Longbotham - Chocolate Deck

50 LUSCIOUS INDULGENCES

I love chocolate.

I have always loved chocolate. To paraphrase the supremely talented Sandra Boynton, I am a person who likes chocolate, as in I am a person who likes to breathe. And its not just mein the year 2001, chocolate consumption in this country was more than three billion pounds. And for you, fellow chocolate lovers, Ive created these recipes with as much deep, dark chocolate as possible. And you dont need previous experience making desserts or working with chocolateI am totally confident that you can make these luscious chocolate desserts with ease.

The cacao tree has been part of human culture for at least two thousand years. The Aztecs enjoyed an invigorating drink made from a paste of the roasted beans, sometimes mixed with chiles and other spices. The explorer Hernn Corts reportedly was served some in 1519 by Emperor Montezuma, who was said to drink 50 portions daily. When cocoa beans were first brought to Spain in 1528, the Spanish began to sweeten ground beans with sugar and serve the mixture hot. Cocoa became a popular drink of the Spanish aristocracy, and the Spaniards began to plant cacao in their colonies, which resulted in a very profitable business selling it to other countries on the Continent. It was not long before chocolate was acclaimed throughout Europe as a delicious, health-promoting food. It then spread across the Channel to Great Britain, and in 1657 the first of many famous English chocolate houses opened. The production of chocolate quickly took hold in the American colonies. In the Massachusetts Bay Colony the first chocolate factory, called Bakers, was established in 1764. By the early twentieth century, chocolate had become an integral part of daily life in Europe and America.

After cacao pods are picked, the beans are removed and placed in boxes or baskets to ferment. Their color changes from purple to brown and the familiar chocolate smell begins to emerge. The flavor develops, the bitterness subsides, and the seeds turn a rich russet, a sign that they are ready to be dried, which concentrates the flavors by evaporating the water content.

Next, roasting develops the flavor and aroma of the beans and enriches their color. The roasting is finely adjusted to suit the particular beans.

The husking and winnowing process cracks open the beans and blows the lighter husks away. Then the beans are cracked into small irregular pieces, called nibs. When the nibs are ground, the cocoa butter they contain is liquefied, and they become chocolate liquor.

Then chocolate liquors from different cacao bean varieties are blended, and other ingredients such as sugar and vanilla are added.

The blended mixture is conched, or kneaded, to produce a smooth texture and fine flavor. The still-liquid chocolate is then tempered for sheen, texture, and keeping qualities, and poured into molds.

UNSWEETENED CHOCOLATE is pure unadulterated chocolate liquor, the ground cocoa nibs and nothing else.

SWEETENED DARK CHOCOLATE includes both bittersweet and semisweet varieties. These can vary greatly, although they are interchangeable in most recipes.

There are two types of COCOA POWDER, natural and Dutch-process. Natural, or nonalkalized, cocoa is the type most used in the United States. Dutch-process cocoa is more of a European style. During processing, the powder is treated with an alkali, mellowing the flavor and making the cocoa darker.

MILK CHOCOLATE contains milk, usually in a dry powder used to replace some cocoa solids. Milk chocolate cannot be substituted for bittersweet or semisweet chocolate.

WHITE CHOCOLATE isnt really chocolate as it contains no chocolate liquor, only cocoa butter.

NIBS are cracked, roasted, husked cocoa beansunsweetened, pleasantly bitter, and intensely chocolate.

MELT chocolate in a heatproof bowl set over a saucepan of about 1 inches of nearly simmering water, whisking until smooth.

FOR CHOCOLATE TURTLE TART

WHISK 1 cup all-purpose flour, 1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa, 2 tablespoons sugar, and teaspoon salt in a medium bowl. Cut in cup small pieces cold unsalted butter with a pastry blender or 2 knives used scissors-fashion, until butter is the size of small peas. Sprinkle 1 tablespoon water over flour mixture, stirring gently with a fork. Continue adding 1 to 2 tablespoons water, just until dough begins to come together when a small bit is pressed between your fingers; do not overwork. Shape into a disk, wrap, and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes, or up to 2 days.

ROLL out dough into a 12 -inch round between two sheets of wax paper. Peel off top sheet. Transfer to a 9-inch fluted tart pan, paper side up, remove paper, and press into the pan. Line with foil and fill with uncooked rice or beans. Bake in the middle of a 425F oven for 15 minutes. Remove foil and rice and bake 8 minutes more, until lightly browned. Cool on a rack.

FOR LUSCIOUS CHOCOLATE CAKE

MELT 6 ounces chopped bittersweet or semisweet chocolate with 2 tablespoons water according to directions above. Transfer to a large bowl. Heat cup sugar with 4 large egg yolks in another heatproof bowl over same saucepan, whisking, until mixture is warm. Whisk sugar into chocolate, add teaspoon vanilla, and beat with an electric mixer on high speed until it reaches room temperature. Beat in 1 cup softened unsalted butter, cut into 16 pieces, one piece at a time.

FOR DIVINE DEVILS FOOD CAKE

MELT 7 ounces chopped bittersweet or semisweet chocolate with cup heavy cream according to directions above. Whisk in 3 tablespoons softened unsalted butter. Let cool and refrigerate, covered, 15 minutes. Beat with an electric mixer on medium-high speed 8 minutes, until thick enough to spread.

FOR CHOCOLATE DECADENCE

PURE 3 cups ripe fresh blackberries, strawberries, or raspberries in a food processor. Sift to cup confectioners sugar over berries, add 2 tablespoons water, and pulse. Add 1 to 2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice to taste. Pour through a coarse strainer set over a bowl, pressing hard on the solids to extract liquid. The sauce will thicken a bit on standing; add water as needed to thin to the desired consistency. Transfer to a glass jar and refrigerate, tightly covered, for up to 1 week, or until ready to serve. Shake well before serving sauce chilled or at room temperature. Makes scant 2 cups.