Moist and rich Chocolate Lava Cake with its famous molten fudge center is indulgent to the core, making it the perfect date night dessert!
What’s the absolute best romantic dessert? Chocolate Lava Cake, no question.
This incredible, gourmet-quality dessert with a gooey, molten center is deliciously decadent! Plus it’s easy to make with pantry staples like chocolate chips & cocoa, flour, sugar, butter, vanilla and eggs. Serve molten chocolate lava cake with a dusting of powdered sugar and a dollop of whipped cream and impress that special someone!
Molten Lava Cakes are Actually Easy
If Chocolate Lava Cakes were complicated, would Domino’s Piazza have them on the menu? Of course not!
See, most people assume that the molten centers of these little cakes require a separate set of ingredients and another elaborate cooking step, but no!
Chocolate Lava Cake is so much easier to make than you might imagine! This mouthwatering chocolate cake recipe is ever-so-slightly undercooked in individual ramekins to keep the center molten (think gooey brownie batter!)
Other Romantic Recipes
- A fruity, sparking Chocolate Covered Strawberry Bellini is the perfect accompaniment to any romantic dinner!
- Red Velvet Cake is also a Valentine’s Day classic with its deep red interior!
Ingredients
Chocolate: The richness of a lava cake calls for high-quality dark chocolate. I use Ghirardelli 60% dark chocolate chips in addition to a TBSP of cocoa powder.
Dry Basics: All-purpose flour, granulated sugar, and a dash of salt will be whisked together and added to the liquid ingredients for this beautiful dark chocolate cake.
Liquids: This chocolate cake needs unsalted butter, vanilla extract, and eggs. But what sets this recipe apart from other cake mix recipes is using 2 large eggs AND 2 additional large egg yolks.
Garnish: Dust a little powdered sugar over the top of each cake. Feel free to add berries, whipped cream, or ice cream.
How to Make Chocolate Lava Cake
STEP ONE: Spray four 6-ounce ramekins with non-stick spray and set them aside for now. In a large bowl, beat the eggs, egg yolks, and sugar with an electric mixer until slightly foamy.
STEP TWO: In a small microwave-safe bowl, melt the chocolate chips and butter on high for 30-second intervals, stirring between intervals until melted. Whisk the melted chocolate into the egg mixture and blend.
STEP THREE: Add the flour and cocoa powder to the mix and whisk until thoroughly combined. Lastly, add in the salt and vanilla extract and stir.
STEP FOUR: Divide the cake batter evenly between the prepared ramekins and the refrigerate for 30 minutes.
STEP FIVE: Preheat your oven to 400 degrees F. Place the ramekins into a casserole dish and pour warm water into the casserole dish until it comes about halfway up the sides of the ramekins. Bake for 10 to 15 minutes until the tops look dry and cooked.
STEP SIX: Remove the casserole dish from the oven and lift the ramekins from the water. Let them cool on a wire rack or cutting board for 10 minutes.
STEP SEVEN: Invert the ramekins onto dessert plates. To finish the cakes, dust the tops with powdered sugar and garnish with a few fresh raspberries before serving warm.
Tips for Success
- If you don’t have ramekins, use a large muffin tin. Make six cakes instead of four and reduce the cooking time to 8 minutes. Be sure to spray or butter the muffin tin generously.
- If you don’t have unsalted butter, salted works fine. Just omit the salt in the recipe.
- Don’t overmix when folding the dry ingredients into the wet. Overmixing can cause your cake to become dense.
- These Chocolate Lava Cakes can be prepped ahead of time. Follow the recipe per the instructions, but put air-tight covers on the ramekins with the batter before you refrigerate.
- Always serve lava cakes while they are still hot. Once refrigerated or reheated, the center will become dense and solid. It’s still a delicious cake, just no more molten lava!
What’s the Difference between Lava Cake and Molten Chocolate Cake?
There is no difference! It’s the exact delicious moist cake with a different name. Both refer to individually sized cakes with a liquid chocolate river inside. These molten lava cakes are cooked at a slightly higher temperature but for a shorter time to leave the center soft, gooey, and oh-so-yummy!
Are Molten Lava Cakes Raw on the Inside?
Of course not! Because the batter contains eggs, this recipe is baked until the internal temperature reaches a safe 165 degrees F. Compared to other cake recipes, however, it IS intentionally undercooked to leave the center liquified. So, it’s hot enough to bake the outside of the cake and ensure the eggs reach a food-safe temperature without hardening the center. The result is amazing!
Other Romantic Recipes for Individual Desserts
- Blackberry Cobbler
- Easy Creme Brulee
- Individual Cherry Cheesecake Desserts
- Chocolate Fondue
- Upside Down Pear Tarts
- Irish Cream Brownie Parfait
*This post was originally posted on 02/05/2016.
Ingredients
- 2 large eggs
- 2 large egg yolks
- ¼ cup granulated sugar
- 3 ½ ounces dark chocolate chips (I used Ghiradelli 60% dark chips)
- 5 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 1 tablespoon unsweetened cocoa powder
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- Powdered sugar for dusting
- Fresh raspberries for garnish
Instructions
- Grease the inside of four 6-ounce glass or ceramic ramekins with butter or non-stick cooking spray. Set aside.
- In a large mixing bowl, beat together the eggs, egg yolks, and sugar with a hand mixer on medium speed until foamy and light yellow in color.
- In a small microwave-safe bowl, melt the chocolate chips and butter in the microwave on HIGH for 30 seconds. Stir and heat again. Repeat until melted and smooth. Whisk the melted chocolate into the egg mixture until incorporated.
- Sift the flour and cocoa powder into the mixing bowl and whisk to combine. Add in the salt and the vanilla extract and whisk.
- Divide the cake batter evenly between the prepared ramekins, and then refrigerate for 30 minutes.
- Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
- Place the ramekins into square casserole dish (8×8 or 9×9 should be big enough). Pour enough warm water into the casserole dish to come about halfway up the sides of the ramekins.
- Bake for 10 to 15 minutes or until the tops of the cakes begin to look dry.
- Remove the casserole dish from the oven and lift ramekins out of water. Let them cool on a wire rack 10 minutes.
- Invert the ramekins onto a dessert plate. (You can run a knife around the edges of the cake to help it release easily if desired.) Dust the top of the cake with powdered sugar. Garnish with fresh raspberries before serving warm.
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