Chocolate Chip Cookies

The Chocolate Connoisseur April 16th, 2007

The smell of a chocolate chip cookie baked in the oven brings back wonderful childhood memories to many people. Years ago, hot chocolate with a chocolate chip cookie was a perfect way to end a day of playing in the snow, a snowball fight with friends, making snowmen, ice-skating, tobogganing, or even a walk in the falling snow. To this day it is still a very popular tradition. Unlike years ago, today there are many delicious varieties and flavors of chocolate chip cookie. For anyone that loves fruit, try a cherry chocolate chip cookie or banana chocolate chip cookie. Chocolate lovers will find double chocolate chip cookies and double chocolate chip cookies delectable. Other versions are oatmeal chocolate chip cookies and mint chocolate chip cookies - or experiment by adding other mouth-watering morsels, such as candy bar pieces, candy cane, raisins, chucks of dark or milk chocolate, coconut or espresso beans. A gourmet chocolate chip cookie bar or chocolate chip cookie pie is a wonderful taste experience you will not forget.

The following recipe for soft, double chocolate chip cookies is always a huge hit at home, work or special functions. It makes approximately two dozen incredible cookies.

Ingredients

· ½ cup butter or margarine
· 2 ½ squares of unsweetened chocolate (one ounce squares)
· 2 cups of all-purpose flour
· 1 teaspoon of baking powder
· ½ teaspoon of baking soda
· 1 ¼ cups white sugar
· ¼ teaspoon salt
· 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
· 2 eggs
· 2 cups of semisweet chocolate chips
· 2/3 cup sour cream

Before making your chocolate chip recipe, preheat your oven to 375 degrees F. Over a double broiler or in the microwave, melt together the butter and squares of unsweetened chocolate, stirring until smooth. In a mixing bowl, sift together baking powder, baking soda, flour and salt and set aside. Using a medium-size mixing bowl, beat the eggs, vanilla and sugar until light and then pour in the melted chocolate mixture, stirring well. Add the dry sifted ingredients and sour cream alternately and then the chocolate chips. Drop rounded tablespoons of cookie dough onto an ungreased cookie sheet. Bake for eight to ten minutes. Remove from the oven, cool and store in an airtight container. Grab a glass of milk, a few chocolate chip cookies and relax.

If you want to do something fun with your children, let them help you bake a batch of luscious chocolate chip cookies. It will be a bonding, memorable experience and eating the finished product will certainly be a hit. Kids can be a little messy, so keep it relaxed and fun. It will not take a lot of time to get your kitchen back into shape after the cookies are ready to eat. What a great way to spend time with your children.



Chocolate Mint

The Chocolate Connoisseur March 29th, 2007

Chocolate mint is a very popular form of flavored chocolate, created by combining plain chocolate and mint flavorings such as spearmint, crème de menthe or peppermint. There is also a hybrid mint plant called ‘chocolate mint’ that is a herb which smells and tastes like a chocolate and mint combination. You find chocolate mint in a large variety of food products such as ice cream, mints, hot chocolate, cookies and candy. Cheesecake is certainly the favorite dessert of many people and chocolate mint cheesecake is no different. Cheesecakes are luscious desserts and great for any occasion such as family dinners, weddings, birthdays or baby showers.

In a cracker crust, cream cheese, lemon juice, eggs, vanilla essence, sour cream and sugar are the ingredients found in traditional cheesecake but many people have their own variations. Some of the popular cheesecake flavors are chocolate mint, lemon, strawberry and peach. There are some very important steps to follow when making a cheesecake. Many people are not aware that these tips can make the difference between a wonderful cheesecake and one that falls apart.

Tips

  • Use only fresh, top quality ingredients
  • Use only real pasteurized cream cheese
  • If the cream cheese is frozen, microwave for about 45 seconds on high to soften
  • The ingredients, especially the eggs and cream cheese, should be room temperature. This is such an important tip because, without it, you will never have a smooth cheesecake
  • Never bake the fruit but add it on top later, so it retains its flavor, freshness and color
  • Never, ever, open the oven door to peek at the cheesecake before it is finished or it will crack or fall apart
  • Once the cheesecake finishes baking, turn the oven off but leave the cheesecake in the oven for another half an hour, to get perfectly moist, puffed cheesecake

In this chocolate mint cheesecake recipe, you make the crust by combining 3 tablespoons of melted butter or margarine, 2 tablespoons of sugar and 1 cup of chocolate wafer crumbs. Press this into a nine-inch pan, bake for ten minutes in a 350 degrees F oven and cool.

