Chocolate Lava Cakes with Cherry Compote
For a small treat, packed with rich and gooey flavor, we’re making these chocolate lava cakes with cherry compote in the center. This means they not only ooze molten chocolate but also delicious bites of cherry as well.
My favorite part? These come together surprisingly easily and relatively quickly. Note that you will need to freeze the cherry compote into small discs ahead of baking, to keep them centered in the cake. But, all in all, it’s a quick bake that’s sure to impress!
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WHAT IS A LAVA CAKE?
Ultimately, chocolate lava cake is a deliberately undercooked chocolate cake. When you cut your spoon into the center, it will give that molten ooze we all know and love. Who needs hot fudge when your cake can ooze out of the middle?
Lava cakes are baked small, often in ramekins or muffin tins, for a rich and chocolatey sweet treat. For a simple bake, you’ll often find them served for special occasions or during date night (Valentine’s Day treat anyone?).
How do I know my lava cake is done? The cake should appear set on the outside but still moist in the center. You should be able to insert a toothpick into the edge of the cake and have it come out clean, but when inserted into the middle, the toothpick is wet.
INGREDIENTS
- Cherries: Fresh or frozen for that surprise cherry-chocolate bite
- Sugar: For added sweetness to enhance the taste of both the compote and cake
- Lemon Juice: The acid needed to balance flavor and texture
- Cornstarch: Helps to thicken and set your compote
- Water: Working with the cornstarch to make a slurry
- Dark Chocolate: 60-70% for that rich sweetness
- Unsalted Butter: Adds moisture and flavor
- Eggs: Whole and yolks, for extra richness and fluff
- Flour: For structure to prevent your cake from collapsing
- Salt: Always a flavor enhancer
- Vanilla: Adds a pop of flavor to balance the chocolate and cherry
- Cocoa Powder: To line your muffin tins, making for an easy release
- Powdered Sugar: Just for dusting the top of your baked cakes if desired
What’s the best way to remove a lava cake from the pan? First, make sure your pan is well greased and dusted with cocoa powder; this will ensure the cakes don’t stick as they bake. Once they’ve baked and cooled for a minute, run a butter knife around the rim of each cup to loosen where needed. Place a platter over your cakes and invert the tin onto the platter. The cakes should fall right out!
HOW TO MAKE CHOCOLATE LAVA CAKES with CHERRY COMPOTE
Prep your cherry compote first, since it will need time to freeze before baking your chocolate lava cakes with cherry filling.
For your compote, add all your ingredients – diced cherries, sugar, lemon juice, cornstarch, and water – to a small pot and place on the stove over medium heat. Bring to a simmer while stirring regularly until thickened. At this point, the cherries will soften and their juices will release, becoming an almost thin jam-like consistency. This will take around 8-10 minutes.
Place a piece of parchment paper on a plate and use a tsp to form 6 small mounds of compote. Place your plate with your cherry compote in the freezer for 1 hour. This is essential to shape the compote so it bakes in the center of your molten lava cakes.
Once your compote has frozen, it’s time to prep your chocolate cake batter. Preheat your oven to 425°F. Grab a 12-cup muffin pan and generously grease the middle 6 tins – this will make it easiest to cover and invert your baked cakes onto a plate later. Dust with cocoa powder and tap the pan with your hand to cover the sides and bottom of each cup. Tapping any excess cocoa powder onto the table.
To make your batter, start by melting together your chocolate and butter in a bowl. Microwave and stir every 10 seconds until smooth. Set your bowl aside to allow the chocolate mixture to cool slightly.
In a separate bowl, add your eggs, egg yolks, and sugar and whisk for about 2 minutes, until thickened and pale. Pour in your melted chocolate mixture and stir to combine. Add your salt and sift in your flour, folding gently until just combined.
To assemble, spoon one tablespoon of your chocolate lava cake batter into each prepped muffin cup. Top with one of your frozen cherry compote mounds, in the center. Then cover each with the remaining cake batter, filling about ¾ of the way full.
Bake your cakes for 10 minutes. You’ll notice the edges look set, but the centers will still look moist and appear slightly jiggly. Remove your pan from the oven and allow the cakes to cool for 1 minute. Then run a small knife around the edge of each cake, place a large platter over the top, and flip your cakes onto the plate. They should come out easily.
Serve dusted with powdered sugar and fresh cherries. Enjoy
3 reasons you’ll love these mini cakes
TIPS & VARIATIONS
- If you aren’t a fan of cherries, swap for another fruit compote! If going homemade, just make sure to reduce the liquid enough that it’s a thin jam consistency, so it will freeze in discs (and not run all over the plate). Freezing is essential to ensure the compote stays in the center of the cake!
- You can also completely omit the fruit filling and just make a classic lava cake with this recipe!
