(Two-Step Prep, But Very Doable)

This cake is a classic Passover dessert in terms of the technique, which entails separating eggs. But the flavor is without peer.

Ingredients:

• 1 cup matzah cake meal
• 1/2 cup potato starch
• 1 tablespoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 1/2 cups sugar, divided in half
• 1/2 cup vegetable oil
• 8 large eggs, separated
• 3/4 cup water
• 1 tablespoon rum extract
• 1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
• 4 ounces pareve bittersweet chocolate, chopped into 1/4-inch chunks

Preparation:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a large bowl, sift together the cake meal, potato starch, baking powder, salt, and 3/4 cup of the sugar. Add the oil, egg yolks, water and rum extract; beat until smooth.

In a separate bowl, use an electric mixer on high speed to beat the egg whites with the lemon juice until stiff. Turn the speed to low and gradually add the remaining 3/4 cup of sugar. Turn up the speed to high and then beat until the whites are very stiff and shiny, about 1 minute more.

Use a silicone spatula to fold the egg-yolk mixture into the whites and then fold in the chopped chocolate.

Pour the batter into an ungreased 10-inch Bundt or tube pan. Bake for 1 hour. Let cool in the pan. When cool, use a knife to loosen the edges of the cake and turn onto a serving plate.

Store covered in plastic at room temperature for up to five days or freeze wrapped in plastic for up to three months. Yield: 16 servings