Hot Chocolate Fudge Cakes

I used to buy magazines, particularly food magazines. I love pouring over the recipes and seeing what I can add or take away to make it taste even better.  In my money-saving times now, I’ve been frequenting the library’s huge supply of magazines.  It’s great. I get to take them home for 4 weeks, make a mess of the pages (er, cook with them), decide what recipes to keep and which ones I would never use and then give them back!  I’m helping my pocketbook and the planet!

Well, I came across this recipe in the December issue of Cooking Light.  It is not gluten-free.  I didn’t even attempt to make it so.  I knew my family, particularly my chocolate loving eldest, would LOVE this recipe.  So I made it. Super easy. I also took a few bites and BOY WERE THEY WORTH IT!

If you have a hankering for chocolate, this is the cake to make.  I made it three days ahead of time, popped it in the fridge until right before we wanted to eat it.  It baked in 18 minutes flat and is worthy of company service.

Go ahead, have some chocolate!

Hot Chocolate Fudge Cakes

• 3.4  ounces  all-purpose flour (about 3/4 cup)
• 2/3  cup  unsweetened cocoa
• 5  teaspoons  instant espresso powder
• 1 1/2  teaspoons  baking powder
• 1/4  teaspoon  salt
• 1/4  cup  unsalted butter, softened
• 2/3  cup  granulated sugar
• 2/3  cup  packed brown sugar
• 1  cup  egg substitute (I used 2 eggs)
• 1 1/2  teaspoons  vanilla extract
• 1  (2.6-ounce) bar dark (71% cocoa) chocolate (such as Valrhona Le Noir Amer), finely chopped (I didn’t have any fancy chocolate bars lying around so used 1 cup semi sweet chocolate chips)
• 2  tablespoons  powdered sugar

1. Weigh or lightly spoon flour into dry measuring cups; level with a knife. Sift together flour, cocoa, espresso powder, baking powder, and salt.

2. Place butter in a large bowl; beat with a mixer at medium speed 1 minute. Add granulated and brown sugars, beating until well blended (about 5 minutes). Add egg substitute and vanilla, beating until well blended. Fold flour mixture into sugar mixture; fold in chocolate. Divide batter evenly among 10 (4-ounce) ramekins; arrange ramekins on a jelly-roll pan. Cover and refrigerate 4 hours or up to 2 days.

3. Preheat oven to 350°.

4. Let ramekins stand at room temperature 10 minutes. Uncover and bake at 350° for 21 minutes or until cakes are puffy and slightly crusty on top. Sprinkle evenly with powdered sugar; serve immediately.