Dreamy Dark Chocolate Mi-Cuits

GLUTEN-FREE | GRAIN-FREE

These delicious little chocolate cakes are called "mi-cuits" in France (pronounced “mee-kwee”) which translates to "midway cooked." Because their centers are soft and gooey, they may appear only partially baked, but believe me, they are cooked to perfection.

At the moment you can find them on every good dessert menu in Paris, but if France is too far, you can make them yourself. Mi-cuits must be prepared in advance and frozen solid, but once you have them in the freezer, they can be baked on demand any time you like.

This Valentine's Day, treat your sweetheart (or another lucky person) to this chocolate lover's dream. Home-made desserts are always something special and this is a healthy one. My recipe is free of refined carbohydrates and gluten, and it's a good source of protein, healthy fat, and antioxidants.

Use dark chocolate with a high cocoa content, because it’s the cocoa powder that contains healthy compounds shown to reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease, heart attack, stroke, and cancer.

I like to pair this dessert with the simplest home-made raspberry sauce. But if you prefer your chocolate without distraction, feel free to skip it.

Ingredients:

• Butter to coat ramekins
• 7 ounces dark chocolate, 72% or darker
• 1 stick butter (1/2 cup or 8 tablespoons)
• 1/4 cup honey
• 1/4 cup cocoa powder
• 1/2 cup almond flour
• Pinch sea salt
• 3/4 teaspoon baking powder
• 3 eggs

Special Equipment:

• 5 or 6 six-ounce ceramic oven-proof ramekins
• Electric mixer

Directions:

1. Coat the insides of the ramekins with butter and set them aside.
2. Warm the chocolate, butter and honey in a glass or stainless steel bowl over a pot of slowly simmering water. Cover and heat until just melted, stirring occasionally.
3. Remove the melted chocolate mixture from the stove. Use an electric mixer to incorporate the cocoa powder, almond flour, sea salt and baking powder. Once smooth, beat in the eggs, one at a time, and mix well for another minute.
4. Divide the mixture among the prepared ramekins. Cover tightly and transfer to the freezer until frozen solid (overnight or longer).
5. To serve the mi-cuits, preheat the oven to 375F. Transfer them from the freezer to the oven and bake, uncovered, for 15 minutes or more, until the sides are cooked and the center is still shiny. Taking care not to burn yourself, run a knife or rubber scraper along the inside of each ramekin and unmold it onto a plate. Serve immediately, alone or with this simple raspberry sauce.

Simple Raspberry Sauce:

• 1 cup frozen raspberries, thawed, with juices
• 1 tsp honey

1. Allow the raspberries to thaw in a dish at room temperature for up to 2 hours (or overnight in the fridge), then stir in the honey. 
2. Serve immediately or store in an air-tight container in the fridge for future use.