chocolate cream filled

This is what a chocolate lava cake looks like in the shape of a skillet cookie with salted caramel ice cream on top and thats exactly what I was shooting for…I love combining two beloved desserts into one glorious new creation especially when there’s lots of dark chocolate involved. If you’re a chocolate lover be sure to give this a thumbs up and share it with your fellow chocolate loving friends and family around you!

In a large bowl add 1/2 cup of dark chocolate…

…3 tbsp of butter…

…and a pinch of salt.

Microwave for two minutes and give this a good whisk until super smooth.

Add in 2 whole eggs and mix well.

Stir in 1 tbsp of vanilla paste.

Then sift in 1/2 cup of cake flour, 1/4 cup of sugar, and 2 tsp of salt.

Give this a good mix and then slowly add in 2-4 tbsp milk, depending on how large the eggs were you can add more or less milk.

Mix until silky smooth. 

Coat a ramekin or skillet with a little bit of butter and sugar.

Pour in the batter until the dish is 2/3 filled up.

Transfer to the fridge to rest for 30 minutes.

Begin the caramel ice cream by bringing 1/2 cup of sugar and 1/4 cup of water to a simmer.

Carefully caramelize for about 7 minutes, or until the liquid is a golden brown.

Slowly whisk in 1 cup of cream…

…1 tbsp of vanilla paste…

…and 2 tsp of salt.

Give this a quick mix.

Transfer to your ice cream maker to set up.

Whip up a simple hazelnut “brittle” by gently spreading 1/4 cup of tempered dark chocolate onto a silpat or non-stick surface.

Sprinkle with 2 tbsp of toasted hazelnuts…

…and 1 tsp of maldon salt. Allow to cool and harden.

With everything prepped, transfer the cooled pizookie to a 400°F oven and bake for 12-15 minutes, or until the edges are nice and crispy.

Top with a few scoops of the home made caramel ice cream…

…a couple shards of the hazelnut “brittle”…

…and a sprinkle of cocoa powder and powdered sugar. All that’s left to do is ENJOY! 

[amd-zlrecipe-recipe:106]

| Top Left: Bowl Set | Top Middle: Boos Cutting Board | Top Right: Ice Cream Maker and Attachment |

| Bottom Left: Sauce Pan | Bottom Middle: Small Skillet | Bottom Right: Silpat |

Mirror mirror on my plate, how must you resist your delicious fate? Hehehehe…I had to go there and I went there and it’s done. Mirror glazing is such a fun process that is VERY easy to do once you master your glaze making skills. I think I might even glaze my breakfast tomorrow…Anyways, I hope you all enjoyed this “apple pie” inspired dessert and it might help you rethink some of those old tired holiday desserts that we’ve all had a zillion times even though I’ll still have them this year too, but you know what I mean.

In a baking dish or pan, add 1/4 cup of cold diced butter…

…3 tbsp of granulated sugar, 3 tbsp of brown sugar, 1 tsp of ground cinnamon, 1 tsp of ground nutmeg…

…and 3/4 cup of flour.

Using a fork or your hands, mash the ingredients together until you have small, but incorporated clumps. Transfer to a 350°F oven and bake for 15-20 minutes, stirring occasionally.

In a separate pan, begin making the apple pie filling by peeling, coring, and dicing 2-3 honey crisp apples.  Add to a buttered pan on high heat…

…along with 3-4 tbsp of brown sugar…

…and 2 tsp of salt.

Cook for 5-7 minutes, occasionally stirring.

Once the apples are tender, add 1 tbsp of cornstarch. Give this a quick stir and cook for an additional minute. Remove from heat and set aside.

Once the crumble is done baking, remove it from the oven and break apart into finer clumps.

Using a small mold, press in one layer of crumbles…

…one layer of apple pie filling…

…followed by another layer of crumbles.

Gently compact and transfer to the fridge and allow to set up for 45-60 minutes.

