Molten Chocolate Cake #2 — Gâteau au chocolat mi-cuit numéro 2

by Béa

molten chocolate cake fleur de sel

We say in French une dernière ligne droite, meaning a last run before the end. Chocolate week is about to end.

Comparison test #2 – Molten Chocolate Cake

Take the same idea, change the background a little with a few things here and there, basically just do as if you had a dress that you buy in different colours (well, I am a girl eh, and yes I acknowledge, I do that kind of things), and so then you are able to enjoy it every day, but somehow differently, because it is slightly different. Become a chocolate tester.

Ready for the second chocolate cake recipe? I am. And I already know which one is my favorite, because I ate a few of both batches.

In my search of the perfect coulant au chocolat noir (Melting Chocolate Cake, from the French verb couler = [to run, to melt]), I lay my eyes on the recipe that follows, from my current favorite cookbook, Tentations. In 3 words, it.was.perfect. In reality, there are a few criteria that matter, including finding the exact, perfect amount of cooking time for the cakes. Too long, too cooked? Not long enough, undercooked? In a way, better undercook than cook too much. And depending on your oven, it might take you a few times until you have this perfectly tuned. Once it is however, you are not disappointed.

Of the 2 recipes tried I preferred this one. (+ 1 after Sunday, see below)

I decided to add white chocolate pieces instead of the dark chocolate suggested, to create that gooey chocolate inside. Because it was just fun to play with different colours and textures. So what is so different about this cake?

Fleur de sel

There are variations on how many eggs you need, the amount of butter, but mainly what I loved about this recipe was eating the cake with sprinkled fleur de sel: a fabulous plus to the taste. Try it!

So if you remember recipe #1, for 6 cakes, I was using 4 eggs. For this recipe you use half, ie 2 eggs (large though). Less chocolate used, but more butter, a little less flour and sugar.

I also tried Anne‘ s recipe on Sunday, with a pistachio coulant and I loved everything about it as well. And now I feel I am in a chocolate coma.

Molten Chocolate Cake

(for 6 small cakes)

You need:

  • 110 g dark chocolate
  • 115 g butter
  • 2 large eggs
  • 60 g flour
  • 80 g sugar
  • Grated extra chocolate (or cut in small pieces)
  • Fleur de sel


Steps:

  • Preheat your oven at 400 F (200C).
  • Melt the chocolate and butter using a double boiler.
  • Greased 6 individual molds (silicone or large muffin pan).
  • Use an electric mixer to mix together the eggs with the sugar, until your preparation has a nice light white colour.
  • Add the flour and mix well.
  • Add the melted chocolate and mix.
  • Pour in the molds and add the extra pieces of crushed chocolate in the preparation.
  • Place in the oven for about 12-13 min and take out.
  • Let cool down a bit before unmolding.

Sprinkle with fleur de sel and for the rest, you truly know what to do!

Any difference? Yes it is lighter!

Note: Are you tired of measurements in grams? ounces? cups? Everything? I am! A real nightmare for me if you want my opinion. I just cannot remember what is what and keeps going back to online conversion tool such as Google (just type in convert x ounces in grams) or charts! And thank God for my scale using the 2 measurement systems, which does the work for me. Yet, not good enough. So what about I try to work out a little measurement convertion sheet for all of us? (in the coming weeks). Are you up for that? Useful? Yes? No?

As for today’s recipe, here is what the convertions are:

  • 110 g dark chocolate = 4 oz
  • 115 g butter = 4 oz or 8 tbsp
  • 2 large eggs = duh, the same!
  • 60 g flour = 6 tbsp
  • 80 g sugar = 6 tbsp

Do your maths!


Recipe from Tentations

Posted in Cakes, Chocolate, Dessert

38 comments

  1. Une vraie Lucky Lucke cette Béa ; elle publie vraiment BEAUCOUP plus vite que son ombre ! Moi qui suis assez paresseuse en ce moment je me sens très coupable…
    En tout cas recette magnifique bien sûr ; je crois que je l’avais trouvée dans un Elle à table et qu’elle doit traîner quelque part dans mes papiers, mais je ne l’ai encore jamais essayée. De toutes façons je vais acheter le livre, alors… Et moi aussi je convoite le Gérard Mulot, il est si joli !

  2. Bea,
    I was looking at picking up that book (and practicing my kitchen French). It seems like you are really enjoying it! Very yummy looking!

  3. Becuase of you I am eating chocolate ice cream before lunch!

    Chocolate week may end but chocolate obsession is eternal!!

  4. That. Is. Delectable.

    I don’t think I’ve salivated so much over the computer. This is food porn, Bea!

  5. Béa: Yes, tell the world (at least in America…) that metrics are so much easier. For these cakes, you can also poke a knob of ganache (or a truffle) into the cake midway during baking for a gooey center as well. Love the fleur de sel…one of the main reasons for living..and le chocolat, bien sûr!

  6. Hmmmm à croquer !! et le chocolat blanc est effectivement un choix judicieux pour la couleur.
    Well done 😉

  8. Wow! If only you could make these and send them Fed Ex! also, bravo for your little conversion scale! i hate trying to go back and forth between measurements! What a pain. but your scale looks fabulous. Bravo!

  12. je connais bien ton problème avec les grammes, cup etc. et en plus, j’ai quelques livres australiens, les mesures sont différentes d’un pays anglo-saxons à un autre. Je peux juste te souhaiter bon courage.

