26.  Molten Center Chocolate Truffle Cakes

Most Decadent

(Susan H.)

PRIZE: Jar of Scharffen Berger bittersweet ganache

Molten-center chocolate cake – called by many names – is a popular dessert that is basically an undercooked version of flourless chocolate cake, which means it’s comprised primarily of chocolate, butter and eggs. I made up this recipe with the objective of lightening things up a bit (it’s got a lot less butter and a fair amount of flour & cocoa), adding one of my favorite-with-chocolate things (hazelnuts) but keeping the molten-center, rich experience. At the bottom of the recipe, I’ve included sources for the more obscure ingredients, so identified by *.

4-6 servings

•  5 oz. high-quality semi- or bittersweet chocolate* (best: El Rey, Valrhona, Callebaut, etc.)
•  3 T unsalted butter
•  2 T hazelnut paste (see below)
•  1 T hazelnut extract*
•  ~1/2 cup sugar 4-5 large eggs (5 is better)
•  ½ tsp. vanilla
•  ¾ cup hazelnut flour*
•  ¼ cup high-quality cocoa*
•  ¼ teas salt 4-12 Lindt hazelnut truffles*

1. Preheat oven to 350. Generously butter individual pans of about 5 oz. capacity. Ideally, narrow, tall pans.* Dust with cocoa.

2. Over double boiler, melt roughly cut-up chocolate and butter. When melted, take off heat and let sit. Mix in hazelnut extract. Mix in hazelnut paste.

3. While chocolate and butter are melting, beat eggs and sugar in mixer until thick and pale yellow. At end, beat in vanilla.

4. Have ready the hazelnut flour, cocoa and salt, “sifted” to remove lumps by shaking through wide-mesh strainer.

5. Fold chocolate mixture with egg/sugar mixture. Need not be perfectly mixed. Add flour/cocoa mixture a bit at a time and fold in until reasonably well mixed. The mixture will be quite thick. Taste for sweetness (if you use bittersweet chocolate, might need a bit more sugar) and add more sugar if needed.

6. Put a generous scoop of batter into each pan. Push a truffle or two (depends on height of pan) into the middle. Fill to the top with batter. Cakes can be made without truffles, but the center won’t be molten.

7. For unknown reasons, the cakes turn out the best if they’re refrigerated for several days (beyond a week is fine) before baking, but they can also be baked right away if required.

8. (For refrigerated cakes, taken directly out of refrigerator) Bake for ~14 minutes (put on cookie sheet or in some sort of low pan), until top is puffed up ½ inch beyond the top. Let rest for a minute or two. With rubber gloves (to protect hands from the heat of the baking pans), run a small, thin knife down around edges of pan to separate cake from pan, then unmold onto serving plates. Ideally, the cakes will hold their shape, with the molten center running slightly onto plate. They’re great served with ice cream (dulce de leche is good) and sugared berries.

Hazelnut Paste

Roast 1 cup of hazelnuts @ 350 for ~14 minutes until you can smell them and the skins are cracked in a few places. Rub in a towel to remove as much of the skins as possible. When nuts are still warm, In a food processor, process the nuts until finely ground, then add French hazelnut oil* until mixture forms a thick paste.

* info on ingredients:

Chocolate: El Rey is the best chocolate that’s semi-available, imho. Find it locally at Sigona’s and Whole Foods. Or online. Draeger’s has Valrhona and Callebaut (an excellent cooking chocolate) in bulk. Cocoa: Dutch process is de facto. But the tastiest cocoa is Italian (optimal is Pernigotti or Scharffen Berger.

Hazelnut extract. Wonderful extracts and related items are available from Faerie’s Finest.

Excellent hazelnut flour is available from Holmquist Hazelnuts in Pike Place Market. Or online: http://www.holmquisthazelnuts.com/hazelnutflour.asp

Hazelnut oil: This is magical stuff, particularly for salad dressing. Don’t even bother buying the domestic kind from the health food store. Eeeuuuh! By far the best kind (and priciest, alas) is the French hazelnut oil from J. LeBlanc. Draeger’s always has it in stock. Store in fridge!

Lindt/Lindor truffles: These little cellophane-wrapped round truffles are addictive if you like hazelnut/chocolate. They’re available online or at a few places locally by the piece. Cheapest is the Village Cheese House in the back of Town & Country in Palo Alto. Otherwise, Border’s in downtown PA and (sometimes) Andronico’s in PA has them. Maybe other places.

The individual pans I use are from Williams Sonoma and come 6 to a container. They’re metal and I think they’re French. They’re good for individual chocolate cakes of whatever kind.

Basically, an undercooked version of a flourless chocolate cake... -S