Gordon ramsay's chocolate fondant

Ingredients

• 50g melted butter , for brushing
• cocoa powder , for dusting
• 200g good-quality dark chocolate , chopped into small pieces
• 200g butter , in small pieces
• 200g golden caster sugar
• 4 eggs and 4 yolks
• 200g plain flour
• *I find that vanilla ice cream is excellent with this dish

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Cherries and chocolate blondie bars, the perfect crunchy and fondant cake

Preparation

• With the melted butter, heavily brush the inside of the ramekins/moulds. Once done, put the molds in the fridge or freezer. After a few minutes, remove ramekins/moulds from fridge/freezer then brush with melted butter again, making this the second coat.
  
  After brushing the moulds with the second coat, dust the insides with cocoa powder. Tip the mold in order for the powder to go around the sides, completely coating the interior.
  
  Tap any excess cocoa powder. This part will tend to get messy, I usually do it on top of the sink as its easier to clean.
  
  
  Place a bowl over a pan of barely simmering water, then slowly melt the chocolate and butter together. Remove bowl from the heat and stir until smooth. Leave to cool for about 10 mins.
  
  In a separate bowl whisk the eggs and yolks together with the sugar until thick and pale and the whisk leaves a trail; use an electric whisk if you want. Sift the flour into the eggs, then beat together.
  
  Pour the melted chocolate into the egg mixture in thirds, beating well between each addition, until all the chocolate is added and the mixture is completely combined to a loose cake batter.
  Tip the fondant batter into a jug or with a ladle, then evenly divide between the moulds.
  
  The fondants can now be frozen for up to a month and cooked from frozen. Chill for at least 20 mins or up to the night before. To bake from frozen, simply carry on as stated, adding 5 mins more to the cooking time.
  Heat oven to 200C/fan 180C/gas 6. Place the fondants on a baking tray, then cook for 10-12 mins until the tops have formed a crust and they are starting to come away from the sides of their moulds. Remove from the oven, then leave to sit for 1 min before turning out.
  Loosen the fondants by moving the tops very gently so they come away from the sides, easing them out of the moulds. Tip each fondant slightly onto your hand so you know it has come away, then tip back into the mould ready to plate up.
  Starting from the middle of each plate, squeeze a spiral of caramel sauce - do all the plates you need before you go on to the next stage.
  Sit a fondant in the middle of each plate. Using a large spoon dipped in hot water, scoop a 'quenelle' of ice cream.
  Carefully place the ice cream on top of the fondant, then serve immediately. Repeat with the rest of the fondants.