(Dolen Perkins-Valdez, hardback). From the title you might think this is a book about the s-x word. It’s not. By a long shot. But the story, set in about 1852, is about a black slave woman, and her somewhat misguided “love” for her master. About the children she bore him, under the eagle eye of the master’s wife. But it’s all tied together with a yearly journey made to a place called Tawawa House, a rural inn of sorts in southern Ohio (a free State), that for some years allowed white slave owners to stay at the resort in rustic cottages with their black slaves, as couples. This place existed, according to the author’s afterword, and finally closed because some of the regulars (white couples who stayed in the main house) didn’t fancy this concubine business going on out in the woods. It’s about Lizzie’s relationships with the other slave women, about their desire to run to safety through the local underground, about them secretly meeting some free blacks, finding out more about abolition, and about the hardships all these black mistresses endured, and how little their lives were valued. A real stunning book. (I was sent this book as a perk from Harper Collins – because I had mentioned The Help. No strings attached – I could choose to mention this book, or not, here on my blog. I’m glad to because it’s a very good read.)
(Jamie Ford, on my Kindle). A poignant story about a Chinese-American, growing up in Seattle at the beginning of World War II. Henry falls in love with a young Japanese girl before her family is interned in a relocation camp. It a very secretive relationship because his parents would highly disapprove. The story goes back to the 40’s and forward to the 1980’s when Henry is in his 50’s and his wife (not the Japanese woman) has just died of cancer. The story pulls you in from the first page, especially when some artifacts are found in the basement of an old hotel which contain personal belongings from several Japanese families who were suddenly taken away back in 1942. You can see where it’s going, can’t you? I heard criticism of this book that it was just a little bit contrived. Halfway through I’m enjoying it very much.
(Kathryn Stockett on my Kindle, an excellent read); 
by Jetta Carleton (Kindle edition, eh); 
by Susan Richards (Kindle edition, good book); 
by Sally Gunning (Kindle edition, very good read)
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(Mario Batali & Gweneth Paltrow); 
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There are probably 1001 recipes out there for molten chocolate cake, or lava cake. Meaning that some of the batter doesn’t quite get cooked through, so when you press your fork or spoon into it, some of the center, hot batter oozes out and becomes a sauce. I have made these before, but not often, since I rarely make a heavy-duty chocolate dessert for guests. I do serve chocolate, but not usually a really heavy dose of it because the caffeine in chocolate affects me, so I assume it affects others too. I’m sensitive to caffeine. A half a cup of regular coffee and I’m feeling jittery in a matter of 15 minutes and regular coffee would probably prevent me from sleeping all night.
When this was served at the cooking class last week I hesitated. Should I really eat this? I don’t want to be up half the night playing mindless games on the computer. But my will power was weak. Especially when each of these cakes was cut in half, so I was only getting a half portion. I dug in. Ah, yes, it was good. Very good.
It’s a relatively simple recipe. The batter can be made up ahead of time, poured into ramekins and refrigerated. Then you can pop the pan into the oven about 15 minutes before you want to eat them. You could bake them just as you’re getting up from the dinner table perhaps. The only thing I learned from this version was dusting the buttered ramekins with granulated sugar before pouring in the batter. You could also use powdered cocoa (that’s what I’ve done in the past) but the granulated sugar is probably a better option. Dusting the ramekins with one or the other helps when it comes time to unmold the cakes. And make the caramel sauce ahead of time – it will keep for several weeks in the refrigerator.
The good news is that I slept just fine, thank you!
Molten Chocolate Cake with Caramel Sauce
Recipe: Deb Buzar, professional chef
Serving Size: 4
MOLTEN CAKES:
4 ounces semisweet chocolate
1/2 cup butter
1 cup powdered sugar
2 large eggs
2 large egg yolks — whole, reserve whites for another use
6 tablespoons flour
CARAMEL SAUCE:
8 ounces sugar
1/8 cup water
1/4 teaspoon lemon juice
1 tablespoon light corn syrup
3/4 cup heavy cream
2 tablespoons butter
GARNISH:
2 cups vanilla ice cream or whipped cream
Fresh berries to decorate plates
CAKE:
1. Preheat oven to 425 F. Butter and sugar 4 custard cups or ramekins. Place on cookie sheet and set aside.
2. Place chocolate and butter in a heatproof bowl and set over a bowl of simmering water (do not let bowl touch water), and stir occasionally until chocolate and butter are melted. Stir to combine, then add sugar. Remove from heat and mix until combined. Blend in eggs and egg yolks with a wire whisk. Stir in flour until no flour streaks are visible. Pour batter equally into the four cups.
3. Bake for 13-15 minutes, or until sides are firm but the centers are still soft and jiggly. Let them stand for one minutes. Take a small knife and loosen cake from sides of ramekins. Invert cakes onto dessert plates. It may take a fairly solid bang onto the plate to get them to release. Or, serve them in the ramekin. Serve immediately with topping of your choice, and with vanilla ice cream or whipped cream and berries for garnish.
SAUCE:
1. Place sugar, water and lemon juice in a small saucepan and gently bring to a boil. Brush down the edges of the pot with a wet, clean pastry brush. Add the corn syrup and continue to cook until the caramel turns a golden amber color. Do not stir even once.
2. Remove from heat and whisk in the butter. Carefully pour in the cream, whisking gently but constantly. May be done ahead and kept covered in the refrigerator for several weeks.
I purposely have not included the nutrition count on this as the recipe assumes you eat all of the caramel sauce, which you won’t do. The numbers would scare anybody away from ever making this!
Printer-friendly PDF recipe
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