Moelleux au Chocolat - Molten Chocolate Cakes

This recipe comes from a novel called 'Lunch in Paris'. I loved the book - a story set in Paris with recipes related to the story scattered through the book.

I've made this one a lot. I was trying to perfect it for a dinner party for a friend's birthday where each couple served one of many courses. I eventually decided it was too easy to have it go wrong in someone else's oven. The timing is really important, if you cook it too long it does not have the molten centre, too short a time and the outside is to fragile and breaks. Needless to say my family LOVED the experimentation trying to get it just right.
If I have made it sound difficult, it isn't. You just have to be prepared to have a few collapse.

Tonight's verdict was 'Magnificent'!


Moelleux au Chocolat - Molten Chocolate Cakes
150g unsalted butter
150g dark chocolate (70 percent cocoa - I use Whittakers Dark Guarna)
A good pinch of course sea salt
2 eggs
2 egg yolks
1/4 cup sugar
1 tbsp flour

Preheat oven to 220 degrees C

Melt butter and chocolate together in the top of a double boiler or in the microwave. Add the sea salt.

Meanwhile, beat together the eggs, egg yolks, and sugar with a whisk or electric beater until light in colour and foamy.

Add the egg mixture to the warm chocolate; whisk quickly to combine. Add th flour and stir to just combine. The batter will be quite thick.

The unmoulding is the tricky part. I used well buttered silicone muffin cases. The recipe in the book suggests foil cupcake liners (5-6 stacked together) or small ramekins, generously buttered.

Divide the batter evenly amount the moulds. (You can make the cakes in advance to this point and chill them until you are ready to bake. But be sure to bring the batter back to room temperature before baking).

Baking time will depend on your oven; start with 7 minutes for a thin outer shell with a completely molten interior, 8n minutes fr a slightly thicker crust and a gooey heart.

Tip: These also cook well straight from the freezer. Freeze directly in foil cup holders. Take out of freezer about 10 minutes in advance. Bake at 200 degrees C for approximately 15 - 17 minutes.