Chocolate Lava Cakes Recipe
Chocolate Lava Cake is a great name for this chocolatey dessert because it is exactly that. A moist chocolate cake that has runny chocolate oozing out of it when cut just like hot lave. This dessert is so popular that almost every restaurant has it’s own version of the dessert and you would think that special talent is needed for this but really, it’s just 7 ingredients all mixed together and baked into lava-that’s it!
I’m all about chocolate and this is a rich chocolate dessert that can be paired with so many options such as; berries, vanilla ice cream, whipped cream and so much more.
What makes the lava?
Really, it’s just the batter that’s not baked all the way on the inside. No worries, it comes to a temperature that is hot enough, making it perfectly safe to eat. Since the batter for this is very runny and it doesn’t bake for a very long time, the center of the lava cake doesn’t turn into cake. Instead, it runs out just like lava. So although it looks like something special is to be made, it really is just the one batter with 7 ingredients that makes it all happen.
What ingredients are needed to make Chocolate Lava Cake:
- butter
- bittersweet chocolate bar
- all purpose flour
- whole eggs & egg yolks
- sugar
- pinch of salt
- pinch of espresso powder- I used this in almost every chocolate dessert because it makes the chocolate flavor that much better!
Lava cake is usually made with the same ingredients but what really gives it the best flavor is the chocolate you use but I’ll get into that later.
How to make Chocolate Lava Cake:
- Preheat oven to 423F.
- Prepare 4 ramekins by buttering them and dusting the buttered ramekins with cocoa powder to avoid them from sticking to the ramekins. You can also use non- stick spray instead of butter to make this step easier.
- Make the batter and distribute the chocolate lava cake batter evenly into the 4 prepared ramekins.
- Bake the cakes for about 13 minutes or until the sides are of the cakes are set but tops look soft.
- Flip ramekins over onto a plate, tadd your favorite, and serve!
Can I use a muffin tip instead of ramekins?
You might be able to but I haven’t had any luck. Before I had ramekins, I tried making lava cakes a few times using my muffin tin and things got messy. While some claim that muffin tins work, that was not the case. I recommend using ramekins. My ramekins are 6-ounces and are perfect for a single serving of Chocolate Lava Cake.
It is important to use high quality chocolate, preferably a chocolate bar.
Good chocolate will make your Chocolate Lava Cakes taste better. If you use chocolate chips, there is a chance that you might not get much lava, if any, because chocolate chips are often coated and that compromises the quality of the chocolate. For best best results and from personal experience, using a chocolate bar almost guarantees a perfect outcome.
Chocolate Lava Cake
Equipment
- ramekins
Ingredients
- ½ cup butter plus more to grease ramekins
- 6 oz semisweet chocolate
- 2 large eggs
- 2 large egg yoks
- 3 tbsp sugar
- pinch salt
- ¼ tsp espresso powder
- 3 tbsp all purpose flour
- cocoa powder dusting
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 450°F.
- Prepare 4 remakins by greasking them with butter and dusting the insides with cocoa powder. Tap out any excess cocoa powder.
- In a mixing bowl, add butter, chocolate, and espresso powder and melt in microwave in 30 minute intervals mixing between each or using the double boiler method. Be careful not to burn the chocolate. Once chocolate is melted, set aside.
- In a seperate bowl, combine 2 eggs, 2 egg yolks, sugar, and salt and beat with an electric mixer for 5 minutes on high speed until the egg yolks are thick and light yellow.
- Pour the melted chocolate in the egg mixture and mix until mostly combined.
- Add in all purpose flour and fold in until fully incoporated.
- Divide the chocolate batter evenly into 4 ramekins. Place ramekins on a baking sheet and place in preheated oven for about 10-12 minutes. The outsides of the cakes should be firm and the top centers will still be soft and jiggle slightly.
- Remove from oven and let the lava cakes cool in the ramekins for 1 minute. Then, invert onto plates and the lava cakes should easily release from the ramekins.
