I want to say that this Hazelnut Meringue Torte is Northern Nester’s magnum opus, but that kind of reminds me of Charlotte in Charlotte’s Web, and she died shortly after saying that about her nest of spider eggs, so I think I’ll just call this my favorite Trim Healthy Mama-friendly dessert ever.
It looks so complicated and tricky, but it’s not.
My great-aunt used make a wonderful, light, tender, flavorful, slightly crunchy hazelnut torte with layer upon layer of meringue, rich, espresso-flavored chocolate, and whipped cream. She passed the recipe onto my Mom, and it used to be an occasional Sunday treat growing up since it took quite a bit of time to make. That torte was out-of-this-world amazing though, and a fast favorite.
This recipe is the Trim Healthy Mama-friendly version of that hazelnut meringue torte, and wouldn’t you know it? It’s just as tasty, but it’s practically carb-less, contains no special ingredients, and is a cinch to put together! The trick is to bake the meringue portion of the torte at night and so you can leave it in the oven to dry out while you’re sleeping. When you wake up, Ta-da! Your torte is ready for assembly!
If you’ve never made a meringue before, this is a perfect recipe to start with. Instead of drawing circles on parchment paper and trying not to over work the egg white mixture while you divide and spread it evenly between them, you simply line two rimmed 17″ cookie sheets, spread out the mixture between them, bake, and each cut each meringue in half the next morning, giving you four layers to make cake with! Easy-peasy.
The chocolate sauce and layers are made by melting 1 1/2 bars of 85% dark Lindt chocolate with instant espresso powder and xylitol in heavy cream.
This complicated-looking Hazelnut Meringue Torte is actually very easy to make! A novice THM baker can totally pull it off! The trick is to bake your meringue at night and leave it in the oven while you're sleeping. You'll wake up to a perfect, low-carb meringue to use in this incredibly delicious torte! A THM S. You can use Gentle Sweet instead of xylitol in half the amount. Hazelnut Meringue Torte
Ingredients
Instructions
Notes
Aww..Jacinda, this torte makes me feel all Dutch inside! Yes, you don’t want to call it your magnum opus b/c we want to keep you around a good long time – Ha!
Glad to see that you have Mediavine! I love it and am so happy to find out about it from Rosilind Jukic at A Little R&R.
Hugs to you and your precious family 😀
PS I’ve never tried Gentle Sweet before..will need to now!
Yes, it’s Mediavine has been such a blessing to us! I’m glad to see you have it, too! It’s fun to be back in this together!
Sounds irresistible! We must try this during the coming “dessert” season!
Where would I find espresso powder? I’m not a coffee drinker and am not familiar with this. Thanks!
Hi Jacinda, I know you don’t look at this on sunday’s. But I was attempting to make the Hazelnut torte. Something went wrong. First of all, my meringue when I added my hazelnuts flopped down and did not stay fluffy or poofy. Did I grind my nuts to fine maybe. I did also add while my egg whites where whipping up some more. But that would not explain why it caved in when I added the hazelnut mixture. What did I do wrong and what can I do to fix it next time. I tasted a bit of the meringue and it tasted fine. I just did one cookie sheet but it’s very, very, very flat. Some help or advice. Better still you make it one day and I’ll come and watch. Or make a video of how some of these desserts are made. 🙂 I know you have your hands full with a “growing” family. Congrats. Children truly are a blessing from the Lord.
Hi Denise! Sorry it’s taken me so long to reply! I did in my head long before I realized I hadn’t on here… 😉
Egg whites are tricky to work with. They are very sensitive to the environment and meringues do not whip or rise well if you make them on a humid or rainy day. The air should be dry and the whites should be at room temperature. Also, they need to be stiff before you add in any extra ingredients, included your sweetener. I hope that helps with the trouble shooting!
Can this recipe be made in advance and frozen?
This looks fabulous, Which don’t like coffee, any alternatives for the espresso powder