Chocolate Mint Cheesecake Ingredients

  • 24 ounces softened cream cheese
  • 3 large eggs
  • 2/3 cup of sugar
  • 1 cup melted mint chocolate chips
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla

In a large bowl, combine the sugar and cream cheese, mixing on medium until blended well. One at a time, add the eggs and mix well after each one. Blend in the vanilla, mint chocolate, and pour this into the crust. Bake in a preheated 350F degree oven for fifty minutes and then turn the oven off and leave your chocolate mint cheesecake in the oven an additional half hour.



Homemade Chocolate

The Chocolate Connoisseur March 6th, 2007

Chocolate has been popular for thousands of years and to this day most people’s love for chocolate just continues to grow. It does not matter if someone makes homemade chocolate or buys it, nothing compares to this ecstasy-producing, luscious treat. Whether it is chocolate fudge, hot chocolate, chocolate ice cream, chocolate bars, chocolate sauce, chocolate truffles, chocolate chip cookies, chocolate brownies, chocolate cake or a box of chocolates, it is definitely a favorite of adults and children everywhere. The four main types of chocolate are baking chocolate, milk chocolate, semi-sweet chocolate and white chocolate. Baking chocolate, which is pure cocoa liquor, has nothing added to the chocolate. Cocoa powder is cocoa liquor and cocoa bean solids that are pressed to remove the cocoa butter. Milk chocolate has extra sugar, cocoa butter and milk solids added to the pure cocoa liquor. Semi-sweet chocolate has extra cocoa butter added to the pure cocoa liquor, but less added sugar than the milk chocolate. With white chocolate, there are no cocoa bean solids, just cocoa butter with milk and sugar.

For anyone that enjoys baking homemade chocolate candies, brownies, fudge, truffles and other treats, chocolate items make a delectable and wonderful gift. Sometimes it is difficult to know what to give as a gift, for occasions such as giving a gift to someone that you do not know well, someone new in your neighborhood or even a thank you gift. Homemade chocolate is also a great gift for the mail carrier, church bazaar, paper carrier or co-workers at the office.

Homemade chocolate fudge is a treat that most people enjoy and is great to give family, friends and acquaintances. Here is a recipe for homemade dark chocolate fudge that tastes fantastic, is easy to make and yields approximately two pounds of delicious fudge.

Ingredients
 
· ½ cup of light corn syrup
· ½ cup of whipping cream
· 3 cups or eighteen ounces semi-sweet chocolate chips
· 1 – 1½ cups sifted powdered sugar
· 1- 1½ teaspoons of vanilla
· ½ cup of chopped nuts (optional)

In a heavy saucepan, bring the corn syrup and cream to a boil over medium heat and continue to boil this for one minute. Remove this mixture from the heat and add the chocolate, stirring constantly. Once melted, add vanilla, powdered sugar and nuts (optional), until blended well. Pour this into an eight-inch square baking pan lined with tin foil. Cover the fudge and place in the refrigerator until firm. Cut your homemade chocolate fudge into sixty-four, one-inch pieces. This recipe makes enough fudge to give some away as a gift and still have enough for your family and friends to enjoy this luscious treat.



Fine Gourmet Chocolate

The Chocolate Connoisseur March 2nd, 2007

Most people love to eat chocolate, especially fine gourmet chocolate. Unlike inferior chocolate products, gourmet chocolate boasts a glossy, smooth appearance with no marks or streaks. It has a rich, wonderful cocoa aroma instead of a faint chocolate smell, or even a chemical odor. Gourmet chocolate melts in your mouth, releasing an almost sinful, rich, wonderful taste that has chocoholics wanting more.

It also has many proven health benefits along with being delicious, containing essential elements such as iron, vitamins, potassium and calcium. Chromium, found in high levels in gourmet chocolate, helps control a person’s blood sugar. Some people even feel that chocolate works as an antidepressant, making them feel better instantly after eating it. Fine gourmet chocolate also makes a wonderful gift, which is perfect for any occasion such as Christmas, Valentines Day and birthdays, or sometimes just to put a smile on a loved one’s face just because you care.

