Happy Chocolate Cake Day!

To make sure we have things straight -- in this blog, I have never claimed to be a baker, let alone a good one. I simply love chocolate, especially chocolate desserts, and in my pursuit of the "perfect chocolate cake", I want to capture my adventures and discoveries. Unfortunately, if you've read my blog, you know that my attempts at creating in the kitchen have led to more chocolate missteps than successes.

With January 27th being "Chocolate Cake Day" however, I thought I'd give the kitchen another try and celebrate by baking a chocolate cake. With few recent baking successes and also feeling rusty in the kitchen, I decided to attempt something basic, simple, and beginner, in spite having just heard my chocolate mentor Alice Medrich speak.

A friend posted a mocha glaze recipe on Facebook and when emailing it to me, she suggested I attempt it and review it. She used the glaze on Hershey's "Perfectly Chocolate" Chocolate Cake, loved it, and with the recipe skill level listed online as "beginner," I thought this would be a good way to get back into the chocolate game. And besides, I am in pursuit of the "perfect" chocolate cake.

Though the recipe is clearly NOT vegan with its use of eggs and milk, I decided to stick with the recipe to build up my chocolate baking confidence in the kitchen. Watching FoodNetwork reality shows, I am learning that it is important to master basics in the kitchen before being creative. And with baking more of a science than an art, I know I need to better understand how essential ingredients react before substituting them out for more animal-friendly ones.

Thus, I followed the recipe very closely -- though I did cut it in half as I don't need a 2-layered cake to celebrate Chocolate Cake Day. Keep it simple. After preheating the oven, greasing and flouring the pan, I combined the 1 cup sugar, 3/4 cups plus 2 tablespoons of flour, 1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons of Hershey's unsweetened cocoa, 3/4 teaspoon of baking powder, 3/4 teaspoon of baking soda, and 1/2 teaspoon of salt. So far so good.

After I added the wet ingredients - one egg, 1/2 cup of milk, 1/4 cup of canola oil, and 1 teaspoon of vanilla - I went to get the electric mixer I had borrowed from my mom so to combine the ingredients. (I do not yet have my own mixer.) In reaching for the box I had brought from my parents home, I discovered to my horror that the blades to this mixer (which is probably older than me) were missing!

While searching my mom's cabinets for the mixer earlier this week, I vaguely remember the box opening backwards and falling, but I never suspected that something fell out. Rummaging around through my stuff, I knew that the blades were not here and that I would need to improvise. "So much for baking success," I began to think.

Rather than "beat on medium speed for 2 minutes" as the recipe instructs, I simply beat on "cacao-me speed" while waiting for the water, I would next need, to boil. Though I experienced a momentary set-back, as the ingredients blended and I mixed mixed mixed, the smell of chocolate filled the air. It was quiet heavenly. May be I could salvage this after all.

After the water boiled, I added 1/2 cup to the batter, stirring it in as it thinned as the recipe said. I then poured it into my pan (OK, my mom's round cake pan), and let it bake. After about 30 minutes, I went to check on it.

To my horror, it looked like a moonscape with lava rocks, which might have been okay if I was making a "lava cake," but no. This was the beginner's "perfect" chocolate cake and somehow I had messed it up. Inserting the toothpick, I saw that it was done. I took it out to cool, and decided that if they had a show called, "Worst Baker in America" (in the vein of FoodNetwork's "Worst Cooks in America"), I'd be a good contender. Sigh.

Oh well. "May be if I cover it with the glaze no one will know."

Following my friend's glaze instructions, I combined 2 teaspoons of hot double shot espresso, 3/4 teaspoon of unsweetened cocoa, just under 1/4 cup powdered sugar (as she said she would make it less sweet next time), and 1/4 teaspoon of vanilla. Mixing it, the glaze began to smooth and yes, it tasted just like coffee nip candy as my friend said, though not as sweet. Adding less sugar gave it a nice kick which I liked. This part of the cake was working out -- until I realized that this was far from enough to cover the cake.

