It’s mid-February, which means we’ve hit that part of the Canadian winter where it feels like it will never end. It’s Winterlude in Ottawa, which is a massive winter festival. People head outdoors and enjoy skating on the Rideau Canal, take in the snow and ice sculptures, or try to stay warm while enjoying some fun winter activities.
This week, we were hit by #snowmageddon (aka #snowpocalpyse #OttawaStorm etc.). After a year of record-breaking snowfalls, we received an additional 30 cm of snow overnight. Schools were closed. People worked from home. The city shut down.
I can’t think of a better, cozier recipe for a snowy winter day than these molten dulce de leche cakes with white chocolate. They are warm and comforting. It’s the perfect recipe to end Winterlude.
Whether you call it a molten cake, a lava cake or a fondant au chocolate, it’s all the same and it’s all delicious. This one is special due to the addition of white chocolate and dulce de leche.
This is a recipe I found in a Chuck Hughes cookbook while working at the Rideau Club. At the time I paired it with my fresh strawberry ice cream which was an amazing combination.
These little cakes are best eaten warm right out of the oven. Dust with icing sugar and sprinkle a bit of Maldon salt and a cold scoop of whatever ice cream you have in the freezer.
Yield:Eight 3-inch ramekins
Ingredients:
- 1 cup good quality white chocolate
- 2 Tbsp unsalted butter
- 1 cup dulce de leche
- 2 eggs (room temp)
- 2 Tbsp sugar
- ½ cup AP flour
Procedure:
- Grease ramekins and dust with flour.
- Melt white chocolate and butter over a bain-marie. Stir in dulce de leche and set aside.
- Whip eggs with the sugar on high until doubled in volume.
- Fold the two mixtures together and sift flour over top. Mix to incorporate.
- Portion into ramekins (you can stop here and refrigerate them until you are ready to bake if so desired). Bake at 400°F for 9 min.
- Unmould while still warm by placing a plate over top and inverting gently.
- Dust with icing sugar, sprinkle with some Maldon salt and serve with ice cream.
*to make dulce de leche is very simple. Remove the label from a can of sweetened condensed milk and cover with water in a pot. Bring to a gentle simmer and let it go for 4 hours, never letting the water go below the level of the can. Let it come to room temp overnight before using.
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