More Last-Minute Chocolate Stocking Stuffers

Do you still need some chocolaty stocking stuffers for a chocolate-lover your list?  If so, here are three that I tried in the last month and liked:

Long Grove's 99 gram Milk Chocolate Peanut Butter Cup, available at Target.  I couldn't resist purchasing this extra-large chocolate peanut butter cup when I saw it at the newly opened Target in Sudbury, Ontario. It is a little on the sweet side, with the peanut butter centre composed mainly of icing sugar and peanut butter, but it is ideal for that sweet-tooth chocolate fanatic who also loves peanut butter. And it is impressive to look at!

Lindt Chocolate Wafer with Hazelnut Filling - this crunchy crepe inside of a milk chocolate and hazelnut bar is so tasty, that even a dark-chocolatarian like myself loved it. This would satisfy any kind of chocolate lover on your holiday gift list. I bought it at Valu-Mart, but I suspect it is available at most grocery stores and pharmacies now.


Aero 70% Dark Chocolate - even an appreciator of fine chocolate may need a quick fix of dark chocolate now and then, which makes Aero's 70% chocolate bar the perfect stocking stuffer if you need to buy dark chocolate NOW! I found the bubbles to be refreshing and the dark chocolate actually tastes good (it is dark chocolate, as opposed to those commercial super-sweet chocolate bars that are only labelled as dark).



Finally, if you really need a good chocolate treat for someone who cares about their health, the environment, or social responsibility, then head over to your local health food store.  Most health food stores have a great selection of 100 gram chocolate bars and sample-sized chocolates that are organic, Fair Trade and all natural.  You can probably fill a stocking with what you find there.  Good brands include:

• Camino's Organic and Fair Trade Chocolate bars
• Alter Eco's range of organic chocolate bars
• Green & Black's
• Dagoba
• Pacari's range of raw chocolate bars
• and so many more....

Have a happy holiday and a fantastic New Year everyone!  May 2014 bring you a lot of amazing chocolate experiences.

Buy it or make it! More quick, but rich chocolate desserts for the holidays...

Still need a quick, but rich, chocolate dessert for the Holidays?

Make something easy, but decadent!

Flourless chocolate cake does not take long to make and requires minimal ingredients. Try these quick and easy recipes:

Hazelnut Flourless Dark Chocolate Truffle Cake - you could also replace the hazelnuts in this recipe with 1 cup of thawed, crushed raspberries or even try peanut butter or almond butter for a different flavour!

Raspberry Pie-in-a-Flourless-Chocolate-Cake PIECAKEN - make this recipe as is, or eliminate the pie and you will have a really large flourless chocolate cake.  Top with a flavoured whipped cream of your choice (i.e. cinnamon, a hazelnut syrup or any other flavour of coffee syrup, peppermint, ginger, maple, etc.).

Maple Dark Chocolate Truffle Cake  Oh yum!  Need I say more?


Change up any of these recipes by using organic coconut sugar instead of cane sugar, or replace the butter with organic coconut oil to make a vegan and dairy-free version.

Buy it and make it your own!

If you are really strapped for time, buy a dessert and just add a few finishing touches to make it your own!  President's Choice just launched a new 'Decadent" Flourless Chocolate Cake that is great for the chocolate lover.  It is a little on the sweet side, but tasty.  

If you want to add your own spin to it, whip up some whipped cream, add a little Peppermint flavouring to it and top the cake with a beautiful whipped topping. You could also change up the flavouring to cinnamon, pumpkin spice, ginger or any other festive flavour.  Or top it with a chocolate ganache (boil 1/2 cup of cream and pour over 8 ounces of milk or dark chocolate and stir until smooth - add 1 tbsp of corn syrup to add a shine - then pour over the cake and smooth out with a spatula and chill).

You can always buy a simple chocolate cheesecake or New York-style Cheesecake in the freezer section of your grocery store and add a fruit topping or the chocolate ganache that I mentioned above. Pile a bunch of chocolaty cookies or wafers on top and voila! a beautiful chocolate dessert is born.

The LoC Maria brand of crepes/wafers (see photo on the right) taste great and look fantastic on any cake or dessert. I bought these at Costco, but there are a number of different brands available at various stores. You might even find some coated in dark chocolate!

Simple Chocolate Dessert: Chocolate Truffles in a Cup with Whipped Cream

Need a simple, but indulgent, chocolate dessert idea for your Holiday gathering?  Here is one:

1. Make some simple dark chocolate truffles dusted in cocoa powder (see recipe below), drop one truffle into the bottom of an espresso cup, then spritz with real whipped cream.  Then drop a second truffle into the cup on top of the whipped cream, and then spritz again with more whipped cream.

