.
- Place bowl in microwave and heat for 30 seconds on high. Remove the bowl and mix the butter and chocolate with a fork. If there are still chunks, place bowl back into microwave and heat for 15 more seconds. Stir. If still not completely melted and easy to mix place back into microwave for another 10 - 15 seconds. Continue until the butter and chocolate mix easily and combine well until smooth.*
- Scramble the eggs then whisk them into the melted chocolate-butter, add the almond milk and continue to whisk until well combined and smooth.
- Stir the dry ingredients into the chocolate mixture until well combined.
- Pour the batter into your 9 inch round, grease cake pan.
- Bake for 30 minutes. The edges should look done and have pulled away from the edge of the pan, the middle should still look a bit soft or wet.
- Remove pan from oven and place on a cooling rack and let cook in pan for 15 minutes.
- Invert torte onto wire rack, remove parchment paper and let cool completely. See notes.
- In a small sauce pan, bring heavy whipping cream to a simmer, over medium heat.
- As soon as cream starts to simmer, remove from heat and add the chocolate chips to the hot cream.
- Let the chips sit in the hot cream for 5 minutes. Don't touch, just let them sit.
- At the end of 5 minutes, whisk the chocolate chips and cream until smooth.
- Let chocolate-cream mixture cool for an additional 10 minutes.
- At the end of 10 minutes, whisk the cream again and pour onto the top of the completely cooled torte.
- Use a spatula to spread the chocolate glaze all over torte and down the sides.
- Add chopped walnuts and/or berries to the torte.
- Place torte in fridge and let the chocolate glaze firm up. 30 minutes or longer.
- When microwaving the chocolate and butter, don't over heat. Make sure and stir the mixture every time you take it out of the microwave. You may not need to heat it more than 2x, the stirring will help melt the butter and chocolate.
- Inverting the torte onto the cooling rack. This has given me trouble in the past. I've cracked the torte. There is a good 1/2 inch of pan above the torte. I've tried to use my hand to catch the torte while inverting but that cracked the torte. I now use a paper plate. I cut the paper plate so it's the exact size of the torte. Place the paper plate on the torte and my hand on paper plate. Invert quickly, remove the parchment, slap the cooling rack on the bottom of torte that is in my hand, and quickly flip over onto rack for cooling. This works for me. I'm sure you'll come up with your own tricky way to get the torte out of the cake pan ; )
- 1 piece: calories 230, fat 22 g, carbs 5 g, fiber 3 g, net carbs 2 grams, protein 5 g
I’m Amy a board certified holistic nutritionist, certified functional nutritionist and lifestyle practitioner and certified Life Coach. I help women in midlife understand the changing needs of their body so that they can stop dieting and lose weight permanently. At 56 I live what I teach. Don’t believe the story that your best years are behind you. They are not. Your best years are just starting!