Tuesday 1 November 2016

Chocolate Cheese Lava Cake


This cake has been a sensation and featured in many Malay blogs in recent times. The most arresting feature of this cake (before you actually dig in) is the name - Chocolate Cheese Lava Berhantu. The last word, berhantu, means haunted. How's that, eh?


With a name like that, it is bound to attract attention. And rightly so as this cake might look benign, but once you take a scoop, you will be forever haunted. LOL!

Yang ni satu bekas aku bedal.

Now look. What you have is a very moist and fudgy chocolate cake base. On top of that is a light and creamy cream cheese layer. And finally, the top most layer is made of a decadent lava-like chocolate ganache.


I was intrigued of course and for the first time in a long time, I was compelled to bake. The recipe uses condensed milk, an ingredient I am not fond of since the days of  Susu Cap Junjung (Milkmaid brand).

So I opted to use another recipe for the moist chocolate cake. My favorite chocolate cake has to be Chocolate Buttermilk Cake but I did not have any buttermilk on hand. So the next best option was this Steamed Fudgy Chocolate Cake which uses evaporated milk.


I used my rectangle glass containers since these were the most suitable receptacle in the house. For the cream cheese layer, the recipe calls for 250g of cream cheese to 500ml of whiping cream. This will result in a super light and creamy cheese layer and this volume can accommodate many cakes.

Since I only had two packets of whipping cream (200ml each), I had to allocate one for the cream cheese and one for the ganache. It turned out very well for me because the cream cheese was just nice for four containers.

When it was time to make the decorative patterns, I was not confident on account of my practically non-existent piping skills. In other words, my piping skills suck. But this easy deco technique is particularly forgiving. My patterns were not perfect but nevertheless I was so impressed with myself hah..hah..

Jadilah Mak oi!
How about this one?

Boleh tahan Cik Kak oi!
Not only is this cake so damn kick ass good, it is easy to serve because you simply present it in the container as is and no slicing is involved. You just scoop your servings free style.


My chocolate lava layer appears quite firm because I have refrigerated this cake overnight. If you eat this cake fresh after a brief chilling, you will get the maximum lava effect. So, if refrigerated, take it out from the fridge about 30 minutes to an hour before serving for the ganache to soften.


Chocolate Cheese Lava Cake
Recipe source : Guided by Masam Manis

Note : I did not follow the source recipe but used it as a guide to build the cake. I used 4 rectangle glass containers, 2 medium and 2 small.

For the moist chocolate cake :
- 100g self raising flour
- 50g cocoa powder
- 180g butter
- 120g brown sugar 
- 200ml evaporated milk
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 2 eggs, lightly beaten

Method :
1. Sift flour and cocoa powder and whisk to combine, Set aside.
2. Put butter, sugar, evaporated milk and vanilla extract in a saucepan and heat over low heat to melt the butter and dissolve sugar. Stir until butter is melted and set aside to cool.
3. Once mixture is cool, add beaten eggs and whisk to combine.
4. Pour into the flour/cocoa powder mixture and fold to combine (I used a whisk to mix). The batter is runny.
5. Pour batter into the containers (only half full because we need room to apply cream cheese and ganache layer later).
6. Cover the containers with aluminum foil and steam for 20-25 minutes or until cake is set and toothpick inserted into center comes out with moist crumbs.
7. Leave to cool completely.

Note : If you prefer, you may bake this cake in the oven but use the waterbath method (like baking cheesecake). You need not cover the cake. I baked at 160C for 25 minutes.

For the cream cheese layer :
- 250g cream cheese at room temperature
- 200ml whipping cream (can be straight from the fridge)

Note : Reserve about 2 tbsp of the cream cheese mixture for decoration (optional)

Method :
1. Beat cream cheese until fluffy.
2. Add whipping cream and continue to beat until mixture is thick and creamy (it does not take very long).

To assemble the cake :
1. Once the cake is completely cooled, pipe the cream cheese on top of the cake.
2. Chill the cake in the fridge until cheese layer is firm.

For the chocolate lava (ganache) :
- 200g semi-sweet dark chocolate, broken into smaller pieces
- 200ml whipping cream
- One tablespoon butter

Method :
1. Put chocolate and butter in a heatproof bowl. Set aside.
2. In a saucepan, bring the whipping cream to a boil and pour into the chocolate and butter.
3. Leave to stand for 5 minutes.
4. Gently stir until you get a thick smooth ganache.
5. Leave to cool.

