Cocoa-Dusting Buttered Moulds

For any chocolate dessert that needs to release cleanly from its mould — lava cakes, individual chocolate puddings, dark génoise, financiers — the reliable trick is to butter the mould, then dust with cocoa rather than flour. The butter creates the non-stick barrier; the cocoa gives a fine textured surface for the batter to grip lightly without bonding. Flour works mechanically, but leaves a pale film on dark crumb that looks unfinished once the cake is turned out. Brush softened butter into every angle of the mould — the seam where the base meets the sides is where most failures start — then refrigerate for 5 minutes to firm the butter before dusting. Add a heaped teaspoon of cocoa to each mould, rotate to coat the interior evenly, and tap out the excess. Generous, even coverage is the cheapest insurance in the recipe against a torn cake or a stuck crown.