I made another batch and would have made a third and fourth, except I was running out of ingredients. This would have to do. Though the glaze was tasting good, it was not hardening up. "May be when the glaze cools it will stiffen," I thought. I began to drizzle it on, but unfortunately it did not cover my chocolate moon rocks. It simply flowed around the bumps like a chocolate lava flow, and looked rather sloppy as it harden. May be the taste will save this next kitchen chocolate nightmare.

Thankfully, though it looks like a some alien nightmare on the surface, I am glad to say it doesn't taste like it. (Whew!) Cutting a slice, the cake is moist and fluffy, nicely baked, with a balanced chocolate flavor. It is surprisingly not too sweet, in spite having more sugar than flour. Though it doesn't have the dark chocolate bittersweet bite and rich denseness I prefer, for a simple straight forward (not from a box) chocolate cake, it is very good.

What adds the chocolate sophistication to the cake is the mocha glaze. The wonderful edgy bite of the espresso brings out the simple chocolate flavors of the cake underneath, and raises this dessert from "at home" enjoyment to restaurant indulgence (as long as you don't look too closely at it!) Probably multiplying the mocha glaze recipe so that there is enough to fully cover the top of the cake, and then adding it as a filling with a second layer, would make this an excellent gourmet sophisticated chocolate dessert. Add a scoop of French vanilla ice cream and you have a real winner.

The lesson from this baking adventure: a good chocolate dessert begins with the essentials - it builds off a good chocolate cake.

Though this baking attempt did not produce a "pretty" cake, it did provide the foundation upon which to build a pretty delicious dessert. And in the same way, though my baking skills are far from honed, I know I am learning some essential skills I need to be more proficient in the kitchen baking with chocolate.

One think that will definitely help me in the process is my own electric mixer.

Conversations in chocolate

I was in a chocolate awe this afternoon, and it had nothing to do with what I ate.

In connection with "Good Foods Month," I received an email about a panel discussion on chocolate careers featuring five of the Bay Area most accomplished chocolate professionals. Though I can't say that a chocolate career is in my future, I had the time, and I was curious about what they were going to say. Thus, I registered and spent about 90 minutes at the San Francisco Art Institute, the host site, listening and learning about what it takes to be in the chocolate business and the challenges these seasoned professionals face as entrepreneurs and women.

One reason I wanted to attend was to hear Alice Medrich (pictured right), my chocolate mentor through my study bake attempts last year. Unfortunately, I forgot to bring one of my growing collection of Alice's books for her to sign and to be the total groupie. And I forgot to bring my camera thus needed to use the camera function on my old (not smart) phone to take pictures. Thus I have blurry shots.

Another person on the panel I wanted to hear was Penelope Finnie (pictured left in the picture below), owner of Bittersweet, one of the few places in the Bay Area that serves a dark bittersweet cup of drinking chocolate. Because I have since sampled other types of drinking chocolate or "cioccolata calda" in Italy (and need to review more of them on this blog), I was able to talk with her and suggest she offer a thick European-style chocolate at their cafe, which I do love. She said she's heard this suggestion before and will consider it. I mentioned that I have been trying some samples of drinking chocolate which I picked up in markets while traveling in Italy, and she said to email her if I find one I like. I plan to, and hope to see a thick drinking chocolate at Bittersweet sometime soon!

Other members of the panel included Thalia Hohenthal (pictured left in the center), food scientist at Guittard Chocolate Company, Zohara Mapes (pictured left on the right), chocolatier at TCHO, and Kathy Wiley, owner of Poco Dolce.

