Mini Lava Cakes
Warm, gooey, delicious molten chocolate centers are enclosed in these mini lava cakes and topped with fresh vanilla bean ice cream and a dusting of powdered sugar. The perfect weeknight or weekend treat!
What are Mini Lava Cakes?
I think most people are familiar with this ooey, gooey, delicious dessert that is the molten chocolate lava cake. Created by Jean-Georges Vongerichten, a French chef in New York City, he stumbled upon the beloved dessert when he pulled a chocolate sponge cake from the oven a bit too early, creating the signature runny center that we all know and love.
Since then, people have been adding different flavor notes, getting creative with bake times and temperatures, and putting their own twist on the classic cake. You may think that because a Michelin star French chef created the dessert, it must be overly complicated to recreate in your own home kitchen, but that couldn’t be further from the truth.
Lava cakes are one of my favorite things to make on short notice because A: I probably already have all the ingredients I need in my kitchen, and B: they come together in just a few minutes and only require a short bake time. I think you’ll agree with me!
Why this recipe works
This recipe is a must-have in your baking book, and for good reason. Precise ingredient ratios guarantee a molten center without underbaking, while a quick, high-heat bake locks in the structure. Using room temperature eggs creates a smooth batter, and greasing the ramekins prevents sticking for an effortless release. Because as Ina Garten would say, “what’s the point of baking a cake if you can’t get it out of the pan (or in this case, ramekin)?” With just the right timing, these lava cakes deliver a gooey, indulgent center wrapped in a soft, cakey exterior.
These mini chocolate lava cakes are similar in flavor to these Chocolate Fudge Mocha Cookies and this Super Moist One-Layer Chocolate Cake. If you’re a chocolate lover like me, be sure to check out these recipes as well!
.
Some equipment you may need…
The beautiful thing about these cakes is they require very few materials:
- Mixing bowls: I love these glass mixing bowls from Amazon. They’re especially perfect for food photography.
- Measuring cups/spoons: I’ve been linking these in all of my posts because I love them SO much! They are beautiful and look just like some other expensive ones on the market (but much cheaper).
- Fine Mesh Sieve: these are great for dusting powdered sugar onto any dessert – and gives these mini lava cakes a stunning finish!
- 6 oz ramekins: you’ll need a few ramekins to bake these in, and I love using 6 oz ramekins – the perfect personal size!
See, like I said: the list is very small!
Ingredients for Mini Lava Cakes
- Unsalted butter – creates the perfect texture and flavor in these mini lava cakes.
- All-purpose flour – you won’t need much flour at all – it almost doesn’t seem like it could be considered a cake with how little flour you use! Just a little bit for structure is all we need.
- Bittersweet chocolate – this is where all of the chocolate flavor is coming from for these mini lava cakes, so be sure you’re using high-quality chocolate. Now is not the time for bottom-shelf chocolate (though your mini lava cakes would still be fabulous).
- Large eggs – we’re going to whip the eggs quite a lot when baking, so be sure to have a good whisk on hand as this is where the rise will come from in these mini lava cakes.
- Granulated sugar – for sweetness!
- Kosher salt – I always use Diamond Crystal Kosher salt for my baking recipes, and for consistency’s sake, I’d suggest you do the same!
- Pure vanilla extract – you can also consider using a whole vanilla bean or vanilla bean paste in place of regular extract if you’d like.
- Vanilla ice cream – it just seems like vanilla ice cream goes hand-in-hand with molten chocolate lava cakes, but feel free to get creative with different flavors of your choosing!
- Powdered sugar – the perfect dusting of powdered sugar is a must on these mini lava cakes.
Possible ingredient substitutions
Vanilla bean paste for vanilla extract
If you are able to get your hands on vanilla bean paste (usually Trader Joe’s will have it), I say, do it! Vanilla bean paste truly adds that extra element to any bake, and it really shines in these mini lava cakes. You’ll see!
Ice cream flavors
If you don’t love vanilla ice cream, consider trying salted caramel, chocolate, or even coffee ice cream. All would be great choices to top your mini lava cakes with!
Other toppings
I’d also suggest getting creative with any toppings you love. A homemade caramel glaze would be a great option, or something like nutella or even strawberry preserves could be delicious on these cakes. Get creative – the more the merrier in my opinion!
Let’s get into the how-to:
How to Make Mini Lava Cakes
Step 1 – Grease your ramekins
This is a vitally important step that will be a difference-maker in the success of your lava cakes! If your ramekins aren’t greased really well, they won’t release easily, and your cakes will fall apart. I just use a generous amount of cooking spray, but you can also use butter and a light dusting of flour around the edges as well.
