Gluten free Self-Saucing Chocolate Puddings

I had a craving the other day for both a chocolate brownie and a chocolate lava cake (what a dilemma I hear you say!) and I just could not decide what to make! Then suddenly I remembered a recipe that I haven’t baked in ages that fits both those bills and is slightly (only slightly) healthier then your average cake! My Gluten free Self-Saucing Chocolate Puddings! Now don’t be fooled, these cakes are not your ordinary gluten free dessert. I have fed this to a Coeliac before, watched them eat the whole thing and then remember their intolerance before asking “wait but this isn’t gluten free, I’m going to get sick”. It was seriously that good that they didn’t even realise that it was ok for them! Additionally, the recipe is so easy you could make it with your eyes closed!!!

So if your after a warm, rich gooey chocolate pudding that literally oozes yumminess then be sure to give this a go! Great for those with a wheat intolerance AND those who enjoy a yummy dessert!!

What you’ll need:
1 cup gluten-free self-raising flour
3/4 cup caster sugar
1/2 cup cocoa powder, sifted
1/4 cup almond meal
65g melted dark chocolate
1/2 cup milk
1 teaspoon vanilla essence
30g butter, melted
3/4 cup firmly packed brown sugar
1 3/4 cups boiling water
Double-thick cream/ice cream to serve

What I did:
1. Preheat your oven to 180 degrees C and lightly spray 4 large ramekins (or a large baking dish) with some non-stick spray.
2. Combine flour, caster sugar, almond meal and 2 tablespoons cocoa in a bowl. Add milk, vanilla, chocolate and butter and stir to combine. Pour mixture into prepared ramekins/dish.

3.Combine brown sugar and remaining cocoa in a small bowl and then sprinkle the mixture over the top of each of the ramekins (this will make your sauce). Pour boiling water to cover sugar mixture and then pop into the oven.

4. Bake for about 25-30 minutes or until a skewer inserted around the edge of pudding comes out clean. Remember not to cook the pudding too much or you will loose that beautiful rich sauce!

5. Let them cool slightly (I know that part is hard!) and then serve with cream or ice cream!!

Happy Baking and Enjoy!!

 (My bowl after I was done!!)

Mouelleux au Chocolate

As I’ve mentioned before, Rachel Khoo is one of my cooking idols. I love love love her recipes, which are rich and decadent and make me feel like a real Parisian! Yum! About six months ago, I watched an episode of her show, The Little Paris Kitchen where she made the most mouthwatering dessert I have ever seen. Sadly, I was so distracted by the beautiful food that I forgot to write half of the recipe down!! So when I found her recipe online for Mouelleux au Chocolate (or to us non-french speaking cooks) Chocolate Lava Cakes I knew it was the perfect dessert for my families Easter lunch. Whilst the original recipe can be found on Rachel’s website (link above), I found it reproduced on another beautiful blog called Paris loves Pastry! And I’m so glad I discovered it too because there are so many recipes there that I will be making very shortly. Definitely one for you to check out!

What is great about this dessert is that it is actually super simple to make (I almost couldn’t believe it) but looks spectacular when served. Aside from that, this is no ordinary chocolate lava cake! The centre is actually filled with beautiful rich salted caramel, which spills out of the centre when cut. Yum! I served mine with the homemade vanilla bean Ice-cream that I posted earlier last week but you could easily serve with a scoop of good quality store bought ice cream. Cream would work also but I feel with a hot dessert, the cold creamy ice cream is just perfect!

So here it is; Rachel Khoo’s Mouelleux au Chocolate:

(This recipe will make about 5 individual puddings)

What I used:

For the salted caramel filling:
– 150g white sugar 
– 150ml double cream 
– 1 teaspoon salt, preferably fleur de sel but if not available salt flakes are fine

For the cake:
– 150g dark chocolate
– 85g unsalted butter (⅓ cup)
– 170g brown sugar (¾ cup)
– 85g plain flour (¾ cup)
– 6 eggs

What I Did:

1. First off you need to make the caramel sauce, as it needs to cool before you can use it. In a small saucepan, heat your cream so that it is warm but not boiling. Meanwhile, using another saucepan, cook your sugar until it begins to caramelise. Remember not to make it too dark as it will continue to colour once removed from the heat. Add your cream and continue to stir. Often, when you add the cream to the hot sugar, it can seize up and form a hard ball of toffee, but don’t worry, continue to stir it over a medium/low heat until it re-melts into a beautiful caramel. Stir in your salt and then leave to cool completely in the fridge.  

2. In a double boiler, melt the chocolate and butter. Then combine the flour and brown sugar in a medium bowl.

3.Slightly beat the eggs (just to break the yolks) before adding them to chocolate mixture and stirring vigorously. Then add the eggy chocolate mixture to the flour/sugar and mix well.

4. Lightly spray your ramekins with a non-stick spray or butter before filling them 2/3 full with the chocolate mixture. Pop them into the fridge for about 45 mins to firm up a bit.

5. Fill a piping bag with your salted caramel mixture and pipe a decent dollup into the center of each ramekin. This part can be a bit messy so be prepared to lick your fingers!

6. Bake at about 180degreesC for 15-20 minutes (my oven actually needed 20mins at 200C so just keep an eye on them). They should be firm to touch on the outside but slightly wobbly in the center.

7. Turn the ramekins upside down onto a plate and serve immediately and be prepared for this to happen….

Enjoy and happy Baking!!