2. Top with chocolate or snowflake sprinkles, silver candy balls, chocolate shavings or even pieces of cookies (like the chocolate-covered crepe shown in the picture).  If you have a lot of espresso cups or if you find extra-small party cups, Dixie cups or tea cups, you can put these out on your dessert display table for guests to enjoy. Or serve them at the table after dinner.  Either way, it is a delicious and indulgent dessert!

Recipe: Best Ever Super Simple Chocolate Truffles

You need:

• 2/3 cup whipping cream
• 8 ounces of semi-sweet dark chocolate (you can also use 70% dark chocolate, depending on how you like your truffles)
• 1/3 cup of cocoa powder in a small bowl for dusting your truffles

Instructions:

1. Chop your chocolate and place in a heatproof bowl.
2. Bring the cream just to a boil in a small saucepan on the stovetop. 
3. Pour the hot cream over the chocolate. 
4. Stir slowly with a wooden spoon until smooth. If it does not completely melt, place over a double boiler or in the microwave for 5 or 10 seconds at most and then continue stirring until completely melted.
5. Place an airtight lid over the bowl of truffle mix or wrap well with plastic wrap.
6. Let set on the counter overnight (or for at least 6 to 8 hours)
7. Refrigerate for 1 hour.
8. Take out of the fridge.  Roll into 1-inch balls and then roll in a bowl of cocoa powder. Place on waxed paper in a container with a lid until you are ready to use them.

What else do you need?

• Don't forget to buy or make your whipped cream!  I used GayLea Real Whipped Cream (Light) for the purposes of this article, but you can also whip up real whipped cream yourself or use any other brand in the can.
• You need espresso cups or very small serving bowls. Dixie cups may also work if they look nice!
• Toppings, such as: cookies, hazelnut wafer rolls, festive sprinkles, chocolate shavings, Skor bits, etc.

Tips:
Make your truffles one day in advance or at least pour your truffle the day before, let set overnight and then roll your truffle balls on the morning of the party.  Put the dessert together just before you serve it, if using whipped cream in the can (it is very soft).  If you make your own whipped cream and it is very stiff, you can assemble the dessert just before the party and let it chill in the fridge.

Festive Nuts! Saxon Cinnamon Hazelnuts vs Organic Traditions Dark Chocolate Hazelnuts

On the left: Saxon Cinnamon Hazelnuts
On the right: Organic Traditions Dark Chocolate Hazelnuts

Organic Traditions 'Dark Chocolate Hazelnuts' are a tasty and healthy snack (I have written about these before), so I just had to buy a new bag when I saw them at HomeSense last week. But alongside them on the shelf was a perfect comparison product: Saxon's Cinnamon Hazelnuts.

So what was the verdict?  Saxon's was definitely sweeter, and had just a subtle hint of cinnamon flavour, which was nice.  It also seemed more 'gifty' than the Organic Traditions bag.  But my cravings for bitter chocolate (with less guilt) won out, and I opted to finish the bag of Organic Traditions, while saving Saxon's chocolate for a time when I can indulge in something sweeter.

So here is my recommendation:

If you want to have a healthy, protein-rich treat that tastes great with a dark roast coffee - go for the bag of Organic Traditions.

If you want a sweet treat that also is rich in protein, or if you need to buy a gift for a chocolate lover, go for the bag of Saxon Cinnamon Hazelnuts.

Here are the package details of Saxon's Hazelnuts:

Chocolate Enrobed Cinnamon Hazelnuts (150 g / 5.3 oz)
Saxon Chocolates (Toronto, ON)
www.saxonchocolates.com
Ingredients: Chocolate (Belgian unsweetened chocolate, sugar, cocoa butter, whole milk powder, skim milk powder, milk fat, cocoa fat, soya lecithin as an emulsifier, vanilla extract), dry roasted hazelnuts, cocoa powder, cinnamon sugar. May contain peanuts and gluten proteins.  Made in Canada with imported ingredients.
I bought this for $4.99 at HomeSense.

As for Organic Traditions, I did not know about the controversy or the recall (because trace amounts of milk was found in the product by the Canadian Food Inspection Agency), when I purchased the bag and wrote this article. However, when this recall is over, I will still likely buy this product if I see it in stores!

Tempering chocolate without power - am I a true chocolatier now?

Yesterday, we experienced a power outage on Manitoulin Island.  I have come to realize that this is a normal occurrence here on the Island. In fact, I have become so used to the outages now, that whenever the wind picks up, I automatically fill the kettle, boil water and fill a thermos, just in case I may be without power (I will not be without coffee or tea). And although the decision has been made to buy a generator, I have not yet done so.

And so when the power went out yesterday - rather unexpectedly I might add - I was desperate to finish off the batch of 250 chocolate TOFFLEs that I had been working on.  The only thing I had left to do was to add the little squiggle of chocolate on the top of each TOFFLE and then package them.