Topics this distinguished group of chocolate professionals shared about included:

• how they first decided to enter the business,
  
• what an average day looks like,
  
• how their love of chocolate influences their choice of foods,
  
• how they are breaking ground as women in a male dominated field,
  
• what they think of the new "art" in chocolate with new flavor pairings,
• how they describe chocolate as tasting is a big part of what they each do,
• what they would suggest for someone looking to turn their "passion" into "profit"

While there were many stories shared of the hard work and dedication needed to succeed and the challenges faced including tasting after tasting after tasting, one thing I appreciated from the Q&A time was Thalia's 6 point rating of chocolate. It is:

• yum yum yum
• yum yum
• yum
• yuck
• yuck yuck
  
• yuck yuck yuck

For Thalia there is no zero, no middle ground when it comes to chocolate. You must decide one way or the other - yum or yuck. Alice agreed and confessed that she tends to not have an extensive vocabulary to describe chocolate and tends toward the "yum or yuck" scale. Rather than use standard chocolate descriptions as found in the media (like "fruity" or "floral"), she believes it is more valuable to have a kid's vocabulary when it comes to chocolate because it moves quickly to the bottom line - whether you like it or not. And that's important because chocolate is such a personal thing.

I appreciate this, because personally I too do not yet having an extensive vocabulary in my ability to describe chocolate. My taste pallet is not well develop and I don't have the words to describe what I taste. I simply know if I like something or not. It's nice to know that I have a chocolate professional like Alice in my corner. That's why she continues to be my chocolate hero.

"Hot" Chocolate: Standing up for human rights

Ivory Coast, called the 'pearl of West Africa', is on the brink of civil war -- and chocolate companies could play a critical role in stopping the bloodshed.

Despite losing elections in November and united international pressure and sanctions to remove him, Laurent Gbagbo is clinging to power. Revenues and tariffs from cocoa, the country’s largest export, are bankrolling his brutal army that has murdered hundreds of winning party supporters. If chocolate companies immediately and publicly refuse to do business with Gbagbo, his cash supply could dry up – and without the support of the army, his power base would dwindle, and he could be forced to step down.

This situation could spiral into all-out war within days. Chocolate lovers of the world, let's flood popular brands like Nestlé, M&M/Mars and Hershey's with messages to end trade with Gbagbo now and commit to working only with the legitimate government. Click to HERE send a message directly to leading companies.

All regional, African and international institutions recognise Alassane Ouattara as winner of the November elections and the legitimate President of Ivory Coast, but Gbagbo (pictured right) refuses to step down despite threats of military intervention. More than 200 Ivorians have already been killed, and 25,000 have fled to neighboring countries, whilst pro-Gbagbo TV and radio stations are inciting violence against UN peacekeepers and sparking fears that his supporters could undertake campaigns of widespread brutality. The risk of a dangerous spiral into civil war looms ominously and threatens regional stability.

Ouattara (pictured left), the legitimate winner, is doing what he can for peace and has agreed to accept ministers from Gbagbo's cabinet into his new administration, but Gbagbo insists he be President. Millions of Ivorians risked their lives to participate in democratic elections and exercise their right to vote. Caving in to Gbagbo would only reward impunity and his violent crackdown – and would encourage other election-losers in Africa to cling to power, as happened recently in Kenya and Zimbabwe.

The Ivory Coast accounts for nearly 40% of the world's cocoa supply. Cocoa companies alone can’t unseat a dictator, but the Central Bank of West African States has just suspended services to Gbagbo -- and cutting the cocoa industry's financial support to his army could be the tipping point. Companies have long bolstered Gbagbo's abusive regime, many through shady financial operations. Three national cocoa institutions gave more than $20.3 million to finance the war effort in 2002-2003, when some of the worst killings and human rights violations were taking place.

We know these companies are making delicate calculations right now and they listen to consumers -- Nestlé just stopped sourcing palm oil from Indonesia after a massive public campaign by Greenpeace to stop rainforest destruction.

It is crucial that the international community escalate pressure, but at this critical time, if they act fast, cocoa companies could hold the key to removing Gbagbo's illegitimate regime. Click to send a message now -- if enough of us persuade them urgently to sever ties to Gbagbo and his forces, we can help pull Ivory Coast back from the precipice.

The world has taken a strong stand to support fair elections and combat impunity in Ivory Coast. Now its future hangs by a thread. If we take action and stand with the democratic Ivorian people now, we can offer hope for a peaceful solution.

