Delicious chocolate lava cakes are easy to make and easily made ahead of time! This warm chocolate cake is chocolate heaven, wow your loved one with a homemade chocolate lava cake.
I think I had to be about 15 or so when I first discovered a chocolate lava cake. Needless to say, my life was changed. I used to take my younger sister for dinner dates and there was one restaurant we loved, purely for the chocolate lava cake. She is almost six years younger than me so she's always been kinda like my baby too, so dinner dates were our favorite but only if they consisted of chocolate lava cake. Or New York Cheesecake.
Most restaurants do a decent job at the cake but you know where the struggle? The ice cream part- like hello I don't want a tiny scoop that is really only enough for 2 bites when there
Okay enough about my ice cream to dessert ratio troubles. Chocolate lava cake is ridiculously easy to make and you can make the batter ahead of time and just store it in the fridge before baking. Making chocolate lava cake perfect for a dinner party. Or Valentine's Day! This recipe is for two lava cakes but by all means feel free to double or triple it! You can even make them into smaller ones and bake them in a muffin pan.
I would advise baking these just before serving, you can pre-bake them and warm them up in the microwave but kinda like
Oh and please, I beg of you, serve a generous scoop of ice cream 😉
Let's get to the recipe.
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What is molten lava cake
Also known as chocolate moelleux, or melt in the middle pudding, chocolate molten lava cake is kind of like if a chocolate souffle and chocolate cake had a baby. The outer ½" inch or so is the texture of a cake and the inner part is gooey melty chocolate. Pure heaven.
What are the ingredients
- Semi-Sweet/ Dark Chocolate (Ideally 60%+) The dark chocolate will add enough chocolate flavor so no need for cocoa powder in this recipe.
- Unsalted Butter
- Egg + Egg Yolks
- Instant Espresso Powder - this is optional you won't taste the espresso flavor but it does enhance the chocolate flavor, so if you have it use it if you don't have any on hand don' t stress!
- Pure Vanilla Extract
- Powdered/ Icing Sugar
- All-Purpose Flour- just a tiny bit of flour to bind everything together
How do you make easy chocolate lava cake
The beauty of making a chocolate lava cake is it only takes a few ingredients and a few minutes. You can even prep, pour the batter into the ramekins, and refrigerate until you are ready to bake them.
If you are going to bake these babies right away then preheat your oven to 425F/218C and heavily grease two 8oz ramekins.
In a large bowl either place over a double boiler (place a small pot with a small amount of simmering water and place a bowl on top of the pot- making sure it is not touching the water- the steam will melt the chocolate and butter) OR in a microwave melt the chopped chocolate and butter together, just until the chocolate and butter have melted.
Then stir in the espresso powder and vanilla extract. You do not *have* to use the espresso powder but it just gives the lava cakes that something extra. You know
Next whisk in the egg and egg yolks. Then mix in the powdered sugar and finally gently fold in the flour to the chocolate mixture with a rubber spatula.
Evenly divide the lava cake batter between both ramekins and place on a baking tray.
How long do you cook a molten lava cake
Bake for 12 minutes and check, you want the outer ½inch to be baked and look set and the inner part of the cake to be jiggly- be careful not to overbake.
How do you know when lava cake is done
The outer ¼-1/2 inch rim of the cake looks set and baked but the middle is still very jiggly. If you don't have the jiggle you won't have the melty chocolate center, so it is important not to over bake.
When the lava cake is done let it cool for 5 minutes before using a towel to invert the cake on to a serving plate.
Top with vanilla ice cream, fresh strawberries or raspberries, serve immediately. A drizzle of salted caramel would be delicious too!
Does molten lava cake need to be refrigerated
If you are prepping the lava cakes ahead of time then yes store them in the fridge, and if you have leftover lava cake yes store it in the fridge. But molten chocolate lava cakes are
If you want to bake a chocolate cake ahead of time try my Better than Sex Cake! OR try my chocolate cheesecake recipe.
Fancy some more lava cakes? Try my:
★★★★★ Please let me know if you make this recipe by leaving a star rating and comment below!
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How to Make Chocolate Lava Cake
Learn how to make an ooey gooey chocolate lava cake. Ready to eat in less than 30 minutes, or prepare the cake batter and bake later tonight! The perfect date night, dinner party, or special treat dessert. Chocolate lovers will thank you!
- Total Time: 23 minutes
- Yield: 2 Ramekins 1x
Ingredients
- 3oz Semi-Sweet/ Dark Chocolate (Ideally 60%+), chopped
- 2.5oz (5 Tablespoons) Unsalted Butter
- 1 Large Egg
- 2 Large Egg Yolks
- 63 grams (½ Cup) Powdered/ Icing Sugar
- 42 grams (⅓ Cup) All-Purpose Flour
- ¼ Teaspoon Instant Espresso Powder (optional)
- ½ Teaspoon Pure Vanilla Extract
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425F/218C and heavily grease two 8oz ramekins.
- In a large bowl either place over a double broiler or in a microwave melt the chopped chocolate and butter together, just until the chocolate and butter have melted. Then whisk in the espresso powder and vanilla extract.
- Whisk in egg and egg yolks. Then mix in powdered sugar and finally gently fold in the flour.
- Divide between ramekins and place on a baking tray.
- Bake for 12 minutes and check, you want the outer ½inch to be baked and look set and the inner part of the cake to be jiggle- be careful not to overbake. When the lava cake is done let it cool for 5 minutes before using a towel to invert the cake on to a serving plate. Top with vanilla ice cream and fresh berries- serve immediately.
Notes
* You can make these ahead of time up to 24 hours. Proceed to step 4, then cover the ramekins tightly in plastic wrap and store in the fridge until ready to bake.
- Prep Time: 10
- Cook Time: 13
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Bake
- Cuisine: American
kat kharrat says
This recipe was so simple and easy to follow, you will thank Liz later. I added some salted Carmel on top of mine to really make it over the top!
Christine Evans says
They tasted great, but they were not gooey in the middle????
Elizabeth says
Hi Christine, I am so sorry to hear they were not gooey, everyone's oven is a little different and slightly overbaking these will result in no gooey center. I would try adjusting the baking time by 3 minutes or so and checking- you want the outer rim set but the middle part to still be a bit jiggly. When in doubt with chocolate lava cakes I always remove them from the oven sooner than later- especially knowing that they will continue to cook a little as you let them cool in the ramekins before inverting. I hope that helps and please let me know if you have any other questions, always happy to help!
Kayle (The Cooking Actress) says
Yayyy I love lava cake!! I'm a weirdo though and don't want ice cream with it (unless it's maybe like a reeeeally good ice cream that's like salted caramel or some such)
Jessica Selby says
These are my go-to whenever i want something goey and chocolaty! They're quick and easy to make and super tasty. I've yet to try them out with the espresso powder but I'm sure they make them even better!
Elizabeth Waterson says
Thank you for the lovely comment Jess! These are mine and my sisters fave too, always cures a chocolate cravin!!
Bonnie says
When mix in the flour, the batter became sort of decomposed, like a thick batter immersed in some liquid. The longer it sat, the more separated it became. What’s wrong I did?
Elizabeth Waterson says
Hi Bonnie, I am so sorry this did not work out for you. I am not sure what you did wrong. I make sure to always weigh my ingredients and make sure to use large eggs opposed to extra large. Those two things can make a huge difference.