And so what did I do to melt and temper the chocolate? Well, it went something like this:

1.Without a kettle full of hot water, I thought about what I could do to melt the chocolate. I realized that I had just taken some soup off the stove and the soup was still hot.

2. Pouring the small amount of chocolate into a stainless steel bowl and then pouring some soup into another bowl, I used the bowl of soup as a double boiler!  The white chocolate mixture melted  quickly (don't worry, I was careful not to get any soup into the chocolate).


3. I could not get the temperature of the chocolate up to 110 degrees F in order to temper it, so I then found a small chocolate fondue maker.  Although this usually would burn the chocolate if left to sit, I made sure that I constantly stirred until it reached 110 degrees.

4. I cooled the chocolate over an ice bath to 78 degrees F (the power was not out for long by this point, so my freezer had not yet had the chance to melt the ice).

5. I reheated the chocolate to 82 degrees over the soup again. 

6. Voila! I had tempered chocolate and was able to add the squiggle onto my chocolate TOFFLEs! I celebrated by eating the bowl of warm soup.

I feel like this MUST make me a true chocolatier now....right?

President's Choice Sea Salt & Toffee Chocolate Squares; a great new holiday treat!

As advertised, President's Choice Sea Salt & Toffee Chocolate Squares really deliver a tasty combination of sweet and salty. One side is a solid, not-too-sweet dark chocolate, and the other is a melt-in-your-mouth milk chocolate with little crunchy toffee pieces and sea salt. You could say that one side is guilt-free and the other is pure pleasure. But get it now, because this is a "Limited Edition" product.

So why do I like it so much? It is true that I am an avid dark chocolate eater.  But I remember what it was like to enjoy milk chocolate as a child, a teenager and a young adult. So I appreciate any brand that tries to combine both milk and dark chocolate to satisfy the needs of any kind of chocolate lover (this is obvious to anyone who knows that I invented the chocolate TOFFLE).  And although scrumptious as is, it is also fun to pry the dark and milk chocolate squares apart to savour the individual flavours.  It is the same sort of fun that you get out of an Oreo cookie.

The box is more practical-looking than 'gifty', so it would be a good treat to take out of the box and add to your holiday dessert platters (or enjoy with a coffee on Christmas morning).

There are no artificial flavours in this product and no colours added. And the price is right at $4.99 for a 200 gram box.

Here are the package details:

President's Choice Sea Salt & Toffee Chocolate Squares
Loblaws, Inc. (Toronto, ON)
www.presidentschoice.ca
Ingredients: sugar, unsweetened chocolate, cocoa butter, milk powder, toffee pieces (sugar, glucose syrup, cream, butter), milk fat, sea salt, sunflower lecithin, natural flavour. May contain tree nuts, soy and wheat.

Note: I have not been paid or rewarded (as much as I would like free samples!) for writing about this product.  As usual, I just like the taste and thought I would share with all of you holiday chocolate shoppers. In fact, the company has no idea that I am giving the gift of free advertising this year.

Giant Belgian Milk Chocolate Bar for Baking or Eating - with NO Soy Lecithin!

It is time to get your Christmas baking on! So what is the best way to do that?  Start with the right ingredients.  And for me, the right ingredients include good quality chocolate. 

For the average consumer, accessing a large amount of good quality baking chocolate is not all that easy - particularly when it is milk chocolate.  But Indigo Books & Music (Toronto, Canada) has the greatest milk chocolate bar for you.  It is 1 kilogram of quality milk chocolate, made in Europe.  And that is not even the best part.  The emulsifier used in the chocolate is NOT soy lecithin, it is sunflower lecithin.  So for all you chocolate-lovers who cannot have soy for a variety of reasons, you can eat this chocolate (however, there is a "May contain..." statement on the label, so just be aware if you have a severe allergy, but it is NOT in the ingredients list).

I find this a little bit sweet for me, but I am known to be addicted to bitter chocolate.  I think it has a rich flavour and the inclusion of natural vanilla makes it awesome. It would make some great milk chocolate truffles or a milk chocolate ganache. See a recipe for a Sour-Cream Milk Chocolate Ganache here.

Also, if you know someone who just LOVES to eat solid milk chocolate - this would make a great gift. And it is a good gift for the baker in your life. You might also benefit by enjoying all of your friend's baking!

I bought this chocolate bar at Chapters/Indigo in Sudbury for $19.50, which is not a bad price for 1 kg of chocolate. I also saw a similar chocolate bar at Valu-Mart for about the same price, and if you do not have a Chapters near you, President's Choice 300 gram Milk Chocolate bar is made with canola lecithin and also has natural vanilla flavouring.  It is also great for baking.

Here are the package details from the chocolate that I wrote about today:
Belgian Milk Chocolate Bar (1 kg)
Made in Germany for Indigo Books & Music, Inc. (I know, funny right?  - is it Belgian or is it German?)
www.indigo.ca
Ingredients: Sugar, cocoa butter, whole milk powder, unsweetened chocolate, sunflower lecithin, vanilla extract.

