Posts Tagged ‘Recipe’
Friday, April 26th, 2013
— Ed Engoron, Co-Founder of Choclatique
Author of Ed Engoron’s Choclatique, Running Press, 2011
Okay, this was new and even a little weird and strange for me. One of our customers sent me a recipe for a Chocolate Frosting made out of, get this, avocados—yes, those beautiful little green, pear-shaped fruits that grow on trees and don’t begin to ripen until they are off the stem. It was the name, Stone Age Chocolate Frosting that got to me. What the heck does this mean? Okay, I was off to the internet to look up the words Stone Age and Diet. Here’s what I discovered.
 It comes for the Paleolithic Diet—Paleo Diet or popularly known as the caveman or hunter-gatherers’ diet. It is assumed to be a modern nutritional plan based on the presumed ancient diet of wild plants and animals that various hominid species habitually consumed during the Paleolithic period—about 2.5 million years which ended around 10,000 years ago with the development of agriculture and grain-based diets. While this diet claims to provide a healthier lifestyle, it should be noted, however, that the lifespan of the Upper Paleolithic (Late Stone Age) man was only about 33 years from birth.
This diet is centered on commonly available “modern” foods, consisting mainly of fish, grass-fed pasture raised meats, eggs, vegetables, fruit, fungi, roots and nuts. It excludes grains, legumes, dairy products, potatoes, refined salt, refined sugar and processed oils. I guess I could live on that.
 The Paleo Diet was first popularized in the mid-1970s by gastroenterologist Dr. Walter L. Voegtlin. I found that this nutritional concept has been promoted and adapted by a number of authors and researchers in several books and academic journals. Paleolithic nutrition is based on the premise that modern humans are genetically adapted to the diet of their Paleolithic ancestors and that human genetics have scarcely changed since the dawn of agriculture and therefore it is an ideal diet for human health and well-being and is one that resembles this ancestral diet.
The avocados and coconut oil give this Paleo-inspired chocolate frosting a healthy dose of plant-based fats (instead of butter or Crisco) creating a tasty new way to top cookies and cupcakes which do have to be made out of grains. Oh, there goes another fad diet.
Okay, it tastes a little different. It only takes minutes to make and it’s good for a lot of around-the-table dinner conversation. Try it and let me know what you think.
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Ready In: 10 minutes
Yield: 10 Servings
Ingredients:
2 ripe medium size avocados, peeled and pitted
1/2 cup Choclatique Natura Cocoa Powder (Un-alkalized, I’m getting into the spirit of the diet)
1/2 cup honey
2 tablespoons coconut oil, melted
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
Directions:
Blend avocados, cocoa powder, honey, coconut oil, vanilla extract and salt together in a food processor until smooth and creamy.
  Chocolate Doctor
Tags: Caveman, Chocolate Frosting, Paleo Diet, Recipe
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Friday, April 12th, 2013
— Ed Engoron, Co-Founder of Choclatique
Author of Ed Engoron’s Choclatique, Running Press, 2011
This is definitely going to become your go-to chocolate pie from now on. It is simple to make and Mmmm…yummy to eat! It is sky-high and simply scrumptious—one of the best fluffy chocolate delights to serve for a fall or holiday dessert. You can put the pie together in a wink and a nod and it will disappear just as fast! You can substitute a store-bought chocolate or graham cracker crust and just mound the filling within and let it cool. As a bonus, add a couple of tablespoons of Choclatique Chocolate Curls or Decoratifs as a fancy sprinkle on top.
 Prep Time: 25 minutes
Cook Time: 5 minutes
Cool Time: 5 hours
Ready In: 6 hours
Yield: 1 9-inch pie
Ingredients:
20 Oreo Chocolate Sandwich Cookies, crushed
1/4 teaspoon pure almond extract
1/4 cup unsalted butter, softened
1 cup heavy cream
12 ounces Choclatique Dark Chocolate Chips
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 pinch salt
2 cups heavy cream, chilled
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1 cup heavy cream, chilled
2 tablespoon of orange liqueur (Grand Marnier)
1/4 cup granulated sugar
Directions:
- Preheat oven to 350º F.
- Generously butter a 9-inch springform pan.
- In a medium bowl, mix together crushed cookies, almond extract and softened butter and press mixture evenly around the bottom and edges of the springform pan.
