26 - Wednesday, February 11, 1998 — North Shore News

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fe ROOD

NEWS photo Brad Ledwidge

THE humble cocoa bean is, according to some, the elixir of love. Chef Pokomandy offers two sinfully delicious
chocolate cakes to tempt your beloved on Yalentines's Day.

For the love of chocolate

VALRHONA, Fundy,
Varda, Lindt, Cocoa
Barry, Cailebout,
Hershey, Stollwerck,

Krupskaya and
Cadbury are only few
of the brand names for
some of the best choco-
lates in the world.

There is a mystique about
cocoa and chocolate that
rivals caviar, truffles, goose
liver and perhaps tea,

The beans, the key com-
ponent of any chocolate, are
harvested in tropical lands
around the world, in Central
and South America,
Indonesia, Africa, and
Micronesia. It is generally
agreed that the best bean is
the criollo bean from Mexico.
This special bean is harvested
in limited quantities, toralling
just 2% of world production.

Our major suppliers of
chocolate are the U.S.A.,
U.K., Germany, Italy,
Belgium, the Netherlands
and Switzerland.

Lover’s Chocolate Cake

2 ¢. all-purpose flour
% cup Dutch cocoa powder
1 tsp. baking powder
% tsp. cream of tartar
1 tsp. salt (or less)
% c. butter at room temper-
ature
1% c. granulated sugar
3 large eggs
% tsp. vanilla extract
1%, bottled water at rocm
temperature

Method: Preheat your
oven to 350 F. Place the
oven rack to the middle posi-
tion; this is usually the best
for most cakes. Butter and
flour a9” cake pan. The first
stage of preparation is to mix
all the dry ingredients —
flour, cocoa, baking powder,
tartar, and salt. In another
bow! whisk rogether, using
an electric mixer, the butter
and sugar until light and
fluffy, Beat in the eggs gradu-
ally, beating really well after
adding geach egg. Add the
water and the vanilla extract.

Beat well. Now add the thor-
oughly mixed dry ingredi-
ents, slowly. Once mixed,
pour into the cake pan and
bake in the oven for 25-30
minutes. Test with a tooth-
pick. When ready, cool cake
ona wire rack in the pan. For
best results with icing, you
can put the cake into the
freezer for about 20 minutes
before icing.

Icing:
3 Tbsp. Dutch cocoa pow-
der
1%, icing sugar
4c. milk
Kc, butter
4% tsp. chocolate liqueur
Method: Select a heavy
sauce pan. Heat the milk,
butter and chocolate liquor,
very gently, Mix in the dry
ingredients and bring to a
slaw boil, Cook 2-3 minutes
whisking all the time, until of
spreadable consistency. When
ready remove from the hear.
Cool 10 minutes, stirring
once or twice. Remove cake
from the freezer. Place on
platter and spread on the
icing. Cool and serve with a
spoonful of whipped cream
on the side. The recipe
should make 8 slices of deli-
cious cake.

Frosted Chocolate Cake

4c, Dutch cocoa powder
2 x. boiling bottled water
2% c, all-purpose flour
1 tsp. baking powder
4% tsp. salt or to taste
lc. butter at room temper-
ature
2% c. granulated sugar
1 Tbsp. cream de cacao
liqueur
4 large eggs

Method: Preheat oven as
before. Butter and flour three

9” cake pans. Mix all the drv
ingredients except the cocoa.
In another bowl, mix the
cocoa powder and the boiling
water until smooth and tree
of lumps.

In the third bowl, with an
electric mixer beat sugar and
butter until fluffy. Beat in the
eggs and the cream de cacao.
Now gently pour in the
cocoa and water mixture.
Gradually blend in the dry
ingredients. Blend well. Pour
into the three cake pans in
equal amounts. Bake 20-25
minutes. When done, cool 10
minutes in the pans, and then
remove cakes from the pans.

. Cool on a wire rack for nwo

hours, until well cooled. It is
best to chill cakes covered in
the refrigerator before the
NEM steps,
Filling:

1 c. 33% BAF.
cream

Kc. icing sugar
1 tsp. coffee liqueur

Method: Whip the cream
until soft peak stage. For an
even richer product use a
26% butter fat whipping
cream. Slowly whisk in the
icing sugar and the liqueur.
Place the least perfect cake
piece as the bottom on a nice
platter and spread on half of
the filling. Place the second
cake Gn top and spread on
the rest of the filling. Place
the third cake, the best look-
ing, on top. Chill for 1 hour.
Frosting:

6 oz. grated unsweetened
chocolate

1 c. butter at room temper-
ature

4c. 10% B.F. cream

2% c. icing sugar

grated chocolate (white and
dark for garnish)

Method: In a saucepan
gendy melt the chocolate.
Select a warm stainless steel
bowl. Spoon the melted
chocolate into it, Add the
burter and the cream. Whisk
with an electric mixer until
smooth, Add the icing sugar
gradually until the frosting is
of spreadable consistency.
Spread the frosting on the

whipping

top and sides of the chilled
cake. Decorate with grated
chocolate pieces.

The recipe should make
10 deticious cake portions.

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