Chocolate Lava Cakes

I overcooked these wonderful cakes for our gourmet picnic. Alas, no lava to run out when you dig your fork in to take a bite. Maybe I should rename them as "Extinct" Lava Cakes. Well, they still tasted wonderful with a rich and dense chocolate flavor. A sprinkle of raspberries over the top and some vanilla ice cream on the side were the perfect accompaniments for this dessert.

This recipe is adapted from the Taste and Tell blog.



Chocolate Lava Cakes

2 sticks unsalted butter, plus an extra tablespoon for buttering the pan
unsweetened cocoa powder, for dusting the pan
8 ounces dark chocolate, chopped
4 large eggs
4 large egg yolks
3/4 cup sugar
1/3 cup flour, sifted

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.

Use a jumbo sized muffin tin with 6 openings, 3 inches deep. Coat each opening with butter and then dust with cocoa powder, shaking out the extra. (You could also use custard cups.)

Melt the chocolate and the butter in a pan over low heat. Meanwhile, beat the eggs, egg yolks, and sugar in a large bowl with an electric mixer. Mix for about 5 minutes, until pale and almost doubled in size.

Fold in the melted chocolate mixture. Then wisk in the flour until smooth. Pour into the muffin tin - each cup will be filled almost to the top. Bake for 8 to 10 minutes until slightly puffed and the top is just set. A toothpick should come out with batter still attached. (DO NOT OVERBAKE OR YOU WILL HAVE LAVA-LESS CAKES LIKE ME!!)

To remove, run a sharp knife around the edges to loosen. Lay a cookie sheet over the top and flip over. Serve with raspberries and ice cream or whatever else sounds good.