Chocolate Pudding Cake

Happy First Birthday Good Food Gourmet!

It was a cold and very snowy day last year when I launched GFG. Little did I know that my first post would mark one of the most memorable days Marylanders had ever seen. On this day one year ago, our fair city was paralyzed with over 45 inches of snow after 2 major storms and more expected in the coming days and weeks. There just did not seem to be any end in sight, so as a comforting remedy to cure my cabin fever, I turned to my delicious recipes to feed the many kind neighbors who turned out to help shovel our walkways and driveways. Thankfully, we all took it in stride and helped each other get through one of the most difficult winters on record.

In the past year, GFG has gained momentum and is finding its very own foodie following like any good food blog should. The reason for its success thus far is because I insist on good, honest recipes that anyone can make quickly and easily. The future of GFG will include a new Chef Series where I will work on highlighting the talents of many of my very well known Chef friends who run kitchens in local restaurants and hotels.  I am also creating a new database of commercial recipes geared to food businesses, where recipes will be sold with accompanying nutrition labels for immediate use. Smaller versions will be available to the public with step by step instructions.

Today I wanted to share one of my personal recipes that I created a long time ago to satiate a yearning for a chocolate pudding cake that my family used to buy for us growing up. I distinctly remember the intense chocolatiness of this cake and the warm sauce that gently coated each loving spoonful…this blissful concoction of chocolate heaven was the feeling I wanted to recreate.

When I began developing this recipe, I looked at what others were doing and found that many recipes were just too sweet. By using extra sugar, most people tried to ensure that the baked in fudge sauce would have the necessary thickness and richness, which they did…but it was hard to get past all that extra sugar. So, I set out to adjust a few ingredients, and in doing so I created the perfect pudding cake for any occasion.

Chocolate Pudding Cake (serves 4)

For cake:

1- 1/4 cup granulated sugar

½ cup dutch process cocoa (use Droste or Lindt but I have had good results with Hershey if that’s all you have)

1/2 cup all purpose flour

1/2 cup cake flour

2-1/4 teaspoons baking powder

½ teaspoon salt

½ cup milk

1/2 cup dark chocolate chips

1/3 cup canola oil

2 teaspoons vanilla

1 yolk

Topping for cake

¼ cup dutch cocoa powder,  sifted

1/3 cup packed brown sugar

1-1/2 cup boiling water  (include ¼ cup cognac, brandy or rum)

First preheat your oven to 350°F because this recipe comes together quickly. Make sure to have several small to mid size bowls on hand to scale out all of the ingredients. Begin by preparing the liquid topping. Combine all of the topping ingredients together in a small bowl and set aside, make sure that they are mixed well with no lumps. In another bowl, this time a  microwave safe bowl, heat the milk with the dark chocolate chips until they have melted completely in the milk and set this aside also. In another bowl where everything will be mixed together, add the yolk,  granulated sugar, vanilla, oil and whisk well. Pour in the milk/chocolate mixture and whisk again until combined. Sift in both the cake flour, all purpose flour, cocoa powder, baking powder and salt and whisk until you have a fairly thick and very chocolatey batter. Pour this into a well sprayed 9 x 9 pyrex dish and then pour the liquid topping over this batter but DO NOT STIR.

Bake in your preheated  oven for approximately 30-40 minutes until the cake has separated from the pudding. The cake will rise to the top and the pudding will settle to the bottom. It will still wiggle slightly, but be fairly firm to the touch…the cake should be set at the top but ‘feel’ fudgy in the center. The liquid you poured on the top has created  a sauce for the cake which is absolutely delicious. Remove it from the oven because you do not want to over bake it. Allow this to cool slightly before serving. The pudding gets thicker as it cools.  Serve warm with whipped cream, ice cream, fresh fruit or a fruit sauce.