Chocolate Brownie Meringue Cake

Before starting to make the cake, turn on the oven (180-200 degrees C) and prepare the pan.

I used a 24x34 cm glass dish (bought from Ikea, at a very reasonable price). You can use any other deep baking pan of a similar size.

You can line it with baking paper or do what I did. Grease with butter and sprinkle over with breadcrumbs. This way, your cake will have straighter edges (I noticed that the paper distorts the shape of the cake, as it doesn't stick perfectly to the walls of the pan).

If you don't have breadcrumbs, you can grease with butter / oil and line with parchement. This way, it will stick better.

Separate the egg whites from the yolks.

Put the yolks in a deep bowl, add 150g of sugar, a pinch of salt and beat until they become a light foam.

Add the softened butter, mix well.

Then pour in the milk, add flour, baking powder, cocoa and rum essence.

Mix properly until there are no lumps.

You'll have a soft and slightly dense batter, like a thicker cream.

Pour the batter into the baking pan and place in the preheated oven at 180-200 degrees C for about 15 minutes.

About 10 minutes after you placed the pan in the oven, prepare the egg whites.

Whip the egg whites with a little salt (without sugar). When they start to increase, as in the picture, add the sugar a little at a time (the remaining 150g).

Whisk until you have a soft foam, not very aerated, with the sugar completely dissolved.

Add the vanilla essence and mix carefully.

Now check the cake in the oven. It should be firm and have a clear shape. If you press gently down on it with your finger, the middle shouldn't be wobbly, as if it were raw and liquid inside.

Spread the egg white foam over the cake and smooth out carefully.

Pretty much like this.

Return the pan to the oven and turn down the temperature to 150-160 degrees C.

Leave the tray in the oven for about 10 minutes, enough for the soufflé to brown a little and rise slightly.

If you it keep longer, the meringue might sink in the middle and the whole cake will droop once you remove it from the oven.

When it's done, remove from the oven and let sit on the table for a bit.

Meanwhile, grate the chocolate through the small holes side on a plate and then sprinkle it over the hot soufflé.

Don't grate the chocolate directly above the cake, as the hot steam coming from the cake will make the chocolate melt in your hands, which can be a little annoying :)

Allow the cake to cool completely and the chocolate to harden into a delicious crust covering the soufflé.

Cut and serve with great pleasure!

Enjoy!