If you are a person who cannot have soy, here is a great list of soy-free chocolate: http://ultimatechocolateblog.blogspot.ca/2010/12/chocolate-bars-with-no-soy-lecithin-are.html.

PLEASE NOTE: No company or person has paid or encouraged me to write this article.  Being a small-batch chocolatier and baker, I am just really excited about the availability of good quality chocolate in 1 kilogram packages!

Celebrate the Holidays with Firecrackers!

What's popping in the chocolate industry these days? Chocolate makers are combining traditionally popular candies with fine chocolate. And the currently popular - and totally fun - combination is chocolate and popping candy!  I have written about my love for Toronto's fine chocolate maker, Soma, and their delectably exciting chocolate truffle with popping candy. But since then, I have come across a few more chocolates that 'pop'.

The latest is Chuao Chocolatier's 'firecracker' chocolate bar.  It has sea salt, smoky chipotle spice and popping candy in a 60% dark chocolate.  The heat of the spice, combined with the popping candy (which continues to pop in your mouth long after the chocolate has been melted away), gives the effect of firecrackers, and so the name is certainly fitting.  It is bitter and spicy, which places this chocolate bar in the middle of the spectrum between sweet and savoury. And what's more, it is all natural, which is certainly different than the average 'candy' bar and makes us feel better about indulging in this chocolaty treat.

It would certainly spice up any chocolate lovers' stocking for Christmas. I know I love it!

I bought this chocolate bar for $6.46 Canadian (on special from $6.75) at Chapters-Indigo in Sudbury, Ontario.

Here are the package details:

'firecracker' by Chuao Chocolatier, 80 g (2.8 oz)
chef: Michael Antonorbi
Chuao Chocolatier (San Diego, CA)
www.ChuaoChocolatier.com
Ingredients: Premium dark chocolate (60% cacao, sugar, cacao butter, soy lecithin, natural vanilla), popping candy (sugar, corn glucose, lactose, carbon dioxide), chipotle chili, pasilla chile, sea salt. Contains: Milk lactose, soy. Manufactured in a facility that uses tree nuts, milk and wheat in other products. No Gluten.

Looking for other chocolate with popping candy? Check out this article on Hammond's: http://ultimatechocolateblog.blogspot.ca/2012/09/a-week-of-weird-flavours-chocolate.html and this one on Soma's Poprocks truffle: http://ultimatechocolateblog.blogspot.ca/2012/07/fine-chocolate-in-toronto-shop-for.html.

Flourless Hazelnut Dark Chocolate Truffle Cake Recipe

Do you love, LOVE, LOVE flourless chocolate cake as much as I do?  I was introduced to this uber-rich, chocolate truffle-like dessert when I spent a post-graduate year in France in 2005, and it changed my view of desserts forever more. I had never liked vanilla cake, nor did I like sponge cake or pound cake, even when they were called 'chocolate' simply because cocoa powder had been added to their recipe.  So when I had my first taste of flourless chocolate cake - made mostly with butter, real chocolate and eggs, I felt like it was the chocolate dessert that I had been waiting for my entire life. Why? Well, although it technically is a cake, it really is just a big slice of chocolate truffle on a plate.

And now I make flourless chocolate cake often.  Once you have the knowledge and the ingredients, it is actually quite simple to make. And I love to change up the ingredients of my flourless chocolate cakes to add just a little bit of a flavour twist.  My favourite is Raspberry Dark Chocolate, but I've even tried milk chocolate, white chocolate and a variety of fruit and nut flavours.

So today I thought I would share a festive holiday version that includes roasted hazelnuts and pure hazelnut butter.  This is a rich, savoury dark chocolate cake that is reminiscent of a large, bitter-sweet hazelnut chocolate truffle. Sweeten it up by topping it with a chopped hazelnut-milk chocolate bar and some hazelnut buttercream and you will have a luscious dessert.

Here is the recipe:

Flourless Hazelnut Dark Chocolate Truffle Cake

For the cake:

• 8 ounces / 227 grams of 70% dark chocolate (I used organic and Fair Trade Camino brand of chocolate couverture), chopped in 1 inch pieces.
• 1/2 lb butter / 250 grams (for a milk/dairy free version, use equivalent in Coconut Oil), chopped in cubes
• 1 cup sugar (I have now made this cake with regular granulated sugar, organic golden cane sugar and a lower glycemic version with coconut sugar - they all worked out great)
• 4 eggs, at room temperature (place in a bowl of warm water if cold)
• 1 cup pure hazelnut butter or paste (Cacao Barry's Pure Hazelnut Paste is fantastic, but there is likely a small jar of another brand at your grocery store that you can also use)
• 1 tsp sea salt