- Bake in preheated oven for 5 minutes; allow to thoroughly cool.
- In a microwave-safe bowl combine 1 cup cream, chocolate chips, vanilla extract and salt; heat in 15 second burst until chocolate is fully melted and mixture is smooth. The chocolate chips will not change shape until you mix. Do not burn.
- Set the chocolate mixture aside to cool completely to room temperature, stirring occasionally.
- In a large bowl, beat 2 cups chilled cream with 1/4 cup sugar. Beat until stiff peaks form. Fold the whipped cream into the chocolate mixture. Gently spoon the blended chocolate mixture into cooled crust.
- Chill the pie at least 5 hours before serving.
- Just before serving, beat remaining 1 cup chilled cream with orange liqueur and 1/4 cup sugar. Beat until stiff peaks form.
- Before serving spoon a dollop of whipped cream on top of each piece.
Chocolate Doctor
Tags: chocolate mousse pie, holiday dessert, Recipe
Posted in Chocolate, Desserts, Food | Comments Off
Friday, April 5th, 2013
— Ed Engoron, Co-Founder of Choclatique
Author of Ed Engoron’s Choclatique, Running Press, 2011
 This is a gluten-free cake that uses ground almonds or almond flour to replace the wheat flour usually found in sponge cakes of this kind. You can find almond flour in many supermarkets, Whole Foods or Trader Joe’s. If you are preparing the almonds yourself using a food processor or blender, chop only a half cup at a time as electric food processors tend to separate too much of the oil from the nut meats. Do not pack the ground nut down when measuring.
Prep Time: 20 minutes
Bake Time: 50-55 minutes
Cooling Time: 40 minutes
Yield: 12 Servings
Ingredients:
Non-stick baking spray
3 tablespoons granulated sugar
6 ounces Choclatique Private Reserve Dark Chocolate Pastilles (64%)
10 large eggs, separated
7/8 cup granulated sugar
2 cups ground blanched almonds (skin off) or almond flour.
Directions:
- Preheat an oven to 350º F.
- Coat the inside of a 10-inch Bundt pan with baking spray and coat the bottom and sides with 3 tablespoons of sugar; set aside.
- Melt the chocolate in a microwave oven or on the top of double boiler; set aside.
- Beat the egg yolks until thick and lemon colored. Gradually beat in the sugar and blend well.
- Add the chocolate and almonds to the egg yolks.
- Beat the egg whites until stiff peaks form. Gently fold the egg whites into chocolate batter.
- Spoon the batter into the prepared Bundt pan.
- Bake for 1 hour or until cake springs back when lightly touched. Remove from oven, invert pan on a bottle (wine or ketchup bottle work well), and cool about 40 minutes before removing from pan.
ChefSecret: Finish it off and crown the top with your favorite cream cheese or butter cream frosting.
Chocolate Doctor
Tags: Almond Flour, Gluten-free, Passover, Recipe, Sponge Cake
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Friday, March 22nd, 2013
— Ed Engoron, Co-Founder of Choclatique
Author of Ed Engoron’s Choclatique, Running Press, 2011
I was at a famous Italian restaurant in San Francisco last month where Tiramisu was described on the menu as “a traditional classic Venetian dessert created in the 1800’s.” While there is some debate regarding the origin of Tiramisu there is no question the earliest mention I could find was in the Washington Post on December 24, 1969. The dessert was first made in Via Sottotreviso at Treviso, near Venice. The recipe was documented in Giovanni Capnist’s 1983 cookbook, Dolci del Veneto.
White this dessert is neither traditional or a classic I felt safe that I could take the liberty of expressing my own personality and preferences to this Tiramisu Swirl Cheesecake.
Prep Time: 35 minutes
Bake Time: 60 minutes
Ready In: 3 hours (best overnight if you can wait that long)
Yield: 1 9-inch cheesecake
 Ingredients:
1 (7-ounce) package ladyfingers, dried
4 tablespoons butter, melted
6 tablespoons strong cold coffee
3 (8-ounce) packages cream cheese
1 (8-ounce) container mascarpone cheese
1 cup granulated sugar
2 eggs
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
4 tablespoons all-purpose flour
2 ounces Choclatique Midnight Unsweetened Baking Chocolate, melted
3 tablespoons Choclatique Dark Chocolate Curls
Directions:
- Preheat oven to 350º F.
