Italy has given many gifts to the world: pizza, the Mona Lisa and Sophia Loren, to name a few. But no Italian creation is as gorgeous as the marriage of chocolate and hazelnuts. Whether it's Nutella, Ferrero Rocher or this decadent Passover torte, chocolate and hazelnuts can do no wrong together.

The recipe comes from my aunt, Sue Devor, and is traditionally made with almonds. If you have someone coming to dinner with a nut allergy, you can substitute matzo meal for the nuts with delicious results. If you are serving this cake with a dairy meal, by all means use butter instead of margarine.

Passover chocolate-hazelnut torte

Yield: 12 servings

1 cup hazelnuts

3 tbsp matzo cake meal

12 oz semi-sweet chocolate, chopped

2/3 cup unsalted pareve margarine

2/3 cup granulated sugar

4 large eggs, separated, at room temperature

pinch salt

Heat the oven to 350 F. Grease and line a nine-inch springform pan with parchment paper.

Place the hazelnuts on a baking tray and roast until the skins have cracked and the nuts are golden, about 15 minutes. While the nuts are still hot, place them in a clean kitchen towel, gather the ends together and rub until the skins come off. Let the skinned nuts cool completely then grind until fine in a food processor. Combine 2/3 cup of the ground nuts and the cake meal in a bowl. (Reserve the rest of the hazelnuts to garnish the cake.)

In a stainless steel bowl set over a simmering pan of water, melt the chocolate and margarine, stirring until smooth. Remove from the heat.

In a stand mixer fitted with a paddle, beat the sugar and egg yolks on medium-high until pale and thick, about two minutes. Reduce the speed to low. Slowly add the chocolate mixture until combined. Stop the machine and transfer the mixture to a large mixing bowl.

Wash and dry the bowl for the mixer and add the egg whites with a pinch of salt. With the whisk attachment, beat the egg whites on medium-high speed until stiff peaks form. Fold in one-third of the whites into the chocolate mixture then fold in half of the dry mix. Fold in another third of the whites then the rest of the dry mix. Gently fold in the last third of the whites until just combined.

Pour the batter into the prepared pan and spread evenly with a spatula. Place the pan on a baking sheet. Bake on the middle rack until the top looks dry and a toothpick inserted in middle comes out with moist crumbs attached, about 40 minutes. Cool completely.

To serve, remove ring piece from pan and peel off parchment from sides. Place a plate over the cake and quickly invert. Remove the springform bottom and peel off the parchment. Sprinkle the reserved hazelnuts over the cake. Serve at room temperature.