4 Ingredient Flourless Chocolate Soufflé Cakes
This easy recipe for flourless chocolate soufflé cakes has only 4 ingredients and is made in less than an hour. They're rich, decadent individual servings and just happen to be gluten free.
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I have lots of indulgent chocolate recipes on this website, but this one just might be my favorite. It's like a fudgey molten chocolate lava cake in its own individual soufflé dish.
They're rich and decadent, but naturally gluten/grain free and dairy free optional. It's the perfect dessert recipe for entertaining, dinner parties, romantic dinners or Valentines Day. A chocolate lover's dream come true!
This recipe makes 4 individual chocolate soufflé cakes, but it can easily be doubled or halved.
For more dessert recipes, try my homemade ice cream sandwiches, chocolate chip skillet cookie for two, or chocolate hazelnut panna cotta.
Why This Recipe Works
- A short and simple ingredient list.
- Gluten-free and dairy-free optional.
- It's delicious served warm or cold.
- Salted butter adds more flavor without the need to add any salt.
- An easy, yet fancy make-ahead dessert that's perfect for dinner parties and romantic dinners
Chocolate - For the best tasting chocolate souffle cakes with a rich, deep chocolate flavor, use the best quality chocolate you can find. I typically use Ghiradelli 60% bars, but you can use a darker chocolate (up to 80%) or a semi-sweet chocolate if you prefer. Use a dairy free chocolate if you wish.
Eggs - Since there are only a few ingredients in this recipe, use high-quality eggs for best results. When selecting eggs, the term 'pastured' is more important than 'organic'. The fresher, the better. The eggs will need to be separated into yolks and whites - this video will teach you how.
Butter - I like to make this recipe with salted butter to cut down on the ingredients, but you can make it with unsalted butter as well. Just add ½ teaspoon of salt to the batter.
*Find the full ingredient list in the recipe card below!
Helpful Equipment
- Hand held mixer or a stand mixer
- 4-inch or 4 oz ramekins
- Sheet pan
- Double broiler
- Rubber spatula
How to make Chocolate Soufflé cakes
- Preheat the oven to 350℉ and butter four 4-inch ramekins, then place them on a sheet pan.
- Gently melt the butter and chocolate together in a bowl over a double boiler, stirring occasionally. You can also melt them in the microwave at half power in 15 second intervals, stirring after each. Let cool slightly.
- While the chocolate melts, separate the eggs. Whisk together the egg yolks and 3 tablespoons of sugar until light and frothy. Add the cooled melted butter and chocolate mixture, then whisk to combine.
Pro Tip: Cold eggs are easier to separate, but room temperature egg whites will whip up better. Separate your eggs as soon as you take them out of the refrigerator, but let them sit for 20-30 minutes before whipping.
- Use an electric mixer or stand mixer to whisk the egg whites and the remaining 3 tablespoons sugar at medium-high speed until they form stiff peaks (when they stand straight up and don't collapse), about 3-5 minutes.
- Use a rubber spatula to gently fold the egg whites into the chocolate yolk mixture, being careful not to deflate the mixture as you stir.
- Divide the batter evenly among the ramekins. Smooth out the tops with an offset spatula.
Pro Tip: Add a chocolate truffle or a spoon full of ganache to the center before baking for a gooey chocolate surprise inside.
- Bake for about 25-30 minutes, or until puffed up and just set in the middle (no longer jiggly).
Pro Tip: For a more gooey center, you can under-bake them about 5 minutes and serve while they're still warm.
- Serve warm with a scoop of vanilla ice cream, or let them chill in the refrigerator and serve them cold with a dollop of whipped cream.
Tips for Success
- Make sure there are no traces of egg yolk (or any butter, oil, grease, etc.) in the egg whites, or it will make them harder to whip into soft peaks.
- For more depth of flavor, add a splash of vanilla extract and/or a tablespoon of cocoa powder.
- This recipe can easily be halved or doubled depending on how many people you want to serve. Make as few as two or up to eight at a time.
- To make your chocolate soufflé cakes dairy free, substitute vegan butter (such as Earth Balance) and use a dairy free chocolate.
- Serve these chocolate soufflé cakes warm for a molten lava cake texture, or serve them chilled for a fudge / brownie like texture.
FAQs
Yes. Double the recipe and bake in a greased 9-inch cake pan and increase the bake time to 40 minutes. Chill, then cut into slices.
You can bake these in any small oven-safe dishes or coffee mugs.
