Individual Molten Chocolate Cakes
Difficulty Level Easy
YIELD Makes 6 to 8 cakes
We already have a salad course and a main course for your Valentine's Day dinner and now we are down to the heart of the matter: dessert. Chocolate seems to be food stuff of choice for this day, so I'm giving you a recipe for individual molten chocolate cakes.
My colleagues and friends wonder why I feel the need to test every recipe that I post on Planet Green. Everyone who reads my posts regularly knows that I often tweak recipes and more often substitute ingredients. Well, my first choice for dessert for tomorrow's dinner was a downright failure. It was a spicy chocolate mousse that was incredibly fast and easy to make. When I served it to my son, he commented that it was a delightful and delicious bowl of spicy chocolate milk. So it was back to the test kitchen. This is also easy and delicious, and it worked.You can make the batter in this recipe in advance, and then bake it at the last minute. You can use either bittersweet or semisweet chocolate, whatever your preference. Just be aware that there is very little sugar in the recipe so if you prefer a sweeter dessert, use the semisweet. If you don't have a double boiler, just put a metal bowl on top of a small pot of boiling water, taking care that the water doesn't touch the bottom of the bowl.
Photo credit: SuzieWong
INGREDIENTS
| 6 ounces | bittersweet or semisweet chocolate, coarsely chopped |
| 6 tbsp | unsalted butter |
| 1/4 | unsweetened cocoa |
| 4 | large egg whites |
| 1/8 tsp | cream of tartar |
| 2 tbsp | sugar |
| Whipping cream | |
PREPARATION:
- Preheat oven to 400°F. Butter and sugar 8 muffin cups.
- In the top of a double boiler place the chocolate and butter and stir often until they are melted and smooth.
- Remove from the heat and sift in cocoa. Stir until smooth.
- In a medium bowl beat eggs and cream of tartar on medium speed until soft peaks form. Gradually add sugar while beating on high speed. Beat until the peaks are stiff but not dry. Use a spatula to fold 1/4 of the egg whites into the chocolate mixture, then fold in the remaining whites.
- Fill the muffin cups about 3/4 full. Bake until the cakes are cracked on the top but still gooey in the centre, about 7 or 8 minutes. It will take another minute or two if you have stored it in the refrigerator. Let sit for 2 to 3 minutes then unmold them. While the cakes are baking, whip the cream or, if you prefer, just pour the cream over top as in the photo. Serve hot with cream.
From The Joy of Cooking by Irma S. Rombauer and Marion Rombauer Becker and Ethan Becker (1997, Simon and Schuster)