Molten Lava Chocolate Cake
January 2, 2012 in Cakes and Cupcakes, Decadent Desserts
Many people who commit to paleolithic nutrition work very hard to rid their diets of any foods that mimic the unhealthy foods they used to eat. But other people need the occasional treat of an old favorite to keep that sense of self-deprivation at bay. This is why recipes for “paleofied” neolithic foods are so popular. You get to indulge in a decadent dessert or other favorite food without derailing your efforts to be healthy by consuming foods that will irritate your gut or cause rampant inflammation. For those of you who need your decadent dessert fix, here it is (serves 4):
Ingredients:
- 4 oz Semi-Sweet
or Bittersweet
chocolate
- ½ tsp Vanilla Extract
- 1/8 tsp Salt
- 2 Tbsp Sugar/Sucanat
(Muscovado Sugar
is especially tasty here)
- 1 tsp Coconut Flour
- 2 tsp Cacao Powder
- 2 eggs
- 4 Tbsp extra virgin coconut oil (plus a little more for greasing the ramekins)
1. Preheat oven to 375F. Grease four 6oz ramekins with coconut oil. If you wish to serve these cakes on a plate, you will need to flour as well (use coconut flour, blanched almond flour, or cocoa powder).
2. In a 4 cup measuring cup or medium microwave-safe bowl, melt chocolate and coconut oil in the microwave on low power. Stir until smooth and let cool.
3. In a small bowl, beat eggs, vanilla, salt and sugar with a hand mixer until light and frothy, about five minutes (this can seem like an eternity with a hand mixer, but hang in there because it’s worth it!).
4. Pour egg mixture over chocolate. Sift cocoa and coconut flour over the top. Then gently fold all the ingredients together.
5. Pour batter into prepared ramekins (they should be filled to within ½” of the top). Place the ramekins on a baking sheet and place in the oven (you can chill the ramekins for a few hours if you want to make them ahead of time, just make sure you bring them back to room temperature before baking). Bake for 11-12 minutes.
6. Remove from oven and serve immediately. Enjoy!
I thought it was interesting that the recipe calls for sugar. I’m new to the paleo diet, but thought sugar wasn’t allowed. Is their a substitute for the sugar?
I do use sugars in my paleo baking. I explain why in my post http://www.thepaleomom.com/2011/11/sugar-vs-sweeteners.html
Basically, honey, maple syrup, raw sugar, and refined sugar have nearly identical effects on body chemistry (they are all about half fructose and half glucose). I suggest using caution with dose (my recipes typically don’t call for very much sugar) rather than trying to fool the body with a sugar substitute (which will probably mess up your body chemistry more than a small dose of actual sugar).
Coconut nectar is a great, natural, low-glyemic alternative to honey or maple syrup!
Coconut nectar is high in inulin fiber, which a predominantly fructose-based fiber. I’m all for low GI sugars, but not at the expense of increased fructose intake.
I thought that we couldn’t break down the fructans in inulin to fructose to absorb? I thought it just fed gut flora and they made it into fatty acids for us to use like with other fibres- am I way off base?
While the glucose/fructose ratio is one critical aspect, there are other factors that significantly impact the glycemic load of a food. Most notably, the presence of other macronutrients like fiber. Additionally, the presence of micronutrients mean the food is actually nutritive rather than pure sugar on the body. Also, the organizing principe of pale nutrition is not essentially balancing fructose/glucose ratios, but rather returning to foods that we have all been evolving to know to process for millions of years. Honey and pureed dates are by this count the most paleo, yet for regulating blood chemistry and managing insulin, you’d be best using stevia or coconut sugar. Event B grade maple syrup would be a step up. But refined sugar is the worst.
I’ve heard that Truvia is the best sugar replacement, as it comes naturally from a leaf. That is what I use, don’t notice any differance in taste.
I’m not a fan of stevia since the molecules are very similar to human hormones and the long-term effects of regular consumption have not been studied.
Oh no! I was just beginning to get into stevia!!! Just saw your comment and found this article… though it’s about rats http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0378874199000811
What of xylitol?
There are no good sugar substitutes.
