Chocoholics Dream Dessert

Chocolate admirers, listen up: this is your holiday dessert. It is so holiday appropriate I can't even stand it: throw some candied orange peels on top with a splash of whipping cream and you've got winter time written all over your napkin.

I haven't previously been too keen on the molten cake idea for years until recently and boy, what a discovery! The middle, as you would expect, is flowing with oozing melted chocolate. The outside is as it should be, baked, and similar to a brownie, and the entire thing is just warm, pleasant, and comforting.

Molten Chocolate Cakes

{Keeping Up Cookbook, 196}

5 ounces semi sweet chocolate, chopped (or 1 cup chocolate chips)

1/2 cup butter

4 eggs

1 1/2 cups powdered sugar

1/2 tsp salt

1 tsp vanilla

1/2 cup cake flour (regular flour works too)

1 Tbsp softened butter for greasing dishes

Generously butter six 1/2 cup ramekins or custard cups (these are small, ceramic, circle shaped dishes, FYI). Melt chocolate and butter in the microwave at half power, stirring occasionally (alternatively, melt chocolate and butter in a double boiler- works great!). Whisk the eggs in a large bowl to blend. Whisk in powdered sugar, salt,and vanilla, then the chocolate mixture, and finally, the flour. Pour batter into greased dishes, dividing equally.

Place ramekins on a baking sheets. Bake in a 425 degree oven until cakes have risen above rim, but centers remain "molten",about 11 minutes. Run a knife around the edges to loosen cakes, then carefully turn them out onto serving plates. Decorate plate with choice of topping (whipped cream, candied oranges, caramel, etc).