choco lava cake

This holiday season I probably found the easiest way to bake a cake. From the time I had seen that advertisement on choco lava cake my heart was pounding to make one perfectly.  So after few trials, this one turned out pretty well, also my addition of choco cookies turned out good. (Pat on my back :p) 

I was in short of heavy cream so tried using vanilla flavoured custard cream to top it up. It wasn't a bad idea though, and it served the same purpose as a heavy cream. I had even added 2 tsp of custard powder in the cake mix but you can omit this if you want. I feel it would have been better had I just used custard cream to top it up and not add it to the cake mix. (Wait, am I permitted to write my mistakes here? Maybe yes so that others don't commit the same :P). But it was overall fun to bake.
I took a total of 10 minutes to mix all the ingredients together and then just poured it into a greased container and cupcake moulds. The next 40 minutes, it was only my microwave at work and me busy making the custard cream and cleaning the kitchen. Sometimes I really think these activities are much more time consuming than the actual cooking. 
ahh, done with it. Time to treat myself!!

Ingredients required:

1 cup flour
1/2 tsp baking powder
a pinch of baking soda
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup butter/refined oil
2 eggs
2 tsp vanilla extract

Optional:
1/2 cup cocoa powder
1 cup semi-sweetened choco chips
Few choco cookies

Method:

• Since I started with the normal granulated sugar, my first task was to grind the sugar to make it powdery. It's easy to mix powdered sugar with other ingredients. Alternatively, you can even use icing sugar.

• Once the sugar is done, add butter/refined oil to it and blend until they form a paste and you cannot differentiate between the two.

• Next, add eggs to it. One at a time and mix the contents well. it's important to beat the contents properly at this point so that enough air gets into it and your cake rises up while baking.

• Next, sieve 1 cup flour, 1/2 tsp baking powder and a pinch of baking soda in a large bowl. If you want to make a chocolate cake, add 1/2 cup of cocoa powder also to it. 

• Mix the wet ingredients with the dry ones in the bowl by cut and fold method. Once done add vanilla essence and choco chips to it. mix again.
  

• Grease a baking tin/cupcake mould with butter and pour the mixture into it. 

• Half fill the cupcake mould, put a piece of chocolate in the centre and cover it with another spoonful of cake mixture on top.

• I had used a  baking tin as well and had put small pieces of choco cookies on top covering it lightly with the cake mix. This made the top crust very crunchy and chewy.

• Preheat oven at 180-degree centigrade and bake the mixture for 30-40 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean.

• Once done, top it up with cream and choco chips and you're done. Time to treat yourself with this mouthwatering dessert.

Sweet tooth forever,
Ritu:)