Until a friend introduced me to a mesquite bean flour-producing community development project among the Tohono O’odham of southern Arizona/northern Sonora, I’d never tasted its nutty, brown sugar-like deliciousness. The stuff is life-changing. And a perfect match with chocolate, which is why we quickly developed this richly chocolatey, super-moist recipe at our restaurant. It’s best baked as small cakes (as described here), either in muffin tins or muffin-size silicone molds–the latter being easiest to work with. I like to serve them with unsweetened whipped cream (beat in a tablespoon or two of sour cream or creme fraiche if you have it) and a drizzling of bittersweet chocolate sauce.
Yes, these little cakes are gluten-free.
INGREDIENTS
- 5 ounces bittersweet (I suggest 70%) chocolate, chopped
- 5 tablespoons vegetable oil
- 5 tablespoons butter, cut into smallish cubes, plus more for coating muffin tins
- 4 eggs
- 5 tablespoons (100 grams) agave syrup
- 1/2 cup (100 grams) sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 cup plus 1 tablespoon (70 grams–the amount in the Burlap & Barrel spice jar) mesquite flour/powder
- 1/3 cup plus 1 tablespoon (45 grams) cocoa powder, plus more for coating muffin tins
INSTRUCTIONS
Makes the batter. In a microwave-safe bowl, combine the chocolate, oil and butter. Cover and microwave in 30-second bursts, stirring after each one, until chocolate and butter are completely melted. Uncover and cool slightly. In another bowl, whisk together the eggs, agave syrup, sugar and salt. Slowly whisk in the warm chocolate mixture. Pour the mesquite flour and cocoa powder into a strainer set over the wet ingredients and sift it in. Whisk to combine.
Bake the cakes. Heat the oven to 350 degrees. If using muffin tins, thoroughly rub each one with butter, then scoop a little cocoa powder; tip the mold to evenly coat the each mold with cocoa. If using a muffin-size silicone molds, no preparation is necessary. Evenly divide the batter into the muffin tins or fleximolds (they shouldn’t be over ⅔ full). Bake for 18 to 20 minutes, rotating the pan halfway, until the centers are resilient to the touch (they lose their shininess and stickiness when done). Do not underbake: the cakes will sink and shrink. Allow the cakes to cool in the molds.