For the glaze:

• 6 ounces of semi-sweet dark chocolate (56% to 65%)
• 1/2 cup cream or 1/3 cup water
• 1 tablespoon corn syrup, honey or agave syrup

For the topping:

• Whole Hazelnuts - roasted, OR
• A 100 gram milk (or dark) chocolate with whole hazelnuts chocolate bar, chopped

Optional: Hazelnut Buttercream Icing

• 1/2 pound butter, softened
• 2 cups icing sugar, sifted
• 1/2 to 3/4 cup pure hazelnut butter (to taste)

Prepare your pan and the oven:

1. Prepare a 10" springform or regular baking pan with a piece of parchment paper and by greasing the paper and the sides of the pan with a tablespoon of softened butter (bake at 25 minutes). Alternately, you can prepare two 5" pans and make smaller cakes with 6 servings (bake at 17 minutes only).
2. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F.

To make the cake:

1. Place the chopped butter and chocolate in a heat-proof bowl over a double boiler (a small pot with 1 inch of water in it at a low simmer) and stir constantly until melted. Remove from heat. You can use the stainless steel bowl from your stand mixer, if it does not have a thick-plated or rubber base.
2. Add the sugar and stir well.  Let rest five minutes.
3. Add all four eggs and mix with a hand mixer (or stand mixer) until well blended (do not over-beat, if it starts to get fluffy, stop mixing).
4. If it was refrigerated, warm your hazelnut butter in the microwave for about 25 or 30 seconds. Then pour into the chocolate-egg mixture and mix with your hand mixer or stand mixer until mixed in.
5. Toss in the salt and mix for about 10 seconds more with your hand mixer or with a spatula.
6. Pour the entire mixture into your 10" baking pan, or if using two 5" pans, pour half the mixture into each. Spread around gently and tap on counter to even the cake mixture in the pan.
7. Bake the 10" cake for 25 minutes in the centre of the oven, or 17 minutes for the small 5" cakes.  Turn off the oven when the time is up and gently pull out the oven rack and leave the door open for 5 minutes or more until cooled (this prevents the centre from falling too quickly, leaving the sides to crack).
8. Take out of the oven and let cool completely on a cooling rack. Once cooled, refrigerate it for at least a 1/2 hour to 1 hour.
9. Run a warm knife around the sides of the pan to ensure the cake does not stick. Remove the springform sides and flip upside down onto a serving plate (this is easier if you place your serving plate upside-down on top of the cake and flip over gently). Extract the parchment paper carefully, then decorate.

To make the glaze:

1. Place your chopped chocolate in a stainless steel, glass or plastic bowl.
2. In a small saucepan, bring the cream (or water, if using) just to a boil. 
3. Immediately pour the liquid over the chocolate and stir slowly with a wooden spoon until the chocolate is melted and well blended.
4. Add one tablespoon of corn syrup, honey or agave syrup to add a shine to the glaze.
5. Pour the glaze over the cake slowly and let it run to the sides. You can either let it drip lightly over the sides, or use a small offset spatula to smooth out the sides.  You will need a paper-towel to clean around the edges of your serving plate if it spreads.
6. Top with the chopped up hazelnut-chocolate bar or the roasted hazelnuts. Decorate with hazelnut buttercream, to add a little sweetness and more hazelnut flavour (see recipe below).

To make the Hazelnut Buttercream:

1. Beat the butter in a stand mixer bowl (or mixing bowl with a hand mixer) until softened and slightly fluffy. 
2. Add the icing sugar slowly while beating. Be sure to stir the bottom of the bowl with a spatula so no lumps form and beat again.
3. Add the hazelnut butter and beat. 
4. You can also add 1/4 cup cocoa powder for a chocolaty appearance and flavour or some melted milk or dark chocolate (not warmer than 82 to 86 degrees F).
5. Place in a decorator bag and decorate all around the top and sides of your cake, or spread in the middle and decorate however you wish! Just remember that this cake does not need a lot of buttercream, as it is already fairly rich in flavour and, well, butter.

Enjoy and indulge happily!

What Comes After Eight?

Well, not 'nine' if that was what you were thinking.  Nope, I am talking about that delicious paper-thin minty treat that seems to be everywhere during the holiday season: the After Eight.  Despite my affinity for very fine chocolate and bean-to-bar craft chocolate, I still cannot resist the occasional box of After Eights.

The After Eight triggers many of my Christmas holiday memories from childhood.  There was nearly always a box in my stocking or put out on the coffee table for Christmas morning.  And as I grew older, it became my own tradition to buy a box (or two) at the start of every December and devour nearly the entire box while watching a holiday tv movie. And so my love for that refreshing little chocolate treat has never wavered, nor will it, I am sure.

