This recipe came from Chef Michael Smith on the Food Network Canada. I’ve been making this delicious recipe for years. It’s great because you can make it ahead and just pop them in the oven just before you want to serve dessert (8-10 minutes, max!).
Molten Chocolate Cake (Note that this recipe may be cut in half or into 1/4 successfully! Use smaller ramekins for 4 servings!)
Yield: 6
Timing Hints: The batter can be made several days in advance and refrigerated. Make sure the cakes come to room temperature before you bake, makes for a better cake and faster baking. Makes 6 to 8 cakes
Ingredients:
- 8 oz top-quality bittersweet or semi-sweet chocolate
- 6 tbsp butter
- 1/4 cup cocoa
- 4 x egg whites (I generally use Naturegg Simply Egg Whites!)
- 4 tbsp brown sugar (I have also used Splenda Brown Sugar)
Directions:
- Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Butter and sugar 8 individual (do not use muffin pan) muffin cups or ramekins.
- Melt the chocolate and butter together in the top of a double boiler or in a microwave, stirring frequently until smooth. Remove from the heat and sift in the cocoa, whisk until smooth.
- Meanwhile beat the egg whites in a stand mixer or by hand until they form soft peaks, add the sugar and beat a few moments more.
- Fold one third of the egg whites into the chocolate with a rubber spatula, thoroughly incorporating. Gently fold in the rest. You may make the batter to this point and refrigerate it for several days.
- Fill the cups about two thirds full. Bake until they have risen and cracked on top but are still a bit runny in the center, about 7 or 8 minutes. They’ll take a moment longer if you made the batter in advanced and refrigerated it.
- Let the cakes sit for a few minutes then turn them out and serve immediately with lots of whipped cream.
Modifications:
After batter is made, fill cups about 1/2 full and add about a tbsp of your favorite jam, or pie filling (cherry pie filling works too) then fill the remainder batter on top.
Serving Suggestions:
Melt seedless raspberry jam, and pour onto plate. Overturn the muffin cup so cake sits in the middle of the jam, garnish with whipped cream and coco powder or powdered sugar. Add a few raspberries on the side.
can i make it all into a larger ramekin, instead of 4 small?
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Yes, but then you will have fewer servings. These are best as single serve.
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If I make this in advance and refrigerate do I mix the batter again once it has came up to room temp before I divide it into the Ramekin’s and bake
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Hi Eddie, no you don’t need to remix the batter. Prepare your ramekins, pour in the batter and refrigerate, bring to room temperature, or not, and bake. Works every time. It’s not a soufflé, but it does have similar characteristics. Thank you for commenting.
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This is a great recipe Eva. I used to like a lot of Michael Smiths recipes when I was in Calgary. I love your quite lean take on it, no butter or egg yolks. Think it trumps my marquise.
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Thanks for saying that David, but sometimes you really just want a super rich dessert — it’s balance of what you’d serve for dinner. My version is great if your other food is on the heavier side. Something I love to hear at a dinner party is “I could sure use another bowl/plate of that!” It’s what the Australians seem to call moreish!
What’s great about this recipe is that you can make it in advance and refrigerate it, bring it to room temperature and bake.
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Oh Eva, this one is so disruptive to the diet!! 🙂 but it sounds absolutely wonderful and I’ll add it to my list of recipes to try out!
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Thank you so much Andreas, it’s such an easy recipe and it never fails to impress.
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I’ve always been good at cooking everything except for desserts. But this one looks quite simple and I will give it a try. I do love chocolate cake.
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What’s lovely about this cake is that you can prepare it in advance and leave it in the fridge, but remember to bring it up to room temperature so it bakes faster. Buttering and sugaring the pan is critical for the cakes to come out smoothly – they still taste as good but they won’t look as good!
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I’m cooking some bits this weekend and I think I will add this cake to my list of things to make.
Thanks for the tips and I’ll let you know how the cake comes out.
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[…] I shall be taking photos as I make it to record my efforts properly for the ol’ blog. Here is linkage to original recipe. Many thanks to Kitchen Inspirations! Now let’s make some awesome […]
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Eva, this is my next treat… your lava cake looks positively gorgeous! I cannot wait to make it (my whole family will love it too!) 🙂
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It’s such an easy recipe too Kelly! You have to really watch it, it’s a fine line from not cooked to over cooked!
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Perfect, thanks for the tip!
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That’s great Kelly!
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…mmm, this looks amazing!
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Thank you Fati.
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Hi Eva, Your recipe looks great but I would like to know
the size/capacity of the ramekins. Thanks so much.
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Thanks for your comment Rita; the ramekins are approximately 5 oz or 150 ml, but only fill them to about 4oz or 100 ml as the batter will rise like a soufflé!
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Hi Eva,
your recipe looks interesting, I am going to prepare the cake myself.
For chocolate lovers who suffer celiac disease, two more recipes for flourless chocolate cakes you will find on the site http://www.flourless-chocolatecake.com .
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