Easter Countdown: What's for Dessert?

We usually have a dozen or two guests at Easter, so we can generally make several different desserts. This year, I'm having just a few, so we have to make the difficult decision: what's for dessert?

I always like to have something citrus and of course something chocolate. This year, I'm combining the two with a Chocolate Bonbon Cake. It's a firm butter cake, like a pound cake, and a good-quality orange marmalade will give a tart flavor and a lovely texture. It'll remind you of chocolates with orange centers.

I used a decorative Bundt pan. The chocolate glaze hardens over the design but lets it show through. However, you can also make this cake in a sheet pan for easy buffet service. Just watch the baking time -- it'll be closer to half an hour. 

Chocolate Bonbon Cake

1 c butter
3/4 c sugar
3 eggs
1 T orange liqueur or vanilla
3 1/2 c. self-rising flour
1 1/3 c fresh orange juice
1/2 c orange marmalade
zest of 2 oranges
2 oz. dark chocolate
2 T butter
1 T cream

Cream butter with sugar till fluffy. Beat in eggs and orange liqueur or vanilla. Alternately add orange juice and flour, beating well after each addition. Stir in orange marmalade and orange zest. Bake in a Bundt pan at 350 degrees for about 50 minutes, or till a cake tester shows it's done.

Melt chocolate with butter and stir in cream. Pour over cooled cake. Garnish with candy orange slices.

Irish Chocolate Coffee

Continuing our preparations for St. Patrick's Day, we offer a chocolate variation on traditional Irish Coffee. Irish Coffee is brewed coffee with Irish whiskey and a good dollop of cream. 

Start by brewing up some good hot coffee. For each cup of coffee, add 1/8 cup of ground chocolate and 1 tablespoon of whiskey. Whisk it all together, pour it into cups, and top it with whipped cream. With a steady hand and a stencil, you can decorate the cup with a shamrock for extra festiveness.

Irish Chocolate Cake

St. Patrick's Day will soon be upon us, and you might want to celebrate in Irish style, whether you're of Irish heritage or not. Here's a very special chocolate cake with an Irish air:

Irish Chocolate Cake

3 large eggs
3/4 cup sugar
2 T cocoa powder
1/3 cup strong hot tea

1 tsp Irish whiskey
1 1/4 cup self-rising flour

Beat eggs till they're very light and foamy. Gradually beat in sugar. Blend in remaining ingredients and bake 30 minutes at 350 degrees, or till a cake tester shows it's done.

Meanwhile, prepare Chocolate Mousse:

4 large eggs
1/3 cup sugar
12 oz. dark chocolate, chopped
1-1/2 cups chilled whipping cream
1/4 cup Irish cream liqueur

Whisk eggs and sugar together in a double boiler over hot water, whisking constantly, till smooth and thick. Remove from heat and beat till cool. Melt chocolate . Whip cream to stiff peaks. Fold chocolate and cream into egg mixture along with liqueur.

Cut cake horizontally with a serrated knife to create two layers. Fill and frost cake with chocolate mousse. Decorate in traditional Irish style by wrapping ribbon around the outside of the cake.

Serve this with tea, or with whiskey. Possibly both.

The people of Ireland buy 5 million chocolate Easter eggs a year, making them one of the most serious consumers of the delicacy in the world.

Easter Countdown

Now is a good time to plan your menu for the big Easter meal. It's early enough to arrange for helpers and to watch for good prices on special ingredients. You also still have time to order your Sweetique Eggs, and what could be more special than that?

As with so many  holiday meals, Easter often has a traditional set piece: a ham or lamb for the main dish. Your family might be disappointed if that were replaced with something else, but they might be fine with a different way of preparing it. If you usually stud your ham with cloves and glaze it with marmalade, you might find that your family would enjoy a pineapple and mustard glaze instead. If you usually serve a rack of lamb, you might try a leg of lamb instead. However, the main dish is often part of the tradition, and something people look forward to.

You can get creative with your side dishes, though -- especially vegetables. Here are some of our favorite spring vegetable dishes from around the web:

• Grilled Asparagus
• Roasted Vegetables
• Grilled Leeks
• Spanish Salad (I like to add chopped black olives)
• Broccoli Salad

Have carrot sticks for children whose palates might not be ready for these more exciting tastes.

