Molten Lava Cake

      This decadent dessert was one of my childhood favorites. I remember several chain restaurants that had versions of it, and how I would purposely not finish my dinner in order to save room for it later.  My younger self was fascinated and perplexed by how exactly they got the lava inside the cake. I thought it was magic. Now it's almost funny to know how simple it really can be. You just don't bake it all the way. There are other ways to do it, but this is definitely the simplest. This recipe only makes two servings because I made it for just my dad and I as a Father's Day present.

INGREDIENTS:
2 tablespoons butter
1/3 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup semisweet chocolate chips
1 egg + 1 egg yolk
a pinch of salt
3 tablespoons flour
powdered sugar for dusting

DIRECTIONS:
1. Preheat oven to 400 and grease 2 individual ramekins (or oven-safe mugs).
2. Melt the butter and chocolate chips in the microwave, then cool slightly.
3. In a medium bowl, beat the eggs with the brown sugar and salt. Next, mix in the butter and chocolate. Finally, add in the flour.

4. Fill the ramekins and bake them. You can adjust the baking time according to just how molten you want them to be. When done, a toothpick halfway to the center should come out clean, but the middle should still be runny. Start with at least 15 minutes, then just cook them to your liking.

5. Dust with powdered sugar on top and enjoy!

Come back tomorrow for the next installment in one of my favorite series!