In my previous life I must have been a nomad and definitely a Sherpa. In our 17 years of marriage, my husband and I have lived in 11 houses on 2 continents plus dabbled between 3 vacation homes.
In the early days, the sole purpose was to buy the ugliest house on the best street, renovate and sell it for what was hopefully a worthwhile profit. My hubby is a pretty handy guy so most of the Reno’s we tackled ourselves from the mundane repainting to the more adventurous cutting open floors to insert staircases.
Each home however always required a major kitchen overhaul. Out of any remodelling project, these to me are always the hardest to live through. You either learn to cook every meal on a BBQ or get very friendly with your local take out guy which is never good for your waistline or your wallet.
I remember one house in particular where we gutted the kitchen (there was carpet in there that hadn’t been changed in 35 years…..yuck!) and had nowhere to put all the dishes, pots and pans. The main bathroom (shonky in itself with no door lock and green paisley wallpaper) was adjacent to the kitchen so I shoved all the towels and sheets from that bathroom closet under our bed and used it to house all the kitchen supplies.
It all worked well until one raucous dinner party when after a very liquid main meal I had to serve dessert. I thought I was being Mrs. Fancy Pants by making my famous Chocolate, Date & Almond Torte a few days in advance but I forgot I had to whip the cream for garnish. Grumbling to myself, I barged into the bathroom and without blinking an eye said hello to the poor male guest who was standing in front of the avocado coloured toilet.
I proceeded to rummage through the linen closet for my hand mixer, crashed a few pots on his toes, gave a wink and went back into my kitchen war zone to whip the cream. Poor guy couldn't look me in the eye all night!
So if you ever find yourself in the midst of a major renovation, first throw a party. I find it's a good motivator to get the job done as quick as possible. And second, make this easy and do ahead dessert to help keep the fuss down after dinner. Just remember to whip the cream before your guests arrive.
CHOCOLATE, DATE AND ALMOND TORTE
Serves 10-12
Preparation: 15 minutes
Baking: 40 minutes
Note: This is an ideal entertaining dessert as it combines traditional flavours in a simple, make ahead dessert. The torte will keep 10-14 days in an air tight container at room temperature.
Ingredients:
250g dates, pitted
250g good quality dark chocolate
250g almonds
1/2 cup sugar
6 egg whites
1. Preheat oven to 350F.
2. In a food processor, chop the almonds, chocolate and dates until roughly chopped.
3. In a large bowl beat the egg whites until stiff. Add the sugar and continue beating until the mixture forms a meringue.
4. Fold in the nut mixture being careful not to over mix.
5. Pour into a greased spring form cake pan. Bake for 40 minutes.
6. Remove from oven and let sit in pan for 5 minutes.
7. Remove from cake pan and decorate as desired.
Suggestions for decoration:
Serve with whipped cream on top or side.
Drizzle cake with extra chocolate.
Top with sliced strawberries or seasonal fruit.
Top with pureed raspberries (frozen or fresh).
Note: To keep the cream stabilized for a few hours, use a product like Dr. Oetker`s Whip It which is a starch product that binds the liquid parts of the whipped cream together, helping it to remain stable for several hours. Enjoy!
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