Sunday Lunch - Molten Chocolate Puddings

One of my new year resolutions was to try and extend myself a wee bit when it comes to cooking.  I pretty much stay within the safe confines of my comfort zone and very rarely venture passed my self imposed boundaries.  But I got to thinking about all the things I was missing, namely the Sunday Roast and all that is associated with it, so the new year resolution was redefined slightly.  Once a month we will have a Sunday Roast, not only forcing me into unfamiliar territory but also thrusting me well and truly into the 'grown up' world. 

Roasts always seemed a grown up thing to me, we used to have them every Sunday (obviously)!  Mum would make either beef or lamb, my memory seems to recall roast chicken as more of a week night meal, it might not have been though.  I usually got to help making the yorkshire pud and the gravy.  On special occasions like Birthdays and Easter the whole family was invited around.  They were a pretty big deal, and pretty huge in portion size too, you didn't need to eat for the rest of the day!

So for my first attempt (and keeping in mind that I started back on my diet finally) I picked the roast chook from 'Cook Yourself Thin' and served it up with roasted spuds, parsnips, butternut squash and red onions as well as those yummy braised peas.  No photo's sorry, I was starving by the time it was all ready and everyone was already sitting at the dinner table.  And you may have noticed no recipe either, that's another New Year Resolution ... this is a baking blog after all.  This is a place for chocolate and cakes ... and chocolate ... and cookies ... and did I mention chocolate?!?!?!?

And so it was that dessert really stole the show (I did manage to get pictures this time)!  This recipe is another Donna Hay classic and used to be a dessert I would whip up all the time.  Its been ages though so I thought it was time to revive the recipe.

Molten Chocolate Puddings
150g dark chocolate
100g unsalted butter
2 eggs
2 egg yolks
55g caster sugar
2 tbsp plain flour, sifted
Cream or ice cream to serve

Preheat the oven to 180C.  Place the chocolate and butter in a saucepan over a low heat and stir until the chocolate is melted and smooth.  Place the eggs, yolks and sugar in a bowl and whisk until pale.  Gently fold in the flour and the chocolate mixture and spoon into 4 lightly greased 250ml capacity ovenproof dishes.  Bake for 12-15 mins or until the puddings are puffed.  Top with the cream or ice cream (pomegranate in this case!) to serve.

Serves 4
Donna Hay - Simple Essentials Chocolate

I know that it seems crazy to go to all the effort to make a low fat roast and then have a pud like this ... but that's me all over!  To me, the main meal is something you have to suffer through to get to the dessert and in my humble opinion a meal would be ever so much better if it consisted of three courses of dessert!

A couple of points to remember on this one (cause I always forget until I make it again!)

• This is one of the only recipes I make where dark chocolate totally is a necessity.  I didn't have any to hand today and so I used milk chocolate but it was pale in colour and didn't have the same chocolate kick as normal.
• I always melt the chocolate and butter in a bowl suspended over a pan of gently simmering water, less chance of the chocolate seizing that way.
• Its best to serve the ice cream on the side, gets very messy very quickly if you scoop it straight on top.