Kladdkaka

Is kladdkaka the glory or the curse of Swedish kitchens? The cratered confection falls somewhere between cake and candy on the Swedish culinary ladder. It is a thin, sticky - very, very sweet - chocolate cake with a texture all it's own. My not-terribly-domestic Dad, unable to convincingly argue a case that would cause my Mother to rethink her refusal to make anything so sweet, learned to make it for himself. My husband, too, loves this confection - me, a lover of the barely sweet, maybe not so much. There are no fence-sitters when it comes to kladdkaka - you either love it or you hate it; I'll let you be the judge.

Kladdkaka - Swedish Sticky Chocolate Cake

Ingredients:
1/2 cup pastry or all-purpose flour
1/4 to 1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa (I use 1/3 cup)
1/8 teaspoon salt
2 large eggs, room temperature
1 to 1-1/3 cups granulated sugar (I use 1 cup)
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup melted butter
Confectioners' sugar for dusting

Directions:
1) Adjust a rack to lower third of oven. Preheat oven to 300 degres F. Lightly grease an 8-inch springform pan or pie plate.
2) Combine flour, cocoa and salt; sift and set aside.
3) Combine eggs and sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer. Beat for 5 minutes on medium speed, or until pale yellow and mixture forms a ribbon. Stir in vanilla. Add flour mixture and stir just until combined. Add butter and mix well. Pour into prepared pan.
4) Bake for 35 minutes, or until the center is just set. Allow to cool in pan for about an hour. The cake will crater as it sits. Remove ring if using a springform pan. Serve warm or cold. Yield: 8 servings.