Chocolate Salted Caramel Lava Cakes
Ingredients:
- 6 ounces dark chocolate
- 1/2 cup butter, cut into chunks
- 1 T red wine
- 1 tsp vanilla
- 1 egg
- 2 egg yolks
- 3/4 cup powdered sugar
- 6 T flour
- 4 T cold caramel - store-bought or recipe follows
- Optional toppings - powdered sugar, flaky sea salt or vanilla ice cream
Salted Caramel
- 1 cup sugar
- 1/2 cup water
- 6 T butter - room temp, cut into small pieces
- 1/2 cup heavy cream
- Maldon salt
Preparation:
For the Salted Caramel: Place sugar and water in a 4 quart sauce pan, heat over medium heat - swirling pan gently just enough to even out the sugar at the bottom. Without whisking, cook until sugar turns deep amber color, 8-12 minutes. Remove from heat. Using a whisk, add butter pieces while whisking until melted, pour in cream and continue to whisk until smooth. Add a pinch of salt. Transfer to a jar and let cool. Store in refrigerator until ready to use.
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Thoroughly butter 4 (6 ounce) ramekins and coat inside with cocoa powder, tap out excess. Place on a baking sheet.
Melt chocolate and butter over a double broiler until almost melted, remove from heat and let cool a bit. Can be done in the microwave as well. Whisk in wine and vanilla until well incorporated. Set aside. In a mixer, beat egg and egg yolks until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add sugar and beat until fully incorporated. Add flour and mix until just combined. Fold in chocolate mixture with a spatula.
Fill each ramekin 2/3 full of batter and add 1 T cold caramel to the center of each cup. Spoon the remaining batter to cover the caramel. Bake 15-17 minutes. Transfer to a rack to cool for 5 minutes. Gently loosen the edges of each cake with a knife or off-set spatula. Invert a plate over each ramekin and carefully turn over. Dust with powdered sugar or sprinkle with sea salt. A scoop of ice cream would be decadent too. Serve immediately.