White sugar is the go-to sweetener for cakes, pies and all manner of baked goods and desserts, but it’s one of the most boring options. It has a pure, uncomplicated sweetness that doesn’t interfere with other flavors—and that can be valuable—but our Gluten-Free White Chocolate and Apricot Torte is sweetened with more interesting ingredients, like floral honey, milky white chocolate, and tangy Bonne Maman Apricot Fruit Spread.

Honey and white chocolate provide the batter with plenty of sweetness

At first glance, this torte almost seems a tad too healthy. The batter is made with a mixture of nonfat Greek yogurt, low-fat cream cheese, and eggs. But it also is infused with honey and buttery melted white chocolate, which is rich with sugar, milk and cocoa butter—combining it with full-fat yogurt and cream cheese would give the torte a heavy texture that would obscure its delicate, balanced sweetness, and extra sucrose would render it cloying.

Low-fat cream cheese and “light” cream cheese are not the same

Cream cheese comes in many forms: in blocks, whipped in a tub, or flavored with “garden” veggies or strawberries. Then there are all the various fat contents. What you want is low-fat cream cheese, sometimes labeled as Neufchâtel cheese. It contains about one-third less fat than standard cream cheese, which is still plenty rich when combined with the cocoa butter in white chocolate.

What you don’t want is the “light” cream cheese sold in tubs. It contains additives and stabilizers that will affect the texture of the torte, and that would be a shame, because it has a lovely texture, like the lovechild of a cheesecake and flourless white chocolate cake.

Use a whisk for the best texture

Christopher Kimball loves this torte for its nuanced, not-too-sweet flavor profile and “singular” texture. He has a few tips for making sure it comes out smooth and light every time. First, use the whisk attachment for your stand mixer, not the paddle. The whisk will incorporate more air, adding fluffy height to the final product.

Don’t skip the cornstarch. A few tablespoons is all you need to help the cake set and give it structure.

And finally, when adding your eggs, give each egg a full 30 seconds to incorporate before adding the next one. This will ensure the batter is fully emulsified, so your cake is creamy, not broken or greasy.

Toasted almonds and Bonne Maman Apricot Fruit Spread tie it all together

Most people think of “gluten-free” baking as a genre that demands substitutes, but not everything needs a crust. A lot of tortes are crust-less, which makes them a great dessert for the gluten-intolerant or avoidant. Instead of a crunchy crust, we scatter the top of the torte with toasted sliced almonds, which adds needed textural contrast.

Speaking of contrast, acid is prized for its ability to brighten up sweet desserts, and the light hit of fruity acidity provided by Bonne Maman Apricot Fruit Spread is the perfect finishing touch for this milky-sweet tart. It marries the tang of the Greek yogurt to the sweetness of the white chocolate, while giving the dessert a polished, finished appearance. Garnish with those sliced almonds and a few shavings of white chocolate, and you may find it replaces the usual cheesecake in your dessert rotation.

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Claire Lower

Claire Lower is the Digital Editor for Christopher Kimball’s Milk Street, with over a decade of experience as a food writer and recipe developer. Claire began writing about food (and drinks) during the blogging boom in the late 2000s, eventually leaving her job as a lab technician to pursue writing full-time. After freelancing for publications such as Serious Eats, Yahoo Food, xoJane and Cherry Bombe Magazine, she eventually landed at Lifehacker, where she served as the Senior Food Editor for nearly eight years. Claire lives in Portland, Oregon with a very friendly dog and very mean cat. When not in the kitchen (or at her laptop), you can find her deadlifting at the gym, fly fishing or trying to master figure drawing at her local art studio.