Black Sesame Lava Cake

A deliciously moist black sesame cake oozing with warm black sesame lava makes this a dream for all black sesame lovers. Don't let the gray-ish color fool you!

If it isn’t obvious already, I have an obsession with black sesame. I love that roasted nutty flavor and would put it on anything and everything if I could. Lava cakes are also one of my favorite desserts so naturally, I had to pair the two together! What’s even better is this recipe is super simple and quick. In less than 30 minutes, you’ll find yourself in black sesame heaven!

For this cake, I purchased roasted black sesame seeds from my local Japanese market and then ground about 1/4 cup in a blender until it was a fairly fine powder. There will be some clumps due to the oils in the seeds and that is perfectly fine.

If you make these black sesame lava cakes, tag me on Instagram @bunandgames - I'd love to see your creations!

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Bake Time: 10-12 minutes

Total Time: ~ 25-27 minutes

Yield: Makes 2 cakes

The yield is perfect for my husband and me - two for me, and empty ramekins for him. Just kidding! But feel free to double the recipe if two individual sized lava cakes are not enough. For the salt, use 1/8 of a teaspoon instead of a pinch if doubling the recipe.

INGREDIENTS

• 3 ounces white chocolate (I use Ghiradelli’s white chocolate chips)

• 2 tablespoons black sesame powder or ground roasted black sesame seeds

• 1/4 cup unsalted butter

• 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour (leveled)

• 1/4 cup confectioners’ sugar

• pinch of salt

• 1 large egg

• 1 large egg yolk

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Preheat the oven to 425 F for standard oven.

2. Spray two small ramekins with nonstick cooking spray and dust with all-purpose flour. This ensures the cakes will come out of the ramekins when inverted onto a plate.

3. Place butter into a medium heat-proof bowl, then add white chocolate chips on top. Microwave on high in 10 second increments, stirring after each until completely smooth. Set aside.

4. Whisk the flour, confectioners’ sugar, ground black sesame, and salt together in a small bowl. Ensure there are no lumps in the mixture.

5. Whisk the egg and egg yolk together until combined in another small bowl. Pour the flour mixture and eggs into the bowl of melted chocolate and butter. Slowly stir everything together using a rubber spatula. If there are any lumps, gently rid them using the spatula. The batter will be slightly thick.

6. Spoon black sesame batter evenly into each prepared ramekins.

7. Place ramekins onto a baking sheet and bake for 10-12 minutes. Watch the cakes closely as you want the sides to be firm, but the center to barely set (no longer liquid looking, but still slightly jiggly and soft). Overcooking the cake will result in a lava-less cake which defeats the purpose of a lava cake!

8. Allow to cool for 1 minute, then cover each with an inverted plate and turn over. Use an oven mitt because the ramekins are really hot! The cakes should release easily from the ramekin. If not, you can use a knife and gently run it along the sides of the cake to loosen it.

9. Serve immediately and enjoy! I know I did!