Note : Mix some ganache into the reserved cream cheese mixture to yield a light colored mixture.

Final assembly :
1. Pour the ganache over the cream cheese layer until completely covered.
2. Pipe lines onto the ganache layer and use a toothpick to make feathering patterns.

Note : If you intend to serve immediately, chill the cake briefly to firm up the ganache slightly. If you refrigerate the cake overnight or for a few hours, take it out from the fridge to sit for about 30 minutes to an hour to soften the cream cheese and chocolate lava layer.

36 comments:

  1. I have sweet tooth, I loves cake and chocolate is my favourite, hehe...

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  2. wah PH dah try choc cheese lava berhantu ni
    akak belum lagi try mesti try jugak lepas ni
    cantik kejadian nya

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    1. Kak Noor, jangan tak cuba. Kek ni sedap tersangat-sangat. Gerenti Kak Noor suka..

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  3. I love your cakes and they looked so yummy with nice & neat patterns on top! Can I self collect a slice from Damansara Uptown? You can just leave it at the door outside. LOL

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    1. LOL! Maybe one day I might consider hah..hah..

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  4. When I first saw the title, I said...ok, I'm not going to like it coz...it has cheese! But then it ended up with more chocolate than cheese....wokay! :D Hey, don't say you have non-existent piping skills...that is meant for people (like me) who has never piped anything in her life! :P I actually like the one on the left of your first photo the best (which you didn't snap an individual photo of), it looks like some kind of free hand leaves and flowers motif. So, I guess less food prep this week then since your containers are filled with something else?....haha! ;D

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    1. You won't taste the cheese at all because the dominant taste is chocolate. BTW my cheesecakes don't have cheese taste because I put adequate vanilla extract to mask the smell. In this case it was not necessary due to the chocolate. The one you like was a free hand marbling. Yeah, I should have taken a close up shot of that. Don't worry, I have loads of containers hah..hah...

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  5. Hahaha..terjebak sudah dengan amukan si momok(hantu) ni...Sedap kan

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  6. Aiyo, you are tempting me to the max here. I want to makan them!! Looks so delicious! Ada lagi? I wanna buy them from you!!!

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  7. Since you are baking these delicious lava cakes now, you don't need to go to eat at Molten Lava... Eatery ever again!

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    1. Well, there are things at Molten Lava that I can't make, like the waffles and churros. So I'll still go back for those :)

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  8. Your piping skill is good imho. I like the one with the hearts.

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  9. Lovely cake. I love this moist rich cake.

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    Replies
    1. You and your kids will love this cake!

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  10. From one giant cookie to a fully loaded lava cake! 😜 We all deserve a little slice of heaven from time to time.

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  11. ooo, i've not heard of this cake before, but now the thought of it is haunting me too ... yours looks beautifully done - i'm gonna try to look out for it at cafes out there :D

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  12. Hi Phong Hong, I've tried the molten lava cake but failed... these lava cake really moist and fudgy ... and I'm impressed with the patterns too !

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    1. Hi Karen! It's not that difficult to make. Try it, it will be a hit with your big kids :)

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  13. Look at those cakes, they are so beautifully done, I love them all, looks so yummy and delicious, I have sweet tooth so I am sure I will like them

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    Replies
    1. Thank you, Libby. Yes, you will love them :)

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  14. Phong Hong, fulamak! Looks so fantastic, I lose my words to describe all your bakes, I just salute you.

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  15. Special for Halloween? Look good!!!

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    1. Oh no hah..hah.. Just trying out to see what the hoo hah is all about and it sure deserves lots of hoo hah!

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  16. Lama dah tak baking....
    Sawan malas dah sampailah PH haha .... Kek coklat moist memang sedap tapi tak boleh makan selalu nanti makin naik lelamak haha....

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    1. Hainom, baking membaking ni tak bagus untuk orang yang nak diet tau. Itu lah sebabnya PH punya diet hancur lebur dibuatnya....

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  17. The cake looks so yummylicious and your piping decor is very pretty!

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    1. Thank you, Nancy! This cake is very bad for diet. LOL!

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  18. These are very sinful, guilty & of course haunted dessert! I'll most probably finish the whole container without realization >_<

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