Chocolate Lava Cake

decadent chocolate lava cake served with ice cream

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5 from 1 vote

Decadent and delicious chocolate treats with a gooey molten middle. These are perfect for any holiday party.

Prep Time10

Cook Time6

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: American, International

Servings:

Calories: 502kcal

Equipment

1 Air fryer or air fryer oven

Ingredients

Dry ingredients

1/3 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup whole wheat flour (2.15 oz)
1/4 cup cocoa powder (1 oz)
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp coffee powder
4 oz couverture chocolate chips

Wet ingredients

2 tbsp butter melted
1/2 cup warm milk
1 tsp vanilla

For greasing the ramekins

2 tsp melted butter
1/2 tsp cocoa powder

Instructions

Prep work

Combine melted butter and cocoa powder in a bowl till it resembles a thin paste. Coat your ramekins thoroughly with this paste. Take care to coat the bottom and the edges evenly without any gaps.

Making the wet mixture

To a mixing bowl, add melted butter and sugar. Whisk well until you get a smooth paste.
Now, add the warm milk with coffee powder. Whisk rapidly until it is frothy. You can use an electric egg beater for this purpose. Even a coffee frother will work well here.
Tip in the vanilla, mix well and set aside.

Making the dry mixture

In another mixing bowl, add the flour and cocoa. Tip in the baking powder along with salt. Using a balloon whisk, mix well until the ingredients are well incorporated.
Alternatively, you can sieve everything together into the bowl using a fine mesh sieve.
Making the batter
Add 1/2 the dry mixture into the wet mixture and mix well using a balloon whisk.
Now, add the remaining dry mixture and continue to whisk until you see no streaks of raw flour anywhere. Do not over mix. Whisk with a gentle hand until it is all just combined.

Preheating air fryer or air fryer oven

Preheat your air fryer at 370F (185C).
If your air fryer has a preset preheat function, you can use that. Or, you can manually preheat for 5 minutes at 370F.
In the Instant Pot Vortex Air Fryer oven, press BAKE and set the temperature to 185 C (370F) and hit START.
The display will read ADD FOOD when it reaches the optimal temperature for baking.

Filling the ramekins

Fill the greased ramekins with 2 tbsp of the batter. Now, place 2 tbsp of the couverture chocolate.
I have used chocolate chips but you can also use couverture chocolate bars. Chop them into small chunks or squares and place 2 to 3 of these in the middle.
Cover the chocolate with 2 tbsp batter. Spread evenly. If you are left with more batter after this, divide it equally among the three ramekins.

Baking

Place in the preheated air fryer and bake for 6 minutes. The tops should look set and the edges should be fully cooked.
Check for doneness by inserting a toothpick around the sides. It should come out with a few moist crumbs. Once baked, serve immediately.

Notes

This recipe makes 3 small cakes. I have used 4 oz ramekins for this recipe.
If you are making this for a gathering, you can use disposable muffin liners.
You can easily double this recipe. I have not attempted tripling the quantity here. In case you do, please share your thoughts in the comments.
For getting that consistency and texture right, the milk has to be warm. This is crucial.
All purpose flour will also work instead of whole wheat flour in this. The result with a lighter crumb that is equally delicious.
Couverture chocolate gives the best results as far as the molten middle goes.
The timing matters big time for getting that gooey middle. You will have to bake it for exactly 6 mins in the air fryer. No more and no less.

For Instant Pot & Air Fryer Recipes

Instant Pot timings may vary based on your geographic location. Air fryer settings and timings may vary based on the capacity and the model of the Air fryer.

Disclaimer

Nutrition values are provided here as a courtesy and are only a rough guide. Please consult a health care provider if you have any concerns.

Nutrition

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