White Chocolate Raspberry Cake

This cake is barely a cake at all. With only ¼ cup of flour holding together six eggs, melted white chocolate, and butter, it’s closer to a baked truffle than a traditional layer cake. The texture is dense, fudgy, and impossibly rich, with a thin crust on top that gives way to a creamy interior.

Six eggs is a lot for this amount of flour, and that’s the point. The eggs provide all the structure, and the ratio creates a cake that’s custardy and moist rather than cakey and crumbly. Adding them one at a time lets each egg fully incorporate before the next goes in, keeping the batter smooth and emulsified.

Melting the white chocolate over a double boiler (not direct heat) prevents it from seizing. White chocolate is finicky; too much heat turns it grainy and lumpy. Gentle, indirect heat keeps it smooth and pourable.

Fresh raspberries on top are not a garnish. Their tartness is essential. Without them, the cake would be one-note sweet. The berry acid cuts through the richness and gives each bite balance.

Chef Tips

• Use real white chocolate (with cocoa butter listed as an ingredient), not white baking chips. Chips contain palm oil and don’t melt as smoothly or taste as rich.
• Beat the butter until completely smooth before adding the chocolate. Lumpy butter creates an uneven batter.
• The cake is done when the top is set but the center still has a slight jiggle. It firms as it cools.
• Let it cool completely in the pan before cutting. Warm, this cake is too soft to hold a clean slice.

Variations

• Serve with a raspberry coulis (pureed and strained berries) drizzled across the plate.
• Add a tablespoon of framboise (raspberry liqueur) to the batter for a boozy, berry-scented version.
• Dust with powdered sugar instead of topping with raspberries for a simpler presentation.