chocolate molten lava cakes, take 5

I should tell you that it took me five way too many times to get these bad boys right. The only reason I'm divulging such information is that I think you can learn from my mistakes. So, here they are:

Mistake #1: Baked them too long. They're really deceiving because they might not look "done" at 12 minutes. But, they are. Pull them out! If not, they won't taste bad, you will just have chocolate cakes and no molten lava.

Mistake #2: Tried to halve the recipe. Don't do it. There's only a tablespoon of four as it is, so I don't think the chemistry pulls off with only half a tablespoon.

Mistake #3: Thought I could use white chocolate. Even though I used Ghiradelli, it still seized on me. I really think the bittersweet chocolate chips melt much, much better.

A few other notes before we get started:
The recipe says it makes 8. I only had 6 ramekins and I think the portions were perfect. So, it's your call-- 6 or 8?
I don't know how to make the top pretty, so don't expect that.
Although it seems like a lot of work for just one tablespoon, I would sift the flour first before adding.
These are served best with creamy vanilla ice cream.

Here's what you need: 

-3 eggs
-3 egg yolks
-5 tablespoons of sugar, plus more for coating ramekins
-8 oz. bittersweet chocolate (I recommend Ghiradelli)
-room temp. butter for coating ramekins
-1 tablespoon flour

Here's what I did: 

Coat the ramekins with butter and then sugar. Set aside on a baking dish. Turn the oven to 425.

First, I melted down my butter on low heat. When it was all liquid, I added the chocolate chips, left the heat on for just a minute more and then turned it off. You could go double boiler method, if you wanted. I stirred it a lot and watched so it wouldn't seize.


Then, I took my eggs, egg yolks and sugar and put them in my mixer on a low-ish speed to mix for 8 minutes. I was supposed to see a change in consistency--"pale yellow, ribbon-like consistency," but I never did.

I folded in a third of my chocolate mixture, and then the rest. Last, I folded in that 1 tablespoon of flour. After this, I did get ribbon-like consistency.

Portion out the mixture into your ramekins (6 or 8, however you choose) and then put in your oven for about 12 minutes. Watch them closely! When the edges have a crust, but the middle jiggles, you're done! Enjoy.

Please comment if you find any other ways to make these better!