SCONES DE CACAO.......

gOOd mOrning!

 CACAO SCONES

Makes 8 scones
For a breakfast treat, afternoon pick-me-up or a double chocolate dessert serve these with a cup of steaming Drinking Chocolate (see Karolinacacao.com for Mayan Hot Chocolate)

Ingredients
1⅔ cups unsifted all-purpose flour

⅔ cup 58%Cacao

2 teaspoons baking powder

5 tablespoons unsalted butter

¾ cup sweetened dried cranberries

⅔ cup milk

1 teaspoon milk

1 tablespoon coarse sugar


Directions
Preheat oven to 425ºF. Line a baking pan with parchment.
Combine flour, 58% Cacao and baking powder in bowl of food processor fitted with metal blade, processing until uniform. Cut butter into 5 slices and blend into dry ingredients just until incorporated. Add cranberries and milk and pulse until the ingredients come together. Transfer to lightly floured surface and with floured hands form into a 9-10 inch circle about 1-inch thick. Brush top with milk and evenly sprinkle with sugar. Cut into 8 wedges. Bake 12-15 minutes. Serve warm.

Recipe by



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MEESES & MICES & MOUSSES, OH MY!

If you have ever had mousse you know how easy it is to eat a large amount.  Back in the day I was a food server with a chocolate mousse addiction.  They put mini chocolate chips inside and I love crunchy, soooo.....

This mousse is made with DARK chocolate so it will be very intense and hopefully you can stop at one!

DARK CHOCOLATE MOUSSE

Ingredients

• 14 oz. EL REY Apamate Dark 73.5%
• 5 oz egg yolks
• 2 oz eggs
• 5 oz sugar
• 2 oz water
• 18 oz cream

Directions

Melt chocolate to 110 degrees and set aside.

Prepare the "pate a bombe" mixture by beating the eggs and yolks on medium speed until thick.

Cook the sugar and water to firm ball stage (245 degrees). Pour cooked sugar over whipped egg mixture while whisking at medium speed until cool.

Whip cream to light, soft peaks in a separate mixing bowl, taking care not to over-whip.

Fold about ¼ cup of the cream into the melted chocolate.


Fold the "pate a bombe mixture into the rest of the cream, taking care that the bombe mixture is not too warm or too cool. Carefully pour the warm, melted chocolate into this mixture, gently folding until incorporated.


Recipe by El Rey



CHOCOLATE BASS?

Chocolate & Bass?  All I can think of is the Bass O Matic from SNL in the 70s, but this recipe blends flavors unlike the great D. Akyroyd.



This recipe was created by Barry Callebaut one of the best chocolates used by Chocolatiers.

BASS IN SEA SALT WITH DARK CHOCOLATE

Bass
Ingredients

± 3 kg coarse sea salt

30 g satay powder (see below for location to purchase)

4 cl olive oil

4 pieces of bass fillet with skin, each 170 g



Preparation

Fill a baking tray with the sea salt.

Sprinkle with water and bake for 1 minute at 250°C until it becomes a hard 'board'.

Keep warm.

Mix the satay spices with the oil.

Spread the skin side of the fish with this spiced oil.

Lay the bass fillet onto the board of salt and cook under the grill (4-7 minutes, depending on the thickness). The underside cooks on the warm board of salt, the top side under the grill.


Sauce

Ingredients

15 g sugar

3 cl young balsamic vinegar

7.5 cl veal stock (not concentrated, unsalted)

7.5 cl port

40 g butter

20 g dark chocolate



Preparation

Reduce the sugar and the balsamic vinegar until it becomes sirupy.

Add the veal stock and the port.

Reduce to 1/3.

Finish the sauce with butter and the chocolate.

Season with pepper (and salt if so desired).


Pumpkin purée

Ingredients

300 g de-seeded ripe pumpkin flesh

40 g butter



Preparation

Cook the pumpkin.

Leave it to dry so that as much of the water evaporates.

Press through a sieve.

Beat up the pumpkin purée with butter.

Season with salt and pepper.

Finishing and presentation

Pipe a turret of pumpkin purée onto each plate.

Put the bass on the plate and draw a few sauce lines along.

If desired, serve with a few thin and crispy fried slices of taro or potato.

Satay Powder 70g


Serves 4 persons

RECIPE BY

SATAY POWDER

(Made here at Spice World, this satay powder is of medium heat with an aromatic flavour. Consisting of coriander, lemon grass, cardamom, galangal, star anise, turmeric, chilli powder and sesame seed. Coat kg. of cubed chicken or beef with 2 tbsp. of satay powder and stand for half an hour. Fry garlic and onion, add chicken and coconut milk for a basic satay curry. Be adventerous and add fresh lemongrass, galangal and kaffir lime leaves, along with snow peas to your dish)

SPICE WORLD .COM $3.50



CHOCOLATE CHERRY BROWNIES!!!!

There are so many ingredients that make this so much richer and gooey than the typical brownie.  If I had this in a jar like a certain chocolate/hazelnut product I would probably need an intervention!  If you need to make someone jump and skip, gime them some of these brownies in a box with a ribbon and watch the entertainment.

CHOCOLATE CHERRY BROWNIES

Ingredients
butter for greasing pan

2 cups / 10.5 oz / 300 g dried cherries

scant cup / 200 ml / 7 fl oz port wine

1/2 cup / 2 oz / 55g / whole wheat pastry flour

1/3 cup / 1.5 oz / 40 g unsweetened cocoa powder

1/2 teaspoon fine grain sea salt

2 teaspoons baking powder

10.5 oz / 300g 58% dark chocolate rounds

5 1/2 tablespoons / 2 3/4 oz / 80g unsalted butter

2 cups / 10.5 oz / sifted muscovado sugar

4 large eggs

scant 1/2 cup / 3.5 oz / 100 g creme fraiche or sour cream

1 cup / 5 oz / 145 g chocolate rounds

more cocoa powder, for dusting

A day or two before you want to bake the brownies, place the cherries in a medium bowl and pour over the port. Cover and set aside. Stir every twelve hours until ready to use.

Preheat the oven to 325F / 170C and place a rack in the top third. Butter and line a 13 x 9 x 2-inch rectangular baking dish with parchment paper. An important step if you want to eventually get these brownies out of the pan. Sift the flour, cocoa powder, salt, and baking powder into a bowl and set aside.

Make a double boiler by placing a stainless steel bowl over a small pan of gently simmering water - the bottom of the bowl should not touch the water. Place the 10.5 oz / 300g of chocolate into this bowl along with the butter and sugar. Stir just until the chocolate has melted and the ingredients come together into a mass. Transfer to the bowl of an electric mixer and allow to cool (cool enough that it won't cook the eggs when you add them). Mix on slow and add the eggs, one at a time, letting each get incorporated before adding the next. Scrape down the sides of the bowl with a spatula a couple times along the way. Add the flour mixture and stir by hand until combined, then add the creme fraiche, remaining chocolate rounds, and the cherries with the port. Stir until just combined.

Spoon the mixture into the prepared pan and bake for about an hour, or until just set. The center of the brownie should be set and not at all wobbly. Allow to cool completely in the pan. You can cover the pan tightly with plastic wrap at this point and the brownies will keep for a couple days. I recommend chilling before slicing if you want small, precise squares. Also keep a tall glass of warm water on hand to wash your knife between each cut. Enjoy at room temperature dusted with a bit of cocoa powder.

Makes one large pan of brownies.

Prep time: 900 min - Cook time: 60 min