Sachertorte is a type of chocolate cake originating from 1832 in Vienna, Austria. It is one of the most famous Viennese specialties, and my favorite chocolate cake. It consists of two layers of chocolate cake, an apricot filling, and coated in chocolate icing.
Although the original recipe does not contain marzipan, some variations do. I chose to include marzipan in the filling of this recipe. Additionally, I also replaced the chocolate icing with melted chocolate, and used oat flour instead of regular four.
I prefer baking with oat flour instead of regular flour not because it is gluten free, but because it is higher in nutrients such a protein and iron.
Note: Oats are naturally gluten free, however, sometimes they can get contaminated during processing or packaging. If you cannot tolerate gluten, I recommend you buy oats and oat flour that are certified gluten free.
Regardless if you follow a gluten free diet or not, I would still recommend using oat flour for making this recipe. I find that it makes the cake more fudgy since it lacks gluten and does not rise the way regular flour does.
To keep both tiers symmetrical, I opted to bake two cakes and stack them on top of each other. If you are short on time or you don’t have two cake pans, you could bake one larger cake and cut it in half. Keep in mind that baking time will vary. Before removing the cake from the oven, poke it with a toothpick to see if it is fully baked.
Let both layers of cake to cool to room temperature before assembly. Also make sure to poke plenty of holes with a toothpick before spreading the jam. This way, the jam seeps deeper into the cake, making it extra juicy and flavourful.
I also used marzipan in the filling as I love the chewy texture it provides. If you’re not a fan, you can simply omit it. The cake will be just as good without it.
The tradition is to serve the cake with unsweetened whipped cream. The light cream pairs very well with the richness of the chocolate. If you are making your own whipped cream, I would recommend using 1-2 sachets of vanilla sugar. It helps enhance the flavours of the cake without adding too much sweetness.
See more cake recipes here.
And lastly, this is how to make the gluten free Sachertorte-inspired cake:
Sacher Torte-Inspired Cake, Gluten Free
Ingredients
For the cake:
- 2 cups (200 g/ 7 oz.) oat flour
- 1 ½ sticks (175 g/ 6 oz.) unsalted butter
- 8 large eggs, room temperature
- 1 cup (120 g/ 4 1⁄4 oz.) icing sugar
- ½ cup (100 g/ 3 ½ oz.) granulated sugar
- 180 g (6 ⅓ oz.) semi-sweet chocolate
- 2 tbsp. Dutch process cocoa powder
- 2 tsp. vanilla extract
- 1⁄4 tsp. salt
- 4 tbsp. unsalted butter for greasing the baking pan
- 5 tbsp. oat flour, for dusting the baking pan
For the filling:
- 300 g (10 ½ oz.) apricot jam
- 150 g (5 ¼ oz.) marzipan
- juice from one large orange
For the glaze:
- 200 g (7 oz.) semi-sweet chocolate
Optional:
- whipped cream for serving
Instructions
For the cake:
- Preheat oven to 180°C (350°F).
- In a bowl sift the oat flour and cocoa and set aside.
- Melt the chocolate in a bain-marie. Once melted, set aside to cool a little.
- Separate the eggs, placing the yolks in a small bowl and the whites in a large bowl.
- In another large bowl place the butter, icing sugar and whisk them to a light, fluffy consistency. Add the vanilla extract, the salt, and the egg yolks one by one, whisking after each yolk you add. Gently pour the melted cooled chocolate, while you are whisking continuously.
- Beat the egg whites to a soft peak. Slowly add the granulated sugar, while continuously beating the whites. Beat to a stiff peak. Gently add the whites to the butter-yolk mixture. Add the flour mixture, and with a spatula slowly fold them in. Divide the batter into two equal parts.
- Grease two cake pans of the same size. Dust with oat flour and shake the pans to evenly distribute the flour. Remove any excess flour. Pour the two batters and bake for 25 minutes. Poke them in the centre with a tooth pick. If the tooth pick comes out clean, the cakes have fully baked and are ready to be removed from the oven. Let them cool 2-3 minutes in the cake pans, then invert them onto a cooling rack and allow them to cool completely.
For the filling:
- In a small pot over low heat add the apricot marmalade and orange juice, and bring to a simmer. Mix them well, and set aside for 2-3 minutes. With a toothpick, poke plenty of holes into the bottom of each cake. Spread half of the marmalade mixture onto each cake. Set aside while preparing the marzipan. Using your hands, work the marzipan to warm it up. On a work surface, roll out the marzipan in a circular shape the size of the cake. Place the marzipan onto one cake. Place the other cake, with the jam side coming on top of the marzipan.
For the glaze:
- Melt the chocolate in a bain-marie. Slowly pour the melted chocolate over the cake in a circular motion, starting from the centre, and moving towards the sides. With a spatula, even out the chocolate layer.
Optional:
- Serve the cake with whipped cream.