Step 2 – Melt the butter and chocolate in a saucepan
You’ll want to melt the butter and chocolate together, and though I’d suggest doing this in some sort of double-broiler, it won’t hurt it if you do it over low low heat, and stir quite regularly. Sometimes I feel like a double broiler can be more of a hassle, so I just go for a saucepan set over the lowest heat possible.
Step 3 – Vigorously whisk the eggs, yolks, and sugar together
This is where we’re incorporating some air into our cakes. We’re not using a chemical leavening agent such as baking powder or baking soda, similar to these Chocolate Fudge Mocha Cookies, and instead relying on the air we incorporate into the eggs.
You can use a whisk for this, or you can opt for a hand mixer here.
Step 4 – Combine the egg mixture and chocolate mixture
Slowly stream the melted chocolate into the eggs, stirring while you do so that the eggs don’t curdle. This will begin to form a really nice base for the mini lava cakes.
Step 5 – Fold in the flour
The reason I’m saying “fold in” the flour is because we want to be quite gentle here. We don’t want to lose any of the air we just incorporated into the eggs (especially if you did this by hand – we don’t want all that work to go to waste!), so a few gentle folds will get everything incorporated nicely.
Step 6 – Spoon the batter into your prepared ramekins
Spoon the batter into your prepared ramekins, and just fill them up evenly. I’m using 4 (6-oz) ramekins here, and they baked up really nicely.
Step 7 – Bake your Mini Lava Cakes!
These only need to bake for a few minutes, and once you pull them from the oven, they need to sit for exactly 1 minute, then you’ll flip them over and let them stand for about 10 seconds before you lift the ramekin from the cake. Very particular, but this process will help ensure great, intact mini chocolate lava cakes!
Mini Lava Cakes FAQs
Can these be made ahead?
Sadly, these really shouldn’t be made too far in advance. If you want to enjoy those runny centers, it’s important that they’re eaten while they’re still warm! If they’re completely cooled they may not have that signature center.
I also wouldn’t make the batter in advance because the air that we incorporated into the eggs will begin to deflate, resulting in a chocolate lava cake with little to no rise.
The great thing about these cakes is that they take about 30 minutes from start to finish – and they’re meant to be enjoyed straight from the oven, so it’s almost not too necessary to make in advance!
What size ramekins should I use?
For these mini lava cakes I used 6oz ramekins, but if all you have is 8oz ramekins that will work just fine, you maybe would want to see if you could squeeze the batter into just 2 of them so they’re even bigger!
If you love chocolate and you love cake, you will love these mini lava cakes. They’re perfect for serving a crowd or just to whip up for yourself on a cozy night in because they come together so quickly! I’ll be making these for Noah again sometime this week and I can’t wait!
If you have any questions about this recipe or another recipe on my site, feel free to shoot me an email at sarah@sarahsdayoff.com, send me a DM on Instagram @sarahsdayoff, or leave a comment down below and I will get back to you!
If you make this recipe, be sure to tag me on socials @sarahsdayoff so I can see your delicious cakes!
Love,
Sarah
“Jesus looked at them intently and said, “Humanly speaking, it is impossible. But with God everything is possible.” – Matthew 19:26
Mini Lava Cakes
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter
- 6 oz bittersweet chocolate, chopped
- 2 large eggs, at room temperature
- 2 large egg yolks, at room temperature
- 1/4 cup granulated sugar
- 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
- 1/4 tsp kosher salt
- 2 Tbsp all purpose flour
- Vanilla ice cream optional
- Powdered sugar optional
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 450°F. Grease four (6-oz) ramekins really well with either cooking spray or butter. Place on a small baking sheet.
- Add butter and chocolate to a small saucepan and set over your lowest heat setting. Stir frequently until the mixture is completely melted and smooth; remove from heat.
- Beat the eggs, egg yolks, granulated sugar, vanilla, and salt in a large bowl with a hand mixer on high speed 2 to 3 minutes or until thickened and pale.
- Slowly stream the chocolate mixture into the egg mixture and fold until no streaks remain. If you can stream the chocolate into the eggs while you're also mixing, even better, because we don't want the eggs to curdle!
- Slowly and very gently fold in the flour, just until no streaks remain.
- Spoon the batter into your prepared ramekins and bake for 9 to 10 minutes, just until the tops of the cakes are set. This is a time you'll want to watch the cakes very closely. If you bake them too long you may not end up with those perfectly gooey centers!
- Remove the pan from the oven and let the cakes cool for 1 minute. Working with one cake at a time, flip the ramekin over, let it stand for about 10 seconds, and then lift the ramekin from the cake. Repeat with the remaining cakes.
- Serve the cakes immediately with ice cream and powdered sugar, if you'd like!
This post may contain affiliate links which may make me a small commission at no cost to you. Thank you for supporting Sarah’s Day Off!
Leave A Comment