chocolate for your inner child

The other day while I was shopping, I saw the September issue of Martha Stewart Living Magazine. On the cover is a beautiful photo of Martha’s new kitchen. I gave in, bought the magazine and lusted over Martha’s: marble countertops, pots, knives, convection oven, stainless steel appliances and tableware. I then flipped through the magazine to see if there were any recipes I wanted to try. I found two chocolate recipes. The first was a chocolate ginger brownie, which is one of those mix everything in one-bowl recipes and the second was a simple chocolate pudding. The memories I associate with both these desserts are of childhood – when things were simple and carefree. So I dedicate these desserts to the child in all of us.

When making chocolate desserts, I usually go by the following guideline: use good chocolate! The types of chocolate that I prefer to use are Valrhona, Scharfenberg, Callebaut or Lindt. The quality of your chocolate will affect the quality of your desserts and baked goods - try not to compromise. For the brownies I used a dark bittersweet Callebaut and for the pudding, I used a dark semisweet Callebaut. The ginger in the brownies was a nice touch, it gave the brownies a rich and complex flavour, that was familiar and comforting, without being too sweet or intense. The chocolate pudding was tasty, simple and satisfying. The flavour and consistency is exactly what a chocolate pudding should be. Both recipes are incredibly simple and comforting.







chocolate ginger brownies

1/2 cup unsalted butter, plus more for the baking dish
3 oz bittersweet chocolate, coarsely chopped
1 cup sugar
2/3 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 cup unsweetened Dutch-process cocoa powder
2 large eggs
1 tsp grated peeled fresh ginger
1/2 tsp ground nutmeg
1/2 tsp ground ginger
1/4 tsp course salt
1/8 tsp ground cloves

1. Preheat oven to 325ºF. Butter an 8” square baking dish. Line bottom with parchment paper, allowing 2 inches to hang over 2 sides. Butter parchment; set aside. Melt butter and chocolate together in a medium saucepan over medium-low heat, stirring until smooth. Remove from heat, and stir in remaining ingredients.
2. Pour batter into prepared dish. Smooth top with a rubber spatula. Bake until a cake tester inserted into the centre comes out with moist crumbs, 30- 35 minutes. Let cool in pan on a wire rack. Cut into squares. Brownies can be stored in an air tight container at room temperature up to 4 days.



chocolate pudding with whipped cream

1/3 cup granulated sugar
2 Tbsp cornstarch
2 Tbsp unsweetened Dutch-process cocoa powder
1/4 tsp salt
2 cups milk
2 large egg yolks, lightly beaten
4 oz semisweet chocolate, finely chopped
1 Tbsp unsalted butter, softened
1/3 cup heavy cream
1 Tbsp confectioner’s sugar

1. Whisk granulated sugar, cornstarch, cocoa, and salt in a medium pan. Whisk in milk and yolks. Cook over medium-low heat, whisking, until thickened, 8-10 minutes. Remove from heat. Add chocolate and butter; whisk until melted.
2. Pour pudding through a sieve into a heatproof bowl and set in an ice-water bath. To prevent a skin from forming, press plastic wrap directly onto the surface. Refrigerate, stirring occasionally, until cold and set, about 40 minutes (up to 2 days).
3. Whip cream and confectioner’s sugar in a medium bowl until soft peaks form. Divide cold pudding among 4 bowls, and serve with whipped cream.

Both recipes are from Martha Stewart Living, September 2006

Technorati Tags: Baking, Chocolate, Dessert, Martha Stewart

peaches peaches peaches

This Sunday I had eight guests over for dessert after seeing a movie in the Toronto International Film Festival. I had three hours available to make dessert before heading to the movie; so I knew I had to make something simple. I had a large basket of peaches and decided that I would make use of them. Eighteen peaches later, I had made a trio of desserts.




a vanilla bean panna cotta on shortbread with a peach compote




slices of fresh peach on shortbread with an ice wine sabayon




a frozen peach and ginger parfait on shortbread with diced peaches and ground pepper



For the vanilla bean panna cotta recipe, check out my post on the panna cotta trials.

For a soft and delicate shortbread that you can easily cut through with a fork, try using a recipe with icing sugar, cornstarch and a high butter content. Usually, the softer the dough the softer the cookie will be once it’s baked.

Lastly, here is the recipe for the frozen peach and ginger parfait:

1 1/2 Tbsp ginger root, peeled and sliced
6 peaches, peeled, halved and pitted
3 tsp lemon juice
salt to taste
6 egg yolks
2/3 cup confectioners sugar
1 1/4 cup 35% cream, whipped

1. Blanche the peeled and sliced ginger root in hot water for a minute. Transfer to a food processor and process for a minute. Then add the peeled and pitted peach halves and process it till pureed. Add the lemon juice and salt to taste. Place this mixture aside or in the fridge.
2. Whip your 35% cream to a stiff peak, but avoid turning your cream into butter. Place the whipped cream in a container and put it in the fridge until needed.
3. In a heatproof bowl, beat the egg yolks lightly with the confectioners’ sugar; then, still beating, place the bowl over a pot of barely simmering water to create a bain-marie. Keep beating the mixture; when the mixture is lukewarm, remove the bowl from the pan and go on beating until the mixture is cool. If you are lazy like me, I just use my KitchenAid bowl over the pot and then transfer the bowl back to the mixer so that it can do all the work.
4. Once the mixture is cool, fold in the peach and ginger puree. Once combined, fold in the whip cream. Pour the parfait mixture into a 6-cup mold, or into a pan that has been lined with parchment paper. Freeze for approximately 4-6 hours.

* I would also recommend serving the parfait with small pieces of diced candied ginger.

Technorati Tags: Baking, Dessert, Peaches

can you can? : nope

I have some understanding of the basic principles and techniques of canning but have never gotten into it. I missed the elusive 22nd Sugar High Friday event in August titled “Can you can”, an event on canning jams and preserves. It looked like fun and would have been a good excuse to practice canning…oh well! The jams and preserves that 52 food bloggers made look absolutely wonderful. Check them out at Nicky and Oliver's beautiful blog Delicious Days.





Although I don’t can, I eat. Here are a couple of preserves I purchased at Fauchon while I was in New York. The first is Strawberry with Rose Petals and the second Corsican Clementine Sweet Orange. You can see by the picture that I have been eating my way steadily through the Clementine. At US $11 per jar, these preserves can sure add up. I ended up spending US $36 on preserves. Yes, I know it sounds silly, but they are sooo good. I should probably practice canning, ‘cause if I keep buying preserves and jams at this cost I will go broke. They were amazing on the soft buttery brioche that I devoured in two minutes after taking the photo. Yum.

Technorati Tags: New York, Fauchon, SHF, Sugar High Fridays