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Flourless Chocolate Cake: Separate the eggs while they are cold. Place the yolks in one bowl and the whites in another bowl. Cover the two bowls with plastic wrap and allow the eggs to come to room temperature (about 30 minutes).

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F (180 degrees C). Butter a 9 inch (23 cm) springform pan and line the bottom of the pan with a round of parchment paper.

In a heatproof bowl, placed over a saucepan of simmering water, melt the butter and chocolate. Remove from heat and set aside to cool to room temperature. Then whisk in the egg yolks and vanilla extract.

In another clean bowl whip the egg whites and cream of tartar until soft peaks form. Gradually add the granulated white sugar and whip just until stiff peaks form. With a rubber spatula or wire whisk, gently fold the egg whites (in three additions) into the batter just until blended (being careful not to deflate the batter). Pour into your prepared pan and, with the back of a spoon or with an offset spatula, smooth the top. Bake for about 18 to 20 minutes or until the cake is set. The cake will rise during baking and there may be cracks on the top surface of the cake.

Remove from oven and place on a wire rack to cool. As the cake cools it will deflate. Once it has cooled to room temperature gently press the top of the cake so the surface is even and flat. Then place in the freezer for about an hour or until firm. Remove from freezer and using a 2 1/4 inch (5.5 cm) round cookie cutter, cut the cake into rounds (you will have about 10 rounds). Place the rounds on a parchment paper-lined baking sheet. You can keep the leftover scraps of cake to make a trifle.

Chocolate Mousse: In a heatproof bowl set over a saucepan of simmering water, melt the chocolate. Remove from heat and let cool to room temperature. In the bowl of your electric mixer, fitted with the whisk attachment (or with a hand mixer), whip the heavy cream with the sugar until soft peaks form. Then whisk or fold about one quarter of the whipped cream into the melted chocolate. (Do this quickly so the chocolate does not seize (become grainy).) Then gently, but quickly, fold or whisk the rest of the whipped cream (in three stages) into the chocolate.

Place the chocolate mousse in a pastry bag fitted with a star tip and pipe swirls of the mousse on top of each round of chocolate cake. If desired, garnish each cake with a fresh raspberry. Serve immediately or they can be covered and stored in the refrigerator for about 3-5 days.

Makes 10 - 2 1/4 inch (5.25 cm) Chocolate Mousse Cakes.

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These individual Chocolate Mousse Cakes take small rounds of a moist and dense flourless chocolate cake and tops them with a swirl of chocolate mousse. They look especially eye popping when you garnish them with a bright red raspberry. Many will appreciate that this is a gluten free dessert. The chocolate cake is simply a mixture of chocolate, butter, eggs, and sugar. It has a rich chocolate flavor and a moist and dense texture that is a cross between a cake and a souffle. You can serve these pretty cakes as a plated dessert with a drizzling of raspberry sauce, or they can be picked up and eaten like you would enjoy a cupcake.

The flourless chocolate cakes are made from the same recipe that I use to make Molten Chocolate Cakes. What I like about this cake is how it puffs up during baking but deflates upon cooling. The cakes have a deep and rich chocolate, yet the chocolate flavor really depends on the type and brand of chocolate you use. You can use either semi sweet or bittersweet chocolate. Try to use a good quality chocolate, one that you enjoy eating on its' own. The cake is baked in a springform pan and then it's cut into individual rounds. Don't throw away the leftover scraps of cake, as they can be used to make a trifle (layer the cake with whipped cream, chocolate mousse, or pastry cream and fruit).

The Chocolate Mousse is simply a mixture of melted chocolate and whipped cream. It doesn't contain any eggs. The chocolate is melted, cooled, and then folded into the whipped cream. Make sure that the melted chocolate has cooled to room temperature before folding it into the whipped cream. You don't want to add cold cream to warm chocolate or the chocolate will seize, causing the mousse to be grainy. Start by quickly fold a small amount of the whipped cream into the melted chocolate. You want quick light strokes as the cold cream needs to be immediately incorporated into the melted chocolate. Don't let it sit on top of the melted chocolate for any length of time.