- Place a roasting pan of water on the bottom of oven filled about one third of the way.
- Prepare an 8- or 9-inch springform pan by covering the bottom with aluminum foil to seal out the water.
- In a small bowl crush the package of ladyfingers to fine crumbs. Mix the melted butter into the crumbs. Moisten with 2 tablespoons of the coffee. Press into the bottom and up the sides of a prepared springform pan.
- In a large bowl, mix the cream cheese, mascarpone and sugar until very smooth. Add the eggs, vanilla extract and the flour; mix SLOWLY until just smooth. The consistency of the mascarpone can vary. If the cheesecake batter is too thick, add a little cream.
- Using two separate bowls divide the cream cheese mixture in half.
- Add the melted chocolate and 4 tablespoons coffee to the half the cream cheese batter and mix thoroughly. Pour the chocolate cream cheese batter into crust followed by the remaining cream cheese batter. Using the broad side of a knife or spatula swirl the two batters to marble.
- Place springform pan into the roasting pan of hot water. Bake for 40 to 45 minutes, or until just set. Open oven door, and turn off the heat. Let cake to cool in oven for 20 minutes.
 Remove from oven, and let it finish cooling.- Refrigerate for at least 3 hours, or, better yet, overnight.
- Right before serving sprinkle with chocolate curls.
ChefSecret: The literal translation of the Italian name tiramisù (tirami sù) means “pick- me-up” or metaphorically, “make me happy.” This may refer to the caffeine in the coffee and effect of cocoa used in the original recipe.
Chocolate Doctor
Tags: Chocolate Cheesecake, Recipe, Tiramisu
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Friday, March 15th, 2013
— Ed Engoron, Co-Founder of Choclatique
Author of Ed Engoron’s Choclatique, Running Press, 2011
 We had to go to the vault for these less-than-golden coins. These are homemade chocolate coins that will bring back lots of growing-up memories. As a kid I remember getting gold foil-wrapped chocolate coins in a little mesh bag. The only little piggy bank these went into was me. I remember the excitement of peeling off the shiny foil and stacking them up like poker chips on the kitchen table. The foil-wrapped chocolate coins may be for kids, but the flavor combination of dark chocolate, caramel and sea salt is all grown up.
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 15 minutes
Chill Time: 15 minutes
Yield: 32 Coins
 Ingredients:
6 ounces Choclatique Private Reserve Dark Chocolate, broken into small pieces
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
1 tablespoon white sugar
1/4 cup heavy cream
sea salt to taste
1 tablespoon Choclatique Rouge Unsweetened Cocoa Powder, for dusting
Directions:
- Line a baking sheet with silicon baking mat or parchment paper.
- Pour about 1 inch of water into the bottom of a saucepan and place over medium-low heat; bring the water to a simmer and turn off the heat.
- Place a stainless steel bowl over the saucepan. Put the chocolate and the butter in the bowl and soften over the hot water.
- Place the sugar in a small skillet over medium-low heat and cook until it forms a dark liquid and begins to bubble, 7 to 9 minutes. Carefully pour the cream over the caramelized sugar. Cook and stir the mixture until the caramelized sugar is dissolved into the cream; immediately remove from heat.
- Quickly pour the hot cream mixture over the warmed chocolate; stir quickly with a spatula until completely incorporated.
- Drop the mixture by the teaspoon onto the prepared baking sheet. Top each with a sprinkle of sea salt. Cover with plastic wrap. Gently press a second baking sheet onto the chocolate coins to flatten. Chill in refrigerator until firm.
- Dust with the cocoa before serving.
- Store in a cool spot. You can always wrap the chocolate coins in gold foil if desired.
Chocolate Doctor
Tags: Chocolate Candy, Chocolate Gold Coins, Recipe, Salted Caramel
Posted in Chocolate, Confections, Desserts, Food | Comments Off
Thursday, March 7th, 2013
— Ed Engoron, Co-Founder of Choclatique
Author of Ed Engoron’s Choclatique, Running Press, 2011
 Like the classic movie, Gone with the Wind, buttermilk biscuits are an old southern American classic. If you’re trying to start a romantic adventure, this version recipe will do it. You’ll feel as hot as Scarlett O’Hara and as roguish as Rhett Butler. These are the type of biscuits you would expect at one of the antebellum plantations like Tara or Twelve Oaks and a Sunday dinner. This is a new recipe for a new day and you don’t have to fight the Civil War to enjoy it. And, quite frankly Scarlett, with these biscuits, you won’t give a damn.
