Chocolate Melting Cakes




It's two weeks into the new year and the "healthy diet" is not going so well.  The "clean eating" regimen, where I flush the toxins out of my system by eating sweet potatoes for breakfast and avoiding wheat and dairy (i.e. pasta and cheese)?  Ditched that after three days.  On a positive note, I'm drinking green tea instead of coffee but otherwise - happily - back to my old habits.  Which are good ones excepting the Krackel and Mr. Goodbar minis that I've picked clean from the bowl at work. 


Tomorrow is my brother's birthday - the big 5-0.  As the older sister by five years, that puts me on a slippery slide toward a milestone I can't bear to contemplate at the moment. But that's a conversation for another time and perhaps upon reflection I'll reconsider the toxin flush. At our family dinner yesterday, George advised me that the holiday season of indulgence and Greek pastry - for him - doesn't end until January 18th.  Love that idea.





 
I made chocolate melting cakes, (or molten cakes) for the birthday boy and debated whether to post them here.  They've been around for awhile but so easy and so good - with their pudding-like centers - that I thought they were worth another mention.  This is a combination of two recipes and perfect for a dinner party since you can prepare them ahead and pop them in the oven while coffee is brewing. Lovely with a little scoop of raspberry sorbet.  Enjoy.



CHOCOLATE MELTING CAKES

10 ounces semisweet chocolate, roughly chopped
4 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 tablespoons cognac
5 eggs
1/2 cup sugar
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
1-1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/8 teaspoon salt
Confectioners sugar

Heat oven to 325 degrees F.  Lightly coat a 12-cup muffin tin with vegetable cooking spray.  Melt the chocolate, butter and cognac in a medium bowl over a saucepan of simmering water.  Remove from heat.

In a large bowl, beat the eggs and sugar at medium-high speed until light and fluffy.  Add the flour, baking powder, salt and melted chocolate.  Mix with a spoon until well blended.

Divide the batter evenly into 10 muffin tins and bake until the cakes have just cooked through, about 15 minutes.  The cakes will still look a bit moist on top.  Remove from the oven and let cool 5 minutes.  Dust with confectioners sugar and serve warm.  

Makes 10 cakes.


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