If you're doing all the cooking, it makes sense to have just one or two elaborate dishes and keep the other things simple, so choose simple rice or potatoes if you're doing a show-stopper of a green vegetable. If you're going with plain steamed broccoli or green beans, though, you might like a classic potato dish like these:

• Potatoes Anna
• Potatoes Dauphinoise
• German Potato Salad

We'll be sharing bread and dessert recipes, but these are good choices either to buy or to ask guests to bring. Go ahead now and call that cousin who makes the famous babka or your brother with the perfect tsoureki and invite them to bring their specialties -- they'll be flattered that you asked.

Once you've decided on your menu, make up a list of all the ingredients and carry it in your purse or billfold. Pick up the nonperishables along with your regular grocery shopping, and get the perishables a few days before Easter. If you need to order something -- a special cut of meat at the butcher, for example -- it's time to do that now.

Bread and Chocolate

When I was a little girl, we used to have bread and chocolate for a snack. This was in France, so it was a matter of begging the cook for a nice crusty roll, tearing it open, and tucking in a bit of good chocolate. On a special occasion, bread and chocolate might even be a croissant and chocolate, though this involved getting the croissants from a bakery.

In the U.S., we can't keep things this simple (though I think we might like it, if we make sure to have the same high quality of simple ingredients). Here are some American takes on bread and chocolate from around the web:

• Grilled Chocolate Sandwich
• Chocolate Bread
• Pain au Chocolat
• Petits Pains au Chocolat 
• Fried Chocolate Sandwich

The pains au chocolat have French names, but they are the chocolate pastries we eat here in America, not the pain au chocolat of my French childhood. The last one reminds me both of French Toast and the infamous Scottish deep-fried chocolate sandwich, but all of them involve bread and chocolate in some way. Let us know which ones you prefer!

Chocolate and Coffee

Chocolate and coffee have a lot in common. Both come from tropical plants, both have undeserved bad reputations when it comes to health and growing bodies of evidence for their benefits, both have complex flavors that go well with many other foods, both inspire levels of dedication and fascination amounting to obsession.

No wonder they go so well together!

There are some obvious ways to enjoy coffee and chocolate together. First off, you can mix them up in a cup. One part espresso and two parts steamed milk give you cafe au lait to begin with. Put a tablespoon of sugar and  two tablespoons of cocoa powder into the cup before the hot liquids for a cafe mocha. Gild the lily by topping it with whipped cream, a drizzle of honey, and chopped almonds, and you have something perfect for a party.

Chocolate coffees are an intriguing innovation. Godiva makes a Chocolate Truffle Coffee which brews up like ordinary coffee. It isn't sweet or chocolate flavored, but it does have a special luxurious finish which makes it very nice for after dinner.

You can also serve hot, strong black coffee with your favorite rich chocolate dessert. The two will balance each other perfectly. Better yet, make a Gateau Moka or Tiramisu to carry the coffee and chocolate flavors through the entire dessert experience.

Try a square of chocolate with a cup of your favorite coffee, slowly savoring both. This is a good way to get your daily dose of antioxidants.

Serious about the combination of chocolate and coffee? Don't miss chocolate-covered coffee beans. Not for the faint of heart or people who want to go to sleep soon -- perfect for decorating a mocha cake.

Cocoa Meringues

Meringue is a wonderful confection of air and sugar -- no fat, few calories, and a wonderful melting texture. There are many different kinds of meringue, including Italian meringue made with hot sugar syrup, Swiss meringue which is cooked, and French meringue, which we're using here to make a light and airy treat.

Some people like to use cream of tartar or other tricks for meringue, but it isn't necessary if you do it right.
Meringue tips can help if you're a neophyte or if you've had trouble before. Mostly, you need a dry day and no oil on any of your utensils.


Classic Meringues with Cocoa

4 egg whites
2.5 c. sugar
1/4 c. cocoa powder


Preheat oven to 200 degrees.

Beat egg whites to stiff peaks. Continue beating while gradually sprinkling in sugar and then cocoa. Pipe or drop meringue by spoonsful onto parchment-paper lined cookie sheets. Bake at 200 degrees, 25 minutes for chewy meringues or an hour for crisp ones. Drizzle with melted chocolate, if you like.

Valentine's Day Treats

If you have a heart-shaped muffin tin, you can make these sweet little tarts for Valentine's Day.

First, mix up your favorite peanut butter cookie dough -- or use ours.

Peanut Butter Cookies

1 c. creamy peanut butter
1 c. sugar
1 egg

Combine these ingredients, and drop about a tablespoonful into each muffin tin. Bake at 350 degrees for about 10 minutes.

Meanwhile, melt 4 oz. chocolate and stir in 2 T cream.

Take the tarts from the oven and use a spoon or a piping bag to fill the centers with chocolate.

No heart-shaped muffin tin? You can also use a regular muffin pan with this simple hack: put a paper muffin cup into each space, spoon in the dough, and set a marble at the base of the paper liner, at the edge. This will create a heart shape as the tart bakes.

Chinese New Year Chocolate

This year, Valentine's Day also happens to be Chinese New Year. If you're celebrating with Chinese food, can you also serve chocolate for Valentine's Day?

Really, you can't let Valentine's Day pass without serving chocolate, can you? While the typical sweet ending for a Chinese meal is a collection of fruit such as the one shown here, there are chocolate desserts that blend well with Chinese food. This recipe is fast and easy, but sophisticated enough for party fare. You'll end up with a pale green cookie, half coated with chocolate. Serve it with fruit -- here, white peaches, honeydew melon, and blueberries -- for a lovely dessert that won't be out of place with your Kung Pao Chicken.

Green Tea Shortbread with Chocolate

2 c. butter
2 c. flour
2 T. Chinese powdered green tea
1/2 c. powdered sugar
3 oz. good-quality chocolate
1 T butter

Combine all the ingredients except the chocolate and butter with an electric mixer. Turn the mixture out onto a pastry sheet or a cutting board lined with parchment paper and roll out to a smooth sheet of shortbread. The mixture will be crumbly. Chill 30 minutes.
Use heart-shaped cookie cutters to cut shortbread and set carefully on a cookie sheet. Bake 10 minutes at 350 degrees.
Melt chocolate and butter together. Hold shortbread by a corner and dip half into chocolate. Lay cookies on parchment paper till shiny and set.

French Macaroons with Chocolate

With Valentine's Day right around the corner, people are buying lots of chocolate (you have just a few days to order your Love Rocks, by the way), but if you're thinking about some homemade expressions of affection, consider French Macaroons.

These delicate bites are getting seriously trendy, but they're not hard to make at home, and the fresh ones are much better than the packaged kind.This makes a soft, chewy cookie.

French Macaroons with Chocolate

3 egg whites
1/2 c sugar
2. c grated coconut
3/4 c. chopped pecans
3 oz grated chocolate
1 t vanilla

Beat the egg whites till stiff peaks form and gradually beat in sugar to form a meringue. Gently fold in remaining ingredients. Line cookie sheet with parchment paper and drop batter onto sheet by teaspoonful.
Bake 15 minutes at 350 degrees. Remove paper from cookie sheet and allow to cool.

Grate chocolate the easy way by breaking it up into pieces and pulsing in your blender.

Chocolate Football Cake

You can make a chocolate football cake for game day with no special skills or tools!

Here's how:

• Mix up your favorite chocolate cake recipe, or even use a mix. We'll never tell.
• Bake it in an oven-safe mixing bowl. Use the timing for a Bundt cake, and an extra-long tester.
• Cut your cooled cake in half. A serrated bread knife works best. 
• Turn the halves around and put them together to make a football shape. We used seedless black raspberry jam to help the halves stay together.
• Frost your cake.
• Mix up a little bit of cream cheese frosting. Just mix 1 TB each of cream cheese, butter, and powdered sugar till it's smooth.
• Put the frosting into a Zip-lock bag, snip a corner, and pipe the stitching. You may be better at piping than we are.

All set for that Super Bowl party!

Snack Mixes

The sweet and savory mix is everybody's favorite now, so stir up some special snack mixes for game day, movie night, or watch party.

From left to right, here they are:

A sophisticated mix combines

• Sweetique Chocolate Seashells
• slivered almonds
• raisins
• golden raisins
• dried cranberries

A bold mix has

• Sweetique Sunflower Mix
• cocoa-dusted whole almonds
• Sweetique Chocolate Seashells
• dark chocolate covered crystallized ginger

A playful mix uses

• Sweetique Sunflower Mix
• miniature marshmallows
• Cheerios

A natural mix includes

• Sweetique Chocolate Rocks
• dried apricot bits
• pecan halves

Game Snacks

Chocolate snacks for the playoffs and the Super Bowl? Of course!

But this is not the time for ladylike candies or luscious cakes. This is the time for salty and sweet snacks that can be eaten by the bucket full while shouting and gesturing. The kind of chocolate that goes with soft drinks and beer, not wine or tea.

Chocolate Dipped Pretzels.

Melt chocolate slowly -- you can do it in a double boiler, of course, but for this you might prefer to use the microwave. Be sure to check it often -- chocolate pieces will hold their shape even when they're mostly melted, so the trick is to take it out of the microwave and stir it. If the chocolate won't stir to smoothness, give it a few more seconds.

We've used milk chocolate, but you can use any kind of chocolate, or a mixture of different kinds. Chili-infused chocolate is great for this snack.

Dip the pretzels in the chocolate and set them on parchment paper or waxed paper to dry. You can dip them into coconut or chopped nuts or sprinkle them with crystallized sugar if you want to dress them up a little.

To get a little more fancy, lay the pretzels in a ring shape, touching so that they keep the shape after the chocolate sets. Make two layers, placing the top layer of pretzels so that each one touches two of the bottom layer of pretzels.



Here, we've used miniature pretzels and pressed dried fruit into the chocolate while it was still warm.

Let your snacks set and cool completely, and store them in an air-tight container till the game starts.

Chocolate Eggnog

Pull out all the stops and celebrate with this decadent drink!

5 eggs
2 c milk
1 c half and half
8 oz chocolate, grated
1/4 c creme de cacao

Beat the eggs. Scald the milk and add the chocolate to the milk, stirring to melt. Pour one cup of the hot milk into the eggs and beat briskly. Pour the egg mixture back into the hot milk and heat through, stirring, till the mixture is thick and smooth.

Remove the eggnog from the heat and stir in creme de cacao. Serve hot or cold.

Drizzle chocolate syrup down the inside of a glass and garnish with whipped cream and grated chocolate for

Chocolate Recipes

Another reader has said that it is hard to find the recipes here. We know it's getting on toward the major holiday baking season, so I'll fix that by gathering them all right here:

Easy Chocolate Candy
Tiny Chocolate Cakes
Chocolate Gateau
Hot Chocolate for Grownups
Chocolate Meringue Pie
Chocolate Pecan Pie
Chocolate Possum Pie
Sweetique Sunflower Mix Butter Cookies
Sweetique Sunflower Mix Chocolate Cookies
Chocolate Fudge
Chocolate Decadence
Chocolate Waffles
Chocolate Fondue

Now you're ready.

Easy Chocolate Recipes

A reader wrote to complain about our chocolate recipes. "They all look great," she said, "but I know I'm not going to make them."

She disagreed with our position that whipping up some little cakes and tucking them in the freezer would help. She doesn't think that fixing up some ganache and piping it is easy. She wants some easier recipes.

I see her point. There are people who don't cook or bake much, but still want to make treats at Christmas. Often with children.

So here's the secret:

• melt chocolate
• dip things in it
• put them on waxed paper to dry
  

Now, it isn't absolutely that easy. If you want to dip things properly, you have to temper your chocolate, and store it correctly, and things like that. This is why many people resort to "candy coating" instead of real chocolate. So here's the real secret:

• eat the dipped things immediately

The whole complex tempering bit keeps your chocolates from getting white spots of bloom on them after a few days. So just don't let there be a few days. Make these charming confections and serve them right away.

Chocolate Strawberries

Wash and dry the strawberries. Dip them into the melted chocolate. Set them on waxed paper to dry.

Chocolate Pretzels

Dip tiny pretzels into the chocolate. You can then dip them into colored suger or sprinkles. Put them on waxed paper. If you feel very ambitious, you can set them into circles to make wreaths, which you can then hang on the Christmas tree.

Fancy Cookies

Make cookies, or buy shortbread shapes, and dip them into the chocolate.

Chocolate Clusters

Stir nuts, raisins, marshmallows, and things into the melted chocolate and drop by spoonsful onto the waxed paper.

You can do this right before the office holiday party and impress everybody, or do it at home just to impress yourself.

Be Prepared -- for Holiday Parties

For the purposes of holiday planning, there are really only two kinds of parties: the kind where you need to bring something, and the kind where you don't.

For the kind where you don't have to bring anything, "be prepared" mostly means having an outfit that can be dressed up by chandelier earrings and smoky eyes (or, if you're male, a snazzier tie), and remembering to put said earrings, tie, and/or eye makeup in your briefcase when you go to work.

For the kind where you have to bring something, you can sometimes get away with a bottle of wine or a bag of salad. When you can't, let chocolate come to the rescue.

You need two things: a bunch of tiny cakes in the freezer, and some ganache. Melt chocolate and cream together in fairly equal parts to make the ganache (experiment a little -- different kinds of chocolate will give you different textures of ganache.

Use this recipe to make the cakes:

Tiny Chocolate Cakes

2/3 c. chocolate chips or chopped chocolate
2 T butter
1/2 c sugar
1 egg
2/3 c flour

Melt the chocolate. Stir in the butter, sugar, and then the egg and the flour. Drop spoonsful into miniature muffin tins or tart shells. Bake at 350 degrees for about 10 minutes.

Put these in the freezer.

When the party comes up, you can use the ganache in three ways, in ascending order of fanciness and time consumption:

• Liquid: while the ganache is still liquid, dip the tops of the little cakes into it, and let them dry to a shiny finish. You can easily take these to work with you, in a box clearly labeled "Receipts 2003-2005" so no one eats them.
  
• Soft: chill the ganache to the consistency of icing and pipe a puff onto each little cake.
• Firm: chill the ganache till it's solid (depending on the chocolate you use, this could be overnight -- you can reduce the amount of cream to half if you like) and use a melon baller or a pair of spoons to make truffles from the ganache. Set one on top of each cake -- moisten the bottom with a bit of water to encourage it to stay on.

For real fanciness, you can do all three of these things -- a shiny chocolate coat on the tiny cake, a puff of semi-firm ganache, and then set a tiny truffle into that ganache.

Old-fashioned Chocolate Meringue Pie

Tomorrow is Thanksgiving, so you're probably cleaning house, baking bread, finishing up those pies, and dealing with the turkey, which at this point is often causing anxiety.

No? In that case, you are probably on the other side of the feast: the invited guest, who gets to drive over the river and through the woods to the feast which someone else is preparing and cleaning up for right this minute.

You have the leisure to dazzle people with this wonderful old-fashioned pie. Follow the directions precisely.

Chocolate Meringue Pie

1 baked 9" pie shell
1/2 c. sugar, divided
3 T cornstarch
5 oz. good quality chocolate
2 1/2 c. milk
3 eggs, separated
1 t. vanilla
6 T sugar

Whisk 1/4 c. sugar, cornstarch, chocolate, and milk together in the top of a double boiler over boiling water, stirring constantly till mixture is thickened. Cover and cook a5 mins, stirring occasionally. Beat egg yolks and remaining sugar together. Stir a little of the hot chocolate mixture into the egg mixture, and then stir the egg mixture into the chocolate mixture in the double boiler (this keeps the heat from cooking the eggs and making stringy bits in your custard). Stir for two more minutes and then remove from heat. Cool slightly, stir in vanilla, and pour into pie shell.
Beat egg whites to stiff peaks and then very gradually beat in 6 T sugar. Spread some meringue all the way to the edge of the pie, and then mound remaining meringue onto pie and create swirls. Bake at 300 degrees for 15 minutes or until peaks of swirls are nicely browned.

Cool this pie away from drafts, and then pack it up (if you don't have a pie basket, put it into a box with newspapers around it) and set it very carefully on the floor of the car. If the car will be full of people, assign the most reliable person to hold the pie, guarding it with his or her life.

If you are single -- male or female -- you can expect marriage proposals once people taste this pie.

Chocolate for Thanksgiving

A friend of mine once served smoked salmon for Thanksgiving dinner, "just for a change."

This could never happen at my house. Turkey, dressing, mashed potatoes, corn, and cranberry sauce are de rigeur. Changes are not allowed. Points are not awarded for creativity. We're talking about tradition here, so no one can mess with it.

Creativity is allowed in three areas, though. First, breads may be changed around at will. Cranberry-orange bread, fantans, corn muffins with jalapenos and cheese -- all of these and more have graced our Thanksgiving table.

Vegetables, too, as long as potatoes and corn are offered, may be varied. The kids can ignore the existence of steamed green beans bundled and tied with herbs just as well as they can ignore squash casserole or roasted carrots.

Desserts are supposed to be varied. We've had gingerbread turkeys with pumpkin dip, Pineapple Upside Down Cake, and cherry cheesecake. Lemon meringue pie, spice cake with bourbon-spiked whipped cream, and Apple-Plum Crisp.

We also like chocolate for Thanksgiving. I'm going to offer you two pie recipes today: one for purists, and one for those of you who still haven't gotten a turkey and are in no mood for serious baking.

First, the quick one made with convenience foods:

Possum Pie

1 c. flour
1/2 c butter
1/2 c. chopped pecans
8 oz. cream cheese
1 c. powdered sugar
1 c. Cool Whip
2 pkg. instant chocolate pudding, mixed with 3 c.milk

Combine flour, butter, and pecans. Form crust in pie pan. Bake 10 minutes at 350 degrees. Cool. Mix the cream cheese and powdered sugar and spread over the cooled crust. Pour the pudding over the cream cheese mixture. Top with Cool Whip and chopped nuts.

This recipe came from Kathy Simmons, and I have no idea what it has to do with possums, but people love it. You could substitute a nice homemade chocolate mousse and real whipped cream for the processed foods here, but you could also substitute a ready-made graham cracker crust. It all depends how busy you are.

Now, for the serious:

Chocolate Pecan Pie

1 1/2 cups pecans
1 cup semisweet chocolate chips
1 unbaked 9-inch pie shell
4 eggs, beaten
1/2 c butter, melted
3/4 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup corn syrup
1/2 teaspoon vanilla

Mix everything else together, pour into the pie shell, and bake at 350 degrees till it's set -- about an hour.

You can add a splash of bourbon to this, too, for a marvelously rich flavor. And, actually, this is probably just as quick as the Possum Pie, when you get down to it, so you might as well make both.

Make them today or tomorrow and keep them in the refrigerator, and you won't have to fuss on the big day.

Drinking Chocolate

A cup of hot chocolate is a wonderful way to start the day. Don't be limited by instant hot cocoa mixes, though. Their ingredients, which include not only sugar and cocoa, but also corn syrup, partially hydrogenated palm or soybean oil, powdered milk, flavorings, carrageenan or guar gum, salt, and chemicals like sodium aluminosilicate and dipotassium phosphate, aren't necessarily the most conducive to a good, healthy cup of hot chocolate.

It's not hard to make it yourself from good quality cocoa powder.

Just mix together 2 T cocoa, and 1 T sugar. Stir in 4 cups of water or milk which has been heated just till bubbles begin to form at the edges of the pan.

Turn it into delicious Café Louvois by mixing the resulting hot chocolate with equal parts of coffee. Gently stir a tablespoon of whipped cream into each cup.

As fall nears and there's a bit of a nip in the air, you can mix up hot chocolate with water as described above and add a spoonful of whiskey for a special addition to an afternoon tea party.

Or get fancy with this Spanish drink:

Beat 3 tablespoons honey with 9 egg yolks. Beat in a shotglass of rum and 1 t each allspice, ginger powder and grated lemon peel.

Whisk the egg mixture into the hot chocolate and heat it till it's hot but not boiling.

In the evening, consider this bold Guatemalan take on hot chocolate:

Heat 2 vanilla pods in 4 cups of milk for 5-10 minutes. Stir 2 heaping T of cocoa into 1 / 2 cup of water, and stir it into the hot milk along with 2 tablespoons honey, 4 tablespoons sugar, and a dash of cayenne pepper or 1 / 2 teaspoon Tabasco sauce.

Add tequila or rum, if desired.

The versatility of chocolate shows up even in simple cocoa.