Prepare a Decadent Chocolate Cake in One Minute or Less!
by Marc Matsumoto on Feb 6, 2012
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Okay, so maybe I'm exaggerating a bit here. You do need to measure out a handful of ingredients and stir them together, but were talking 1 minute tops, between your dark chocolate fantasies and passing a spoonful of this chocolaty cake between your lips.
How is this even possible you ask?
Through the modern miracle known as the microwave oven of course. Contrary to popular belief, microwaves do not "nuke" food with ionizing radiation (like in a nuclear reactor). They pass microwave radiation (which is a non-ionizing radiation just like radio waves and visible light) through your food, causing the water molecules to rotate to align their poles with the alternating field of microwave energy. The resulting friction is what heats your food up.
Because most mugs are not fully microwave transparent, the cake tends to cook from the top down, giving you a rich velvety chocolate sauce that drizzles down the sides of your cake when it's unmolded. The trick is in stopping the microwave at just the right time. Too long and you'll end up with a spongy hockey puck. Too short and you'll have a dense chocolate pudding.
It's literally a hot mess and while they may not all come out looking great, what they lack in esthetics, they make up for in taste. Rich, decadent, and enrobed in a thick chocolate sauce, it'll make you feel like you cheated some law of nature because it's done so fast.
Since this cake is flour-less, it's also gluten-free, which is not only good news for the gluten intolerant, it's also great for the rest of us, since you don't have to worry about over-mixing the batter.
If you're like me, and find yourself without a Valentine this year, this is the perfect way to treat yourself to something nice. Sure, it makes two, but after you eat the first one, you'll be glad to be single because there's another cake waiting for you!
Marc Matsumoto is a culinary consultant and recipe repairman who shares his passion for good food through his website norecipes.com. For Marc, food is a life long journey of exploration, discovery and experimentation and he shares his escapades through his blog in the hopes that he inspires others to find their own culinary adventures. Marcs been featured in the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, and USA Today, and has made multiple appearances on NPR and the Food Network.