Überchef Thomas Keller, who popularized these little chocolate morsels, calls them bouchons, which is French for "corks." They're less than 2 inches tall, which somehow makes them disappear mysteriously.
This variation involves using tahini, a velvety sesame paste, in place of butter. The batter is baked in timbale or baba moulds. You'll need to have enough 2- to 3-ounce flexible, nonstick silicone timbale or baba moulds to make two dozen timbales at a time.
Makes about 24
4oz / 115g semisweet (dark) baking chocolate, coarsely chopped
½ cup / 120ml unsweetened plain soya milk
⅔ cup / 160ml Kahlua or other coffee liqueur
½ cup / 120ml tahini
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1½ cups / 190g all-purpose flour
1 cup powdered sugar, plus more for dusting
1½ teaspoons baking powder
⅓ cup / 43g dutch-process (alkalised) cocoa powder (most cocoa powder sold in the UK is alkalised)
½ teaspoon salt
Preheat the oven to 350F / 180C / gas 4.
Put the chocolate in a medium heatproof bowl. In a small saucepan, heat the soya milk over medium heat until it begins to steam and almost comes to a boil. Pour the soya milk over the chopped chocolate, then add the Kahlua, tahini, and vanilla. Let stand for 1 minute, then stir until the mixture is smooth and the chocolate is entirely melted.
Sift the flour, powdered sugar, baking powder, cocoa, and salt together into a large bowl. Add the chocolate mixture and stir gently until just combined. Transfer the mixture to a pastry bag without a tip or a resealable
plastic bag with one corner snipped off.
Put about two dozen timbale moulds on a baking sheet (the number of moulds per pan varies, so just get as close to two dozen as you can). Pipe the batter into the moulds, filling each about two-thirds full.
Bake for 15 to 20 minutes, until the tops are firm but the inside is still slightly soft (test by inserting a wooden skewer or toothpick). Transfer the moulds to a wire rack and let cool for 5 minutes, then invert the moulds and let the timbales cool completely, about 15 minutes. Lift off the moulds and dust the timbales with powdered sugar. These treats are best eaten the day they're made.
• This recipe is taken from Pure Vegan by Joseph Shuldiner (Chronicle books, £18.99). Order a copy for £15.19 from the Guardian bookshop
