Monday, February 14, 2011

Last Minute No Panic Valentine Treat

When I realized that I would be posting on Valentine's Day, I started thinking about you. That's right -- you! By the time you read this, you've either planned a Valentine dinner or you haven't done a thing. You've made reservations or it's too late. So I wondered what you could make as a special Valentine treat that might not require a trip to the grocery store or a long baking or prep time. Happily, I think I found the answer. But first, some fun updates!


Remember the Christmas cookie contest? Lynn was kind enough to send me this photo of the gingerbread family she made with the cookie cutters she won. That's eggnog being served with the cookies. I bet Santa loved stopping at her house!



I've been itching to try Elizabeth's Mushroom and Rice Casserole, so I made it on Saturday night when friends were coming for dinner. It was a hit all around. Brown rice is supposed to be so good for us, and there really isn't much sour cream in it when you consider how many servings the recipe makes. I think I'll be making this more often!

And now -- the last minute, late meeting, no time to stop at the store, don't have the energy to cook Valentine's treat. I quizzed one of my friends who doesn't cook much and she had all these ingredients on hand. So reach into your pantry, pull out the mixer and save the day! This recipe is from The Diva Paints the Town. If you don't care for the liquors in the recipe, feel free to use rum or Cointreau or whatever you have on hand. It's best served with whipped cream or a scoop of vanilla ice cream, however, any flavor ice cream will work. If your Valentine hasn't come home yet, make the batter but don't bake them until everyone is present. DO NOT OVERBAKE. No kidding. If you let it go past 13 minutes, the center won't ooze out in a chocolatey sauce. Of course, they're not just for Valentine's Day, either!


Mudslide Lava Cakes

1/3 stick butter
3 1/2 ounces unsweetened chocolate

1 1/2 cups sugar
3 medium eggs
3 egg yolks
1 1/2 cups flour
dash of salt
1/4 cup Kahlua or other coffee liquor
1/4 cup Bailey's Irish Cream

Grease six ramekins thoroughly with butter. If you don't have ramekins, ovenproof teacups can be used instead.

Melt the butter with the chocolate. (Hint: use the microwave on a low setting for 30 seconds until you can easily stir the chocolate with the butter.)

Beat the eggs and egg yolks with the sugar until thick and lemon-colored. Mix in the melted chocolate and butter. Add the flour and salt slowly and mix thoroughly. Add the liquors.

Pour into ramekins. Bake at 450 for 13 minutes. Gently loosen the edges of each cake and turn onto a serving plate. Flip the cake right side up. Serve plain, dust with powdered sugar, or add a dollop of vanilla ice cream or whipped cream for a sinfully delicious treat!

Note: The batter can be made a day ahead. Pour the batter into the ramekins, then cover each with plastic wrap and store in the refrigerator. Bake at 450 for 13 minutes just before you want to serve them. They're at their best straight from the oven.


Happy Valentine's Day!

18 comments:

  1. What a treat! I love Kahlua and Irish Cream and bet they'd be amazing in a chocolate dessert. Last minute is a way of life for me, so this sounds perfect!

    So glad the mushroom casserole worked out so well!

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  2. I love this version of lava cakes, Krista. I didn't know you could make the batter ahead of time.

    Thanks! MJ

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  3. do you have to use liquor? Can it be made without and still be lava cake?

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  4. Sounds so yummy. I'm hoping someone I know will try it & invite me for a tasting!

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  5. Krista - Your chocolate lava cake is absolutely perfect for a Valentine's dessert. I am so ready to dive into it! Great tip on watching the cooking time...And E's casserole looks delicious, too. (I love one dish dinners.)

    Happy Valentine's Day!
    ~ Cleo Coffeehouse Mystery.com
    Cleo Coyle on Twitter

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  6. Wonderful, Krista! This is great - I already know I'll use this one again and again.

    BTW - I made your pork tenderloin roast with apples the other day. Huge hit here!

