How to make quick and easy chocolate coffee fondant cakes. Only 6 minutes baking time! Topped with dark mocha glaze for the ultimate chocolate lover heaven.
My eldest daughter, Julie returned home from school like clockwork: dump rucksack, throw off Converse - shoelaces still done - blocking the front door and stairs. "What's for goûter, Mum? Canteen was rubbish, so I ended up .... oooooh, what's that amazing smell? Chocolate?"
We like plain and simple chocolate cake, or perhaps a layered chocolate cake with ganache, but we love squidgy individual chocolate cakes when they're fast to prepare and, even better, packed with good quality chocolate (no less than 64% cacao solids) and less sugar.
Over the years we've surprised ourselves, as gradually we've become used to reducing sugar with more bittersweet tasting chocolate in recipes after some happy sampling of the likes from the wonderful pâtisseries that Paris has to offer.
No fancy food photo props here. Luckily I had a couple of minutes (yes, that's far too long for hungry teenagers!) to attempt to focus on them with my modest telephone camera!
I also make lighter chocolate moelleux (lava) cakes for dessert - with more eggs.
What I love about this recipe, is that it's easier on the butter than in most fondant cakes I've tried plus it has a more intense chocolate taste, with the coffee bringing it out even further. A little goes a long way but boy, it's packed with fatigue-fighting and stress-bashing magnesium! They're dense: a perfect warm and rewarding teatime treat.
Chocolate Coffee Fondant Cakes with Mocha Glaze
Adapted from part of a recipe by Jonathan Blot (one of my favourite pastry chefs, of Acide Macaron in Paris) in the 4th issue of Fou de Patisserie magazine.
Chocolate Coffee Fondant Cakes
Ingredients
- 70 g (â…“ cup) butter
- 100 g (¾ cup) good quality chocolate 64% cocoa solids
- ½ teaspoon instant coffee granules
- 2 eggs
- 50 g (¼ cup) caster sugar
- 30 g (2 tbsp) plain flour (all-purpose)
Chocolate & Coffee Glaze
- 45 g (¼ cup) chocolate
- 20 ml (2 tbsp) espresso coffee
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 180°C/160°fan (Gas mark 6). Measure out the chocolate and butter in a heatproof bowl and place over a pan of simmering water. Add the coffee powder and stir until just melted.
- Take off the heat then add the sugar and beat in the eggs until mixed together. Add the flour in one go until completely mixed. Place the moulds on a baking tray then spoon into non-stick (I used flexipan silicone moulds – briochette shaped) moulds. If you’re using regular muffin moulds, butter them lightly before filling with batter.
- Bake for only 6 minutes (yes, I know it’s exact but don’t cook any more than this if you prefer them squidgy).
Glaze
- Make a small cup of espresso coffee (ideally directly into a small measuring cup). Melt the chocolate in a bowl over a pan of simmering water. Add the hot coffee and stir until melted then spread over each cake.
cristina
OMG, Jill! These little fondant cakelets are chocolate decadence goodness!! 🙂
On another note, I just wanted to thank you so much for stopping by TC and your sweet encouragement on my post about my mac nightmares. Very much appreciated!! 🙂
Jean-Pierre D
I made them! They are great, especially in that they're not sweet, packed with chocolate and the coffee .... yum! Quick too - this is a keeper. Thanks Jill - think I can freeze them?
Jill
Pleased as punch you made them, Jean-Pierre. Of course you can freeze them - in fact, they'll be even better after maturing too... Thanks for popping by!
Monique Bellinger
Hi Jill,
Wow, I can make these GF as there is so little flour - funny, but I just bought some Plaistowe chocolate to make myself something delicious to make up for not being able to eat apple cream turnovers anymore lol. Now I have an awesome recipe to make with it. Many thanks.
Jill
Great pleasure and thrilled to hear you can eat them as part of your gluten-free diet, Monique. They'd be gluten free entirely if you used cornflour/cornstarch in place of the flour.
Haven't heard of Plaistowe chocolate - is this a special treat in Australia? See that they have a factory in Margaret River (have family there so must ask them to bring some, so hope you're reading cousins 😉 )
Liz
We were definitely on the same wavelength! My family would be thrilled with your wee fondant cakes. I'd be happy to pull out my scale to make these decadent gems 🙂
Jill
Liz has taken up the Scottish accent! Did you hear that? AWESOME!
Merci x