Chocolaty goodness that hits all the right notes...

What you will need…

For The Chocolate Pudding:

1 cup self-raising flour

2 tablespoons cocoa powder

1/2 cup brown sugar

80g butter, melted, cooled

1/2 cup milk

1 egg, lightly beaten

Sauce:

3/4 cup brown sugar

2 tablespoons cocoa powder, sifted

1 1/4 cups boiling water

Citrus Gel

1 cup Orange juice

100 ml Caster Sugar

10 g Gelatine

Chocolate Ganache

9 ounces bittersweet chocolate, chopped

1 cup heavy cream

1 tablespoon dark rum (optional)

For Serving

Vanilla Ice Cream

Toasted Almond Shavings

Mint
 

Method of work

Preheat oven to 180°C. Grease an 8-cup capacity ovenproof baking dish. Sift flour and cocoa into a large bowl. Stir in sugar.

Combine butter, milk and egg in a jug. Slowly add to flour mixture, whisking until well combined and smooth. Spoon into baking dish. Smooth top.

Sauce:

Sprinkle combined sugar and cocoa over pudding.

Slowly pour boiling water over the back of a large metal spoon to cover pudding. Place dish onto a baking tray. Bake for 35 to 40 minutes or until pudding bounces back when pressed gently in centre. Serve hot.

Citrus Gel

Bring the orange juice and Caster sugar to a boil then reduce heat and simmer for a few minutes.

Sprinkle the gelatine into a cup containing 2-3 tablespoons of liquid – this can be water or it can be taken from whatever liquid is used in the recipe, such as milk, fruit juice, etc. Stir, and when the gelatine has soaked up the liquid, place the bowl in a pan of barely simmering water.

Leave until the gelatine has dissolved completely and turned transparent. To test this, dip a teaspoon in, turn it over and you'll soon see if there are any undissolved granules. It's important not to let the liquid boil, so keep the heat under the pan gentle. Before you use it, pass the gelatine through a strainer to extract any bits of skin that may have formed.

Remove orange juice from the heat and whisk the gelatine into the mixture. Set aside to cool completely

Chocolate Ganache

Place the chocolate into a medium bowl. Heat the cream in a small sauce pan over medium heat. Bring just to a boil, watching very carefully because if it boils for a few seconds, it will boil out of the pot. When the cream has come to a boil, pour over the chopped chocolate, and whisk until smooth. Stir in the rum if desired.

Allow the ganache to cool slightly before pouring over a cake. Start at the centre of the cake and work outward. For a fluffy frosting or chocolate filling, allow it to cool until thick, then whip with a whisk until light and fluffy.

Plating:

Plating is completely up to you. I placed the Chocolate pudding in the centre of the plate and topped it with the ganache and toasted almonds. Smudged a bit of Citrus gel in front of the pudding and placed some mint on top of that and one scoop of vanilla Ice cream behind it.