˝ cup butter (1 stick, ź pound)

8 ounces semi-sweet chocolate chips (1 and 1/3 cups—I used Ghirardelli’s)

4 egg yolks (save the whites in a separate bowl for later)

˝ cup white (granulated) sugar

˝ teaspoon rum extract (or vanilla if you don’t have rum)

4 egg whites (the ones you saved)

˝ cup white (granulated) sugar (you’ll use ˝ cup in all)

sweetened whipped cream to decorate top

shaved chocolate or chocolate curls to decorate top (optional)

sliced or whole berries to decorate top (optional)

Spray an 8-inch Springform pan with Pam or other nonstick cooking spray. (An 8˝-inch Springform will also work, but a 9-inch is too big.) Line the bottom of the pan with a circle of parchment paper (wax paper will also work.) Spray the paper with Pam or other nonstick cooking spray.

In a small microwave-safe bowl, combine butter and semi-sweet chocolate chips. Melt for one minute on HIGH, stir, and heat for an additional 20 seconds if necessary. (Some chocolate maintains its shape even when melted. Stir before you microwave for the additional time.) Cover your bowl, or put it back in the microwave, to keep it warm.

In a medium bowl, beat ˝ cup of granulated sugar with the egg yolks until they’re a light yellow in color. Mix in the rum extract. (This is easy with an electric mixer, although you can do it by hand.)

Stir a bit of the egg yolk mixture into the melted chocolate to temper it. Then add the chocolate to the egg yolk mixture and stir until it’s well blended.

In a large bowl, using clean beaters, beat the egg whites until soft peaks form. Continue beating while sprinkling in the remaining ź cup granulated sugar. Beat until stiff peaks form (about ˝ minute.)

Stir just a bit of the egg white mixture into the bowl with the chocolate. Now add the chocolate to the bowl with the rest of the egg whites and gently fold it in with a rubber spatula. Continue folding until the mixture is a uniform chocolate color.

Pour the batter into the cake pan and smooth the top with a rubber spatula. Bake at 375 degrees F. for 35 minutes or until a wooden pick or cake tester inserted in the center comes out dry.

Cool in the pan on a wire rack for 15 minutes. Run a knife around the inside of the rim of the pan, invert the pan on a serving plate, and cool for another 10 minutes. Release the catch on the Springform pan and remove it. DON’T PEEL OFF THE PARCHMENT PAPER UNTIL THE CAKE IS COMPLETELY COOL TO THE TOUCH.

When you’re ready to serve, fill in the crater in the center and frost the top of the cake with sweetened whipped cream. If you want it to look fancy, decorate it with chocolate shavings, chocolate curls, and/or a sprinkling of raspberries or strawberries. Slice it and serve it on dessert plates with plenty of excellent coffee.