La Di Da so ho hum

Hanging out in Half Moon Bay this weekend, I decided to enjoy the sun while waiting to meet some friends. Next to my favorite bookstore, Ink Spell Books, which is one block down from Main Street off of Kelly, is a little local cafe called La Di Da Cafe. With the sun out, chocolate on my mind, and some time to kill before meeting friends, I decided to give this local business a try.

In the display case, they featured two chocolate delights: (1) a 3 layered double chocolate cake which looked rich, dense, and decadent, and (2) chocolate cupcakes. I asked the server if the cake was made "in-house," to which she replied, "No." When I asked about if they made the cupcakes on-site, the owner of the shop, who was just behind her, immediately responded in the affirmative. She said she makes them and that they are chocolate brownie cupcakes.

Always looking for chocolate delights made locally, I of course ordered the $2.99 cupcake as the owner herself enthusiastically placed it on a plate and said, "You will enjoy this."

I wish I could say that I did.

Topped with a homemade whipped cream and large chocolate flakes, the cupcake was dense and unfortunately a bit hard. The cream was nice and smooth, and you could tell it was homemade as it was a bit messy. Though the cupcake itself had a nice dark chocolate look, it tasted a little off. It's hard to describe.

One friend who tried it with me said it was salty. I wouldn't say it tasted salty but it was not sweet, yet also not very bittersweet nor chocolatey either. It lacked something to give it that chocolate edge and character. The texture didn't help. It was not "rock-like" but it also did not have the moistness of a cake nor the fudgeyness of a brownie. It was just hard and didn't even really crumble. Odd for a cupcake, even a brownie cupcake.

Overall assessment: 1 cacao beans (out of 5)
As much as I love homemade pastries at a local cafe, the chocolate brownie cupcake at La Di Da did not sing. I should have went with the "not made on site" chocolate cake which looked like an excellent chocolate delight. That will be for next time as I am always looking for an excuse to check out the latest selections at my favorite bookstore next door. And besides, trying the other chocolate will be another way I can support local businesses.
(review date: 2011_01-19)

Happy Brownie Day

I was up before the sun this morning, so excited that the day was here. It isn't Christmas or my birthday, but National Brownie day, and having found out about this special day of chocolatey-ness late last night, I wanted to be up early before work to try out a new vegan brownie recipe.

It has been a long while since I've baked, and moving into a new place, this would also be my first opportunity to test out the oven. And while I can't say I'm totally happy with the results, as I always used to say, "Experiments are essential!"

Surfing the web last night, I discovered that December 8th is National Brownie Day, and looking for an excuse to indulge in chocolate (as if I needed one), I began searching for a quick easy recipe. Though I found one on allrecipes.com, there were many notes on adapting it and being inspired, I decided to adapt it myself to create a Mexican Vegan Chocolate brownie.

To cut down on the oil, I decided to follow the comments from the allrecipes.com recipe, and use 1/4 cup oil and 1/2 cup applesauce. Not having any applesauce, but lots of apples, I made my own by vita-mixing apples with just a bit of water. I've done it before and it's worked, and it worked again. So far so good.

To add the Mexican flavor, I decided to add 1 wedge of Ibarrra chocolate, labeled "Genuine Mexican Chocolate," to the 1/2 cup of water. And to bring out the chocolate taste, I also added 2 teaspoons of instant coffee. I used hot water to dissolve everything and poured that into the mixing bowl which had the 1 cup of flour and sugar. The recipe called for 1 cup of sugar; some comments used 3/4 cup, but to cut down on the sweetness I initially decided to use 1/2 cup (which I would discover wasn't quite enough.)

One of the comments from allrecipes.com said that the recipe was too crumbly and that for a more moist and firm brownie, mix the water with the flour and sugar first. So I did. When I added the hot Mexican mocha to the dry mix, everything began to gum up and I wondered if that would be a problem.