Prep Time: 20 minutes
Baking Time: 12 to 15 minutes
Ready In: 35 minutes
Yield: 6 to 8 biscuits
 Ingredients for Biscuits:
2 3/4 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for work surface
1/4 cup Choclatique Natura Unsweetened Cocoa Powder
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup vegetable shortening, plus a little more for pan
1/4 Cup Choclatique Semi-Sweet Chocolate Mini Chips
1 cup buttermilk
1/4 cup melted unsalted butter
Chocolate Gravy, recipe follows
Ingredients for Chocolate Gravy:
1/3 stick butter
2/3 cup granulated sugar
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1/3 cup Choclatique Rouge Unsweetened Cocoa Powder
2 cups whole milk
Directions for Biscuits:
- Preheat the oven to 450º F.
- Grease a baking pan with the shortening.
- In a medium bowl, combine the flour, cocoa powder, sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt.
- Cut in the shortening with a fork or pastry knife until it looks like cornmeal. Add the chocolate chips and lightly mix into the pastry.
- Add the buttermilk, a little at a time, stirring constantly until well mixed.
- Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface. Knead lightly 2 or 3 times.
- Roll out the dough with a floured rolling pin to 1/2-inch thickness. Cut dough into circles with a 3-inch cutter.
- Place the biscuits in a baking pan. Gently press down the top of the biscuits.
- Brush the biscuits with half the melted butter and bake for 14 minutes or until golden brown.
- Brush the hot biscuits with the remaining butter.
- While the biscuits are baking make the chocolate sauce (see recipe below).
- Split the biscuits in half and ladle Chocolate Gravy over the hot biscuits.
Direction for Making Chocolate Gravy:
- Heat butter in a sauce pan over low heat. Mix in the sugar, flour and cocoa powder. Slowly pour 1 cup of milk into the pan and whisk well to remove any lumps.
- Whisk in remaining milk, stirring constantly, until mixture is thick, being careful not to scorch. Allow the gravy to cool slightly. The gravy will continue to thicken as it cools.
- Serve hot over biscuits.
ChefSecret: Serve hot topped with fresh sliced stone fruit (peaches or nectarines) or fresh or frozen berries.
Chocolate Doctor
Tags: Buttermilk Biscuits, Gone With The Wind, Recipe
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Friday, March 1st, 2013
— Ed Engoron, Co-Founder of Choclatique
Author of Ed Engoron’s Choclatique, Running Press, 2011
At my waterfront Custom House Restaurants in Northern California we had the most luscious, chocolaty dessert that you would ever desire—Chocolate Sludge. It was a heated chocolate chip brownie topped with a scoop of homemade, dark chocolate ice cream, covered with hot fudge and crowned with chocolate whipped cream.
When writing my book, Choclatique, my head chocolatier and I remade this restaurant favorite. As it turned out, we kept going back to the brownie pan to cut little samples for ourselves. Wow, we discovered that this brownie needed nothing more than to be served naked—no ice cream, no frosting or no nothing other than just right out of the pan.
 Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 45 minutes
Cooling Time: 1 hour
Ready In: 2 hours
Yield: 16 extra rich brownies
Ingredients:
1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 cup Choclatique Rouge Unsweetened Cocoa Powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
1/4 cup cold water
2/3 cup unsalted butter
2 cups Choclatique Dark Chocolate Chips
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
4 large eggs
2 cups Choclatique Dark Chocolate Chips (yes, more chocolate chips)
1 cup coarsely chopped roasted walnuts, pecans or even whole pistachios (optional)
Directions:
- Preheat an oven to 325º F.
- Combine the flour, baking soda and salt in a small bowl; whisk and set aside.
- Butter and flour a 9 x 9-inch baking dish.
- Combine the sugar, water and butter in a saucepan. Cook and stir over medium heat until the butter has melted and the sugar has dissolved. Remove from the heat and stir in 2 cups of the chocolate chips and the vanilla extract until the chocolate has melted.
- Pour the mixture into a mixing bowl, and beat in the eggs one at a time until very smooth.
- Fold in the flour mixture until incorporated.
