French Chocolate Cake (Fondant au Chocolat)

This one-layered typical French chocolate cake is such a classic dessert yet so easy to make. Best made the day before for total fudgy appeal, it's a perfect make-ahead recipe for entertaining. It's delicious served on its own, but go French style and serve with a crème anglaise vanilla sauce for the ultimate treat.

French Chocolate Cake - 4 Main Ingredients

There's nothing really mind-boggling new with this recipe - except I've lightened it up. Based on a classic French flourless chocolate cake, it's a speciality of the Aquitaine region.

Made with 4 main ingredients, the classic ratio is normally the equivalent amount of good quality chocolate (dark bittersweet), butter and sugar with 4-5 eggs. Flour is so little, it hardly even counts. The result is a densely rich chocolate cake that doesn't need any topping or layers.

However, over the years I've reduced the sugar by half to appreciate the taste of the chocolate's quality better. Plus the butter is also reduced, making it easier to digest. The result? It still works well!

• Chocolate - Use the best quality you can, at least over 60% cocoa solids for the best cake. 200g is our typical French size/weight of a bar of cooking chocolate (couverture). I don't give cups here, as it's best to measure by weight, not volume.
• Butter - use unsalted French butter.
• Sugar - regular granulated sugar is good or coconut flower sugar for extra depth of flavour.
• Eggs - unless stated, we use medium eggs in Europe, which is large in the USA. For more, see FAQ. If I have leftover egg whites, it also works well with 3 eggs and 3 whites.
• Flour - add a tablespoon plain all-purpose flour. If you prefer this cake gluten free, then omit the flour and replace with either almond flour or rice flour - or omit completely.

This has been my family's favourite version with lowered sugar and added candied ginger - as we adore chocolate ginger macarons!

French Chocolate Cake vs Lava Cake

In France, we're used to seeing a one-layered chocolate cake as fudgy. They don't have a runny middle of melted chocolate oozing out of them.

However, lava cakes are very like fondant cakes but the difference is that lava - like the name implies - has a runny centre. In French, molten or lava cakes are called Moelleux au Chocolat avec son coeur coulant - with runny hearts.

Chocolate cakes in Britain and the USA are more 'cakey' with layers. If this is more your style, then don't forget this incredible recipe from Parisian chocolatier, Patrick Roger's Layered Chocolate Cake.

How to Make a Fondant au Chocolat

Preheat oven to 180°C/160°C fan/360°F/Gas 4. Line a round cake tin (25cm/10 inch) with cooking parchment - see how in FAQ.

Over a pot of simmering water, place the broken chocolate and diced butter in a heatproof bowl (bain-marie or double boiler). Add a little coffee granules or fleur de sel salt. 

Melt them gently for about 10 minutes and stir until smooth - just as we do in this chocolate pear cake.

As soon as the chocolate and butter have melted, take off the heat. Add the sugar and salt (or coffee powder) and mix together with a spoon. Gradually add the eggs and then add the flour, mixing until just combined. The batter should be gloopy and shiny.

Pour over the chocolate mixture and bake for 20 minutes.

Remove from the oven. Don't worry if it looks uneven, it will flatten out while cooling. Leave to cool for about 20 minutes then turn out of the tin on to a serving plate.

What to Add to Plain Chocolate Cake to Liven it up

As with many a plain chocolate cake (including those chocolate coffee cakes), we love to add a teaspoon of coffee granules. It brings out the earthiness of the chocolate and renders it extra smooth in flavour.

If you prefer without the coffee, add a couple of good pinches of salt (fleur de sel, Maldon or Celtic salt), as I use in this recipe.

For spice lovers, add a good pinch of chilli or cayenne pepper - you'll see: it's the best thing ever but certainly nothing new, according to chocolate's history. I mean, just ask Cortez when he discovered the Mayans drinking their spiced chocolate drink with chilli in the 16th century. For more, read my little history article from the Chocolate Museum in Paris visit.

Although optional, try with candied ginger. The best in France is from Apt (Luberon, Provence), the world capital of candied fruits. At Apt Union, we buy by the kilo. Otherwise use stem ginger in syrup (at Trader Joe's, Amazon and Walmart in the USA). It tends to be a lot spicier, so thinly slice it and add only as much as you dare!
I also add candied ginger to chocolate macarons: it's the best surprise ever to bite into the middle of a fudgy, fondant macaron.

For a special holiday treat, melt some extra chocolate and spread on top, sprinkling on some leftover crumbs of French gingerbread. The flavours are fabulous!

How to Serve it Like in France

Either serve on its own slightly warmed or at room temperature. To serve it Parisian restaurant style, serve with a classic vanilla Crème Anglaise. It's the French answer to custard but it's more fluid and served chilled. This Chai Tea Creme Anglaise is the perfect match with just enough warming flavours to complement your fondant au chocolat.

If you love ice cream, then French chocolate cake is also delicious with either chestnut vanilla ice cream or this non-churn Whisky ice cream - or why not top with a macaron or two?

This recipe was first published 20 November 2018 but is now completely updated.