Yes! Once baked, allow the soufflé cakes to cool completely, then store, covered, in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. Serve chilled, or allow them to come to room temperature, then warm up in a 300℉ oven for about 5-8 minutes.
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4 Ingredient Flourless Chocolate Soufflé Cakes
Ingredients
- 6 tablespoons salted butter *
- 4 ounces bittersweet dark chocolate good quality*
- 2 eggs separated
- 6 tablespoons sugar divided
- vanilla ice cream or whipped cream for serving optional
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350℉ and butter 4 4-inch ramekins, then place them on a sheet pan.
- Gently melt the butter and chocolate together in a bowl over a double boiler, stirring occasionally. You can also melt them in the microwave at half power in 15 second intervals, stirring after each. Let cool slightly.
- Whisk together the egg yolks and 3 tablespoons of sugar until light and frothy.
- Add the cooled melted butter and chocolate mixture, then whisk to combine.
- Use an electric mixer or stand mixer to whisk the egg whites and the remaining 3 tablespoons sugar until they form stiff peaks (when they stand straight up and don't collapse), about 3-5 minutes.
- Use a rubber spatula to gently fold the egg whites into the chocolate mixture, being careful not to deflate.
- Divide the batter evenly among the ramekins.
- Bake for about 25-30 minutes, or until puffed up and just set in the middle (no longer jiggly).
- Serve warm with a scoop of vanilla ice cream, or let them chill in the refrigerator and serve them cold with a dollop of whipped cream.
Notes
- Cold eggs are easier to separate, but room temperature egg whites will whip up better. Separate your eggs as soon as you take them out of the refrigerator, but let them sit for 20-30 minutes before whipping.
- Make sure there are no traces of egg yolk (or any butter, oil, grease, etc.) in the egg whites, or it will make them harder to whip into soft peaks.
- This recipe can easily be halved or doubled depending on how many people you want to serve. Make as few as two or up to eight at a time.
- To make this recipe dairy free, substitute vegan butter (such as earth balance) and use a dairy free chocolate.
- For a more gooey center, you can under-bake them about 5 minutes and serve while they're still warm.
- Add a chocolate truffle or a spoon full of ganache to the center before baking for a gooey chocolate surprise inside.
- Serve these chocolate soufflé cakes warm for a molten lava cake texture, or serve them chilled for a fudge / brownie like texture.
Can this recipe be adjusted to make one large soufflé instead of four small ones? Does that change the cooking temperature or time?
Yes, it can! Same temperature (350) but you will want to bake it a little longer, closer to 35-40 minutes. I would check at 30 minutes. When it's puffed up and the center is no longer jiggly, it's done!
Do you think I could do this with honey instead of sugar. It’s the only sweetener I’m able to eat.
That's a tough call - I can't say for sure, but I don't think they would turn out bad. The texture may be different, but I don't see a reason why it would be in a bay way. I would reduce the amount of honey slightly because it's sweeter than white sugar. If you try it, please let me know how they turn out!
My son and I made these last night as part of our Father's Day celebration, and we substituted about 1/2 cup of honey for the sugar (as it's also the only sweetener I'm able to eat). My son whisked it into the melted butter/bakers chocolate mixture, until the sweetness tasted right to him and before adding it to the whisked egg yolks. The end result was smooth, dense and decadent.
Amazing! So glad to know the honey substitution worked out well. Thanks so much for leaving a review!
So rich and chocolatey and so easy to make!
Glad you enjoyed!
We made 1.5 times the recipe to get 6. I only used 3 TB sugar ea for the whites and yolks. Turned out excellent.
We're at high altitude, and didn't need to adjust anything.
I cooked them for 18 minutes for a soft center, and served them with a homemade whipped cream containing Grand Marnier and orange zest.
It created a sweet contrast with the rich chocolate. It was a fun option vs the standard vanilla ice cream.
I like this recipe vs others I've used in the past because it has less sugar, and is truly a souffle and not a brownie.
Thanks for leaving a review! I'm so glad you enjoyed the recipe!
Hi , what size of ramekins did you use for this recipe?
These ramekins hold 1 cup. Hope that helps!
So good! I am stunned that something with so few ingredients and no flour tastes so good! It was a little sweet for my tastes. Next time I might try half unsweetened and half bittersweet chocolate. But I will definitely be back!
Delicious!! Taste like the one At a restaurant I used to frequent! Thank you!!
Thank you! So glad you enjoyed it!
This recipe deserves 5 stars .....so elegant, impressive way to end dinner and so simple!
have now made several times and consistently delicious!
Thank you so much!!! 🙂