I went on to add 1/4 cup of oil, 1/2 cup of my homemade applesauce, and 1/2 teaspoon each of baking powder, salt, vanilla, and cayenne pepper (my addition to add the Mexican kick.) Mixing it together, it was looking "not so gummy." I was hopeful, but tasting it, I thought, "Bleck!" It was not right. "Too bitter," I thought, meaning - not enough sugar. Thus, I added another 1/4 cup, blended it in, sampled it, and felt better about my new creation.

Into a greased pan; into the 350 degree oven; and with no eggs to worry about, I licked the bowl totally clean, all before the sun came out.

My chocolate licking, however, came to an abrupt end when all of a sudden the fire alarm started going off. This was the first time using the oven in months, and probably years as the staff resident before me said she never used it. I figured the smoke was not from burning brownies, which I had just put it, but from the dust that had accumulated and fact that I had not turned on the fan. The fan along with windows opened helped air out the place and I could enjoy the bowl licking on this national chocolate holiday.

As I opened the windows, I did hear the rain coming down. And being a rainy day, the sun never really came out, but when the timer went off after 20 minutes to let me know the brownies were nearly down, there was a bit of light outside.

Though I checked for doneness, it was hard to tell with this black metal pan I was using. With the recipe saying 25, or 30 for more doneness, I gave this new creation another 3 just in case. In retrospect, I should have taken them out.

Though the edges were looking a bit "done," overall they looked good. After cooling them, I couldn't wait to sample. Hmm... While the texture was a bit dense, the flavor was excellent - a nice balance of sweet and spicy, just how I like my Mexican drinking chocolate.

There was something however that just wasn't right. The brownie was dense, but gummy not gooey. It was similar in texture to the chocolate vegan cake my partner made, using baking powder instead of the the required soda. Yet in double checking before and after this baking escapade, the recipe did call for baking powder, not soda. May be the hot water did mess up the glutenizing. Or may be my homemade applesauce substitution contained too much or too little of something.

Though I enjoyed the taste, these brownies would not be for public consumption. I would take one to the office, however, and get the opinion of one of my co-workers who's sampled enough of my experiments over the years to try it.

She agreed that the taste was nice -- with a subtle heat upon first bite, but kicking in with a nice warming sense toward the end. Her comment, "Did you bake these this morning?" "Yes" was my reply. "It's the rain" was her conclusion.

"The rain?" She proceeded to explain how the rain can mess up the best of bakers and recipes, herself included. I felt better about my little baking experiment gone gummy.

In spite the texture because of the weather (or possibly some other baking boo-boo), there is something homey about a vegan brownie with a nice Mexican chocolate bite paired with a cold cup of almond milk (or a scoop of coconut ice cream) on a wet wintry day. Not a bad way to spend National Brownie Day, if you ask me, especially when there's a whole 8x8 inch pan of brownies now waiting in my kitchen.

HAPPY BROWNIE DAY!

A Perfect Birthday

Now to get things straight, as much as I love chocolate, I REALLY love chocolate cake. Chocolate cake is my primary chocolate modus operandi. And when it is deep, dark, moist and vegan, I am in heaven. Nothing says love more than a homemade vegan chocolate cake made just for me. And for my birthday this year, I got a lot of loving.

I spent the day with a special friend. Indian food. A used book store. Good conversation. Chocolate and wine at one of my favorite places, Cioccolata di Vino. Yet as beautifully delicious the Torta al Cioccolato Liquefatto (Chocolate Lava Cake) was when we paired it with a glass of Madeira Blandy's 5 year Alvada Portugal, it could not beat the vegan chocolate cake that my friend had made that morning, which we shared later that evening.

My friend surfed the web and found a cake recipe at vegan-food.suite101.com, and paired it with a frosting recipe from grouprecipes.com. The result -- vegan chocolate cake perfection.

