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Easy Egg Free Chocolate Lava Cakes are the ultimate dream come true for every chocolate lover! Made with staple pantry ingredients and without the hassle of eggs, you will be amazed at how rich, chocolatey, and delicious these chocolate lava cakes are! Decadent fudgy mini cakes with soft gooey centers, these easy egg free chocolate lava cakes are sure to please any chocolate lover no matter the occasion!
The Egg Conundrum
Happy Valentines day! We are snowbound for Valentines day this year, so it’s time to come up with a romantic dessert with limited ingredient options! Egg free chocolate lava cakes are the exact same as normal lava cakes except for the eggs. There really are no eggs in this cake!
This is fantastic for anyone who is A. allergic to eggs. B. Anyone who always overcooks lava cakes because of salmonella phobia (No, you don’t usually need to worry about salmonella from lava cakes, but with this recipe, you never have to! π ) C. You don’t want to break the bank because eggs are super expensive right now!
I don’t know about you, but eggs are Sooooo expensive in Washington! Valentines day is here, and I wanted to make something special that doesn’t break the egg bank! But how do you make cake without eggs?
Egg Free Chocolate Lava Cake Fails
I did some research, and common egg alternatives include bananas, applesauce, Greek yogurt, and vegan egg substitutes. I tried making lava cakes with applesauce… that basically tasted like a healthy cake. And a healthy tasting cake wasn’t exactly what I had in mind! I tried Greek yogurt… and that was just bleck! DON’T DO THAT! Egg substitutes were too specific since I wanted this recipe to be easy and to use ingredients already in my fridge.
So the fails were many and varied greatly. There were chocolate puddles, chocolate bricks, and chocolate meltdowns. You know you reach a new low when you just stare at a fallen oozing lava cake on the carpet wondering why you were making chocolate cake at 1 in the morning to begin with…
But then you’re back at it the very next day!
The Secret Ingredient Is!!!
Sour Cream! I kid you not! Sour cream added moisture and the desired binding affect I needed for these lava cakes. Greek yogurt worked too, but it was too sour. The cakes had a funky after taste. Oddly enough, sour cream is not as sour, so hid well underneath the chocolate! Plus! Sour cream is a very common fridge ingredient most people keep. This made it an even better substitute!
…Also there’s soy sauce in here. That might be the second secret ingredient! But if you have read my blog at all, you know I like adding soy sauce to chocolate recipes. It elevates the chocolate, and is a great replacement for salt while adding a delicious umami flavor. Ok! Moving on!
What Kind of Chocolate Do You Use?
Traditional chocolate lava cakes often call for bittersweet or dark chocolate. Because sour cream brings a very slight hint of tang, my favorite types of chocolate for these no egg chocolate lava cakes are semi sweet chocolate and dark chocolate. Normally, I use baking chocolate bars because tradition demands that only the best chocolate is required for chocolate lava cakes.
Unfortunately I was in a snow storm and couldn’t run to the store for said amazing chocolate. I experimented with semi sweet chocolate chips, and I honestly really liked the result! So, if you aren’t a chocolate snob, ditch the baking chocolate and use chocolate chips! It still makes an excellent cake! π
Easy Egg Free Chocolate Lava Cakes Step By Step
Let’s Get Cracking! (But not really cause we aren’t using eggs!)
Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Butter four ramekins and set aside. I have used both 1 cup ramekins and 1/2 cup ramekins. Either work fine, but you may need to alter the bake time a little if you use smaller ramekins. Muffin tins also work too! Just check them a little earlier.
Melt the Chocolate
In a medium microwave-safe bowl, combine the chocolate, butter, and milk. Microwave for 30 seconds. If the butter hasn’t fully melted, continue to microwave for 15 second increments. I was able to melt mine in two 15 second increments. Let the mixture sit for about 2 minutes to finish melting the chocolate.
Powdered Sugar Time!
Stir the chocolate to fully combine. Add the powdered sugar and mix thoroughly. It’s OK if there are a few lumps from the powdered sugar. They will melt eventually.
Add The Remaining Ingredients
Add the sour cream soy sauce, vanilla, and espresso powder. Gently fold in until there are no streaks remaining.
Fold In The Flour
Fold in the flour until it is thoroughly combined. Be careful not to over-mix the batter!
Divide Your Batter
Divide the batter evenly between the four ramekins. If you are using 1 cup ramekins, fill the batter 3/4 of the way up. If you are using 1/2 cup ramekins, fill them to the rim.
Bake Your Lava Cakes
Arrange the ramekins onto a cookie sheet and bake for about 15 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the edge comes out almost clean and a toothpick inserted into the middle still has batter. We want the centers to be gooey but the edges cooked. Depending on your ramekin size, this will vary between 14-16 minutes. If in doubt, do the toothpick test!
Serve!
Let the cakes cool for about 1 minute. Rim the edges, invert the cakes, and give them a good dusting of powdered sugar! Serve with whip cream and berries!
Cautionary Tale
Make sure you take the time for the toothpick test. I have discovered that without eggs, no egg chocolate lava cakes can be a little finicky. If you take them out too soon, you basically have a pudding. If it’s in too long, it becomes a hockey puck. Check the edges with your toothpick. If it’s clean with just a few crumbs attached and the center is still gooey, you will have the perfect lava cake!
Happy Valentines Day!
Seriously! These homemade no egg chocolate lava cakes taste nearly identical to the real thing! You would have no idea they didn’t have eggs in them!
And if you do have eggs and want to try out another amazing lava cake recipe, check out my Easy Molten Lava Cakes with Espresso Cream! They are decadent and beautiful showstoppers for any occasion!
Happy Eating! And Happy Valentines Day!
~Anna
Easy Egg Free Chocolate Lava Cakes
Ingredients
- 6 oz dark or semi sweet chocolate baking chocolate or chocolate chips both work
- ΒΌ cup unsalted butter
- ΒΌ cup milk
- 1 cup powdered sugar
- β cup sour cream
- Β½ tsp soy sauce
- Β½ tsp vanilla
- ΒΌ tsp espresso powder
- Β½ cup flour
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425β. Grease 4 ramekins with butter. Set aside on a cooking sheet. If using baking chocolate, break chocolate into small chunks. Add the milk and butter to the chocolate in a microwave safe bowl. Microwave 30 seconds. If chocolate hasn't fully melted, continue to heat in two 15 second increments. Let it sit 2-3 minutes to fully melt the chocolate.
- Stir the chocolate with a spatula until thoroughly combined. Gently mix in the powdered sugar until it is smooth. Some lumps are ok. Fold in the sour cream, soy sauce, vanilla, and espresso powder til combined. Fold in the flour.
- Divide evenly between the ramekins. Bake for 15 minutes until the sides are firm and the center is soft. The cakes are done when a toothpick inserted into the edges comes out nearly clean and the center when pricked still has wet batter attached. Let the cakes cool 1 minute. Rim the cakes with a butter knife, invert onto a plate, dust with powdered sugar, and serve immediately with whip cream and berries for an extra special treat!