Some Honey/Stevia would do the trick anyday. Granulated sugar is so bad its not even funny.
Doug, here in the Philippines, Paleo dieters use COCO SUGAR (or palm sugar), because it’s simply ubiquitous here. It has a glycemic index of only 35, way below the 50 of regular sugar. We have the coco muscovado, which is not refined unlike table sugar
Thanks for you comment! Palm Sugar is very popular in the paleo community. But, I’m not a big fan of it since it contains a high percentage on inulin, which is an FOS and can cause gut irritation in sensitive individuals and those with SIBO. For people with very healthy guts, however, I think it’s fine in small quantities (I also think regular old sugar is fine in small quantities).
This looks amazing! I can’t have eggs, though, so I wonder if this would work with a substitute…I may have to try it and find out : )
I can’t eat eggs anymore either. If you figure it out, PLEASE comment back and let me know.
it probably wouldn’t provide the “leavening” that the aerated eggs do, but flaxseed meal and water combined substitute for eggs in other baking.
also, cornstarch or arrowroot can substitute for eggs–2T per egg.
Just found this and made it … yummmmmy! My decidedly NON-Paleo hubby loved it! He’s suspicious of anything I make now haha! Thanks!
I made this a few weeks ago for my girlfriend after a rough night at work. I’ve probably had a dozen of these at various restaurants in the U.S. and France. This was as good or better than any of those. Turned out perfect. Thanks Sarah.
According to alkaline diet proponents, regular consumption of these acid-producing foods causes a number of chronic diseases and health problems, including: osteoporosis, lower immunity, constant flues and colds, anxiety, nervousness, obesity, headaches, kidney stones and many others. And they believe that these diseases can be easily cured by simply changing your diet alkaline-wise.
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This was soooo good! My kids loved it and it was so simple!
Made these tonight! Followed the recipe exactly, but used double boiler because I avoid microwaving. AWESOME recipe! Thank you!
I’m new to the paleo recipes – this is in fact the first I’ve made and I’ll be making it again! Really good. I substituted the sugar for coconut sugar and used 3 tbs as it’s not as sweet as cane sugar. Yummy!
I just made this for my (paleo) husbands birthday treat. I am (not paleo) pretty skeptical when it comes to paleo baking, but this was delicious! Easy to make and ingredients on hand were an added bonus. Thanks:)
If we dont have coconut flour in our country (South Africa) , what other flour would substitute? We do have tapioca, almond, but not a whole lot of variety.
I would try 4tsp of either tapioca or almond (tapioca would probably work better).
Thanks! Something a bit off topic here under the cake- but on day 11 of the Paleo, and suffering from mouth and tongue ulcers (something I havent suffered from in months) , what could be causing this?
Could be viral. Some viruses like herpes simplex virus lay dormant in your body and basically take advantage of a weakened immune system which is why they sort of seem to come and go. I would suggest increasing your vegetable intake, making sure you are getting quality animal fats in your diet, and maybe take a vitamin C supplement.
This was amazing! I’ve been on the GAPS Intro diet for 5 weeks and wanted to have something yummy and chocolatey for Valentine’s Day. This totally hit the spot. I used unsweetened chocolate and 4 TBSPs of honey instead of bittersweet chocolate and stevia. Thank you!
OMG! Made this tonight and it was SO good!! Thank you for creating and sharing so many great recipes and all the amazing info!!
Hey! I joined the ranks and made this tonight. Ohmuhgosh it was delicious! I just had to praise The Lord! Thanks for sharing your hard work and passion for food.
I made this today and it’s delicious. I cut the recipe in half and used 1 square unsweetened chocolate and 1 square semi-sweet chocolate. I also used the half sugar and half stevia sweetner. I will definitely make it again. Thanks a bunch for a super tasty dessert recipe
Fantastic dessert!!! Made it tonight for a special dinner with my wife and parents!!! All non- paleo, they loved it! I used gluten free all purpose baking mix, and baked it in a 9in round cake pan! Turned out perfect!!! Next time I’m adding fresh warmed up raspberries on top!!!
Do you think using olive oil could substitute coconut oil? I’m not in the paleo diet but I wanna use up some coconut flour I have ._.
Yes.