Chocolate Lava Cakes

Over at Life As Mom, Jessica is having her readers share some of their favorite chocolate recipes. If you're a chocolate lover, head here and click on the links at the bottom of the post to see some tasty chocolate recipes.

I thought I'd share a recipe that I found in Family Circle awhile back for Chocolate Lava Cakes. The ingredients are simple. Chances are you have the stuff already at home. The original recipe called for bittersweet chocolate but for simplicity I just use a bag of chocolate chips (no chopping necessary). Also, you can make the cakes ahead of time and then warm them up in the microwave before serving. This is especially nice if you're going to be entertaining or making a special family dinner that takes awhile to prepare. I've made these a couple times for an at-home Valentine's Dinner.

Chocolate Lava Cakes

Ingredients:

• 12 ounces semi-sweet chocolate chips
• ¾ cup unsalted butter
• 4 eggs
• 2 Tablespoons sugar
• Melted butter to grease the molds
• Vanilla or Mint Chocolate Chip ice cream

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease eight 6-ounce ramekins and put on a baking sheet. Set aside.
2. In a large glass bowl, melt chocolate chips in the microwave on high for 1 minutes. Stir and then microwave another minute. Stir until smooth and cool slightly.
3. In a medium-size bowl, whip eggs and sugar until it triples in volume, about 6-7 minutes.
4. Fold egg mixture into chocolate. Divide the batter among the greased ramekins.
5. Bake at 350 for 15 to 17 minutes or until top is just set.
6. Invert cakes onto plates and serve with ice cream. Enjoy!

Note: You can make the cakes up to a day ahead and store in the refrigerator. Then, reheat them briefly in the microwave briefly before serving.