We enjoyed watching the movie “Chef” the other night. Long story short, it’s about a chef who loses his upscale restaurant job and then starts up a food truck in an effort to reclaim his creative swagger. In one of the more epic scenes, a food critic claims that he would much rather have the chef
“sit on his face on a warm day after a brisk walk in the park than have to take another bite of his uninspired chocolate lava cake”.
That’s a pretty profound (and hilarious) statement right there, but in all fairness the chef did ask for it. He served a “lava cake” that completely lacked the signature molten lava oozing out of the middle. We found this scene exceptionally funny because we too have experienced such a culinary crime. Actually, I’m pretty sure that’s why I have trust issues…
Anyways, this past weekend we took our annual weekend Cleveland trip. We really enjoy the creative craft beer scene there plus it’s always fun to get away for a few days without spending too much time in transit. Yes, we cheat on our favorite Pittsburgh breweries a few times a year. But absence makes the heart grow stronger, doesn’t it? During the treks over, we make sure we hit up our favorite breweries along the way, and Willoughby Brewing Co. is always a mandatory stop. They have several award-winning brews, but their Peanut Butter Cup Porter is out of this world. After taking one sip of that decadent beer, we knew…just KNEW that this beer would be the perfect addition to redeem all of those pathetically parched molten lava cakes.
The Peanut Butter Cup Porter includes incredibly warm flavors like chocolate, coffee, and peanut butter. We embraced this decadent flavor profile and highlighted them in this beer-centric recipe. The beer keeps this cake so incredibly moist and the “lava” even gooier. The best part, it’s beyond easy to make and it looks like it came from a professional kitchen. All of the foodie and craft beer critics in your life will surely give you glowing remarks with this dish. Enjoy! We definitely did.
Ingredients
- 3.5 oz Dark Chocolate 60%
- 1 1/2 sticks butter (10 TBSP)
- 2/3 cup Peanut Butter Cup Porter by Willoughby Brewing Co.
- 3 eggs plus 3 additional yolks
- 1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
- 1/3 cup cocoa powder
- 3/4 cup flour
- 1 tsp espresso powder
- 6 tsp peanut butter, separated*
Directions
- Preheat oven to 425
- Butter 6 soufflé dishes thoroughly
- In a medium size saucepan over medium heat, add the chocolate and butter. Stir constantly until mixture is melted. Remove pan from heat. Add beer and stir until combined
- In a separate bowl, whisk the eggs, yolks and powdered sugar
- Pour chocolate mixture over egg mixture, and stir to combine
- Add cocoa powder, espresso powder, and flour to chocolate mixture, stir until combined but do not over mix
- For each soufflé dish, fill with mixture until 2/3 full. Add 1 tsp of peanut butter into the middle. Cover peanut butter dollop with a little more of chocolate mixture. Repeat with remaining soufflé dishes
- Place filled soufflé dishes on a baking pan and bake at 425 until the outside is set, but the center is still liquid, about 9-12 minutes (the sweet spot for us was 10 min)
- Run a butter knife around the edge of the cake to make sure it doesn’t stick. Place a plate on top of each soufflé dish, flip upside down, and lift soufflé dish to reveal your ooey gooey cake. Serve immediately and enjoy!
*If you REALLY love peanut butter, throw some in a microwavable dish, heat it up, and drizzle over the finished molten lava cake
Cheer’s N’at Devo and Tim
Pennies, Pints, Pittsburgh
We are a husband & wife blogging team who loves beer, food, and Pittsburgh. We were both born and raised in the City of Bridges and now are proudly raising our own family here. Pittsburgh is going through a tremendous craft beer boom and we are beyond thrilled to be a part of it. We enjoy blogging about the local craft beer scene and also enjoy the challenge of effectively incorporating those local beers into some of our favorite recipes.
Inspiration from thebeeroness and bestfoodinsydney
