A Treat For Two: Chocohotopots

My husband's mother loves to bake. I gain about 5 pounds each time she comes into town and I enjoy every delicious calorie of it. Lucky for my waist line she only comes into town 2 or 3 times a year and I'm usually able to loose the weight pretty quickly when she leaves (except for this last time with the baby, recovering from delivery, depression, etc. losing weight is going a lot slower).

Mommy-in-law considers family recipes to an important part of recording her personal and family history. She frequently sends us updates with recipes from grandparents, new things she's tried, and my husband's favorite childhood foods.

This is a favorite recipe of my husband's family, adapted to serve just the two of us. My mother-in-law wrote in her recipe book:

This is what to eat when your chocolate level is a quart low. It is deeply chocolate and very quick to prepare and cook. Each of my children headed off to [college] with this recipe, a mug and a wire whisk.

This recipe is amazing. It turns out cake-y and gooey almost like a mini lava cake. Adding vanilla ice cream  gives it this beautiful hot/cold chocolate/vanilla contrast. It is a multi-sensory experience. I love it.

We like to make it anytime we're having a hectic day. Today was one of those days. We have a million things to do (all good things, but a lot of rushing) and the weather is gross. Nothing like a good strong dose of chocolate to give us the gusto to get out the door and start on our to do list.

Ingredients:
- ¼ cup Unsalted Butter
- 2 ounces (about ¼ cup) Semisweet Chocolate Chips
- 1 pinch Salt
- ¼ teaspoon Vanilla
- 6 tablespoons Sugar
- 1 large Egg
- 3 tablespoons Flour

Instructions:

Melt the butter and the chocolate chips together. Add the salt, vanilla, and sugar to the melted mixture and stir. Beat in the egg. Add the flour and stir until smooth.

Spray two 1-cup ramekins with non-stick cooking spray and divide the batter evenly between the two.

This is where my oven safe dishes saved me again. I don't own 1-cup ramekins. One day I hope to have money and space for more kitchen dishes and gadgets, but today is not that day. See my post on DIY Taco Bowls for more details.

Instead of ramekins, I used mugs. Below is a link to the mugs I own. They work great and are fun to eat out of. Just make sure your mugs are oven safe. This is very important. Otherwise they might shatter and that would be bad. Less dangerous, but still important make sure your mugs hold at least 1 cup. Otherwise you might have a huge mess and ovens are a pain to clean.

Simple Sketch Square 12 Oz Mug on Amazon

Make sure your ramekins (or mugs for most of us) are stable in the oven. If they are too small to be stable on the oven rack, put them on a baking tray.

Bake at 400 degrees for 22 minutes.

Top with ice-cream and serve.

This is best served very hot. You'll probably need to use towels or hot pads so that the hot mug doesn't damage counters, tables, or your skin. Be sure to take extra precautions if serving to children.

Enjoy.