— A Romantic Valentine's Dessert

Sunday is Valentine’s Day. This will be the 22nd Valentine’s Day Lee and I have “celebrated” together. I remember two of them: the very first one (because it was two weeks after we met, and thus a cause of great angst–what to do? how much is too much?–I wound up giving him a card), and the one in the mid-90s when he gave me a Laura Ashley dress (he said it was in lieu of flowers, because it was a floral print). I exchanged it for one of those one piece knicker/jumper numbers–still floral.

I’m not a big fan of Valentine’s Day, can you tell? I don’t really need forced romance in my life. Or overpriced flowers, crowded restaurants, or ill-suited panic gifts. Lee tells me he loves me every day (and most days, he loads the dishwasher). Hallmark can’t compare.

The only Valentine’s-ey tradition I can really get behind is the idea of a home-made, over-the-top decadent dessert. Is that a totally self-serving gesture? Probably, but it works. I get to bake, we both get a rich, indulgent treat, and the Valentine’s requirement is fulfilled.

This is another brilliant recipe from Small-Batch Baking. Her version makes three servings; I’ve scaled it up to make four. Because, you know, no romantic Valentine’s dinner is complete without cranky teenagers wanting to know why the grown-ups won’t share.

The instructions for preparing the pans sound complicated, but it’s actually really simple and easy. But just to be on the safe side, I photographed the process for you, just for clarity’s sake. If you don’t happen to have any 3-inch baking rings, I don’t see why you couldn’t use a muffin tin, and make 8 super-tiny cakes, instead of 4 (having a smaller serving wouldn’t be a crisis–these are really rich). Just be sure to spray the muffin tin really well.

Classic Chocolate Truffle Souffle Cakes
Makes 4 cakes

3 1/3 T. butter
5 1/3 oz. bittersweet or semisweet chocolate, chopped (I used Scharffen-Berger semisweet)
1 1/3 T. Grand Marnier, Chambord, Kahlua, or whatever liqueur you prefer
1 large egg plus two yolks, at room temperature
4 T. sugar

4 baking rings (about 3 x 1 1/2 inches)

Preheat oven to 350.

Cut four 5-inch squares of heavy-duty aluminum foil (I only had regular, so I cut mine 10 x 5, and folded it in half) and four 5-inch squares of parchment paper.

Place a parchment paper square on top of each aluminum foil square. Center a baking ring on top of each square; form the edges of the foil up around the sides of each ring, bringing up the parchment with the foil.

Mold the foil well to the sides of the rings to create individual baking dishes with parchment-lined foil bottoms.

Brush the parchment paper bottoms and the sides of the rings with melted butter and dust them lightly with flour, tapping out the excess (I just sprayed it all thoroughly with the “baking” variety of Pam, because I’m lazy). Place the baking rings on a baking sheet for easier handling, and set aside.

Place the chocolate and butter in a small microwave-safe bowl and microwave on high power until they melt, 1 to 1 1/2 minutes. Stir until smooth. Whisk in the liqueur and let the mixture cool to lukewarm.

Place the egg, yolks, and sugar in a small bowl and beat with a hand-held mixer (use the whisk attachment, if you have one) at high speed until tripled in volume (eyeball it), 4 to 5 minutes. Fold one quarter of the egg mixture into the chocolate mixture to lighten it; then fold all of the chocolate mixture into the remaining egg mixture. Spoon the batter into the prepared baking rings, dividing it evenly among them.

Bake the cakes until they have pulled away from the sides of the baking rings and a toothpick inserted into the center of one comes out clean, about 20 minutes. Remove the baking sheet from the oven and transfer the cakes to a wire rack to cool, still in the baking rings, for 10 minutes. Then loosen the cakes with a sharp knife and remove the parchment paper and foil bottoms. Gently push each cake through the baking ring onto the rack, and allow to cool completely.

Serve the cakes warm or at room temperature, with whatever sort of topping or garnish catches your fancy. A drizzle of salted caramel is nice, like in the picture at the top.