Ever since Dominos Pizza put lava cakes on their menus, I’ve been wanting to make them. I always assumed that it was a basic chocolate cupcake recipe with a chocolate bar placed in the center before baking. I’ve learned now that that’s just a variant of the original recipe. The original recipe is far more exciting and so much more decadent! No store-bought kind would ever hold a candle to this homemade version!

I am a huge fan of the Big Bang Theory and in one episode, Raj (a character in the series) bakes these lava cakes for a girl his parents matched him up with. And since the day I saw it, I haven’t been able to take my mind off these babies!

Soufflé Sucess everytime!

Anyone who’s made a soufflé in their lives would know how finicky and unpredictable they can be. The Lava cake is essentially just that: an incredibly special soufflé! But fear not, this is a tried-and-tested recipe that will give you consistent results if followed to the letter! Here are somethings you need to remember while making this Molten Chocolate Lava Cake:

1. The best quality chocolate yields the most delicious lava cake. I use Ghirardelli (60% cacao) bittersweet chocolate chips. You will also need these 4oz ceramic ramekins.
2. To prevent the tops of your baked soufflé from sinking once it comes out of the oven, use a manual whisk instead of an electric one.
3. Fill the ramekins to only 3/4th of it’s capacity.
4. Butter and dust the ramekins with sugar, if you plan to turn the soufflés out of the ramekins before serving. They’ll pop out without any difficulty.
5. Since there’s no leavening agent (baking powder/soda) in this recipe, you can make the batter ahead of time, and bake them as lunch/dinner is being served. If you are baking a refrigerated batch of batter, either bring the batter to room temperature or increase the baking time proportionately.
6. The cake, even though it may look underdone when it’s time, will continue to cook as it cools. So take it out at the prescribed time for that perfect lava center.
7. The classic under-done gooey center can be regulated by adjusting the baking time.
   • For a very, very liquid center that’s almost hot-chocolate like, 8 minutes.
   • For the perfect lava center, that’s just gooey and will pour out when cut into, 10 minutes
   • For a gooey center that does not flow out, rather feels custard-like, 12 minutes.

Watch you guests’ eyes pop out when they take a slice and the Molten Chocolate Lava pours out. Stand proud and give a nonchalant shrug of the shoulder and say, ‘It was nothing!’ Truth be told, it really was nothing, but they don’t need to know that! Live your Master Chef moment, every time!

When you make these (which I really think you SHOULD!), be sure to SHARE YOUR PHOTOS with me through Facebook, Instagram or Twitter. I’d love to see what you cook from here and will share it with pride on my social media feeds.