But occasionally a new product has come on the market that threatens to pull ol' Eighty from his 'King of Mint' pedestal. And I always try these new products because I am always looking for a new way to enjoy mint chocolate.  But yet nothing ever seems to compare to the After Eight. So then I realised that I need not compare.  Instead I should simply appreciate the new product - even if it is clearly a knock-off - for what it is and treat it as an entirely new experience.

That is what I have done with the PC 70% Cocoa Dark Chocolate MINT THINS.  When these came on the market several years ago, it was clear that President's Choice was attempting to compete directly with the After Eight brand on product and price.  The box is the same size (both have 300 grams of chocolate mint thins) and on product shape and format.  The difference though, is that PC's chocolate 'thins' are not quite as thin as After Eights. In fact, they are quite thick.  Which makes the tasting experience completely different.

Do not get me wrong: I LIKE President's Choice product.  I just like it in a different way.  I enjoy the thick layer of 70% dark chocolate.  Let's face it, when you eat an After Eight, you are not eating it because you can taste the chocolate. In fact, the layer of chocolate is so thin that you are really just enjoying the texture and the mint flavour within the chocolate shell. But the PC MINT THIN is all about the chocolate.  When you take a bite, the first thing you notice is dark chocolate. But it all seems to melt together in your mouth to create the effect of a mint-flavoured chocolate bar.

So I guess my point in all this is: keep an open mind.  Be loyal to your favourite brand of chocolate, but also learn to treat new brands and knock-offs of popular brands as their own unique product.  And you might just find something new to enjoy.  I know that I have.  Now, each year when the Christmas chocolate arrives on the grocery store shelves, I buy a box of After Eights and a box of PC MINT THINS....just because I can.

So what do you think?  Can you learn to love a knock-off product as much as the original? Is it possible to love two chocolates equally? Or is one love enough for a lifetime? Feel free to answer in the Comments below.  For now, Happy Chocolate Holidays!


And get ready, it is time for some blatant self-promotion:

If you are like me and love to try all kinds of mint-flavoured chocolates, you should try my newest product, the Peppermint Chocolate TOFFLE™. I LOVE it just as much as those mint thins I talked about above (which is why I created it).  It is a mint-flavoured chocolate truffle surrounded by a chewy dark chocolate toffee. If you are interested, check it out on FoodiePages.

S’mores Cheesecake Tart with a Rich Milk Chocolate Truffle Topping

This tasty recipe came about because I had a little extra cream cheese and graham cracker crumbs on hand one day in July. So I decided to make a rich dessert that was reminiscent of summer camp-out bonfires. But, of course, I used high quality organic milk chocolate and created something a little richer than the usual campfire experience. 

This little S'mores Cheesecake Tart was so tasty that I can still remember the flavour every time I see a picture of it.  I hope you will try it and love it as much as I do.
 

S’mores Cheesecake Tart Recipe:

 

You need:

 

For the crust (this one takes time but produces a reliably solid tart shell.  If you are pressed for time, see below for an alternate crust that is quick, but can be a little crumbly):

• 1 box Graham Cracker Crumbs (about 300 grams)
• 1/2 lb butter (2 sticks or 1 cup)
• 1/3 cup sugar (to be healthier, you can use organic, unbleached sugar or coconut sugar)
• 2 egg yolks
• 1/2 cup unbleached flour, plus flour for dusting your work surface

 

For the filling:

• 1 package (250 g) cream cheese
• 1/3 cup sugar (organic, unbleached preferably or coconut sugar)
• 1 tsp real vanilla extract
• 1 cup whipping cream (reserve 1/4 cup, whip 3/4 cup)
• 6 ounces of milk chocolate (you need about 2 100 gram chocolate bars)

 

For the topping:

• 7 ounces of milk chocolate (two 100g chocolate bars)
• 1/2 cup whipping cream
• 12 large marshmallows
• reserved chopped chocolate 

Instructions:

 

To make the crust:

1. Place the graham cracker crumbs, flour and sugar in a stand mixer bowl and using a paddle attachment, mix for about 10-20 seconds to disperse the ingredients. Or simply whisk together, if you do not have a stand mixer.
2. Chop the butter.  Add the chopped butter to the flour/crumb mixture. Beat on low until the butter is emulsified and mixture appears to have small and coarse crumbs. Again, if no stand mixer, paddle attachment, use two knives or two clean hands to work in the butter until crumbs form).
3. Stop the mixer and add the egg yolks and egg. Beat on high for 10 seconds or more until dough is completely mixed.
4. Flour your hands and the counter.  Then roll dough on the floured surface into a long log.  Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate for 1 to 2 hours.
5. Once chilled, flour your work surface, your rolling pin and the dough to prevent sticking.  Roll out the dough in a long strip (about 5 inches wide and 1/8 to 1/4 inches thick).
6. Using a small bowl (about 4 inches across), cut circles of dough. Take leftover pieces and re-roll and cut. You should get about 12 circles.
7. Flour one side of each circle and then press each flour-side down into each non-stick muffin cup on a muffin pan.
8. Bake in a pre-heated oven at 350 for 15 minutes.  Check them at 12 minutes to ensure your crust edges are not burning.
9. Let cool slightly and carefully turn out onto a cooling rack. Set aside to cool completely while you make the filling.