- Note that if you use frozen cherries, they will add a little more water to the pot and may take a little longer to cook down
- Give your melted chocolate a chance to cool. If it’s too hot, you risk cooking your eggs, which… is not gonna be tasty. Between the time you melt the chocolate and get your eggs and sugar whisked, it should have cooled enough to pour together
- The step of whisking the eggs, yolks, and sugar together is essential to the structure and rise of your cakes. This incorporates air into your batter, so after whisked, be gentle as you mix and fold in your other ingredients
- A key step in making lava cakes is thoroughly greasing the pan. I like to grease my muffin tins with a butter wrapper. Sometimes I add an extra smidge of butter to the wrapper to ensure a really buttery surface. After greasing, sprinkle your cocoa powder across the tin and tap around with your hand to coat the bottom and sides of each cup. Then tap your pan on the counter to knock out any excess cocoa powder.
- Don’t overbake your cakes! They will still be wet in the center when you remove them from the oven. But a toothpick inserted at the edge of the cake should come out clean.
MAKING AHEAD & STORING
Once you make your cherry compote, you can freeze it into individual mounds and then store them in an airtight container for up to 3 months. You can also keep the compote in a jar in the fridge for a few days before freezing if desired.
Once baked, the lava cakes are best served immediately. This will give you that fully gooey lava effect. If you have leftovers, you can store them in the fridge for up to three days. When ready to eat, I recommend popping your cake in the microwave for no more than 10 seconds, just to heat up that center. It won’t be as liquidy, but you should still get some of that goo factor and, of course, yummy cake.
MORE CAKE RECIPES
For another decadent cake, try this Coconut Texas Sheet Cake, packed with coconut flavor and topped with a fudgy coconut frosting. Fan of chocolate AND chocolate chip cookie dough? You have to try this Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Cake, complete with cookie dough frosting and edible cookie dough bites. Looking for something quick? This easy Chocolate Mug Cake, topped with a dusting of powdered sugar, is my go-to for satisfying that chocolate craving.
Equipment
- 12-cup Muffin Tin
- Small pot
- Spatula
- Mixing Bowls
- Whisk
- Parchment Paper
- Plate
- Knife
- Measuring Cups
- Measuring Spoons
Ingredients
- ½ cup pitted cherries diced
- 1 tbsp sugar
- ½ tbsp lemon juice
- ½ tsp cornstarch
- ½ tbsp water
- 4 oz dark chocolate 60–70%
- 7 tbsp unsalted butter plus extra for greasing pan
- 2 whole eggs
- 2 egg yolks
- ⅓ cup granulated sugar
- ¼ cup flour
- ¼ tsp salt
- ½ tsp vanilla extract
- 1 tbsp cocoa powder for dusting pan
- Powdered sugar optional
- Cherries optional
Instructions
- Start by making your cherry compote. In a small pot, combine cherries, sugar, lemon juice, cornstarch, and water over medium heat
- Simmer, stirring regularly, for 8-10 minutes until cherries soften, juices release, and the mixture thickens to a loose jam consistency. Remove from heat and let cool for 5 minutes
- Spoon 1 tsp of cherry compote into 6 small mounds on a plate lined with parchment paper. Place in the freezer for 1 hour
- Preheat oven to 425°F
- Grease the middle 6 muffin cups generously with butter and dust with cocoa powder. Tap your pan gently with your hand to cover the bottoms and sides with the cocoa, before knocking out any excess from the pan
- For your cake, in a bowl, add your chocolate and butter. Place in the microwave, stirring every 10 seconds, until smooth. Set aside to cool slightly
- In a separate bowl, whisk eggs, egg yolks, and sugar until pale and thick (about 2 minutes). Stir in the melted chocolate mixture and vanilla
- Sift in flour and salt. Fold in gently until combined
- Spoon about 1 tablespoon of batter into each prepared muffin cup
- Place 1 frozen cherry compote mound in the center of each. Cover with remaining batter until muffin cups are about ¾ full. Work quickly to fill your cups at this stage; if you wait too long, the batter may start to separate. If it does, use a spatula to gently fold it back together
- Bake for 10 minutes. The edges will be set, but the centers will be slightly jiggly
- Let rest in the tin for 1 minute, then run a knife along the edges of each cake to loosen
- Place a platter over your muffin tins and invert your cakes onto your plate
- Serve immediately, dusted with powdered sugar or topped with a few fresh cherries
This recipe is the most simplest and quickest one ever I can’t even explain how delicious it was!! Especially making it my first lava cake I was scared it wasn’t going to come out right but it did I will definitely be making this often!!😍thank you so much for this recipe!!
So happy to hear this, Melissa! Glad you loved and thank you for sharing!!