Chocolate, mon amour – Recipes

MONTREAL – Chocolate has an age-old association with romance. It spreads happiness.

Here are a few recipes – including three bonus recipes for you online readers – for easy and delicious chocolate desserts that will sweeten Valentine’s Day.

Aztec Hot Chocolate

Serves 6

This recipe is adapted from Willie’s Chocolate Bible (Hodder Stoughton, 2010) by British chocolatier Willie Harcourt-Cooze, and calls for ingredients similar to those the Aztecs added to their cacahuatl. The chili pepper is said to open up the flavour receptors in the mouth. Play with the amounts of honey and hot pepper to suit your taste buds. Drink hot or at room temperature, without milk, as the Aztecs did.

4 ounces finely grated dark chocolate

2 cups water

1 teaspoon ancho chili powder (or cayenne pepper, or piment d’Espelette)

1/3 vanilla pod or 1/2 teaspoon vanilla essence

1 tablespoon honey

In a saucepan, combine chocolate, water and chili powder. (If using a vanilla pod, scrape out the seeds and add them, with the pod, to the pan.) Bring to a boil, stirring frequently, then lower the heat and simmer gently for about 5 minutes, or until the mixture thickens slightly. Take out and discard the vanilla pod, then whisk well to create a light foam. Remove from the heat. Stir in honey and vanilla essence (if using). Serve piping hot in small cups, or leave to cool a little and serve at room temperature.

The Best Brownies

Makes 12 brownies

Forget store-bought mixes. This very simple recipe, adapted from Trish Deseine – as it appears in her latest book, Je veux encore du chocolat! (Marabout, 2011) – is all you need to whip up a quick batch of chocolate chewiness.

1/2 cup butter

4 ounces dark chocolate

2 eggs, beaten

1 cup sugar

3/4 cup flour

1/2 cup finely chopped hazelnuts or pecans (optional)

Preheat oven to 350F. Grease an eight-inch square cake pan.

Melt butter and chocolate in microwave oven or in the top of a double boiler over simmering water. Let cool slightly. Add beaten eggs, sugar and flour. Using a hand mixer, beat at high speed just until combined. Stir in nuts, if using.

Pour into cake pan and bake 30 minutes. The surface should be crispy and the inside soft.

Let cool slightly before removing from cake pan. Cut into 12 pieces and serve warm with ice cream, or at room temperature.

Classic Chocolate Mousse

Serves 6

Chocolate mousse is the quintessential French dessert. This recipe from Bon Appetit Desserts (Andrew McMeel, 2010) by Barbara Fairchild can be served in parfait dishes, custard cups, even espresso cups or wine glasses. For airiness, fold in the egg whites extra gently.

6 ounces bittersweet chocolate chips

1/3 cup water

1/4 cup 35 per cent whipping cream

2 large egg yolks

4 tablespoons sugar, divided

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

4 large egg whites, at room temperature

Whipped cream and chocolate curls (optional, for garnish)

Place chocolate chips in a medium bowl. In a heavy, small saucepan, whisk

1/3 cup water, cream, egg yolks and 2 tablespoons sugar to blend. Place over medium-low heat and stir until mixture thickens enough to coat a spoon, about 4 minutes. (Do not boil.) Strain through a sieve into the bowl with the chocolate chips. Mix in vanilla.

Using an electric mixer, beat egg whites in a large bowl until soft peaks form. Gradually add remaining 2 tablespoons sugar, beating until stiff but not dry. Fold egg whites into barely lukewarm chocolate mixture in two additions. Divide mousse among bowls or glasses. Garnish; cover and chill until firm, about 4 hours.

Original Nestlé Toll House Chocolate Chip Cookies

Makes 5 dozen

This is Ruth Graves Wakefield’s original recipe from the Toll House Inn in Whitman, Mass.

2-1/4 cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon salt

1 cup butter, softened

3/4 cup sugar

3/4 cup packed brown sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

2 large eggs

2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips

1 cup chopped nuts (optional)

Preheat oven to 375F.

Combine flour, baking soda and salt in a small bowl. In a large mixing bowl, beat butter, sugar, brown sugar and vanilla extract until creamy. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Gradually beat in flour mixture. Stir in chocolate chips and nuts (if using).

Drop by rounded tablespoon onto ungreased baking sheets. Bake for 9 to 11 minutes or until golden brown. Cool on baking sheets for 2 minutes. Remove to wire racks to cool completely.

Chocolate Espresso Puddings with Espresso Whipped Cream

Serves 6

From Bon Appetit Desserts (Andrews McMeel 2011) by Barbara Fairchild.

6 tablespoons sugar, divided

2 tablespoons cornstarch

4 teaspoons instant espresso powder or instant coffee powder, divided

2 cups whole milk

1 cup bittersweet or semisweet chocolate chips

1 tablespoon unsalted butter

1-1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1/2 cup chilled 35 per cent whipping cream

Whisk 4 tablespoons sugar, cornstarch, and 3 teaspoons espresso powder in a heavy medium saucepan until no lumps remain. Gradually whisk in milk. Whisk over medium heat until mixture thickens and boils, 3 to 4 minutes. Remove from heat.

Add chocolate chips, butter and vanilla and whisk until smooth, Divide pudding among 6 small ramekins or gobelets. Cover and chill until cold, at least 2 hours and up to one day.

Using electric mixer, beat cream, remaining 2 tablespoons sugar and remaining 1 teaspoon espresso powder in medium bowl until peaks form. Top each pudding with a dollop of espresso whipped cream.

Chocolate Meringues

Makes 15 to 20

From Trish Deseine’s Je Veux encore du chocolat! (Marabout 2011).

3 egg whites

3/4 cup sugar

1/4 cup dark chocolate, coarsely chopped or grated

2 tablespoons cocoa powder

Preheat oven to 275F. Line two baking sheets with silicone liners or parchment paper.

In a clean dry bowl that is entirely free of grease, beat egg whites until soft peaks form, about five minutes. Add sugar by the spoonful, beating between additions, until stiff peaks form and meringue is glossy, about 10 minutes. Combine chocolate and cocoa powder and fold rapidly but gently into the meringue.

With a tablespoon, drop meringues onto baking sheets, leaving plenty of room around each meringue.

Bake 40 minutes, or until meringues are baked and dry.

Remove from oven and let cool. Store in a cool, dry place.

If desired, serve with whipped cream drizzled with chocolate sauce.

Figues au chocolat

Serves 4

From Montreal chef Helena Loureiro’s recent Portuguese cookbook Helena: 100 recettes portugaises (Transcontinental 2011).

1/2 cup 25 per cent whipping cream

1 cup dark chocolate pastilles

12 dried figs (the larger the better)

In a medium saucepan, heat cream to boiling and add chocolate. Remove from heat and stir gently until chocolate is melted. Set aside to cool slightly.

Using hands, plump up figs so that they are round. With a knife, cut a small slit into the top of each fig and fill with the cooled chocolate mixture.

Just before serving, heat figs briefly in a preheated 200F oven to warm the chocolate slightly.

If desired, serve with fresh berries.

Photographs by: John Mahoney, The Gazette

Chocolate with Bill & Sheila

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