Happy New Year 2008

Black Forest ~ Chocolate Cake with Cherries Recipe

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INGREDIENTS

• 1 2/3 cups all-purpose flour
• 2/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup shortening
• 1 1/2 cups white sugar
• 2 eggs
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 1/2 cups buttermilk
• 1/2 cup kirschwasser
• 1/2 cup butter
• 3 1/2 cups confectioners' sugar
• 1 pinch salt
• 1 teaspoon strong brewed coffee
• 2 (14 ounce) cans pitted Bing cherries, drained
• 2 cups heavy whipping cream
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 tablespoon kirschwasser

How to Step by Step?

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Line the bottoms of two 8 inch round pans with parchment paper circles. Sift together flour, cocoa, baking soda and 1 teaspoon salt. Set aside.
2. Cream shortening and sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in eggs and vanilla. Beat in flour mixture, alternating with buttermilk, until combined. Pour into 2 round 8 inch pans.
3. Bake at 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) for 35 to 40 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the cake comes out clean. Cool completely. Remove paper from the cakes. Cut each layer in half, horizontally, making 4 layers total. Sprinkle layers with the 1/2 cup kirshwasser.
4. In a medium bowl, cream the butter until light and fluffy. Add confectioners sugar, pinch of salt, and coffee; beat until smooth. If the consistency is too thick, add a couple teaspoons of cherry juice or milk. Spread first layer of cake with 1/3 of the filling. Top with 1/3 of the cherries. Repeat with the remaining layers.
5. In a separate bowl, whip the cream to stiff peaks. Beat in 1/2 teaspoon vanilla and 1 tablespoon kirshwasser. Frost top and sides of cake. Sprinkle with chocolate curls made by using a potato peeler on semisweet baking chocolate.

Delicious Chocolate Desserts :)

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Cokelat Lava Cake~ Especially for Christmas Celebration

Ingredients:

Cake

2 eggs

2 tablespoons unsalted butter

1/4 pound semisweet chocolate

1 1/2 teaspoons cornstarch

1 teaspoon peppermint extract

1/4 cup granulated sugar

Soufflé Pan

1 tablespoon unsalted butter - soft 2 tablespoons sugar Parchment circles

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Melt chocolate and butter in a double boiler over medium heat; stir constantly.

When melted, remove from heat. Add sugar and cornstarch and mix.

Whisk in eggs and peppermint extract until smooth.

Grease and flour a two-cup soufflé pan. Line the bottom with buttered parchment circle. Coat pan with sugar - shake out excess.

Add batter and bake 25-30 minutes. Turn cake out onto plate and serve immediately with ice cream.

Tips

To make the perfect Chocolate Lava Calate lava cake recipe like this one. You could turn one out in a snap.

First, you need to use the best gourmet chocolate you can find and second you need to use heavy cream.

Another little trick to making this delicious chocolate cake is to make sure you whisk the lava batter while it cools.

One way to do this is to just pop it into the refrigerator and then pull it out every few minutes and give it a quick whisk, then put it back in to cool some more.

ke, there are a few little tricks you need to know about. Such a fancy cake seems like it would be hard to make, but it’s really not, specially with and free easy choco

If you’re afraid you’ll forget about it; set your oven timer to remind you. Did you know that after the chocolate lava, or ganache, is ready you don’t have to use it immediately?

If you’re not ready to make your Chocolate Lava Cake recipe yet, just form your chocolate lava balls and slip them into the freezer.

Then, when you need a special or unique birthday cake or a cake for any reason; just pull them out and wait for the ooh’s and aahh’s at dessert time.

I hope this free easy chocolate lava cake recipe and tips will help you make your loved ones happy!

Enjoy :):):)

Merry Christmas 2007 all :)

^Aneka Resep Cokelat Pralines^

Membuat Cokelat Pralines...gampang2 susah...
Kalau dilihat dari bentuknya yang manis dan imut...bisa2 kita sayang untuk memakannya :P
Tapi sebenarnya...ada beberapa resep mudah untuk cokelat Pralines...dan dijamin ga bakal gagal dehhh bikinnya...let's try together !

Step 1 : siapkan Dark or Milk chocolate Compound...lelehkan lalu siap digunakan
Step 2: kita harus membuat kulit/shell cokelat pralines terlebih dahulu...
usahakan, bagian atas cetakan dilapisi agak teball..supaya Filling/isi annya tidak tumpah
Step 3 : Simpan 1-2 menit di lemari es/freezer
Step 4 : Isi filling ke dalam shell/kulit pralines...secukupnya
Step 5 : penuhi lagi dengan cokelat sampai memenuhi cetakan
Step 6 : masukan kembali ke dalam chiller untuk 5 menit
Step 7 : Check dasar cetakan, kalau sudah blur/buram...artinya cokelat sudah siap dilepas dari
cetakannya...pastikan saat melepas cokelat..lakukan di ruangan ber AC

Untuk resep filling/isi Cokelat Pralines...ada banyak alternatif...check this out!

