Molten Chocolate Cake (Update)

If there is a word that is repeated in the laboratory more than any other words, that word is --- "REPEAT". Whether it is a successful or failed experiment, you will always have to REPEAT until you correct the failure or duplicate the success. For a chef or scientist or musician or athlete, they achieve success by doing one thing really well --- REPEAT --- over and over again until they achieve greatness or perfection.

In my truly scientific nature, I was compelled to, what's the word? REPEAT making molten chocolate. As you have read in the post immediately before this, my molten chocolate wasn't quite "molten" because I over-baked it, so I REPEATED the experiment.

                                              9 minutes = 80% molten

 
                                                        10 minutes = 40% molten

                                              11 minutes = 10% molten


What's the moral of the story?

1. Timing is everything. 9 minutes in my oven is not the same as 9 minutes in your oven. Your oven might be 10, 20, 30F different from my oven. You have to do this a couple times in your own oven to know for sure when to take your cake out.

2. This is purely empirical -- there are two signs that the cake is ready when
a) you smell the warm chocolate scent in the kitchen
b) the top of the cake has set

3. I would be fearful as a pastry chef in charged of making molten chocolate cake. Success and failure is in the difference of 30 seconds. Imagine you have to make many orders that come in at random time.