Nick Malgieri writes: “This is my approximation of the lusciously rich hot chocolate served at such famous Parisian establishments as La Maison du Chocolat and Angelina’s.”

Sumptuous Hot Chocolate
Makes about 1 quart hot chocolate or enough for 5 or 6 mugs.

Ingredients:
1 cup water
3 ounces French bittersweet chocolate, cut into ¼-inch pieces
3 ounces French milk chocolate, cut into ¼-inch pieces
¼ cup unsweetened alkalized (Dutch process) cocoa powder
3 cups milk
1½ teaspoons vanilla extract

1. Bring the water to a simmer in a small pan. Remove from heat and add the chocolates. Shake the pan to make sure all the chocolate is covered with hot water and set it aside for 5 minutes to melt the chocolate.
2. Sift the cocoa powder into another, larger saucepan, preferably an enamel-lined one. Add a few tablespoons of milk and stir to make a paste. This will keep the cocoa from lumping. Gradually whisk in the rest of the milk. Place the pan on lowest heat and bring the liquid to a simmer, whisking often.
3. Whisk the chocolates and water to a smooth paste and whisk into the cocoa and milk mixture. Continue to heat until very hot, but do not bring to a full boil. Keep whisking to make the chocolate frothy. Off heat, whisk in the vanilla and serve immediately. (I like to top each cup with a little whipped cream.-Nina)

© 1998 “Chocolate: From Simple Cookies to Extravagant Showstoppers” by Nick Malgieri

Serves 6

“I like to dip orange sections, strawberries and crystallized or uncrystallized ginger in melted baking chocolate for an easy and DELICIOUS dessert or snack. You can also use other fruits.”

Oranges and Candied Ginger dipped in chocolate!
One 5.3 oz. Green & Blacks Baking Chocolate bar with 72% cocoa content including extra cocoa butter for easier melting
3 Navel oranges, peeled and sectioned
12 pieces or slices crystallized or uncrystallized ginger

Break the chocolate into sections and place in a double boiler (or one saucepan containing boiling water placed over another. Heat the water over medium-low heat until the chocolate is melted. Dip the orange sections and ginger slices in the chocolate and let drip back into the chocolate. Arrange on a cookie sheet covered with wax paper. Freeze or chill in the refrigerator until hardened. Arrange on a serving dish and keep in the fridge until ready to serve.

Oranges and Candied Ginger dipped in chocolate!

If you like chocolate chip ice-cream, you’ll love this. Buy the thin chocolate mints – chocolate with tiny chunks of mint – and not the chocolates with the runny mint centre

Ingredients
Serves 6 – or 1 if you eat nothing else all day!

8 trifle sponges
6 tablespoons Bailey’s Irish Cream
1 x 400g can pear halves in natural juice
300 ml (10 fl oz) double cream
1 x 250 g tub mascarpone cheese
200 g (8 oz) mint chocolate wafer thins Fresh mint, to garnish
Icing sugar, to dust

Preparation time 10 minutes

You will need a shallow glass bowl of about 1.5 litre (23/4 pint) capacity.

1. Slice the trifle sponges horizontally through the middle. Use eight halves to cover the base of the glass bowl. Sprinkle over 3 tablespoons of the Bailey’s and 2 tablespoons of juice from the can of pears.
2. Whisk together the cream and mascarpone in a large bowl until lightly whipped (be careful not to over-whisk). Reserve six of the chocolate thins and chop the rest so they are still very chunky – about the size of hazelnuts. Mix the chopped chocolate in with the cream.
3. Cut the pear halves into 1cm (1/2 in) slices and lay over the soaked sponge mixture. Spread with half the cream mixture and repeat the whole process again starting with the sponge. Coarsely chop the remaining chocolate thins and sprinkle over the top.
4. Leave to chill in the fridge for a minimum of 2 hours, and serve garnished with fresh mint and a dusting of icing sugar.

Note: Not suitable for freezing

Tip
If you prefer, you could use brandy or rum instead of Bailey’s. Remember to keep Bailey’s in the fridge; because it has a cream base, it can easily go off (although I find it doesn’t last long enough to worry about) .If you have over-whipped your cream and it looks a little curdled, add a little pouring cream and stir in (don’t whisk) and the cream will become smooth again.

Recipe taken from Secrets From a Country Kitchen by Lucy Young, published by Ebury Press.

This recipe appeared in Aga magazine, Issue 5. To subscribe to the magazine visit http://www.agamagazine.co.uk/

Flickr photo by Stef Noble Some rights reserved.

As I say in the supermarket every now and then it’s healthy to indulge yourself. Try my assistant Ingrid’s AMAZING chocolate chip cookies. They are THE BEST!!! We like to eat them frozen, but watch your dental work!!

2 sticks unsalted butter
¾ cup light brown sugar
¾ cup sugar
3 tsp. real vanilla extract
2 large eggs
4 1/3 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips ( a little more than 2 twelve oz. bags)
2 1/3 cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. salt

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
2. Beat butter and sugars together until creamy.
3. Add vanilla extract and eggs one at a time.
4. Add flour, baking soda and salt then beat thoroughly.
5. Fold in the chocolate chips, making sure they are evenly distributed throughout the dough.
6. Form small balls of dough with your fingers and place them on ungreased cookie sheets. Bake them for five minutes then rotate your cookie sheets and cook them for about 4-5 more minutes or until they are just cooked enough to maintain their shape when transferred to a cooling rack. They will not yet be golden brown.
7. Once the cookies have cooled enough to be handled, move them to a parchment paper lined tray and finish cooling them in the freezer. These cookies are chewy and delicious either frozen or room temperature once they have initially been freezer cooled.

The recipe for these brownies was given to me by a dear friend on the condition that I NOT publish the recipe, but I’ve adapted the recipe slightly, so she’s allowing me to divulge her secret and share it with you.

Nina’s Best Brownies Ever Makes 16 (2-inch) squares.

2 sticks (1 cup) unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
8 oz Baker’s bittersweet chocolate (not unsweetened), coarsely chopped
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 cups sugar
4 large eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla
½ cup chopped walnuts (OPTIONAL)

Preheat the oven to 350°F. Grease a 9-inch square baking pan (2 inches deep) with some of the softened butter. Melt the remaining butter and chocolate in a medium heatproof bowl set over a saucepan of simmering water, stirring occasionally, until smooth.

Mix together flour, baking powder, and salt in a small bowl.

Whisk together sugar, eggs, and vanilla in a large bowl, then pour in chocolate mixture, whisking until mixed well. Whisk in the flour mixture, then add walnuts, if using and the batter into the baking pan.

Bake until top is shiny and set and sides have begun to pull away slightly (a wooden pick or skewer will not come out clean), about 35-40 minutes for fudgey brownies; or until wooden pick or skewer comes out clean, Bake longer for drier, cake-like brownies.

Cool brownies in the pan and cut into squares. (You can sneak a taste while they are still warm.)