 

To make the filling:

1. Reserve 1/4 cup of the liquid whipping cream and set aside. Then whip 3/4 cups of the whipping cream in a stand mixing bowl until stiff (do not over-whip - it is lumpy when over-whipped - stop the mixer when soft peaks form). Transfer the whipped cream to a mixing bowl and refrigerate while you prepare the cream cheese.
2. Unwrap the cream cheese and place on a plate or paper towel.  Soften in the microwave for 20-30 seconds.  Place cream cheese in a stand mixer bowl and beat the cream cheese until softened and smooth. Stir with a spatula to ensure it is all softened.  Add 1/2 of the sugar and beat.  Stop mixer, stir and beat again. Then add the other 1/2 of the sugar.  Stir by scraping the bottom of the bowl and beat again.  Beat for another 30 seconds or so until fully mixed and slightly fluffy.
3. Add the vanilla and whip again for a few seconds.
4. Take the whipped cream out of the refrigerator and fold into the cream cheese mixture until well mixed.
5. Spoon or using a pastry bag, fill each cooked tart shell with cream cheese filling until about 1/4-inch from the top - this will leave room for the chocolate truffle topping. Place tarts in fridge to set while you prepare the truffle topping.

 

To make the chocolate truffle topping:

 

1. Break up all the chocolate.  Reserve about a 1/4 cup to decorate your tarts. Place the remaining chocolate in a glass or microwave safe bowl.  
2. On the stove top in a small sauce pan, heat the cream just to the boiling point, then pour over the milk chocolate.  Stir until smooth using a wooden spoon (alternately you can just place the cream and chocolate in a microwave safe bowl and melt together for 1 minute and 20 seconds on HALF power.  Take out and stir until smooth). Optional: Add one tbsp. of corn syrup or agave syrup to add a shiny appearance to the truffle, but this is not necessary.
3. Take the tarts out of the fridge and pour a little topping over each one.  It should naturally spread to the side, but if it doesn't, then use a spoon to spread it around to the edges of the tart crust to completely cover the cream cheese filling.
4. Place the tarts in the fridge and let set for 1 hour.

 

Roasting the Marshmallows:

 

1. Heavily butter a parchment lined cookie sheet.
2. Cut each marshmallow in half crosswise and place sticky side down on the pan.
3. Place the pan of marshmallow halves in the oven on top rack and broil for about 2 minutes or until golden brown.
4. Immediately chop the reserve chocolate in large chunks or shards and place one on each marshmallow. Let cool slightly then delicately lift each off with a knife or offset spatula and place one marshmallow on each tart.

 

Enjoy with 11 of your closest friends!

 

 

 

Alternate crust recipe to save time:

1 box Graham Cracker Crumbs (about 300 grams)

1/2 lb butter (2 sticks or 1 cup)

1/3 cup sugar (to be healthier, you can use organic, unbleached sugar or coconut sugar)

 

1. Melt the butter in the microwave for 40 seconds.
2. Using a pastry brush, prepare two muffin pans (or a cupcake pan if you do not have muffin ones, muffin molds are slightly larger) by brushing the sides and bottom of each cupcake or muffin mold with butter to prevent sticking.  Reserve the remaining melted butter for the crust.
3. To make the crust, pour the graham cracker crumbs into a medium mixing bowl.  Add the sugar and stir to disperse the sugar. Pour the remaining melted butter over top and stir with a wooden spoon or spatula until the crumbs are moistened. 
4. Press about a 1/3 cup into each muffin cup on the prepared muffin pans.
5. Bake in a preheated 350 degree F oven for 12 minutes.  Remove and let cool completely before turning them out onto a pan or cooling rack.
6. Fill with the cream cheese filling recipe that is outlined above.

Loving that Tanzania chocolate! Except, of course, for the price.

I am really enjoying the Italian brand Sorini and its Extra Dark Chocolate 75% chocolate bar. I purchased it in a little Italian and international food import shop in Ottawa, so needless to say, it was costly. 

But there was just one thing that I noticed. The description of the origin of the cacao beans used to make the chocolate (Tanzania) and the percentage of cacao solids sounded familiar to me.  So I did a  little checking I realized that Cacao Barry, a popular chocolate supplier to the industry, has a Tanzania (or Tanzanie as they call it) origin chocolate with 75% cacao solids (see online here).  I actually had a box of it in the past and made all sorts of confections out of it. So we can guess who Sorini gets their chocolate couverture supply from!

