Flourless Chocolate Cake AND Homemade Whipped Cream

This cake is nothing less than amazing.  Really.  Truly.  A-MA-ZING.  And it's gluten-free!  And no, it's not one bit fat-free!!  It's totally fattening and rich!  But it's perfect and it is a keeper - all the way.  It's the kind of cake you have at weddings... or honeymoons... at a fancy hotel... at a fancy restaurant... on cruises... very gourmet.  I tried this out with a group of friends here last night.  There was not a piece left.  Everyone loved it.  We served it with homemade whipped cream and fresh sliced strawberries.  When Sandy emails me the picture of the actual presentation, I'll put it here too.  I found this on allrecipes.com, and HERE is the link. 

~Leah

Flourless Chocolate Cake

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup water
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 3/4 cup white sugar
• 18 (1 ounce) squares bittersweet chocolate
• 1 cup unsalted butter
• 6 eggs

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 300 degrees F (150 degrees C). Grease one 10 inch round cake pan and set aside.
2. In a small saucepan over medium heat combine the water, salt and sugar. Stir until completely dissolved and set aside.
3. Either in the top half of a double boiler or in a microwave oven melt the bittersweet chocolate. Pour the chocolate into the bowl of an electric mixer.
4. Cut the butter into pieces and beat the butter into the chocolate, 1 piece at a time. Beat in the hot sugar-water. Slowly beat in the eggs, one at a time.
5. Pour the batter into the prepared pan. Have a pan larger than the cake pan ready, put the cake pan in the larger pan and fill the pan with boiling water halfway up the sides of the cake pan.
6. Bake cake in the water bath at 300 degrees F (150 degrees C) for 45 minutes. The center will still look wet. Chill cake overnight in the pan. To unmold, dip the bottom of the cake pan in hot water for 10 seconds and invert onto a serving plate.

NOTE from Leah:  I only had a 9-inch pan, so I filled it moderately, then poured the rest of the batter into a cupcake pan.  The larger cake was prettier (for presentation), but the little cupcakes turned out alright too.
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Homemade Whipped Cream

1 cup heavy whipping cream
1-2 Tbsp powdered sugar (or granulated sugar is fine too)

Whip at high speed in a bowl with an electric mixer until soft peaks form, about 5-7 minutes.  Keep chilled until serving time.

Optional:  Before whipping, add 1 Tbsp any flavorful liqueurs (Kahlua, Rum, Raspberry Schnapps), or small amount of extract (1/4 tsp) such as Almond extract, vanilla, peppermint - whatever you want to make it your own.