Molten Chocolate Lava Cake
These molten chocolate lava cakes are rich and decadent desserts that are filled with a warm fudgy sauce. There are instructions for three different size dishes including cupcake tins.
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Servings: 8 servings
Calories: 331kcal
Ingredients
TO PREP THE DISHES:
- Butter
- Cocoa powder
FOR THE MOLTEN CHOCOLATE LAVA CAKES:
- 8 tablespoons butter
- 8 ounces semi-sweet chocolate *see notes
- ½ cup powdered sugar
- 2 whole eggs room temperature
- 3 egg yolks room temperature
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 1 teaspoon espresso powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
Instructions
- Pre-heat the oven to 425°F. Grease the baking dishes with butter then dust them with cocoa powder. (See the notes for the various sizes to bake in)
- Melt the butter and chocolate. You can either place them in a double boiler or melt them on low power in the microwave. Let the mixture cool a bit (just enough that you can comfortably touch it).
- Stir in the sugar until smooth. Add the eggs, egg yolks, vanilla, espresso powder and salt. Whisk well until smooth.
- Stir in the flour then divide the batter among the baking dishes.
- Bake until the edges are firm but the center is still soft.
Baking times for different sized dishes:
- For 8 standard sized cupcake tins, bake 7 to 8 minutes.
- For 6 (4ounce) ramekins, bake for 9 to 10 minutes.
- For 4 (6 ounce) ramekins, bake for 11 minutes.
When they are done baking:
- The cakes will puff up a bit and get firm around the edges but jiggle in the center.
- Remove the cakes from the oven and let them sit on a wire rack for 1 or 2 minutes.
- Run a knife around the edge of the cakes to loosen them from the baking dishes or the cupcake tins, then invert them onto serving plates.
- Serve while still warm.
Notes
- Use either six (4-ounce) ramekins or four (6-ounce) ramekins or eight standard cupcake tins.
- It is important to start with room temperature eggs. Cold eggs will make the batter curdle. If you forget and the batter curdles, use an electric mixer to beat the batter until it gets smooth.
- Chocolate chips have additives that will prevent the center of the cake from having a nice runny lava. They will work in a pinch, but for best results, use your favorite dark chocolate candy bar, baker's chocolate, or chocolate baking disks.
- The batter can be made a day in advance and stored in the fridge until it is time to bake them. If you make the batter in advance, fill the baking dishes and cover them with plastic wrap. When it is time to bake them, pre-heat the oven and let the cakes sit at room temperature for 20 minutes before placing them in the hot oven.
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Nutrition
Serving: 1 | Calories: 331kcal | Carbohydrates: 28g | Protein: 4g | Fat: 24g | Saturated Fat: 14g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 9g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 150mg | Sodium: 259mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 22g