Peanut butter and salted caramel chocolate lava cake

I don’t know if you have noticed, but I have been away for sometime. End of semester, exams, travels, etc. kept me away for a while, forcefully. Meanwhile, Not A Curry turned one year! Exactly one year ago (actually 13 months) I published my first post–Calcutta Mutton biriyani. What started as a way to distract myself from life’s sordid realities, to channel my negative energy, during, perhaps, some of the lowest moments of my life turned into my passion. Since then I have only effectively blogged for 6 months, but my blog has received over 100, 000 visits in that little time. This is way beyond what I had imagined or expected. You made it possible, and I thank you profusely for that. 🙂

So, I had to make a cake to celebrate the occasion. But I didn’t want to make a regular 9 inch pan cake, because I just did not have the time. I rummaged through my pantry and fridge to find just enough ingredients to make a chocolate lava cake. A messy, guey, completely decadent cake that’s melt in your mouth sinful, and that takes less than 30 mins to make. The result was delicious! However, I decided not to post the recipe because the pictures didn’t come out as I wanted. As you can see, the pictures are coarse, unflattering, and messy; not something I would normally post in here, because they transgress the conventions of food blogging. But they are also extremely real, raw, natural; like life. Unembellished, uncontrollable, and unstageable like everyday life events. So I changed my mind and decided to post it anyway. So here’s what I got. 

Peanut butter and salted caramel chocolate lava cake recipe

Level: easy     Preparation time: 15 mins     Cooking time: 14 mins     Serves: 2

Ingredients:

6 oz. semi-sweet baking chocolate, chopped
6 tbsp butter, cubed
1/3 cup confectioner’s sugar
1 egg
2 egg yolks
4 tbsp all-purpose flour
2 tsp peanut butter
2 tsp salted caramel
1 + ½ tsp unsweetened cocoa powder

Instructions:

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Grease 2 8 oz. ramekins with butter or non-stick cooking spray. Place 1/2 tablespoon of cocoa powder in each ramekin. Swirl the cocoa powder all around the ramekins and tap out the extra once the ramekins are covered.
Add the chopped semi-sweet chocolate and butter to a medium sized microwave safe bowl. Microwave with 30 seconds intervals and stir after each interval, until the chocolate is smooth and completely melted (will take about 3-4 intervals).
Set aside and let cool for 10 minutes.
Meanwhile mix the peanut butter and salted caramel.
Add the confectioner’s sugar and eggs to the melted chocolate and whisk until thoroughly incorporated.
Add in the all-purpose flour. Using a spatula, mix until the flour is just combined (do not over mix).
Pour batter into the 2 ramekins.
Place a heaping teaspoon of the peanut butter and salted caramel mix in the center of each ramekin. Make sure to press it down a little and cover it with more cake batter.
Place the two ramekins on a quarter sheet pan and place in the preheated oven. Bake for about 14 minutes. The outside of the cakes will be baked and the center will still be very jiggly.
Serve immediately with a scoop of vanilla ice cream.