Two Classics We’ll Never Tire Of
Afternoon Autumn Light
Seasonal Essentials
It’s baking season! Here are two of our all-time, never-get-old dessert favorites. A must. Essential. Arguably vital to one’s happiness.
What are you doing this weekend? Scroll down, hit the shops, oven on, bowls out, dig in.
Across the Atlantic, another icon: L’Artusi’s Olive Oil Cake, the signature dessert of the beloved West Village restaurant. Since opening in 2008, L’Artusi has been the city’s answer to refined comfort — Italian classics reimagined with modern ease. Their olive oil cake embodies that spirit: deeply moist, delicately citrusy, and effortlessly elegant.
It’s the cake you can serve after dinner, at brunch, or as an afternoon indulgence — sophisticated without being precious. The olive oil lends a fruity richness, while a hint of salt and sugar keeps it balanced. A true New York staple, baked in the spirit of generosity.
Recipe:
L’Artusi, NYC — Olive Oil Cake
Ingredients:
- 2 Eggs
- 410 grams Sugar
- 250 ml Extra Virgin Olive oil
- 165 ml Whole Milk
- 80 ml Marsala
- 410 grams Plain flour
- 1/2 tsp. Bicarbonate of Soda
- 1/2 tsp. Salt
- Icing sugar
To make:
Line the base of a 23cm cake tin with baking parchment, then lightly butter the sides.
In a large bowl, whisk together the eggs and sugar until pale and slightly thickened. Gradually pour in the olive oil, milk, and Marsala, whisking continuously. (If you’re using a stand mixer, keep it running on low speed as you add the liquids.)
Few desserts have earned their place in history quite like The River Café’s Chocolate Nemesis. Conceived in the 1980s by Ruth Rogers and the late Rose Gray, the cake was an instant legend: flourless, rich, and utterly indulgent. It’s the kind of chocolate cake that silences a room — dense, smooth, and closer to a mousse than a bake.
What makes it so special? Simplicity and precision. Just four ingredients — chocolate, sugar, butter, and eggs — and a long, slow bake that yields a silky, almost truffle-like texture. It’s the dessert that defines understated luxury: confident enough to stand alone, perfect with a spoonful of cream or a scatter of berries.
Recipe:
The River Café, London — Chocolate Nemesis
Ingredients:
10 eggs
2 3/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons (575g) granulated sugar
24 ounce (675g) best-quality bittersweet chocolate (70% cocoa solids), broken into small pieces
1 pound (450g) unsalted butter, softened
To make:
Preheat the oven to 250°F (130°C). Butter a 12-inch (30cm) round cake pan, about 3 inches (7.5cm) deep, and line the base with parchment.
In a stand mixer, whisk the eggs with one-third of the sugar until pale, thick, and quadrupled in volume — this will take 10 minutes or more.
Meanwhile, melt the chocolate and butter together in a heatproof bowl set over a pan of barely simmering water (make sure the bowl doesn’t touch the water). Once melted, remove from the heat.
In a small saucepan, combine the remaining sugar with 250ml (9 fl oz) water. Warm gently until the sugar dissolves completely, creating a clear syrup. Stir occasionally, then pour the syrup into the melted chocolate mixture, stirring gently to combine.
With the mixer on low speed, slowly stream the warm chocolate mixture into the whipped eggs. Once incorporated, increase the speed briefly to fully blend. The batter will lose some of its volume — that’s expected.
Pour the mixture into the prepared pan. Set the pan inside a deep roasting tray, placing a dish towel underneath to keep it steady. Fill the tray with hot water, reaching about two-thirds up the side of the cake pan.
Bake for 1½ to 2 hours, until the top feels just set when lightly pressed with your hand.
Carefully remove the pan from the water bath and let the cake cool completely in the pan before unmolding. Do not refrigerate.
Serve in generous slices with a spoonful of crème fraîche.
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About Selection Of
The Selection Of is an ongoing series featuring people we love and admire along with their favorite PORTA product, giving you a glimpse into their approach to styling their lives and tables. They are people we have known forever and others that we have just met who bring PORTA into vibrant life in a myriad of different ways. A PORTA portrait of a person if you will.