Something for the grown ups - chocolate mocha fondant

I would like to share with you a pudding recipe for the grown ups to enjoy once the little ones are in bed. This is definitely not a budget buster either. It uses a small amount of dark chocolate, but the rest of the ingredients are things you are likely to have in your pantry. Despite the everyday ingredients, the end result is something a little bit extra special.

With three small boys in the house, my husband and I don't get out together very often. It's hard to have the energy to do much more than the basics of working, running the house, feeding the kids, washing the clothes and cleaning up the constant mess but occasionally we will cook ourselves a special meal or even just a special dessert. Something to be enjoyed once the kids are in bed.

It was my husband's birthday last weekend so we had lamb cutlets (yes, a bit posh but it was his birthday), accompanied by an orange, kumara, spinach and salad inspired by an earlier blog here. Dessert was a rich chocolaty-mocha fondant.

I really like to eat melting chocolate fondants but until last year I gave making them myself a wide berth. Masterchef hadn't help. The crucial gooey centre seemed so elusive.... but actually they are really quite easy to prepare. Similar to making a decent brownie really. The only tricky part is not over cooking them, which is just about timing it accurately and checking it a bit before its due to come out of the oven.

The inspiration for the coffee and chocolate combination came from reading my lovely friend Lucy's blog thekitchenmaid. She is hosting a monthly chocolate challenge titled 'We Should Cocoa' created by UK chocolate officials, Chocolate Teapot and Chocolate Log Blog. This months the We Should Cocoa chocolate challenge is to come up with a chocolate and coffee inspired recipe.

Here is my Chocolate Mocha Fondant recipe, to be enjoyed after the kids are in bed.This recipe makes two good size fondants in medium sized (200 ml) ramekins.

Ingredients

60 g dark chocolate (70% cocoa solids, if you can)
60 g butter
60 g sugar (i used soft brown sugar)
1 teaspoon instant coffee
very small pinch of salt
1 largish organic egg
60 g self raising flour

In a bowl over boiling water melt chocolate, butter, sugar and coffee together. Or melt gently in a microwave. Stirring occasionally until all is well combined. Remove from heat. Let it cool a bit then whisk in the egg, salt and flour. Divide between  two medium (200 ml) ramekins. Cover and store in the fridge until you are ready to cook.  When you are ready to bake these, pre-heat oven to 200 degrees Celsius. Bake for exactly 14 minutes. Check at 12 to be safe. You want them to come out cooked on the outside but still runny in the centre. Serve with cream or yogurt.

You could probably use the same recipe and make four smaller fondants in 100 ml ramekins but adjust the cooking time down to 8 minutes or less possibly.

Mummy to Three Small Boys