I have become a fan of dark chocolate that has 60%+ cocoa.
In fact, I treated myself to Trader Joe's holiday Chocolate Palette offering of 8 bars of "distinctive origin" chocolate made with a minimum of 60% cocoa. (Ironically, the Venezuelan chocolate bar has been my favorite so far.)
I'm halfway through Ghana (70%), and loving it, too. Mmm...I just enjoyed a small piece of it now.
I still have Sao Thome and Papua New Guinea (both 70%).
But, what this post is really about is getting my hands on 336 minibars of Ritter Sport! My friend CanCan over at MomMostTraveled is having a giveaway! Check it out, or NOT and let me win them!
Ritter Sport has lots of new flavors, and even one that is Extra Fine Dark Chocolate (71% cocoa) made with Arriba cocoa from Ecuador. I can't wait to try that one!
I became a fan of Ritter Sport in 1992 as an exchange student in Denmark. There were much fewer varieties back then, but I loved savoring every last bite of my Ritter Sport bars. Every time I see one it brings back such wonderful memories. Thank you Ritter Sport!
Showing posts with label chocolate. Show all posts
Showing posts with label chocolate. Show all posts
Sunday, January 3, 2010
Friday, January 11, 2008
Fudgy Chocolate-Walnut Cookies (flourless)
Yes, indeedy! These cookies have no flour, but yessiree they are baked. According to the article, they are ideal for Passover baking. Apparently, this is one of the 1oo tastes to try in 2008.
These were salivated after by my mom, so much so that she called me up from work to tell me to me to bake more 'cause she couldn't stop thinking about them.
Here's the recipe:
2 3/4 cup walnut halves (9 oz.) - toasted, then chopped
3 cups confectioners' sugar
1/2 cup plus 3 tablespoons unsweetened Dutch-process cocoa powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
4 large egg whites at room temperature
1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract (I used the Bourbon kind from Madagascar)
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Position 2 racks in the upper and lower thirds of the oven. Line 2 large rimmed baking sheets with parchment paper. (Parchment paper is very important here as I tried without and they were very hard to remove from the pans.)
In a large bowl, whisk the confectioners' sugar with the cocoa powder and salt. Whisk in the chopped walnuts. Add the egg whites and vanilla extract and beat just until batter is moistened (be careful not to overbeat or it will stiffen). Spoon the batter onto the baking sheets in 12 evenly spaced mounds.
Bake the cookies for about 20 minutes (shift the pans from front to back and top to bottom halfway through), until the tops of the cookies are glossy and lightly cracked and feel firm to the touch.
Slide the parchment paper (with the cookies) onto 2 wire racks to cool completely before serving.
The cookies can be stored in an airtight container for up to 3 days (but it's highly unlikely they'll last that long).
Recipe by Francois Payard was found in the January 2008 issue of Food and Wine. (page 48)
These were salivated after by my mom, so much so that she called me up from work to tell me to me to bake more 'cause she couldn't stop thinking about them.
Here's the recipe:
2 3/4 cup walnut halves (9 oz.) - toasted, then chopped
3 cups confectioners' sugar
1/2 cup plus 3 tablespoons unsweetened Dutch-process cocoa powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
4 large egg whites at room temperature
1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract (I used the Bourbon kind from Madagascar)
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Position 2 racks in the upper and lower thirds of the oven. Line 2 large rimmed baking sheets with parchment paper. (Parchment paper is very important here as I tried without and they were very hard to remove from the pans.)
In a large bowl, whisk the confectioners' sugar with the cocoa powder and salt. Whisk in the chopped walnuts. Add the egg whites and vanilla extract and beat just until batter is moistened (be careful not to overbeat or it will stiffen). Spoon the batter onto the baking sheets in 12 evenly spaced mounds.
Bake the cookies for about 20 minutes (shift the pans from front to back and top to bottom halfway through), until the tops of the cookies are glossy and lightly cracked and feel firm to the touch.
Slide the parchment paper (with the cookies) onto 2 wire racks to cool completely before serving.
The cookies can be stored in an airtight container for up to 3 days (but it's highly unlikely they'll last that long).
Recipe by Francois Payard was found in the January 2008 issue of Food and Wine. (page 48)
Friday, November 2, 2007
Fudgy Almond Butter Cookies (no bake)
I found the recipe in the local coupon clipper that comes with the weekend paper. I ended up substituting a few of the ingredients just because that's what I had on hand. The greatest surprise was that this recipe required no baking whatsoever.
Main ingredients:
10 packets of Hot Cocoa mix (I used 3 regular and 7 Caramel Creme)
2/3 cup hot water
1/2 corn syrup
18 oz peanut butter (I used Marantha almond butter)
2 cups powdered sugar
4 cups crushed vanilla wafers (I used Trader Joe's regular & ginger cat cookies for people)
A lot of chocolate kisses (I used peanut butter kisses)
Combine hot cocoa mix and hot water. Beat in corn syrup and peanut butter. Stir in powdered sugar. Carefully stir in the crushed cookies.
Roll teaspoonfuls of fudgy mixture in powdered sugar, then press with thumb in middle to make room for the kiss.
Keep refrigerated. Ok if left out, but they get a little soft.
Enjoy!
Thursday, September 6, 2007
Cocoa Crispy Treats
There were excess mini marshmallows lying around the house, so what else to do but
get crispy rice. I found some cocoa crispy rice at the Grocery Outlet for $.99
a box. What a deal!
It was 5 1/2 cups marshmallows, 1/4 cup butter melted for 2 minutes in the microwave.
Add 5 1/2 cups crispies. Stir very carefully then transfer into a buttered pan.
It also helps to butter the fingers for keeping the gooey mess off of them.
I made a double batch and fit them both into one 13 X 9 glass dish to make them
extra thick. Yummy!
get crispy rice. I found some cocoa crispy rice at the Grocery Outlet for $.99
a box. What a deal!
It was 5 1/2 cups marshmallows, 1/4 cup butter melted for 2 minutes in the microwave.
Add 5 1/2 cups crispies. Stir very carefully then transfer into a buttered pan.
It also helps to butter the fingers for keeping the gooey mess off of them.
I made a double batch and fit them both into one 13 X 9 glass dish to make them
extra thick. Yummy!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)