*Simple ganache*

300ml fresh milk
600 gr cokelat couverture
20 gr butter
2 gr vanilla essences..

Cara membuat : didihkan susu, lalu tuang susu ke dalam wadah berisi cokelat dan aduk hingga
merata. Selanjutnya, tambahkan buter kedalamnya..dan dinginkan sampai
suhu sekitar 40 Celcius

*Cherry Filling* 250 gr Butter 150 gr Gula halus 100 gr susu kental manis 100 cc Kirsch (dari fermentasi buah cherry) 500 gr Cokelat couverture (cairkan)

Cara membuat: Susu, butter dan gula dikocok hingga naik...masukan Kirsch.
Tambahkan cokelat cair kedalamnya lalu aduk sampai merata

*Caramel Machiato*
Bagi penyuka Caramel Machiatto nya Starbucks..filling yang satu ini wajib dicoba ;)

500 gr Gula
250 ml Fresh Cream
125 gr Butter
125 gr Glucose
5 gr Mocha Paste

Cara membuat: cairkan gula lalu masukan mentega dan fresh cream sedikit demi sedikit...
Matikan api, masukan glucose dan mocha paste...tunggu sampai dingin..

~Valentine Cokelat Cake~

Special Cakes for Valentine :)

Cobain Cokelat S'Mores deh...

S'MoRes!!!!! hehe Resep yang satu ini gampang banget di coba...
Yang kita perlukan cuma 4 pieces biscuit (preferably Graham Crackers),
2 pieces of Cokelat dan 2 Marshmamallows...hehee then we're ready to go!!

Nah, gambar yang pertama nunjukin S'Mores pas udah jadi...cokelat and marshmallow inside are supposed to be melted...hehe
Gambar yang kedua, that's my own picture...pas pesan S'Mores di salah satu restoran di Amerika...

Bagi kita yang di Indo...ada berbagai cara untuk melumerkan si marshmallow ini...
Bisa dengan manasin dia di atas arang untuk bakar sate :P , bisa juga kita microwave sebentarrr aja...cek tipa 15 detik...ataupun kita panasin di atas stove (kompor gas)...

Setelah Marshamallownya sedikit kecokelatan..tapi Bukan gosong loh ya...
Buru2 tempelin ke Biscuit yang di atasnya sudah kita taruh cokelat....biar cokelatnya ikutan lumerrr ..Yummmm :) After that, it's ready to be served..

* My Favorite Coklat Quotations *

“Forget Love, I'd rather fall in chocolate.”

“All you need is love. But a little chocolate now and then doesn't hurt.” -Schulz

“My therapist told me the way to achieve true inner peace is to finish what I start. So far today, I have finished 2 bags of M&M's and a chocolate cake. I feel better already.”-Dave Barry

“After about 20 years of marriage, I'm finally starting to scratch the surface of that one [what women want]. And I think the answer lies somewhere between conversation and chocolate.”-Mel Gibson

“As with most fine things, chocolate has its season. There is a simple memory aid that you can use to determine whether it is the correct time to order chocolate dishes: any month whose name contains the letter A, E, or U is the proper time for chocolate.”-Boynton

“Love is like swallowing hot chocolate before it has cooled off. It takes you by surprise at first, but keeps you warm for a long time.”

Coklat Gelato

Guys, this time I wanna share the recipe about "Coklat Gelato"... Maybe some of you don't really familiar with "Gelato"...it is actually Italian type of Ice Cream that is made by combining milk and sugar + other flavorings...For this recipe, we are going to make the combination of Coklat (Cioccolato) and Hazelnut (Nociola)...

For the ingredients, they're very simple and you guys can get it anywhere in the grocery stores...maybe carrefour or FoodHall..

2 cups whole milk
1 cup heavy cream
1/2 cup sugar, plus 1/4 cup
4 egg yolks
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup chocolate-hazelnut spread (Highly recommended: Nutella - dimana2 ada kok)
1/2 cup toasted hazelnuts, crushed, for garnish

In a saucepan combine the milk, cream, and 1/2 cup sugar over medium heat. Cook until the sugar dissolves, about 5 minutes.

Meanwhile, in a medium bowl whip the egg yolks with the remaining sugar using an electric mixer until the eggs have become thick and pale yellow, about 4 minutes. Pour 1/2 cup of the warm milk and cream mixture into the egg mixture and stir. Add this mixture back into the saucepan. Cook over very low heat, stirring constantly, until the mixture becomes thick enough to coat the back of a wooden spoon, about 10 minutes.

Place a strainer over a medium bowl and pour the warm custard mixture through the strainer. Stir in the vanilla and hazelnut spread until it dissolves. Chill mixture completely before pouring into an ice cream maker and follow manufacturer's instructions to freeze. To serve, scoop gelato into serving bowls and top with hazelnuts.

EnJoy :)

Yuk Bikin Coklat Truffles !

1/2 pound bittersweet chocolate (merek Lindt or Belcolade) 1/2 pound semisweet chocolate compound 1 cup heavy cream 2 tablespoons Grand Marnier (if you like it..) 1 tablespoon prepared coffee 1/2 teaspoon good vanilla extract Confectioners' sugar Cocoa powder

• Chop the chocolates finely with a sharp knife. Place them in a heat-proof mixing bowl.

• Heat the cream in a small saucepan until it just boils.

• Turn off the heat and allow the cream to sit for 20 seconds.

• Pour the cream through a fine-meshed sieve into the bowl with chocolate.

• With a wire whisk, slowly stir the cream and chocolates together until the chocolate is completely melted.

• Whisk in the Grand Marnier, if using, coffee, and vanilla.

• Set aside at room temperature for 1 hour.

With 2 teaspoons, spoon round balls of the chocolate mixture onto a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Refrigerate for 35 minutes or until firm. Roll each dollop of chocolate in your hands to roughly make a round ball. Roll in confectioners' sugar, cocoa powder, or both. These will keep refrigerated for weeks, but serve at room temperature.

I have tried this recipe today, and it was sooooo easy to be prepared...As we are in Indonesia, maybe you can use other dark and bittersweet Coklat compound such as Tulip or Collata ...

Makan Coklat = Sehat

"Chocolate of good quality…calms the fever, nourishes…the patient and tends to restore him to health".
(Francis Joseph Victor Broussais, celebrated French physician, 1772—1836).

Haloooo teman2 penggemar Coklat, ada kabar bagus banged nih untuk kita yang Hobby mengkonsumsi Coklat :) - Ternyata, Flavonoids yang terkandung di Dark Coklat dapat mengkontrol tensi darah loh dan baik untuk kesehatan Jantung...Wah, lumayan juga deh, dah rasanya enak...ternyata juga punya Health benefit...

Untuk lebih lanjutnya, baca deh artikel berikut...

A recent BBC News article emphasized the connection between dark chocolate and low blood pressure. Citing a study by The University of L'Aquila (L'Aquila, Italy), they also concluded that milk chocolate offers similar benefits to dark.

A separate report by WCVB News (Boston) echoed these findings, giving the credit to an ingredient known as Flavonoids - found in all dark chocolate. In fact, the WCVB article also reported that chocolate can contribute to a healthy heart.

Dark Chocolate has certainly received a lot of good press recently, but is it really a breakthrough discovery? Are we the first generation of chocolate consumers to uncover this great secret? The answer is "No." In fact, the health benefits of dark chocolate were discovered centuries ago by the Aztecs, a Mexican empire that thrived in the 14th, 15th and 16th centuries.

You wouldn't recognize the chocolate prepared by the Aztec people. It was a cold, bitter drink with a variety of spices, having a watery texture and served with a swizzle stick. The Spanish word that is the root of "chocolate" translates to "food of the gods." The name tells us a lot about how the Aztecs coveted this drink - it was enjoyed by royalty alone. It was also enjoyed in remarkable proportions: Montezuma is reported to have consumed fifty pitchers per day. The Aztecs believed that the drink provided vitality, energy, and longevity.

About a century after the Aztecs discovered chocolate, Royalty in Spain and France adopted the idea. In the 19th century the drink was enjoyed in the same way as the Aztecs and the health benefits did not go unnoticed. Brillat-Savarin reflected the French national view of chocolate when he wrote: "Chocolate is one of the most effective restoratives. All those who have to work when they might be sleeping, men of wit who feel temporarily deprived of their intellectual powers, those who find the weather oppressive, time dragging, the atmoshere depressing; those who are tormented by some preoccupation which deprives them of the liberty of thought; let all such men imbibe a half liter of choclat ambre... and they will be amazed."

It is clear that we cannot give credit to modern scientists for discovering the health benefits of chocolate. However, we can appreciate the fact that the news is being brought to our attention. After all, it reminds us that we can enjoy our favorite treat knowing it's good for the body and perhaps also the mind. It's old news, but it's good news.

References:

www.stuffedchocolate.com/chocolate%20links.htm

www.msnbc.msn.com/id/7339594/

www.webmd.com/diet/news/20040601/dark-chocolate-day-keeps-doctor-away

~Cokelat Raspberry Cookies~

1 cup butter
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup brown sugar
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/3 cup Dutch process cocoa
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 (6-ounce) package raspberry creme filled dark cokelat baking pieces

Raspberry Icing, recipe follows
Preheat oven to 180 Celcius. Lightly grease baking sheets.

With an electric mixer, beat butter and sugars together at medium speed until fluffy. Add eggs and vanilla, beating well.

In a small bowl, combine flour, cocoa, & baking powder; gradually add to butter mixture, beating until blended. Stir in baking pieces. Drop cookies by tablespoonfuls onto prepared baking sheets. Bake 12 to 15 minutes.

Remove to wire racks to cool. Once cool, drizzle with Raspberry Icing.

This is how to make Raspberry Icing:
1 1/2 cups confectioners' sugar
2 tablespoons milk
1 tablespoon seedless raspberry preserves

In a small bowl, combine all ingredients, stirring until smooth
it is time for us to taste :)