Warm Chocolate Fondant - Richard Bertinet
Everyone loves warm chocolate fondant for pudding, and this one, courtesy of Richard Bertinet of The Bertinet Kitchen, is given an added kick with his preserved cherries in Kirsch.
Serves 4
1 small jar cherries in syrup
16 tbsp Kirsch
160g good quality dark chocolate
160g unsalted butter, plus a knob to butter moulds
2 large eggs
2 egg yolks
130g caster sugar (70g for the cake and 50g for the sauce)
20g plain flour
Method
Strain the cherries into a bowl and cover with Kirsch. Reserve the syrup for the sauce. Leave the cherries to soak in the fridge, preferably overnight.
Preheat the oven to 200C/180C if fan. Place the reserved cherry syrup into a pan with 50g sugar. Spoon the excesss Kirsch from the bowl of soaking cherries into the syrup and reduce over a medium heat until you have about a centimetre left in the bottom. Set aside.
Place some water in a bain marie (or bowl over a saucepan) and bring to a simmer. Melt the chocolate in a bowl over it, ensuring the bowl is not touching the water, add the butter and mix thoroughly.
In another bowl, whisk the sugar and eggs together and then stir in the chocolate mixture. Gently fold the sifted flour into the mix. Lightly butter four ramekins. Distribute about half of the chocolate mixture between the four moulds. Place five cherries into the middle of each and then top with the remaining chocolate mixture. You will inevitable add a little of the Kirsch with the cherries. Don't worry about this but do not add more.
Bake in the oven for about 7 minutes until springy to the touch. Turn out each cake onto an individual serving plate and serve with a few more cherries, a dribble of syrup and some good quality vanilla ice cream.
Everyone loves warm chocolate fondant for pudding, and this one, courtesy of Richard Bertinet of The Bertinet Kitchen, is given an added kick with his preserved cherries in Kirsch.
Serves 4
1 small jar cherries in syrup
16 tbsp Kirsch
160g good quality dark chocolate
160g unsalted butter, plus a knob to butter moulds
2 large eggs
2 egg yolks
130g caster sugar (70g for the cake and 50g for the sauce)
20g plain flour
Method
Strain the cherries into a bowl and cover with Kirsch. Reserve the syrup for the sauce. Leave the cherries to soak in the fridge, preferably overnight.
Preheat the oven to 200C/180C if fan. Place the reserved cherry syrup into a pan with 50g sugar. Spoon the excesss Kirsch from the bowl of soaking cherries into the syrup and reduce over a medium heat until you have about a centimetre left in the bottom. Set aside.
Place some water in a bain marie (or bowl over a saucepan) and bring to a simmer. Melt the chocolate in a bowl over it, ensuring the bowl is not touching the water, add the butter and mix thoroughly.
In another bowl, whisk the sugar and eggs together and then stir in the chocolate mixture. Gently fold the sifted flour into the mix. Lightly butter four ramekins. Distribute about half of the chocolate mixture between the four moulds. Place five cherries into the middle of each and then top with the remaining chocolate mixture. You will inevitable add a little of the Kirsch with the cherries. Don't worry about this but do not add more.
Bake in the oven for about 7 minutes until springy to the touch. Turn out each cake onto an individual serving plate and serve with a few more cherries, a dribble of syrup and some good quality vanilla ice cream.