  13. Hi girl, nice pics and i´m gonna try out the recipe! Just spent semana santa in france. Check out the pics on my blog. and oh yes, thanks for leaving me a note! Gros bisou, k

  14. Hé, the girls : Béa and Liza, I live near Mulot’s Bakery and it’s so difficult to resist … Ah, the macarons, brioches, chaussons… and other cakes and pastery … chocolate…
    Your recipe is fantastic and i think i need this cookbook…

  15. Ahah Liza, j’adore cette analogie a Lucky Lucke! 😉 Alors toi et moi on est condamnees a les acheter ces bouquins!

    Anita, great idea to buy the book and freshen up your cooking French. It is a great book

    Vanessa, ahah, well no kidding. They were damn good!

    David, ah merci encore for those great tips and advice. Btw, the tip with the spoon for the white chocolate, superbe! I tried it on SUnday and it worked as a charm. As to the measurements, yes, I wish we could do something as it really drives me nuts!

    Thalie et ZOubida, merci bien!

    Lilizen, trop tard! 😉

    Anne, ahha yes it would be nice. I would get great exchanges this way indeed!

    Anne, je sais, c’est la barbe et j’ai peur de m’y attaquer!

    Kel, ah nice, I saw this indeed. Looks very nice and I love rue Mouffetard!

    Fabienne, la veinarde! 😉 Tu peux pas nous en envoyer a Liza et moi, dis!!!

  16. Ben, merci bien. Je decouvre cette expression!

    Michel, yes fully agree. Isn’t fleur de sel the best?

  17. Grâce à toi je suis en train de faire des progres en anglais !!! et je sens que je vais en faire aussi en chocolat !!!

  19. Hi Bea,

    I am thinking of trying your chocolate cakes this weekend. I’ve been day dreaming about them for days 🙂

    A few questions:
    -what kind of flour should I use? Is all-purpose ok?

    -have you ever tried making the batter in advance if you are making these for company? Would storing it in the fridge for a few hours be reasonable?

    Thanks!
    -Helen

  20. Helen, go for it! 😉
    Yes all purpose is what I used.
    As to making the batter ahead of time and place it in the fridge, I have read that you could do it but have not myself tried before. But I think as long as the batter stays airy and light. Since there is no baking powder, it is important that you keep a light batter. Let me know how it turns out!

  21. Gorgeous! I had a go at these little beauties last night and am licking my fingers in anticipation for my next batch! Even though I didn’t have fleur de sel, halved the ingredients in order to be less of a greedy pig, didn’t put enough chocolate in the centre, and had to hand whisk the batter, it was all still so beautiful and wonderful, that I would do it all over again! Little Chocolate Heavens! Thank you Béa

  22. Hi Claire,

    I am delighted to hear you enjoyed the cakes. Well done! And thank you for your visit!!

  23. As comment to David (april 19th 2006) :
    want to have a real melting chocolate ? make a “quite liquid” ganache, then freeze it as an ice cube. Then put it as frozen in the cake juste before cooking it !
    This is the way the original chef (who invented this recipe) did it.

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  28. Cooking it for 10 minutes worked best for us. The center was delicious and gooey.

    Cuit pour juste dix minutes, le centre va etre meillure.

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  31. These were unbelievably good! My husband never got rid of this dreamy, “I must be in heaven” look on his face… really, really yummy.
    Love your pictures and stories, btw.
    All the best to you, Heidi

  32. Can I use regular cooking chocolate or milk chocolate instead of dark?

  33. Ruzanna,

    Sure. Whatever chocolate you are familiar with and like to eat and work with.

  34. So lovely! Do you think I could use a popover mold? Would that work?

  35. I just love Mi Cuit. A friend of mine used to make them and added a few spoonfulls of nutella to the mix and cut down on the sugar! Can you tell me how far you fill the moulds up with the mixture?

  36. You just SAVED MY DAY !

    Grande amatrice et créatrice de coulants aux chocolat grâce à une merveilleuse recette héritée d’un collègue de travail, je me suis proposée pour réaliser des coulants pour 10 amis invités… hé oui, demain c’est Nouvel-an !!!

    Cependant, impossible de remettre la main sur ma fameuse recette, j’ai retourné toute ma cuisine sans succès… Je me rappelais de tous les ingrédients et du temps de cuisson (pour moi, c’était plutôt 13 minutes à 100 C°) mais impossible de me rappeler des quantités…

    Je voulais juste vous dire MERCI parce que votre recette ressemble franchement à la mienne et que vous venez de sauver ma journée… et peut-être mon honneur aussi 🙂 !
    MERCI pour votre aide – magnifiques photos, super commentaires !
    Un petit truc pour le coulant du milieu : j’ajoute deux carrés de chocolat “planqués” par ramequin ! Pour demain, je crois bien que je vais les épater avec le chocolat blanc au centre…

    Tous mes voeux pour de belles fêtes de fin d’année et une magnifique année 2010 pleine de délices culinaires !
    Meilleures salutations de Suisse 🙂

  37. gracias por la receta y por compartirla , ver las fotos de antojos de comer los que agunte el estomago ejejje, gracias un saludo.

  38. FOR MOLTEN CHOCOLATE CAKE- THE CONVERSION CHART SAYS 60G FLOUR EQUALS 6 TBSP WHEN IS EQUALS 4 TBSP SO HOW MUCH FLOUR IS REQUIRED?