• The flavour combinations of these white chocolate and cherry fondants go together like salt and pepper, Romeo and Juliet, macaroni and cheese… 

    White chocolate and cherry fondants

    Serves: 4
    Cooking Time: 45 mins

    Ingredients

    • 110g white baking chocolate, finely chopped
    • 100g unsalted butter, room temperature
    • 210g (1 cup) castor sugar
    • 4 eggs
    • 80g cake flour, sifted
    • a pinch of salt
    • 12 fresh cherries, pitted and halved
    • good quality vanilla bean ice cream, to serve
    • fresh cherries, to garnish

    Instructions

    1

    Preheat the oven to 180°C. Generously grease 4 x 125ml (½ cup) dariole moulds or ramekins with cooking spray, ensuring that every part of the mould is properly greased.

    2

    Heat the chocolate and butter over a double boiler until melted.

    3

    Using an electric whisk, whisk the sugar and eggs together until light and fluffy, 3 minutes. Whisk in the flour, salt and melted chocolate mixture. Stir in the pitted cherries.

    4

    Pour the mixture into the moulds, filling them up three-quarters of the way. Place them on a baking tray before putting them into the oven.

    5

    Bake for 16 minutes. Be careful not to overbake them as you still want the centres to be runny. Let them stand in the moulds for 3 minutes and then unmould onto serving plates. Serve with a scoop of vanilla bean ice cream.

    Notes

    Turn the fondants into a stylish plated dessert by topping each one with a dollop of crème fraîche and a drizzle of melted cherry jam. Fondants are quite tricky to get right due to different oven temperatures and cooking times, and may take practice.