Decadant Chocolate Fondant

A decadent chocolate fondant made with dark chocolate containing 70% cocoa solids. Spongy on the outside with a luscious, soft, smooth centre. Serve with homemade yoghurt ice cream and fruit sauce. Raspberry pairs well with chocolate. For cocoa powder and mocha fondants, refer to the earlier post here.



This recipe is adapted from Gordon Ramsay on BBC. The main ingredients are equal in weights to a whole egg. By cup measurements, use 1/2 c for the flour and 1/4 c for the rest of ingredients. The batter can be made by creaming or sponge methods.

Quantities for 6 small espresso cup servings:

50 g butter
50 g quality dark chocolate (70% cocoa mass), chopped
50 g sugar
1 egg
1 yolk (or 1 T of milk)
50 g plain flour, sifted

1. In a microwave, melt the butter. Stir in the chopped chocolate and allow to melt.
2. While the chocolate mixture is cooling, whisk sugar, egg and yolk in a bowl over hot boiled water until very thick. Allow 10 minutes with an electric mixer. Remove from the heat.
3. Fold in the chocolate mixture.
4. Fold in the flour.
5. Pour into 6 greased and bottom lined espresso cups or equivalent. Allow around 40-45 g of batter per cup.
6. Chilled for at least an hour or more.
7. Bake at 180 degrees Celsius for around 8 minutes, just as the batter domes and looks cooked. A skewer comes out with thickened batter.
8. Rest for 2 minutes.
9. Turnout and dust with icing sugar. Serve straight away, with ice cream and fruit sauce (see below).




Easy Raspberry Sauce
There are times when making a fruit coulis from out of season fruits isn't practical. Here's an alternative:

1 T raspberry jam, strained
1 T raspberry cordial
1/2 t cornstarch
2 T water
1 t lemon juice, optional

Combine ingredients. Microwave in 30 seconds burst until thickened.

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Chocolate Fondant With Custard Sauce

Cooking disasters are many, even at high class restaurants. No one is going to admit to serving raw food, especially a fancy chocolate dessert with a price that matches. Thus is the origin of chocolate fondant, a rich chocolate cake with a runny centre. Other names include molten chocolate cake or lava cake. Grandma's generation knows this dessert as self-saucing chocolate pudding, made simply by pouring hot water over chocolate sponge batter. Restaurants refine, reinvent and serve it as haute cuisine that commands a high price.

Here's a basic recipe that uses cocoa powder instead of expensive couverture chocolate. The cake is dense and rich. The centres when cooked yields a flowing sauce. If a thicker fondant is preferred, reduce the amount of fluid. It doesn't take long to realize that you don't need to be masterchef with years of experience to produce this dish.

Chocolate Fondant
60 g butter, melted
20 g cocoa powder (4T)
50 mL milk
2 T liqueur (or milk)
1 egg
2 egg yolks
60 g sugar
50 g flour (half SR & half plain, or plain with 1/4 t baking powder)

Prepare 4 espresso cups or 2 ramekins by greasing with butter and lining bottoms. Dust with cocoa powder.

Combine butter, cocoa powder, milk, and liqueur. Fold in the flour. Whisk eggs with sugar. Fold egg mixture into the batter.

Pour into molds. Rest for at least 1 hour or until ready to serve.

Bake at 180 degrees Celsius for 8-10 minutes for espresso cup size or 10-12 minutes for 1-cup ramekins. When ready, the top of the cakes look cooked and a skewer comes out with thick batter. Unmold onto serving plates. Serve immediately with custard sauce.

Variations:
For espresso version, substitute 1 t espresso coffee powder and 2 T water or freshly brewed espresso. For jaffa version, replace liquids with juice of 1 orange (90 mL).

Custard Sauce
30 g butter, melted
400 mL milk
5 egg yolks
1 t vanilla
60 g sugar

Combine and whisk ingredients. Stir over the stove or over double boiler until thick enough to coat the back of the spoon. Remove from heat and cool. Do not over cook. If cuddling starts, add 1 tablespoon butter and whisk in a blender. Cornstarch (1 t) may be added to thicken.

Easy Mocha Fondant
60 g extra virgin olive oil
20 g cocoa
50 g SR flour
1 egg
60 g sugar
50 mL espresso coffee
20 mL milk

Mix in a blender. Pour into 2 greased and bottom lined teacups. Bake at 180 degree Celsius for 10-12 minutes. This recipe gives a thick, mousse-like centre.

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Chocolate Cream Tart

A decadent dark bitter-sweet chocolate ganache in a delicate salted chocolate shortcrust pastry shell. Serve with fresh cream, ice cream or sabayon.

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