Yes, I should be working on about 1,000 other things. But what am I doing? Perusing cookbooks and the web for Valentine's Day treats to make this weekend.
As I'm writing this, I just learned that Herb and Dean are ordering Valentine truffles from Oregon Wild Edibles. Those sneaky little devils. I need to come up with the best way to use them (probably over a simple pasta dish) as well as a decadent dessert to cap off the love-ly meal. See, this is why I work out. For treats! It's so simple really.
Since receiving the Zingerman's e-newsletter earlier this week, I've been haunted by chocolate covered clementine's from Spain. This particular way of combining two of my favorite flavors has been stuck in my head all week. But at a ridiculous $50 bucks a box, they qualify as quite conspicuous consumption and are completely unjustified. So, I figure I'll embark upon making them myself. It can't be that hard. I procured the clementines and the chocoloate today. And I think they'd go quite nicely with one of the following chocolatey desserts...
You might enjoy these too so I thought I'd post them. There may be more ideas tomorrow. The cupcake adorned February issue of Martha Stewart also has some lovely and clever cupcake ideas. And there's always the traditional June's Jello Cookies. It just wouldn't be Valentines Day without those. In fact, they are gracing the seasonal banner of this blog (above). How to choose? I'll think about it while I'm slogging away on the eliptical, I guess.
Chocolate-Orange Cupcakes
By Fran Gage from Williams-Sonoma Cake.
Makes 12 cupcakes
For the Cupcakes:
3 tablespoons Dutch-process cocoa powder
1/4 cup hot water
1 1/4 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon each baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 orange
2 large eggs, at room temperature
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup buttermilk, at room temperature
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 cup unsalted butter, melted and cooled to room temperature
For the Frosting:
6 ounces bittersweet chocolate
1 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
2 cups confectioners' sugar
1. Preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C). Line 12 standard muffin cups with paper liners.
2. In a small bowl, stir the cocoa powder into the hot water until it dissolves; set aside. Sift the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt together into a bowl. Using the finest rasps of a handheld grater, grate the zest from the orange into the bowl. Set aside.
3. In a large bowl, whisk together the eggs and granulated sugar until well combined. Whisk in the buttermilk and vanilla, then the dissolved cocoa. Whisk in the melted butter, then the dry ingredients.
4. Using a tablespoon, divide the batter among the muffin cups filling each about half full. Bake until the cupcakes are puffed and a skewer inserted into the center of one comes out clean 15-20 minutes. Let cool completely on a wire rack. Remove the cupcakes from the pan.
5. To make the frosting, melt the chocolate and let cool to room temperature. Meanwhile, using a stand mixer, beat the butter and confectioners' sugar with the paddle on medium speed until creamy and smooth, about 3 minutes. Beat in the melted chocolate until combined. Fill a pastry bag fitted with a 1/2-inch star tip with the frosting and pipe a spiral on top of each cupcake.
6. Refrigerate the cupcakes until 30 minutes before serving to set the frosting.
Melting Chocolate
To melt chocolate, chop it into small pieces and put it in a stainless-steel bowl. Set the bowl in a saucepan over, but not touching, barely simmering water. Heat until the chocolate melts, stirring occasionally. Do not allow any water or steam to come in contact with the chocolate, or it will become stiff and grainy. Or, chop the chocolate in large pieces, place in a microwave-safe dish, and microwave on low for 1 minute. Continue to microwave if necessary, checking every 20 seconds, until the chocolate looks softened, then stir until smooth and liquid.
Cocoa Powder
Chocolate is made by crushing roasted cocoa beans into bits, or nibs, to produce what is known as chocolate liquor. To make unsweetened cocoa powder, much of the cocoa butter (the fat of chocolate) is removed from the liquor and what remains is ground. Dutch-process cocoa, or alkalized cocoa, has a mild flavor and a rich, dark color due to the addition of potassium carbonate, nonalkalized cocoa has a bolder taste and lighter color.
or
Nigel’s Chocolate Almond Cake
Adapted from The Kitchen Diaries: A Year in the Kitchen with Nigel Slater by Nigel Slater
½ lb fine, dark chocolate
1 shot, espresso (instant is fine, or grab one at Starbucks on the way home to make this recipe)
1½ cups butter
¾ cup all-purpose flour
1 ¼ tsp baking powder
2 tsp. good quality cocoa powder
1 cup raw almonds
5 large eggs
¾ cup Turbinado sugar (I used half granulated sugar and half brown sugar and it was fine)
Cocoa powder or powdered sugar for garnishing
You will need a shallow cake pan, 9 inches in diameter, about 2 inches deep, the base lightly buttered and lined with a round of parchment.
Set the oven to 350 degrees. Break or chop the chocolate into small pieces and melt it in a bowl resting over a saucepan of gently simmering water. As soon as it has started to melt, pour the hot espresso over the chocolate. Cut the butter into chunks and drop it into the chocolate and coffee. Resist the temptation to stir (or sample). Sift the flour, baking powder and cocoa together. Don’t skin the almonds, but pulse them in a food processor until they resemble fine, fresh breadcrumbs.
Separate the eggs, dropping the whites into a large bowl. Whisk the whites till they are thick and stiff, then quickly but gently fold in the sugar with a large metal spoon. Remove the chocolate from the heat and stir to dissolve the last of the butter. Mix the egg yolks together, then stir them quickly into the chocolate, just till the ingredients come together. Fold firmly but gently into the egg white and sugar.
Lightly fold in the flour and cocoa mixture, then the ground almonds. Work slowly and firmly but lightly. Don’t over-mix or knock the air out, and stop as soon as the last bit of flour is mixed in. Transfer the mixture to the cake pan and bake for twenty-five minutes. Test the cake for doneness with a skewer. It should come out clean, without any sticky cake mixture attached to it.
Leave to cool a little before turning out and slicing.
When cool, place cake on serving platter and garnish by sifting cocoa powder or powdered sugar over the top.
