Half-Baked Chocolate Cakes
Here in France, they are absolutely mad about chocolate. They don’t just nibble on cute, colorful M&Ms the way we Americans do; they buy large bars of the stuff — rich and dark, with hazelnuts, raspberries, stuffed with ganache or bits of caramel — and eat them by breaking off big chunks, instead.
Enabling what is clearly a national addiction, you’d be hard-pressed to find a dessert menu at any restaurant, brasserie, or bistro that doesn’t offer something chocolate; and in most cases, it’s some version of a cake with a warm, melty middle, either called Mi-Cuit au Chocolat, Fondant au Chocolat, or Le Moelleux au Chocolat, which is the hardest to say, but, as it turns out, very easy — amazingly so — to make at home.
The difference between a Mi-Cuit, Fondant, and Le Moelleux?
Not much. While all have the same gooey center, they differ, only slightly, in the amount of the ingredients. Some call for a bit more flour, or fewer eggs, but they are all variations of the same theme, so I’ve decided to call them exactly what they are to me, Half-Baked Cakes. Voila!
Warm & Gooey Chocolate Cakes
This is a recipe based on one for Le Moelleux au Chocolat from French chocolatier Philippe Pascoet — but I doubled the amount of chocolate. It’s easy and super-chocolatey; just the thing when you need an immediate chocolate fix.
250 grams butter, appx 2 sticks (or appx 1 cup)
500 grams chocolate (at least 65%), appx 2 cups
180 grams sugar, appx 3/4 cup
5 eggs
200 grams flour, appx 3/4 cup
Turn on oven to 200C/ 350 F
Butter the bottom and sides of 6 medium ramekins or 8-10 smaller ones. Set aside.
Melt the butter and chocolate over a double-boiler (or if you don’t have one, use a heavy-bottomed pan, and watch carefully over very low heat).
In a mixer, beat the eggs, and add the sugar and flour. Mix well.
When the chocolate and butter have melted, add to the mixing bowl, mix well, and divide the batter among the ramekins.
Cook for 20-25 minutes if you’re using the medium ramekins; 10-15 if you’re using the small ones. To tell if these are done, look at the sides — they should be cooked and the middle should look a bit uncooked. See how there’s that swirl of dark chocolate in the middle? That’s the gooey part.
Serve immediately — with vanilla ice cream if you’ve got it.
