I have a confession to make. Here it goes…
I heart chocolate!
All chocolate, doesn’t matter what type. Give me an 80% bittersweet chocolate bar and I will chomp it down like a Snickers. Yes peeps, it’s that bad. It’s no secret that if I’m going to say or do something, chances are I’m going to say or do it in chocolate.
Why does everything revolve around chocolate? Well, chocolate releases endorphins to the brain – Endorphins make people happy – And who doesn’t love happy? I wish chocolate were currency… I am a HUGE supporter of chocolate-as-currency concept.
You can oh, use chocolate brownies to pay for that designer bag you’ve been eyeing – Or chocolate chip cookies to pay for college tuition. Think of how much happier we would be if everything revolved around chocolate. We’d be a peaceful endorphin ridden society. Yes, we would probably be grossly fat; but I think that’s a small price to pay for peace, love and happiness, don’t you?
I kid – Ok, I half kid. I’m still working out the schematics to present my local congressman.
Plans of chocolate world domination aside, it’s time to present you with what I am going to henceforth dub “The June Cleaver Chronicles”. If you haven’t already guessed, it’s going to be something chocolate – In this case, molten chocolate cake!
Come back, don’t run away!!! Molten chocolate cake just sounds intimidating, but its one of the easiest desserts you can ever make. You can prepare individual molten chocolate cakes ahead of time and freeze the batter since it freezes beautifully. Then, when a friend comes over to visit you can say; “Hey (insert name here), would you like a molten chocolate cake?” Your friend will give you a surprised look and say; “Um… sure!” Never quite believing you can pull it off.
What? Molten chocolate cake? She can barely boil water!!!
We’re gonna prove that friend wrong today now, are we?
For the cakes you will need:
Sugar, flour, eggs, chocolate, pinch of salt, butter (not pictured, sorry), vanilla extract (optional, but recommended), and small ramekins (gotta put the batter somewhere, right?).
I must stress that a good baker must, must, must, always read the recipe thoroughly and prepare all ingredients before starting any project! If you don’t – And it’s happened to me more times than I’m going to admit, you may miss some vital ingredient and screw up a recipe (more on that some other time).
Preheat the oven to 400°F. Butter and lightly flour four ramekins. Make sure you tap out the excess flour. Now set your ramekins aside.
You can use either of the ramekins below. I’m quite partial to the aluminum ones because I can buy them in bulk; but if you need to really impress that friend, the glass ramekins are the way to go.
Once your ingredients are measured and prepared, place a metal bowl over a sauce pan with simmering water. Melt your butter and your chocolate, then set aside to cool.
In a mixing bowl fitted with a whisk attachment, beat the eggs, yolks, sugar and salt at high speed until thickened.
Whisk in the chocolate until smooth then stir in vanilla extract, if using.
Fold the flour into the chocolate mixture until well combined. I know, looks kind of gross; but trust me it won’t be!
Spoon the batter into the prepared ramekins and bake for 12-14 minutes. The sides should be firm, but the very center should be soft.
Let the cakes cool in the ramekins for about 1 minute, then invert onto a dessert plate. Let stand for a few seconds and unmold. Sprinkle with confectioners sugar (sorry, I forgot to do that) and serve immediately.
There you have it, molten chocolate cake – YUM! From preparation to serving: About 30 mins.
Seriously….
Now you have accomplished two things – You impressed the friend who doubted your ability to make something so deliciously decadent, and you have successfully channeled your inner June Cleaver. Feels good, doesn’t it?
Stay tuned for more!
Me…
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Molten Chocolate Cake – Recipe adapted from Jean Georges, the pioneer of the molten chocolate cake!
Ingredients:
- 4 ounces unsalted butter
- 5 1/2 ounces bittersweet chocolate
- 2 eggs
- 2 egg yolks
- 2 oz of sugar
- Pinch of salt
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 oz cake flour
Prep:
Preheat the oven to 400°F. Butter and lightly flour four ramekins. Tap out the excess flour. Set the ramekins on a baking sheet.
Place a metal bowl over a sauce pan with simmering water and melt the butter and the chocolate.
In a mixing bowl fitted with a whisk attachment, beat the eggs, yolks, sugar and salt at high speed until thickened. Whisk in the chocolate until smooth then stir in vanilla extract. Fold the flour into the chocolate mixture.
Spoon the batter into the prepared ramekins and bake for 12-14 minutes. The sides should be firm, but the very center should be soft.
Let the cakes cool in the ramekins for about 1 minute, then invert onto a dessert plate. Let stand for a few seconds and unmold. Serve immediately
