Chocolate Lava Cake Recipe
Moelleux au chocolat

This gooey chocolate lava cake recipe is a sure fire hit with chocolate lovers and a very popular dessert on French tables. Very easy to make and even easier to serve, you can dress this cake up as elegantly as you wish.

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Called a moelleux au chocolat in French, this cake gets its name because it has a soft, sweet (and yummy) center. You may like to learn how to pronounce moelleux before serving this.

Recipe Notes

This chocolate lava cake recipe is ideally made in individual servings - everyone gets the pleasure of cutting into their little cake and seeing the chocolate oozing out. I use porcelain ramekins and serve the moelleux in those because I like my little dishes. Pyrex baking cups would be ideal as well. By coating the cups with melted butter you assure your cakes will come out easily.

Emile Henry Ramekins
(other colors available)

Pyrex Baking Cups

Cooking times can vary for this recipe. I give an average cooking time here, but your results may vary and you may want your cakes more or less cooked. Personally I don't like too gooey a result and tend to cook them a bit longer. Since baking time is so short, I recommend doing a test run with one of the cups to see how things turn out in your own oven.

Please use very fresh eggs for this recipe. I don't think the eggs are technically cooked given that the interior of the cake is gooey, so you need to be careful.

Make now, bake later. You can make the batter early in the day and fill the buttered baking cups with it, then cover these in plastic wrap and refrigerate until you are almost ready to serve. Remove them from the refrigerator as the oven is heating, take off the plastic wrap, then bake according to the recipe directions. You can time it so the desserts have about 5 to 10 minutes to cool before serving.

Serving sugggestions. This rich chocolate lava cake recipe is often served with whipped cream, this custard sauce recipe (called crème anglaise) , or even vanilla ice cream. I don't feel it needs it, but you may enjoy decorating with one of these.

Moelleux au chocolat

8 ounces dark, sweet cooking chocolate
8 ounces butter, plus a little melted butter
6 eggs (have these at room temperature)
1-1/4 cups sugar
1 cup all purpose flour

Place the chocolate and the butter in the top of a double boiler and melt over simmering water, stirring to blend. Set aside to cool slightly.

Using a pastry brush, thoroughly coat the insides of 8 small baking dishes with a little melted butter.

Beat the eggs with the sugar until lighter colored and airy (about 2 minutes with a hand held mixer). Beat in the melted chocolate and butter and then the flour. Mix together until just blended completely.

Pour the batter into the serving dishes and bake for 10 to 12 minutes at 350°F. (Remember you can also put the dishes in the refrigerator and bake later in the day, so that you can time things to have a warm dessert after dinner.)

Remove from oven and allow to cool slightly. Run a knife along the outside edge of the cups, then turn out onto individual plates. Or you can just serve your moelleux in their ramekins.

Makes 8 servings.

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