I could have purchased a box of Cacao Barry's Origin chocolate for less $ per gram and made myself all sorts of chocolate bars at a fraction of the cost!

Oh well, for now I will just enjoy my Tanzanian tastiness.

If you want to check out Sorini's other chocolate products, here is the link to the English version of their website: http://www.sorini.it/eng/index.php.

For information on Cacao Barry, go to: http://www.cacao-barry.com/ or visit the product page: http://www.cacao-barry.com/caen/108 for more information on their 'Tanzanie' Orirgin chocolate.

Packaging Chocolate: So many choices, so little time!

Having started and run a chocolate business for the last few years, I can tell you that the hardest part of my job is finding packaging for my products. Maybe if you live in New York, London, U.K. or any other large city, you might be thinking: "Seriously? The hardest part of your job?  There is so much available to choose from!" But I do not live in a large city.  I live in Canada.  On an Island.  In the north.

With a seven-hour drive to Toronto and even longer to Ottawa and Montreal, it is tough to acquire competitively priced packaging, product labels or product ingredients for that matter. With every order, I face a huge shipping cost. And unlike a start-up manufacturer in Toronto, I cannot just pop over to a potential supplier to look at all their cool new chocolate boxes.  Instead, I rely on Google and a variety of other online search methods to find just the right boxes, bags and labels. And sometimes that can take hours, days and even weeks to sort out the best packaging at the right price.

I see the wonderful articles about cacao bean husks being used to make paper for packaging...in England!  And I wonder how I can get access to these new technologies inexpensively. Since my business is small, I do not have the buying power to purchase packaging at great prices.  So many times I have been quoted $2 for a label that is supposed to go on a product that has a retail price of $2. What is up with that?

But despite the challenges that I have faced, I am learning more and more with each passing year. Now I want to share some of my findings with other chocolaty Canadian and American start-ups that may be in the same boat. So below is a list of a few wonderful sites that I have discovered along the way.  If you are just starting out, and need to buy inexpensive labels and packaging, here are a few starting points:

• Uline - with rapid shipping, great low prices, small order quantities, and so many options with product packaging that is certified as safe for food contact, www.Uline.ca is a great starting place for a small business.  They also have several types of sealers and shrink wrap.  What's more, someone always answers the phone within seconds any time you have a question (and believe me, I have had many, many questions!) and they are helpful and pleasant every time. www.uline.ca

• Luv2pak.com is a great site with some fresh food packaging products, like cake and cupcake boxes, and also ribbons, bows, bags and more. Once an order is placed, it arrives here on my island within just a few days.  www.luv2pak.com

• Greenshift.ca is a great Canadian business that brings together all the recycled, biodegradable and good-for-the-environment products for food producers and food service. Although you won't find boxes for confections, you will find some great containers to package pastries in, and they look like clear plastic but are actually biodegradable. They also have gloves, paper towels and anything else you need to green your food prep area. www.greenshift.ca

• Nashville Wraps - although I have not used this business yet, I do intend to.  They are American but do ship to Canada and they have a huge selection of confection and chocolate boxes with the candy trays to match! Also, they have seasonal boxes, like heart-shaped chocolate boxes for Valentine's Day. Check it out: www.nashvillewraps.com 

This was a poster I made quickly
and easily on VistaPrint
- at a great price too!

• VistaPrint  - Product labels are a fraction of the cost and really easy to make.  Hire a designer to create them or easily use a template to create wonderful, stickable labels.  Also, you can inexpensively promote your business with matching product posters, post-cards, business cards, banners and more. And everything is saved so you can easily print more labels when you sell out!  www.vistaprint.ca

So now that my new products are packaged, I can finally start to promote them! Eventually they will end up on my website too: www.ultimatelychocolate.com (Now THAT was blatant promotion!).

If you have found any other food and chocolate packaging sites that have been helpful to you, feel free to share in the comments below!

Chapters-Indigo, a great place to satisfy your chocolate sweet-tooth

In the lead up to the Christmas holiday season, one of my favourite places to go for a chocolaty treat is Chapters-Indigo, a fantastic retailer that can be found in most Canadian cities.  It was once thought of as a book store, but now is a great place to go for all sorts of gorgeous gifts and tasty gourmet treats. 

My favourite chocolaty treat in the entire store is the CocoMira Dark Chocolate Crunch, which has Belgian dark chocolate, butter toffee and pecans all wrapped up into one crunchy delicious snack with a chocolaty kick. No one has suggested that I say this or even paid me to do so, but I say it is super delicious. And it has no artificial colours or flavours.

I'll go as far as to say that even sweet-milk-chocolate-lovers would like this dark chocolate treat. And it would make a great stocking stuffer for that chocolate-lover on your list.

Just thought I'd share.

Happy Tuesday!