Chocolate lava pudding

I love lava puddings and this one is intense, fudgy and utterly decadent. Under the chocolate crust is a pool of chocolate sauce. To turn this into a delicious mocha lava pudding, swap the boiling water in the sauce for strong, freshly brewed coffee.

50 MINUTES | SERVES 2 | EASY

butter 25g, plus extra for the dish

dark chocolate 20g, chopped

cocoa powder 4 tsp

caster sugar 4 tsp

whole milk 2 tbsp

egg yolk 1
 vanilla extract
 1 tsp self-raising flour 25g, or use 25g plain flour plus 1/4 tsp baking powder double cream or whipped cream to serve

FOR THE TOPPING
 soft light brown sugar 3 tbsp caster sugar 1 tbsp cocoa powder 4 tsp, plus a little extra to finish

1 Generously butter an ovenproof baking dish (20cm square and about 500ml capacity). Melt the butter, chocolate and half the cocoa powder together in
 a medium heatproof jug or bowl in the microwave in short bursts, then allow to cool slightly. Whisk in the sugar, milk, egg yolk and vanilla, then the flour and a pinch of salt. Transfer to the prepared dish.

2 Heat the oven to 160C/fan 140C/gas 3. Mix together the topping ingredients in a small bowl with a fork and sprinkle this evenly over the pudding in the dish. Carefully pour 120ml of just-boiled water from the kettle gently over the top.

3 Bake for 35 minutes or until the pudding is firm in places and gently bubbling. Leave to rest for 5 minutes, then dust lightly with cocoa powder, if you like. Scoop into bowls and serve with cream.

PER SERVING 460 kcals | fat 19.4G saturates 10.9G | carbs 62.9G | sugars 51.7G fibre 2.6G | protein 5.9G | salt 0.4G