The cake had a deep, inviting chocolate aroma which I could smell when we were driving in her car. I couldn't wait to sample it. She presented the cake to me topped with edible flowers from her local Farmer's Market. The cake was stunningly beautiful. The vibrant colors of the flowers gentled placed on the dark chocolate frosting created a masterpiece, and in the words of my cousin Janeen, who later sampled a piece, it was "probably one of the best chocolate cake decorations ever." I concur.

Not only a treat for the eyes, the cake was also a delight on the palate. With a smooth semi-sweet flavor, the cake was moist and fluffy, with a velvety texture that melted in your mouth. It paired well with the frosting which had just a tad bit more of a bittersweet bite. On their own both the cake and the frosting were delicious, but together they created dessert magic. I was in awe. On top of that, the flowers added a nice natural sweetness to create a wonderfully balanced taste sensation. This was not an overly sweetened, heavy cake full of butter and cream, but a deliciously light cake with a depth of natural chocolate flavor.

It was wonderful -- made with love for my birthday, and made without any animal products, making it good for the planet. The perfect way to celebrate my birthday.

Celebrating Pudding. Celebrating Me.

Today, June 26th is not only my birthday, but it is also National Chocolate Pudding Day, and thus, it is a day to celebrate. Though chocolate PUDDING is far from being one of my favorite desserts, it is CHOCOLATE and since National Chocolate Pudding Day and my birthday will be forever linked, I figure I should learn to embrace chocolate pudding, and may be, just may be, even come to enjoy it.

It didn't happen this year. May be next.

Needing to be up and out of the house early for the final day of my first doctoral course, I needed a quick and easy recipe. Being a high raw, living food vegan, I decided to try a raw vegan chocolate pudding recipe I found online. The recipe appeared quick and easy; sounded intriguing. And most importantly, I had all the necessary ingredients - raw agave nectar, raw cacao powder, vanilla, a dash of salt, water, and of course, an avocado.

Yes, an avocado.

Now I admit that avocado is not the first ingredient I think of when making chocolate pudding. But avocados in recipes are considered "flavor-neutral" in that they take on the flavors with which they are mixed. They provide a creamy texture when blended, contain nearly 20 essential nutrients, are a form of healthy fat, and thus recommended by the American Health Association. In other words, avocados are good for you. Thus, avocados can make a healthy, good for you chocolate pudding. I knew I needed to give this recipe a try.

Into my Tribest Personal blender went the avocado, 3 heaping tablespoons of the cacao, 1/3 cup of agave, 2 teaspoons of vanilla extract, and about 1/2 cup of water. Though I am used to drinking green smoothies, I admit it that the green concoction looked a bit odd, but I screwed on the lid and snapped the container in place. After about a minute of blending, I was surprised to find what looked like a thick and creamy chocolate pudding.

I was impressed. In terms of taste, this raw chocolate pudding was not like the overly sweetened, store bought pudding mix with all sorts of additives and artificial binders. There was a definite dark chocolate bite - a lot like a high percentage cacao chocolate bar. There were subtle fruity acidic notes, which come from the "premier Ecuadorian" cacao beans used in the Divine Organics cacao powder I used.

Like coffee beans and wine grapes, cacao beans vary in their flavor profiles according to their source. Growing conditions in different region create vintage flavors which may be slightly different each year. Single-source chocolate bars are the latest rage among fine chocolate connoisseurs. For example, while beans from the Dominican Republic are known for their earthy flavors and those from Madagascar fruity, beans from Grenada have a more subtle spicy taste with some South American beans too exotic for American palates.

This raw chocolate pudding was definitely an adult chocolate pudding in its flavor composition, and its rich creamy texture. Though it was enjoyable, after a few sampling bites, I had my fill. In addition, with controversy in the raw food community regarding the health benefits and risks eating raw cacao, I didn't want to overdo it.

I must admit, this raw vegan chocolate pudding wasn't bad. It was surprisingly enjoyable. But when it comes to my birthday celebration, a homemade vegan chocolate cake took the prize this year (more details to come), with a deep dark moist chocolate cake still my dessert of choice.

My attempts at another chocolate pudding will simply need to wait until next year, and really, that's okay by me.