- Fold in the remaining bag of chocolate chips along with the nuts (if using).
- Pour into prepared pan and bake for about 45 to 55 minutes until the top is dry and the edges have started to pull away from the sides of the pan.
- Cool completely before cutting into squares to serve.
Chocolate Doctor
Tags: Brownies, Dark Chocolate, Death By Chocolate, Recipe
Posted in Chocolate, Desserts, Food | Comments Off
Thursday, February 21st, 2013
— Ed Engoron, Co-Founder of Choclatique
Author of Ed Engoron’s Choclatique, Running Press, 2011
 The simple fact is that Torrone’s precise origin has been lost to time. One legend claims that Torrone (“big tower” in Italian) was invented for a medieval wedding in the Italian city of Cremona. However, this story does not preclude the more probable history of the confection, which some historians believe originated in ancient Greece or Rome and suggests a Sicilian introduction of Torrone into Europe, via the Arabs in the twelfth century. It is entirely possible that similar confections were invented during the same early period in China, Persia and the Mediterranean.
I usually make Torrone around Christmas or Easter. This is a fluffy white, delicious, orange and chocolate flavored Italian nougat candy. Rosa Giardinieri (Rosa’s Italian Restaurant) would always give a small box Torrone to each guest as they left her restaurant. She would always say it reminded her of communion in her church in Sicily. And, why not… eating Rosa’s homemade Torrone is a religious experience.
Don’t let reading this recipe intimidate you. It is amazingly easy to make—just a little time consuming. You can make this in many flavors, lemon, vanilla, orange to name but a few. Little squares of fluffy Torrone nougat candy is quite a treat and an old fashioned Italian tradition.
Prep Time: 30 minutes
Cook Time: 30 minutes
Cooling Time: 30 minutes
Ready In: 1 1/2 hours
Yield: About 24 pieces
Ingredients:
Edible wafer paper (rice paper), enough for 2 layers in pan (see ChefSecret below)
1/3 cup cornstarch
3 large egg whites
1 cup honey
3 cups granulated sugar
1/2 cup confectioners’ sugar, sifted
1/4 cup of Choclatique Rouge Cocoa Powder, sifted
1/4 teaspoon orange oil or 1/2 teaspoon orange extract
2 cups toasted, shelled pistachios, hazelnut or almonds
Directions:
- On the bottom of a 9 x13-inch baking pan place the wafer paper without overlapping the edges and set aside.
- Sprinkle a clean surface with cornstarch.
- Break the egg whites into bowl of electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment; set aside.
- In a medium saucepan, combine the honey and granulated sugar. Cook over medium heat until mixture just begins to simmer, about 4 minutes to make the nougat.
- Clip a candy thermometer onto the side of the saucepan; continue to heat, stirring occasionally.
- Beat whites until stiff peaks form; add confectioners’ sugar and cocoa powder, and beat until combined.
- When thermometer registers 315 degrees, remove nougat mixture from heat. Temperature will rise to about 320 degrees. Continue to stir until temperature drops to 300 degrees about 1 to 2 minutes.
- Using a mixer with a paddle attachment running, slowly and carefully pour the hot nougat mixture into the egg-white mixture add orange oil (at this point, whites will double in volume; let stand a few seconds; volume will return to normal). Beat until mixture thickens. The nougat will begin to stick to beaters when nearly done.
- Fold in the nuts.
- Pour the mixture onto cornstarch-covered surface; knead about 5 turns.
- Stretch and roll to fit pan. When fully stretched place the mixture in pan. Cover with another layer of the wafer paper pressing down to get it to stick; let it cool completely on a wire rack.
- Cut into slices (1 x 1/2-inch pieces) wrap with parchment paper twisting the ends.
- Store in airtight container for up to 2 weeks. Torrone can be frozen for up to 3 months in an airtight container.
ChefSecret: Edible wafer paper (sometimes called rice paper) is available at baking-supply stores and online at Amazon.com. It can also be used to decorate cakes, cupcakes, candy and cookies.
Torrone is best made in winter, when temperatures are cool and dry. If made on a warm, humid day, Torrone may be sticky and not set properly.
Chocolate Doctor
Tags: Chocolate Torrone, Italian, Nougat Candy, Recipe, Rosa Giardinieri
Posted in Chocolate, Confections, Food | Comments Off
Tuesday, February 12th, 2013
— Ed Engoron, Co-Founder of Choclatique
Author of Ed Engoron’s Choclatique, Running Press, 2011
Prep Time: 60 minutes
Bake Time: 9 to 10 minutes
Cooling Time: 1 hour
Ready In: 3 hours
Servings: 60 cookies
Robert Heinlein once said, “Love is a condition in which the happiness of another person is essential to your own.” And once again Cupid is calling and what better way to your Valentine’s Heart than with a cookie—a heart-shaped cookie. This Valentine’s Day make a wonderfully peppermint-flavored chocolate filled cookie hearts Each cookie is drizzled with 2 different icings, one milk chocolate, the other peppermint pink.
 Ingredients for the cookies:
4 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup butter, softened
3/4 cup vegetable shortening (Crisco)
3/4 cup granulated sugar
3/4 cup packed brown sugar
2 large eggs
1/4 cup whole milk
1 1/2 teaspoons peppermint extract
Ingredients for the chocolate filling:
1 3/4 cups Choclatique Milk Chocolate Chips
2 tablespoons vegetable shortening (Crisco)
Ingredients for the peppermint drizzle:
1 cup sifted confectioners’ sugar
1 drop peppermint extract, or to taste
1 drop red food coloring, or as needed
4 1/4 teaspoons whole milk, or as needed
Ingredients for the chocolate drizzle:
1/4 cup Choclatique Heirloom Milk Chocolate Pastilles
2 teaspoons vegetable shortening
Directions for the cookies:
- Whisk the flour, baking soda and salt in a bowl until thoroughly combined.
- With an electric mixer or stand mixer, cream the butter, 3/4 cup shortening, sugar and brown sugar in a large bowl until fluffy.
- Beat in the eggs, 1/4 cup milk and 1-1/2 teaspoons of peppermint extract.
- Gradually beat in the flour mixture, about 1 cup at a time, until the mixture forms soft dough. Divide the dough into 4 pieces, cover and chill for 1 hour in refrigerator.
- Preheat oven to 375º F.
- To make filling, melt 1-3/4 cups of milk chocolate pastilles with 2 tablespoons of vegetable shortening in the top of a double boiler over hot (not boiling) water. Stir the mixture until very smooth, and remove the filling from the heat to cool and slightly thicken.
- Remove one piece of cookie dough from refrigerator at a time, and working on a floured surface, roll the cookie dough out 1/8-inch thick cutting 120 hearts (total) with a 2 1/2-inch heart-shaped cookie cutter. Place half the hearts onto ungreased baking sheets.
- Carefully spread the hearts with about a teaspoon of the chocolate filling, avoiding the edges, and top each with another heart cookie. Gently pinch the edges of both cookies together to enclose the filling.
- Bake for 9 to 10 minutes until firm.
- Let the cookies cool for 1 minute on the baking sheets before removing to finish cooling on racks.
Directions for the peppermint drizzle:
- Mix together the confectioners’ sugar, 1 drop of peppermint extract (to taste), red food coloring to your desired shade of pink or red, and milk as needed in a bowl to make a smooth, thin icing.
Directions for the chocolate drizzle:
- Melt 1/4 cup of milk chocolate pastilles with 2 teaspoons of vegetable shortening over hot (not boiling) water in a double boiler; stir and heat until the mixture is thin enough to drip in strings from a spoon.
Directions for decorating:
- Drizzle each cooled cookie with a little peppermint drizzle on one side, and a little chocolate drizzle on the other. Let the cookies stand so the drizzle sets, about 30 minutes.
ChefSecret: Do not thicken the chocolate filling too much or it will become hard to spread and will tear the fragile cookie dough. If you have enough chocolate filling left over you can use it to drizzle instead of making the chocolate drizzle. You will have to rework the trim from the dough in order to get the full 60 count on the cookies.
If you’re looking for those special words to for that special person here are my best Valentine’s Day Borrow-A-Quotes:
 I am like a falling star who has finally found her place next to another in a lovely constellation, where we will sparkle in the heavens forever.
Amy Tan
 The love we give away is the only love we keep.
Elbert Hubbard
 Infantile love follows the principle: “I love because I am loved.”
Mature love follows the principle: “I am loved because I love.”
Immature love says: “I love you because I need you.”
Mature love says: “I need you because I love you.”