Whip up a simple brown sugar and vanilla whipped cream (1 cup heavy cream, 4 tbsp brown sugar, 1 tbsp vanilla extract—whipped).

Using a larger mold than before, fill your mold about 3/4 of the way up with the freshly whipped cream.

After you’ve removed the apple pie fillings from molds, gently press one filling into each of the whipped cream filled molds.

Gently smooth off the bottom of the molds and transfer to the freezer to set up for 1 hour.

When the “apple pies” are almost set up, begin making the glaze by carefully and precisely adding 150g cold water…

…300g glucose (corn syrup)…

…and 300g sugar to a small sauce pan.

Stir and bring to a boil. Once it reaches a boil remove from heat.

In a separate bowl add 200g white chocolate…

…and 200g sweetened condensed milk.

In another small bowl add 120g water and 20g powder gelatin.

Give this a quick mix and let rest for a few minutes.

Once the gelatin mixture has thickened up, add it to the hot syrup in the sauce pot.

Give the mixture a quick stir until completely incorporated.

Add the heated liquid over the white chocolate mixture.

Using a hand blender (or next best thing) incorporate the mixture until it is completely emulsified.

Strain into a bowl using a fine strainer.

Cover in plastic wrap (making sure the wrap is touching the top layer of the glaze—prevents a top skin from forming), and transfer to the fridge until needed.

Once ready to glaze, transfer most of the glaze to a sauce pan on low heat and bring up to 75°F—reserving a small amount for an optional decorative finish.

Food coloring is also optional.

Pop the frozen apple pies out of the molds and place them over a baking sheet topped with a wire cooling rack.

Pour a small amount of glaze onto each half sphere.

I played around with a drizzle of uncolored glaze, but this is entirely optional and purely cosmetic.

When they’re all coated with the glaze, transfer them to the freezer to set up for 1 hour.

When you’re ready to dig in, remove them from the freezer and transfer them to a cool work surface.

Coat the outside of the glazed apple pie domes with a little bit of the cinnamon crumble and ENJOY! 

[amd-zlrecipe-recipe:97]

| Top Left: Marble Pastry Slab | Top Middle: Silicone Half -Sphere Mold | Top Right: Silicone Cube Mold |

| Bottom Left: All-Clad Sauce Pan | Bottom Middle: All-Clad Non Stick Fry Pan | Bottom Right: All-Clad Fry Pan |

I had to wrap up #ChocolateWeek with a BANG, and this is just the ticket! This molten S’mores Lava Cake filled with ooey gooey marshmallow goodness, is on a level all it’s own…be prepared to have you world rocked! That’s all I’m saying.

In a medium mixing bowl add 1/4 cup butter, 1/4 cup sugar…

…and a pinch of salt.

Cream this together for 2-3 minutes, or until it’s nice and fluffy.

Add two whole eggs…

…and sift in 1/3 cup of all-purpose flour.

Mix the ingredients until all components have been thoroughly incorporated.

Using the double boiler method, melt 1/2 cup dark chocolate for about 4-5 minutes, or until it’s good and melted.

Once melted, pour the chocolate into the molten cake batter…

…and thoroughly incorporate for 2-3 minutes; set aside.

Coat the inside of two oven safe containers with a melted butter.  

Divide 1/2 cup of crumbled graham crackers between the two containers.

Rotate the containers—allowing for the graham cracker crumbs to generously coat the sides.

Using a pastry bag, pipe the molten cake batter into each container, until they’re filled just over halfway up. 

Pipe 1/4 cup of whipped marshmallow topping directly into the center of the lava cake batter.

Bake for 25 minutes at 375ºF.

Once baked, remove from oven and let cool for about 5 minutes before digging in!

[amd-zlrecipe-recipe:69]

| Left: Glass Bowl Set | Right: Whisk |

| Top Middle: All-Clad Bowl Set | Bottom Middle: All-Clad Sauce Pan |