Gourmet Foods

Melting the chocolate

• 1 cup semi-sweet chocolate bits or 6 square semi-sweet baking chocolate
• 4 tablespoons strong coffee
• A small saucepan and a wooden spoon for stirring the chocolate
• A larger pan with almost simmering water

Place the chocolate and coffee in the small saucepan. Remove the larger pan with water from heat and place chocolate pan in it. Stir for one minute or so until chocolate begins to melt slowly over the hot water while you go on with the recipe.

The egg yolks and sugar

• 4 egg yolks
• A 3quart mixing bowl of an electric mixer
• A large wire whip
• ¾ cup granulated sugar
• ¼ cup orange liqueur, rum, orange juice, or really strong coffee
• A pan of almost simmering water

Place egg yolks in mixing bowl and start beating with whip while gradually pouring in sugar in a thin stream. Continue beating for 2 to 3 minutes until mixture is thick, pale and forms a slowly dissolving ribbon when a bit is lifted and falls back onto the surface. Beat in the liqueur or other liquid, and set the bowl in a pan of almost simmering water. Beat at moderate speed for 4 to 5 minutes, or until foamy and warm when tested with your finger. Remove the bowl from the hot water and either beat the mixture in mixer for several minutes until cool, or set it in a bowl of cold water and beat with your wire whip. It should again form the ribbon, and have the consistency of thick, creamy mayonnaise.

Adding butter and chocolate

1 ½ sticks (6 ounces) softened unsalted butter

Stir the chocolate again and continue until perfectly smooth. Gradually beat the softened butter into the chocolate. Beat the chocolate and butter into the yolks and sugar.

The egg whites

• 4 egg whites, room temperature
• A very clean, dry bowl and beater
• Pinch of salt
• 2 tablespoons instant superfine granulated sugar
• A rubber spatula

Beat the egg whites slowly until they begin to foam then beat in the salt. Increase speed gradually to fast until soft peaks are formed. Sprinkle on the sugar and continue beating until stiff peaks are formed. Stir one forth of the egg whites into the chocolate mixture to lighten it; scoop the rest of the egg whites on top and delicately fold them in.

Chilling and serving

Immediately turn the mousse into a lightly oiled 6 cup metal mold, a serving bowl, or individual cups. Cover and chill for several hours or overnight.

If you are unmolding the mousse, dip mold for several seconds in hot water, run a knife rapidly between edges of mousse and mold, and turned a chilled serving dish upside down over mold; reverse the two giving a sharp downward jerk, and the mousse should drop into place in a few seconds.

You may wish to pass with the mousse a bowl of lightly whipped cream flavoured with powdered sugar and liqueur. If you are serving a ring-molded mousse, you could put the cream in the center and sprinkle with grated chocolate.

• 1 package chocolate wafers
• 1 cup whipping cream
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla, mint or almond extract

In chilled bowl, mix whipping cream, sugar, and extract until stiff peaks form. Spread 1 teaspoon whipped topping on each wafer and stack in a low dish in piles of 6. (Assemble like logs.) Cover with remaining whipped cream and refrigerate for 4 hours. You can sprinkle with nuts, chocolate chips, etc.

• 2 squares chocolate
• ½ cup boiling water
• Pinch of salt
• ½ teaspoon vanilla

Melt chocolate and add sugar. Add boiling water, salt, and boil until thickened. Cool, and add vanilla. Dilute with milk for iced chocolate.

The Aztecs were credited with the discovery of chocolate. The Olmec Indians of South and Central America, ancestors of the Aztecs, were the first known to use the fruit of the cacao tree. Mayans first created a beverage made by roasting and pounding the raw cacao beans with maize and Capsicum peppers and letting the mixture ferment. Cacao is the Mayan word meaning “God Food”.

The Aztecs could not cultivate the cacao tree, as they existed at a much higher altitude where the climate was not suitable. They acquired the beans through trade - and war. The Aztecs used cacao beans for religious services, gifts and even as currency.

The Aztecs created their own beverage by roasting the beans and grounding them into a paste. They mixed them with water and maize flavored with chilies. It was called xocolatl (pronounced “shoco-latle”).

In 1519 AD, Montezuma introduced Spanish explorer Hernan Cortéz, to the drink. Finding the name hard to pronounce, he called it Chocolat - which was later changed to Chocolate. Montezuma, who valued chocolate more than gold or silver, said of it, “The divine drink, which builds up resistance and fights fatigue. A cup of this precious drink permits a man to walk for a whole day without food.”

Chocolate has long been thought to help improve libido and was given as an offering by the Aztecs to the God of Fertility. Casanova was known to take a cup of cocoa before bed as an aphrodisiac. Science has proven that there are valid reasons for these claims. The following elements support this theory:

• Phenyl ethylamine - is similar to an amphetamine, which raises blood pressure and blood glucose levels and gives a person a natural high.
• The amino acid, Tryptophan, also contained in chocolate is the same thing that is in turkey. It helps the body produce the B-vitamin Niacin, which in turn, produces a calming agent in the brain known to play a role in sleep. Consuming chocolate also produces endorphins.
• Endorphins are a group of substances formed within the body that naturally relieve pain. Their chemical structure is similar to morphine. They have an analgesic affect and are thought to play a part in controlling the body’s response to stress and determining mood.
• Another chemical in chocolate, Ana amide, targets the same cell membrane receptors as the active ingredient in marijuana and hashish. Experiments have shown that this chemical plays important roles in the regulation of mood, memory, and appetite and pain perception.
• And lastly, chocolate contains caffeine. Most of us are aware of the affects of caffeine on our bodies. At moderate levels, caffeine can cause pleasant effects with improved attention and concentration.

So, the next time you’re feeling stressed but don’t want to make it worse by eating, consider a chocolate bar! It may very well be better than “an apple a day”, and in any case, it certainly tastes better!