Erich Fromm
 Love doesn’t make the world go ’round; love is what makes the ride worthwhile.
Franklin P. Jones
 There is only one happiness in life, to love and be loved.
George Sand
 There is no remedy for love but to love more.
Henry David Thoreau
 A kiss is a lovely trick designed by nature to stop speech when words become superfluous.
Ingrid Bergman
 Love does not die easily. It is a living thing. It thrives in the face of all of life’s hazards, save one — neglect.
James D. Bryden
 Love is a promise, love is a souvenir, once given never forgotten, never let it disappear.
John Lennon
 Where there is love there is life.
Mohandas K. Gandhi
 The hunger for love is much more difficult to remove than the hunger for bread.
Mother Teresa
 Do you love me because I’m beautiful, or am I am beautiful because you love me?
Oscar Hammerstein, II
 Each time that one loves is the only time one has ever loved. Difference of object does not alter singleness of passion. It merely intensifies it. We can have but one great experience at best, and the secret of life is to reproduce that experience as often as possible.
From The Picture of Dorian Gray
Oscar Wilde
 Earth’s the right place for love. I don’t know where it’s likely to go better.
Birches
Robert Frost
 Love is a condition in which the happiness of another person is essential to your own.
Robert Heinlein
 If I know what love is, it is because of you.
Herman Hesse
 I love you; Not only for what you are But for what I am when I am in love with you.
Robert Croft
 Better to have loved and lost, than to have never loved at all.
St. Augustine
Chocolate Doctor
Tags: Cookies, Love Quotes, Recipe, Valentine's Day
Posted in Chocolate, Desserts, Food, Holidays | Comments Off
Thursday, February 7th, 2013
— Ed Engoron, Co-Founder of Choclatique
Author of Ed Engoron’s Choclatique, Running Press, 2011
 When certain foods were rationed during World War II, bakers used boiled beets to enhance the color of their cakes and to retain moisture. I use minced red beets in many of my chocolate cake recipes.
Red Velvet cake was made famous by Waldorf-Astoria Hotel in New York City. Now you can find Red Velvet cupcakes most anywhere at places like Sprinkles which specializes in a line of very unique cupcakes.
 So, I thought if you can “red velvet” cakes and cupcakes, why not cookies? My Valentine’s Day Red Velvet cookie recipe has a light cocoa flavor, is deliciously chewy, gorgeously red and most scrumptiously delicious! Red Velvet is a delicate combination of cocoa and vanilla flavor blended so one does not stand out from the other. If you use too much cocoa, not only does it take the flavor out of balance, it muddies up the beautiful, pure red color.
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Bake Time: 9 to 11 minutes
Ready In: 20 minutes
Yield: 36 Cookies
Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
3 tablespoons Choclatique Natura Unsweetened Cocoa Powder
1 teaspoon cornstarch
3/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
5 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
1 cup granulated sugar
1 teaspoon distilled white vinegar
1 tablespoon canned red beets, minced
1 large egg
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
1 1/2 teaspoons red food coloring
1 cup Choclatique Snowy White Chocolate Chips
Directions:
- Preheat oven to 375º F.
- In a mixing bowl whisk the flour, cocoa powder, cornstarch, baking powder and salt and set aside.
- In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with paddle attachment, cream the butter and sugar until pale and fluffy, about 4 to 5 minutes.
- Add in the vinegar and beets continuing to blend until completely incorporated.
- Mix in the egg.
- Add in the vanilla extract and red food color and mix until completely blended and the color is red throughout the dough.
- With mixer on low speed, slowly add in the dry ingredients and mix just until combined. Do not over-mix or the cookies will get tough.
- Fold in white chocolate chips.
- Scoop the dough out by the heaping tablespoonful and shape into balls. Place on parchment paper lined baking sheets and bake for 9 to 11 minutes in the center of the oven turning the baking sheet half-way through.
- Allow the cookies to cool on cookie sheet before transferring to a wire rack.
- If you don’t eat them all at once you can store the cookies in an airtight container.
ChefSecret: If you want more chocolate flavor you can easily substitute the white chips with Choclatique Dark Chocolate Chips.
Chocolate Doctor
Tags: Chocolate Chip Cookies, Recipe, Red Velvet Cake, Valentine's Day
Posted in Chocolate, Desserts, Food, Holidays | Comments Off
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