There’s something quite magical about piercing a freshly-baked lava cake, letting molten chocolate flow out from within. Good news: you don’t need to go to a fancy restaurant to enjoy this sophisticated dessert. Our recipe for Molten Chocolate Lava Cake takes only six ingredients, and is surprisingly simple to make. Here are our tips for making the perfect cake, an easy recipe, and ideas for wine pairing with molten chocolate lava cake.
Tips for making a perfect molten chocolate lava cake
1. Use the right-sized ramekins or cups. Not any ramekin will do! For example, soufflé ramekins are too large, making the molten chocolate cakes hard to invert. You risk them breaking because of the large surface area. I found that these pyrex custard cups, usually used for ice cream, are the perfect size and oven-safe.
2. Butter your baking cups and dust them with cocoa powder so the cakes slide out easily when you invert them. Molten chocolate lava cake is basically an under-baked chocolate cake. As such, it is a lot softer and more delicate than fully-baked cakes, and there is a risk of breakage if it is too tightly stuck to the cup. You can technically also use flour, but I prefer cocoa powder since it has the same color.
3. Monitor the cakes closely! Molten chocolate lava cakes are a very simple recipe, but you cannot over or under bake them by more than a minute. Over-bake, and the inside will be hardened. Under bake, and the entire cake will collapse into a molten mess. Bake only until the edges are set and risen slightly, but the inside is still concave and jiggly. For me, the magic number was 425F for 9.5-10 minutes. However, every oven is different, and you will need to monitor to see what works for you.
Pairing Molten Chocolate Lava Cake with Wine
Pair molten chocolate lava cakes with red dessert wines such as Port or late harvest Zinfandel. On their own, dessert wines may taste syrupy, but with the dessert, their sweetness strikes the right balance. Avoid dry wines, which will taste harsh, astringent, and flat against the dessert.
Easy Molten Chocolate Lava Cakes
Ingredients
- 4 custard cups or small ramekins
- 1/4 cup sugar
- 2 eggs
- 2 egg yolks
- 1 pinch salt
- 6 tbsp butter (you can use a full stick but I personally found this was not necessary, and it's healthier!)
- 6 oz quality chocolate
- 2 tbsp flour
- Cocoa powder for dusting
Instructions
1. Preheat the oven to 425F. Butter 4 custard cups or small ramekins. Dust them with cocoa powder, and tap out any excess.
2. Beat sugar, eggs, and salt together until creamy and thickened, about 2-3 minutes.
3. In a small saucepan over low heat, melt the chocolate and butter.
4. Add the melted chocolate to the egg mixture along with flour. Stir gently until combined.
5. Spoon into cups/ramekins. Bake for 9.5-11 minutes, monitoring closely.
6. Remove cakes from the oven. The edges should be set, but the center should vibrate when you tap the edge of the cup or ramekin. If it is too watery, put the cakes back to bake for another 30-45 seconds, or it may break when you invert it.
7. Let cakes rest for about 1 minute. Run a knife along the sides to loosen. Then, place a plate on top and invert. Enjoy immediately with a Port wine.
Enjoyed this wine pairing with molten chocolate lava cake? Check out our other chocolate and wine pairings here:
