Indulge your sweet tooth with Chef Eric's delicious Chocolate Lava Cake! Enjoy a rich chocolate cake with a creamy warm center that tantalizes your senses!
WHAT YOU’LL LOVE
- Self-saucing in one skillet: A sugar-and-cocoa topping dissolves in boiling water poured over the batter and sinks beneath it as the cake bakes, leaving a warm fudge sauce under the cake.
- No eggs and pantry staples: Butter, self-rising flour, sugar, cocoa, milk, and vanilla make the whole thing, with no separate sauce to cook.
- Melted butter base: Spooning the batter over butter melted in the skillet gives the bottom edges a rich, lightly caramelized crust.
- Best served warm with ice cream: Spooning the cake and the sauce from the bottom of the skillet over cold ice cream gives a hot-and-cold finish.
Cast Iron Chocolate Lava Cake
Eric Gephart
Rated 3.7 stars by 39 users
Category
Dessert
Cuisine
American
Servings
10
Prep Time
20 minutes
Cook Time
40 minutes
Calories
499
Chef Eric is back with a simple dessert recipe, a Chocolate Lava Cake in the Lodge Cast Iron Skillet. Enjoy!
Ingredients
- 3/4 cup unsalted butter
- 2 cups self-rising flour
- 1/2 cup granulated white sugar
- 3 tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1 cup milk
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 2 cups granulated white sugar
- 1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
- 3 cups boiling water
Directions
Stabilize your Kamado Joe at 350° F, set up for indirect cooking.
Melt the butter in a Lodge 12” Cast Iron Skillet.
- In a medium bowl, stir together the flour, 1 1/2 cup granulated white sugar and 3 tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder. Stir in milk and vanilla until smooth. Spoon the batter over the melted butter, in the skillet.
- Stir together the remaining 2 cups of sugar, and 1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder. Sprinkle over the batter. Slowly pour boiling water over the top of the mixture.
Bake for 30 minutes on the grill, until set. Serve warm with ice cream.
Recipe Note
Recipe FAQ
How does this cake make its own sauce?
The sugar and cocoa sprinkled over the batter dissolve in the boiling water poured on top. As the cake bakes, the batter rises through the liquid and the sweetened cocoa water settles underneath, thickening into a fudgy sauce.
Is this a molten lava cake?
Not in the restaurant sense. A molten lava cake has a liquid center inside each cake. This recipe is a pudding cake, with a soft cake on top and a pool of chocolate sauce at the bottom of the skillet.
Why pour the boiling water over the top without stirring?
The layers need to stay separate so the batter can rise through the liquid. Stirring would mix the topping into the batter and you would lose the sauce layer.
Why melt the butter in the skillet first?
The melted butter coats the bottom of the pan and the batter spooned over it browns and releases from the skillet more easily, with a rich, lightly caramelized edge.
How do I know the cake is done?
The top should be set, and the sauce should be bubbling around the edges. Start checking at 30 minutes, since the recipe says 30 minutes while the card says 40.
Why serve it warm?
The sauce is thinnest and silkiest when the cake is fresh from the grill, and it thickens as it cools. Scoop down to the bottom of the skillet to get both cake and sauce in each serving.
What can I use instead of self-rising flour?
For each cup of all-purpose flour, add 1 1/2 teaspoons of baking powder and 1/4 teaspoon of salt.
How do I handle the boiling water safely?
Pour slowly and close to the batter, wear heat-resistant gloves, and keep the skillet where it won't be bumped. The skillet will be very full and very hot when it comes off the grill.
How should I store leftovers?
Refrigerate the cake and its sauce within 2 hours of baking. They keep for about 3-4 days and reheat well in a 300°F oven or in the microwave.
How indoor-friendly is this recipe?
5 out of 5. A 350°F oven bakes the pudding cake in the same skillet exactly the same way. The grill is only being used as an outdoor oven.
Recipe Highlights
Self-saucing pudding cake: Makes its own fudge sauce as it bakes.
Egg-free pantry ingredients: Need no separate sauce or custard.
Melted butter base: Gives a rich, lightly caramelized crust.
Served warm with ice cream: Pairs hot cake and sauce with cold cream.
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Nutrition
Nutrition
- Nutrition Serving Size
- 6.71 oz
- per serving
- Calories
- 499
- Carbs
- 93 grams
- Protein
- 4 grams
- Fat
- 15 grams
- Sodium
- 113 milligrams
