Recipe Talk

I'm lookiing for a recipe for chocolate volcano cakes that can be assembled in advance, frozen and then baked when company comes.

Volcano Cake

Volcano Cake

If you need something for a teen party or a dessert for dinner tonight, try this one.

INGREDIENTS:

1 box chocolate cake mix

1 can cherry pie filling

chocolate cookie crumbs or sprinkles

Whipped cream

PREPARATION:

Prepare a chocolate cake mix according to the package directions. Bake in flat top bundt pan. Invert onto serving platter and cool completely. Fill hole in the center of the cake with whipped cream, you can color this red with food coloring.

Top with cherry pie filling (lava) and drizzle down sides of the cake. Sprinkle top of volcano with crushed cookie crumbs or sprinkles.

I have also been looking for a recipe that resembles the lava cakes served at Morton's Steakhouse. I ran across a Molten Lava Cake recipe on page 55 in SAVEUR December 2004... but I's not satisfied with it yet.

I used Giradelli chocolate for the semisweet chocolate chopped and thought there was too much wax... I used Droske cocoa powder(don't go cheap!) but the cake was just not sweet enough. I'm going to make it again and taste every step of the way.

What I liked about this recipe was that the ganache can be frozen into balls and used later. Next time, I'm going to freeze a couple of the cakes and see how they do microwaved to liquify the center.

Here's the recipe...

FOR THE GANACHE (TRUFFLE CENTER)
3/4 cup heavy cream
8 oz semisweet chocolate, chopped
2 oz chambord Liquer (Frangelica instead?)

FOR THE CAKE
butter for greasing the pan
2/3 c all-purpose flour
1/2 c Valrhona cocoa powder (I used Droske)
8 oz Semisweet baking chocolate, chopped
5 oz unsalted butter, cut into pcs
3 large eggs
2 egg yolks
1/2 c granulated sugar
pulp of 1 vanilla bean

Heat cream to a boil and pour over chopped chocolate. Let sit for 2 minutes. Whisk in Liqueur until smooth. Pour onto sheet pan lined with parchment paper. Place and leave in the freezer for 10-15 minutes or in the fridge for 30 minutes until set. Once set, divide ganache into twelve 1-oz portions (about 1 heaping Tbsp). Round the ganache into balls, using your hands. Freeze until cakes are ready.

Preheat oven to 325. Grease a 12-cup nonstick muffin pan with butter (I used the fancy and much bigger molds and doubled the ganache). Sift flour and cocoa powder together and set aside. Melt the chocolate with the butter in a double boiler (I used the microwave method and was careful).

Put the eggs, egg yolks, sugar, and vanilla into a bowl fitted with a paddle attachment. Beat at medium speed until mixture is slightly frothy. (I don't have a paddle attachment and didn't see why a whisk wouldn't work). Add the melted chocolate mixture at medium speed and mix until combined. Continue to mix at low speed, adding the sifted ingredients until smooth.

Pour evenly into the prepared muffin pan. Bake for 5 minutes. Remove pan and place one truffle in the center of each cake about halfway down. Return pan to oven and bake for 15-17 minutes. Check for doneness in cake, not truffle center. Allow ot cool slightly and unmold.