Torta Caprese

I'm having friends around for dinner tonight, I am trying out a new main course that a friend has recommended and sent me the recipe for, I will report on that tomorrow. It's smelling really good, and the fact that I'm not in the kitchen now cooking is a good sign. The dessert tonight is something I have done a few times, it's gluten free which is a requirement tonight. I have a store of 70% dark chocolate in my cupboard. Luckily I prefer milk chocolate, so generally it's still there when I want to use it for a recipe. Ground almonds are something I stock up on now and again, a very useful ingredient. I'm going to serve dessert tonight with some fresh raspberries, and mascarpone cheese, but just cream or ice cream, even low fat yoghurt would be equally as good. Rachel got a taste test before the friends arrived. I'm thinking next week I might have to try more recipes from slimmer dinners recipe booklet. Now, I think I'd better get a move on.

Ingredients
Serves 10
200g of dark chocolate
4 medium eggs
170g caster sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
250g ground almonds
200g butter, melted and cooled until tepid
icing sugar to serve

Method
Line the base of a 24 cm diameter round cake tin with non-stick baking parchment and grease the sides.
Preheat the oven 170C.
Blitz the chocolate in a food processor until it is finely chopped, though still retaining a little in texture. If you don't have a processor chop finely with a large knife.
Beat the eggs with the sugar and vanilla extract until the mixture is pale and moussey, and thick enough to hold a trail on it's surface when you lift the beaters. Fold in the chocolate, almonds and the butter. Spoon into a prepared cake tin and bake for 45-50 min or until just firm to touch. Leave to cool in the tin. Dust with icing sugar before serving. 

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