Ramekins & little cakes

allandanyways

I've never used ramekins for puddings or cakes before but I'm planning to for a dinner I'm cooking soon.

I'm planning on making a molten chocolate cake, (yknow the ones that have the sauce in the middle, made them before just as cupcakes, worked grand) and I was wondering if I could make it in the ramekin and then turn it out onto a plate? I've eaten desserts like creme brulée out of ramekins before and I didn't like the whole fiddlyness of it, plus I'm serving it with something else and I want it to be really dynamic on the plate, which I don't think it would be if it was still in the ramekin.

Has anybody here made a cake or pudding in a ramekin and then turned it out onto a plate with success? Any advice?

Faith

I think that would be quite risky! You'd need to grease the ramekins really well. They could be really hard to get out.

tfak85

you can get little tins in cooking shops, they should work just fine.
why not make them in a silicone muffin tin and try to turn them out from there? just make sure the cups are really well greased...
whatever you try be sure to practise before your dinner - chocolate fondants like these NEVER work on come dine with me!

allandanyways

Hmm.. I was hoping to use the ramekins cos they're a specific shape. (Trying to avoid saying too much cos the meal is for the OH and he's a boardsie)

Faith, do you reckon it could be risky because of the nature of the cake? What if it was just a normal sponge type-cake? I've never turned stuff out of ramekins before that was baked, its only ever been savoury stuff like shredded veg bound by a sauce of some kind, granted, it kinda slipped out a bit easier.

Head is wrecked, I really want to use these ramekins, but I don't like gelatine-based desserts or anything really creamy (like creme caramel etc) and was really hoping I could do something chocolatey that would turn out in the shape of the ramekins. If I greased the sides realllly well and maybe did a greaseproof paper cut out for the bottom (like you would with a baking tin), do ye reckon my chances would be any better?

I'm going to practice on Tuesday anyway, but if anybody could offer advice in the meantime I'd really appreciate it.

Magic Monkey

Small stainless-steel food rings are ideal, but they're expensive. As tfak85 suggested, a silicone muffin tray would be your best bet, as they're not that expensive and you can do 4-6 portions all at once, great for a dinner party.

Here's an example of that technique for a similar recipe, one that uses a raspberry-flavoured filling, although you could make whatever filling you like: banana, cherry, rum, etc. But if you'd prefer a recipe that allows just the chocolate flavour to shine, this one here is the best I've ever tried, and it only uses 3 ingredients! You can make it beforehand, fill your moulds, and refrigerate until you need to bake it.

If you're dead-set on using your ramekins, butter them well and lay the bottoms and sides with silicone/baking paper, buttering that too. Dust the insides with cocoa powder to prevent further sticking. The simple fondant recipe I gave will come away from the sides, so all you should need to do is turn upside down, peel off the paper carefully, and you should be good to go. Practise to make sure. If you need egg whites, Dunnes have them in 500ml cartons for around €3.50. Good luck!

Faith

allandanyways wrote: »

Faith, do you reckon it could be risky because of the nature of the cake? What if it was just a normal sponge type-cake? I've never turned stuff out of ramekins before that was baked, its only ever been savoury stuff like shredded veg bound by a sauce of some kind, granted, it kinda slipped out a bit easier.

Yeah, if this falls apart, it would be ruined. A sponge can be stuck back together more, and disguised better!

_Whimsical_

A few weeks ago I saw Louise Lennox the pastry chef from The Afternoon Show and The Restaurant say that when she's making unusually shaped cakes she lines them with cling film. She said that it's how they line tins for novelty cakes in cake shops.

The presenter was pretty shocked and asked if it was safe and she said it was perfectly safe to put in the oven as long as it was microwave safe cling film. It sounds a bit dubious to me but it would be perfect to line a ramikan with.It might be worth googling!

DreamC

I would never line anything that is going into the oven with cling film. Would you ever try to bake a cake in a "microwavable" plastic container?

But again I never use "novelty" pans for 3D cakes either. It's easier to carve rather than be buying tins of all shapes and sizes (saves you a lot of money too )

_Whimsical_

DreamC wrote: »

I would never line anything that is going into the oven with cling film. Would you ever try to bake a cake in a "microwavable" plastic container?

But again I never use "novelty" pans for 3D cakes either. It's easier to carve rather than be buying tins of all shapes and sizes (saves you a lot of money too )

Yup I'd tend to agree. I was surprised to see her say it. I must put a piece in the oven sometime on some baking liner and see what happens to it.

Magic Monkey

She means catering cling film, the kind used in kitchens, not off the supermarket shelf.

It can be used in the oven. It's pretty common to use it to line a raw pastry base, fill it with beans, and wrapping up into a bundle to blind bake - it will curl a little, but won't melt, and the "bean bag" is reusable for a few more gos.

Sigma Force

If all else fails there are some really nice ramekins now so it will still look great, it's not too fiddley and the gooey chocolateness makes up for it.
They're a great thing for a dinner party because they take a good while to eat because you have to work a little at it and also wait for it to cool a bit.
Because they are so hot in the middle might be risky trying to remove it.

The stainless steel rings could be an option though if they are placed on an oven proof plate before hand and then all you have to do is lift the ring off and serve on the same plate.

DreamC

I have mini-pans like that. Each pan is 2,5" in diameter. It's very handy for making small individual cakes.

washiskin

Hi Dream C

Is that a Silverwood Tin?
If so did you buy it here?

I saw them in the UK on Wednesday and it was in excess of £30stg.

DreamC

yes. It's Silverwood. I got it on the net for about same money. It's well worth it. The quality is excellent.