Fine gourmet chocolate comes in many different types, such as dark chocolate, cocoa powder, unsweetened chocolate, milk chocolate, couverture, bittersweet chocolate and semi-sweet chocolate, often used in cooking. To enhance the wonderful taste of fine gourmet chocolate even more, some common additives are liqueur, all kinds of nuts, mint, caramel, rice crispies, orange, dry fruits, strawberry and cream.

Fine gourmet chocolate has certainly become more popular over the last few years, with some chocolate connoisseurs talking about chocolate the way wine critics talk about exceptional wines. Gourmet chocolate tasting is a trend that many of the top-line chocolate producers now encourage. Tasting the many different fine gourmet chocolates available is a wonderful pastime that lets people develop their own dislikes or preferences. Not only is this like chocolate heaven, but you have the opportunity to buy as little or as much of the gourmet chocolate you want. There is such a large range to select from that you do not necessarily have to buy only the most expensive chocolate, as it really is a matter of personal taste.

Here is a recipe for gourmet hot chocolate that is relatively low-calorie and low-sugar but wonderful in taste. To make this drink super creamy, you use cornstarch, which thickens the chocolate. This recipe serves two or three.

Ingredients

· ¼ cup of unsweetened cocoa powder
· ½ cup sweetener
· 1 tablespoon sugar
· ¼ cup water
· 3 teaspoons cornstarch
· 2 cups skim milk

In a medium saucepan mix together the cocoa powder, sweetener and sugar. Combine the cornstarch and water and add this to the saucepan, being sure to blend the mixture until it is smooth. Over medium-low heat, slowly pour the milk in, stirring continuously until the gourmet chocolate mix comes to a simmer. Let this simmer for an additional ten minutes, stirring often. When the chocolate is thick and smooth, your fine gourmet chocolate drink is ready for you to enjoy.



Chocolate Covered Fruit

The Chocolate Connoisseur March 1st, 2007

Most people love chocolate and fruit, so any chance to combine the two and have chocolate covered fruit is a wonderful taste experience. In the past, chocolate, which originated in Central America, was a luxury that only royalty and the wealthy were able to enjoy. Nowadays almost everyone has the opportunity to indulge him or herself by enjoying the wonderful taste of chocolate.

One way to enjoy chocolate covered fruit is a chocolate fountain, which is always a huge hit at functions such as dinner banquets, weddings, a family gathering, birthday parties or even a night hanging out with your friends. Not only is it an elegant, unique way to serve fruit and chocolate but people of all ages love to watch warm chocolate cascade over each tier of the chocolate fountain until it reaches the bottom. There are chocolate fountains made for smaller gatherings and home use and commercial fountains that are available to rent for large gatherings. Most places that rent or sell chocolate fountains also sell the milk chocolate, dark chocolate, white chocolate, and many mixtures, formulated especially for using with a fountain so it streams down the tiers properly.

Another wonderful thing about a chocolate fountain is that your imagination is the only limit to what you dip into that river of luscious chocolate. Avoid foods that crumble or fall apart and air-dry any fruit you dip, as a lot of excess moisture could cause problems. Chocolate covered fruit is as easy as making a fruit platter for dipping, using fruits such as grapes, whole strawberries, pineapple chunks, whole raspberries, banana chunks, melon, kiwi chunks, dried fruit, apple slices, and fresh cherries. This is sure to be a hit with all age groups. Other great dipping items and popular choices are rice crispy treats, biscotti, meringue cookies, pretzels, cheese, orange slices, marshmallows, and assorted cookies.

Another way to enjoy chocolate covered fruit is a chocolate fondue, which is easy and makes a decadent, fantastic dessert. Here is an easy recipe for the chocolate.

Ingredients

· 1 cup sifted premium cocoa powder
· 1 ¼ cups of water
· ¼ cup of corn syrup
· 1 ½ cups of sugar
· ½ cup plus 5 tablespoons of heavy cream
· 5 ounces of chopped semi-sweet chocolate

Place the sugar, water and corn syrup into a saucepan and bring this to a boil, allowing it to simmer for up to fifteen minutes. You want this to reduce by thirty percent, then remove from the heat. Gradually add the cocoa powder and whisk until smooth. Cook over medium heat, slowly adding the heavy cream, until it reaches boiling point. Turn the heat down and simmer for an additional five minutes. Remove this mixture from the heat, stir in the chocolate pieces and then pour it into your fondue pot. Serve bite size pieces of fruit for delicious chocolate covered fruit.