Ingredients

Method

• 20 g unsalted butter, melted, for lining moulds
• castor sugar for lining moulds
• 200 g dark chocolate, with 60% cocoa solids, finely chopped
• 200 g unsalted butter, softened
• 4 medium-sized free-range eggs
• 4 medium-sized free-range egg yolks
• 200 g icing sugar, sieved, plus extra for dusting
• 55 g plain flour
• 35 g good-quality cocoa powder
for the chocolate sorbet
• 400 ml water
• 100 ml milk
• 150 g castor sugar
• 40 ml glucose
• 30 g cocoa powder
• 100 g dark chocolate, chopped
• 1 bunch fresh mint

Method

Ingredients

1. Prepare the chocolate sorbet 12 hours in advance of serving. Bring the water, milk, castor sugar, glucose and cocoa powder to the boil in a heavy-based saucepan and stir continuously for 2 minutes. Reduce the heat to a simmer.
2. Add the chocolate and stir until melted. Remove from the heat and allow to cool. Pass through a fine sieve and churn in an ice-cream machine until it becomes smooth and creamy. Transfer to a container and freeze until ready to use.
3. For the chocolate fondants: preheat the oven to 190 °C. Prepare eight dariole moulds or ramekins by brushing them well with melted butter, using upward strokes around the sides. Chill until firm, and then brush again with another layer of butter. Coat the ramekins with castor sugar, shaking out the excess. Place the ramekins on a baking tray and set aside.
4. Put the chocolate and 200 g butter into a stainless-steel bowl and set over a pot of simmering water. Stir the chocolate and butter until melted, smooth and fully incorporated. Keep warm.
5. Using an electric mixer, beat the eggs, egg yolks and icing sugar together until pale and doubled in volume. Reduce the speed of the mixer and add the melted chocolate.
6. Remove the bowl from the mixer and sift the flour and cocoa powder; fold them into the chocolate mixture, taking care not to over-work the mixture.
7. Spoon the mixture evenly between the prepared moulds; they should be just over half full. Place in the oven and bake for 8–10 minutes. After 8 minutes, remove one of the fondants and check that it is cooked around the edges and the centre still looks soft. Insert a skewer to test the centre; the skewer should come away warm but the centre should remain liquid. If you think it needs more time, return the fondants to the oven for another minute and check again.
8. Remove the fondants from the oven and allow to stand for 1 minute. Carefully turn each one out onto a serving plate. Dust with icing sugar and serve with a quenelle of chocolate sorbet.

Cook's note: The sorbet recipes makes 750ml of sorbet.

Find more chocolate recipes here.

Extracted from Liam Tomlin's Tapas with permission from Penguin Random House.