Indulge with these killer chocolate and pear muffins. They are soft and delicious. I love the combination of pear and chocolate, but you can also leave the pears out and treat yourself to pure chocolate heaven. I made heart shaped muffins but you can use any muffin shape you like or use the whole mixture to bake an 18cm cake. The chocolate sauce contains uncooked eggs.
Makes: 6-8 muffins
Prep time: 15 min
Baking time: 18-20 min
INGREDIENTS
4 tbsp cocoa
150g caster sugar
200g butter
2 free range eggs
4 tbsp plain white flour (ideally ‘00’ grade)
1 tsp baking powder
1 pear, peeled and finely diced
A pinch of salt
METHOD
Preheat oven to 180°C. Brush an 8-hole silicone heart-shaped muffin mold with a little cake release oil.
In a small pan, heat 100ml water with the cocoa and sugar. Mix with a hand whisk and slowly bring to the boil. Switch off the heat, add the butter and leave it to melt.
Once melted, pour the mixture into a mixing bowl and stir in the egg yolks. Leave to cool for 5 minutes.
In a separate bowl beat the egg whites until they hold their shape. Gently fold them in the chocolate mixture, and mix until it has a smooth, homogeneous consistency.
Transfer two full ladles of this mixture to a separate bowl to use as the sauce later.
Add half the pear to the remaining mixture, then sieve in the flour, baking powder and a pinch of salt. Gently stir to combine
Pour the cake mixture into each hole until almost full - they won’t rise very much. Top each muffin with the remaining pear and bake for 18-20 minutes or until a cake stick comes out dry.
Leave to cool for at least 15-20 minutes before gently turning the hearts out. You can serve them warm or at room temperature, and with or without chocolate sauce.
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