Chocolate Molten Lava Cake

Ever since we made lemon souffle pudding in cupcake tins, Mai has become enamored with ramekins.  She sent me a few links comparing different ramekins and wanted input.  Le Creuset vs. Emilie Henry?  Pros and Cons? I tried to find heart shaped ramekins but I realized that not everyone is obsessed with hearts.  Even if they are meant to serve creme brulee.

Well, we were able to end this debate very quickly when Mai found some cute ones.  And what better way to break them in than to make dessert? Mai emailed and said "Come on over.  Let's make lemon souffle again!"  Who am I to turn down this kind of invite? I also suggested making chocolate molten lava cake.  Done deal.  So that evening, our meal consisted of udon, lemon souffle and molten lava chocolate cake.

{Melting the Chocolate}

{Ready to Bake!}

{The Finished Product - Doused with Confectioner's Sugar}

Molten Lava Chocolate Cake, borrowed from here

Serves 4-6 (depending on the size of your ramekins)

Ingredients

• 4 tablespoons butter
• 1/3 cup sugar
• 3 large eggs
• 1/3 cup flour
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 8 ounces bittersweet chocolate

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.  To prepare the ramekins, rub butter into the ramekins using the butter wrapper or your fingers.  Sprinkle some granulated sugar into the ramekins and set aside.

Melting the Chocolate

The original recipe did not have a method to melt chocolate - so I just set up a double boiler.  Usually you would include some butter or cream, but since the recipe already called for butter, I just melted the chocolate directly. 

Preparing the Batter

In a large bowl, mix together the butter and sugar until fluffy.  Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition.  Combine the flour and salt together, and then slowly add it to the mixture until just combined.  Stir in the melted chocolate by hand, until just combined, making sure to not overmix. 

Divide the batter evenly amongst the ramekins (about 3/4 full).  Place on a baking sheet.  Bake for about 10 minutes, or until the tops are no longer jiggly when you shake them.  Remove from the oven and let them cool for about 10 minutes.

I am biased because I love chocolate, and I also love warm desserts...these were fantastic! They were oozing with chocolate, as molten cake should do.  

Always thinking ahead, we enjoyed our molten lava cakes while reading the Balthazar recipe for pots du creme.