Molten Chocolate Lava Cakes

Ingredients

• 3 eggs
• 3 egg yolks
• 60 g plain flour, sifted
• 120 g icing sugar, sifted
• 150 g unsalted butter, cubed, plus extra for greasing
• 150 g dark chocolate, 70%, broken into pieces
• 1 tsp cocoa powder, for dusting
• 1 vanilla ice cream scoop, to serve

Method

1. Heat the oven to 200°C fan. Butter 4 individual pudding moulds or ramekins generously, working the butter right up the sides in upward strokes — this is the runway the cakes climb as they rise. Dust the insides with cocoa powder, turning each mould to coat, then tip out any excess so you're left with a thin dark coating clinging to the butter.
2. Set a heatproof bowl over a pan of barely simmering water — the base shouldn't touch the water, or the chocolate scorches. Add the chocolate and butter and stir gently for 3–4 minutes until melted, glossy and smooth. Lift off the heat and let it cool for 2 minutes — too hot and it'll cook the eggs in the next step.
3. In a separate bowl, whisk the eggs, egg yolks and icing sugar for around 2 minutes until pale, thickened and ribbon-like — when you lift the whisk, the trail should sit on the surface for a second before sinking. That volume is what gives the cakes their lift.
4. Pour the cooled chocolate into the eggs and fold through with a spatula until almost uniform. Sift in the flour with a pinch of fine sea salt and fold until just combined — stop the moment you can't see any streaks. The salt lifts the chocolate and stops the sweetness flattening out; overworking the flour now means tough cakes later. Taste a smear of batter on your finger — it should taste deep and bittersweet, not cloying. If it does, the salt's doing its job.
5. Divide the batter between the moulds, filling each about three-quarters full. If you're getting ahead, chill them now for up to 6 hours — bring back close to room temperature before baking, or add an extra minute in the oven.
6. Bake for 10–12 minutes, until the tops are puffed and just set with a faint sheen, the edges look matte and firm, and the very centre still has a soft wobble when you nudge the tray. Trust the wobble — that's the molten core. A clean, set top means you've gone too far.
7. Let them sit for 30 seconds, then run a small knife around the edge of each mould. Invert a serving plate over the top and flip confidently — hesitate and they stick. Give the base a sharp tap and lift the mould away.
8. Plate each cake straight away while the centre is still molten, set a scoop of vanilla ice cream alongside so it just kisses the warm dome, and dust the plate with a whisper of cocoa powder. Serve immediately — the clock is on the moment the knife goes in.