Page 44 - Cupcakes

WARM CHOCOLATE CUPCAKES

WITH MOLTEN CENTERS AND CINNAMON CREME ANGLAISE

• • • • •

It was chef Jean-Georges Vongerichten of New York City who put little
chocolate cakes with warm, melting centers on the map. The method he uses is
to bake a rich chocolate batter with very little flour at a high heat until the sides
of the cake set but the centers are still runny. This method works in a restaurant
kitchen, but there is a more practical method for the home cook. This one uses a
chocolate cupcake batter with a center of chocolate ganache—that luxurious
mixture of semisweet chocolate and hot cream, stirred until smooth, and allowed

to cool. The ganache sinks into the batter as the cupcake bakes, creating a
creamy molten center. Serve these tout de suite, as the French would say, and
have ready to go the dessert plates, forks, sauce, and sugar for sifting.

MAKES 22 TO 24 CUPCAKES (2½ INCHES EACH)
PREPARATION TIME: 20 MINUTES

BAKING TIME: 12 TO 14 MINUTES