single serving, guilt-free molten lava cake.

Have you ever had those mornings where you wake up super early, for seemingly no reason?

You're dreaming and then suddenly, you just drift into awakedness. You don't want to open your eyes for fear of losing your chance of falling back asleep, so you keep your eyes squeezed shut and try to think of the most boring things ever .. like taxes and school.

But eventually, you can't take the suspense anymore, because really, what time is it anyway? Is it acceptably late enough to wake up yet? So you open your eyes.

And it's pitch black darkness. You hear your dad in the shower, and you know your dad wakes up at 5:30am everyday. Damn it.

That must rank somewhere among the worst feelings ever. Right between hunger and bankruptness. What to do now?

Blog after a month long hiatus, why not. I mean, I brushed my teeth already, so I've passed the point of no return - sleep is no longer an option. Let's turn our attention to food now we're awake. It's the new year, and I know everyone has plans of being healthy and fit.

I was traveling the earlier part of this month and indulged in a fair amount of feta and gyros (spoiler alert as to where I went!). AKA - I was not trying to be super healthy. But I'm back now, and after a long period of no access to any good desserts besides those involving filo dough and honey, I was craving cake.

I perused my massive recipe bookmark folder and found "guilt-free lava cake." I was dubious. There was no oil, butter, or eggs in the recipe, and fat-free things bake up gummy a lot of times. But it was single-serving .. I was curious, so I adjusted the recipe and proceeded.

I mixed up the regular dry ingredients with the unusual wet ingredients - milk, apple butter, sour cream, and vanilla. I poured the final batter into a ramekin, topped with chocolate chips, and baked in my little toaster oven for exactly 12 minutes. The result?

It was actually impressive. Even without the ice cream and whipped cream. The "lava" was mostly just unbaked batter I think, but there are no eggs, so it's fine. The chocolate chips melted to provide some gooeyness, as well.

A great way to usher in the new year, no?

PS - mishap occurred with the pictures .. better pictures soon hopefully.

Single Serving, Guilt-Free Molten Lava Cake
adapted from here. I am planning on experimenting with ww flour and brown sugar later.

• 2 1/2 TB flour 
• 1 1/2 TB granulated sugar 
• 1 TB unsweetened cocoa 
• 1/8 teaspoon baking soda 
• pinch of salt 
• 2 TB milk (any kind, I used 2%)
• 1 TB apple butter 
• 1 TB sour cream or ricotta or yogurt 
• 1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract 
• 3 or 4 chocolate chunks or chips

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees - you can use a toaster oven! Grease a 6 oz. ramekin. 
2. Stir together flour, sugar, cocoa, baking soda, and salt. Set aside. 
3. Mix the milk, apple butter, sour cream, and vanilla well. 
4. Add dry ingredients to the wet mixture. Mix until it just comes together.
5. Pour half the batter into the ramekin. Sprinkle with chocolate. Top with remaining batter. 
6. Bake for 11-12 minutes. Top will look fairly set, but shouldn't be crispy. 
7. Remove from oven. Let cool for 2 minutes. Then invert onto a plate. 
8. Serve with ice cream and whipped cream, if desired.