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  7. I need some irish Cream and I do indeed have all the ingredients...

    And to my friends here at MLK...

    Be romantic, have a great valentines Day

    Dave

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  8. Elizabeth, they loved your casserole. It seems like it would be nicely versatile, too. I'm imagining how it might taste with some Chesapeake Bay spice and little shrimp in it!

    Mary Jane, I wouldn't make it too far ahead of time, but it turned out fine when I made it a day in advance. I have a couple of leftover cups in the fridge. I'll let you know what happens!

    ~ Krista

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  9. Dru, you do not have to use liquor at all. You would have to substitute something for that 1/2 cup of liquid. Milk, maybe? If you try, let me know what happens!

    Erika, too bad you're not my neighbor!

    Cleo, lava cakes are just fun and gooey and hot on cold winter nights. Totally sinful!

    ~ Krista

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  10. Julie, I'm so glad the pork tenderloin recipe turned out well! I have a feeling your gang might like these lava cakes, too. ; ) BTW, your strawberries covered in white chocolate would be perfect with the lava cakes. Wow. What a presentation that would be!

    Dave, I'm sure your wife is in for a lovely Valentine dinner tonight. Must check out your blog to see what's for dinner.

    ~ Krista

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  11. Oh, yum, these look delicious!!! Great last minute ideas. You're so clever. (Just like your character, Sophie!)

    ~Avery

    AveryAames.com
    @AveryAames
    facebook

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  12. Sophie is much more clever than I am, Avery! That's the fun of writing a character. She can be everything I'm not!

    ~ Krista

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  13. Is it sad that I don't have the sugar, flour, eggs, or chocolate ... but I *do* have the booze?

    Sigh.

    These sound fantastic ... and I need to buy flour anyway. You may have saved Valentine's Day, Krista!

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  14. Janet, they are yummy!

    Wendy, that's seriously backward! LOL!

    ~ Krista

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  15. Just got home awhile ago from jury duty selection that lasted ALL day (and got picked to serve at the last minute, on a trial that starts 2 weeks from today, ugh. But I met some really interesting folks.(More fodder for my stories,hah) What a nice surprise to see my little photo resulting from winning the cookie cutters.
    Thanks, Krista. Those cookies were fabulous, btw, and I'm so proud of my gingerbread family!(Your whole Xmas package was a real delight, esp. the snowman card! I'm saving it in a special folder! Just a note, remember in the future to check your Spam box, lol.)

    Last night, I knew I had a jury summons for today, so I made Valentine brownies (with pecans)for my sweetie, as I didn't get a chance to buy some strawberries as I'd planned,but will get some for the weekend. And...I gave out the pork tenderloin with apples (10-10-10)recipe in the produce section of the grocery last week, while picking out some apples! Having that for dinner tonite!

    Hope everyone has a wonderful Valentine's Day!
    XXX OOO

    P.S. I took Avery's book THE LONG QUICHE GOODBYE to read during my free-time in court stuff when not chatting, and turned on several people to her series! One man next to me on a break had a Kindle and said he'd gladly download more cozy mysteries and thanked me! I also met a woman today who loves recipe sites & mysteries, and told her about MLK, & she will be checking you out, too! More for the team, ha-ha!

    Happy Valentine's Day, y'all!

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  16. Lynn, you're like a marketing advance team for us! Thanks so much!

    I hope your Valentine dinner turned out great.

    Jury duty might be very interesting. Hope you pull a fascinating case.

    ~ Krista

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  17. Lynn, wow, aren't you sweet to take one of our books along. I appreciate the passing on good vibes. Wow! And I love that you're using recipes from the group to make your sweet Valentine dinner. Enjoy!

    I guess this is what they mean when they say word of mouth matters!
    We do it everyday and don't even think about it, don't we? LOL

    Again, thanks.

    ~Avery

    AveryAames.com
    @AveryAames
    facebook

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