Chocolate Week!

Let us not forget that in the UK this week (13-19th October) it is Chocolate Week!

It is a week of talks, demo's, tastings etc. at various chocolate establishments around the country, with many retailers offering some discounts on their products, including Willie Harcourt-Cooze (him of Willie's Wonky Chocolate Factory), Oxfam and the Ethical Superstore, along with many seriously gourmet chocolatiers. And Hotel Chocolat are running a competition to win a years supply of chocolate (a year's subscription to the Chocolate Tasting Club) in store.

The website has all the information, including events, offers and a guide to chocolate.

The Ultimate Chocolate Cake

Yes, I know. I'm sorry. I've been rather busy the last couple of weeks, and my Cupboard of Love is looking woefully empty and I haven't had the chance to fill it up again, let alone eat any of it. I promise to turn over a new leaf.

HOWEVER - tomorrow, it is my boss's 30th anniversary with the company that I work for. So, in true chocoholic style, when asked to bake him a surprise cake, I spent a long time looking for the ultimate cake recipe. And in fact, came across The Ultimate Chocolate Cake recipe, from Angela Nilsen on the BBC Food site.

Click here for the recipe - you won't regret it. In fact, I think you should go and bake it right away.

Baking this cake today was not without incident. I upscaled it to 10 inches as it is to go round a few people, and like the muppet I can sometimes be, when I went to take it out of the oven, I did it with one hand. And promptly dropped it all over the floor.

Luckily cake number 2 went without hitch, and at least I got the smell of this amazing cake baking throughout the flat twice in one day. Well, you have to look for the silver linings sometimes, no matter how hard they are to find.

And what chocolate did I use? For the actual cake, I used Sainsbury's Belgian Dark Chocolate (72% cocoa) which I am very fond of as a dark chocolate. For the ganache, you might think it is an interesting choice, but I used Cadbury's Bournville. The cake itself is very dark and rich, and so I wanted something a little lighter and sweeter for the ganache. It actually works quite well.

If you are looking for a chocolate cake recipe, your search has ended . . . .

(edit: better photos uploaded)

Ritter Sport Peppermint

I have to apologise - I was enjoying this bar so much, I forgot to take photographs . . . blush . . .

My last current offering from Ritter Sport - the Peppermint Bar. In the normal square format as all the others, it is a dark chocolate filled with a soft peppermint fondant. I am a big fan of the peppermint and dark chocolate combination, so was definitely looking forward to sampling it.

The dark chocolate was really tasty - I am not sure of the percentage cocoa solids, but it had a nice smooth flavour, with no hint of bitterness.

The best bit however is the peppermint filling. It has a good strong peppermint flavour and aroma, but does not overpower the chocolate, giving a fantastic balance between the flavours. What I was even more impressed with that even on putting this in the fridge, the fondant remains soft and melting - in fact, being chilled just adds the whole delight of this bar. Rather like peppermint choc chip icecream in block form. Or that lovely cool minty sensation you get after brushing your teeth!

I really loved this bar - no wonder I didn't realise I had no photos!!! I will have to add some in the very near future when I indulge in this bar again :)


HOW NAUGHTY IS IT?
No nutritional info available

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Monoprix Gourmet Noir aux éclats de fèves

Another Monoprix Gourmet bar from Paris - this time a 72% dark chocolate bar, crammed with toasted nibs of cocoa beans.

My pathetic attempts at trying to explain the blurb on the packet, is that the toasted cocoa nibs give a taste that is reminiscent of coffee beans.

Same presentation as the last Monoprix Gourmet bar I reviewed (pictures to come) and you are greeted with a lovely deep chocolate aroma as soon as you open the bar.

The chocolate is fairly reminiscent of Lindt's 70-odd% chocolate, with a deep, not too bitter smooth cocoa taste, with an undertone of vanilla.

The best bit though is the toasted cocoa nibs - they lend a lovely crunch to the bar, and add a superb intense chocolate taste as you eat the bar. And yes - a slight hint of toasted coffee beans which I have always been fond of the flavour of, but only a hint mind you. Which I suppose is correct, considering it isn't actually coffee!

Highly recommended - if you like dark chocolate and happen to come across this French offering on your travels, then please try it!


HOW NAUGHTY IS IT?
Calories: to come
Fat: to come
( per 100g)

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Monoprix Gourmet pépites de caramel

Les pépites de caramel taquinent le palais tandis que le chocolat au lait l'enrobe de sa douceur.

Translation: The nuggets of caramel tease the palate while coated with the softness of milk chocolate. You get the gist . . .

Yep - this is the first of five bars brought back to me from Paris for me to review. Oh it's hard people knowing that you write about chocolate!

The bar is kind of a Lindt presentation - it comes wrapped in foil within a box, and split into the same 10 segments. The bar consists of milk chocolate, with a liberal amount of crunchy caramel bits.

The chocolate is quite nice. It doesn't have the same smoothness and creaminess of Lindt, but it has a good chocolate hit (albeit with that slight burn you can sometimes get at the back of your throat) and contains a relatively decent 32% cocoa solids.

There are two ways of eating this really - the normal way would be to crunch straight into it I suppose, and eating it this way, it really becomes just crunchy chocolate as the caramel is a little overwhelmed by the relatively strong cocoa flavour.

However on my last square, I let all the chocolate melt away leaving me with copious amounts of caramel bits in my mouth. And much to my delight, the caramel is good - sweet, buttery and with a nice salty aftertaste as you crunch on the remnants.

Really a very nice bar - amongst my French stash, I have another one from Monoprix Gourmet, but I haven't decoded it yet to see what it is!


HOW NAUGHTY IS IT?
Calories: 526
Fat: 29.0g
( per 100g)

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Normal service will resume shortly

Apologies for the hiatus in posts - real life has been getting in the way.

Last weekend I was Maid of Honour for my best friend, and have spent much of that time recovering my energy, if not having to go on work dinners and the like.

You will be glad to know that I kept up the good chocolate work though and made their wedding cake - 3 tiers of double depth White Chocolate and Dulce de Leche cheesecake (recipe here for the normal size). I have included a picture below of the completed cake (as I am just a tad proud of it), and it went down very well :) Not bad, for my first ever wedding cake! I don't know if I'd do another one in a hurry, but it was an interesting experience.

Happily, my friend and her lovely new husband went on honeymoon to Paris, and has brought me back 5-6 French bars to review - yay!!!

So as said above - normal service will shortly resume.

Ritter Sport Whole Hazelnut

Another Ritter variety in my sights this evening - the Whole Hazelnut version. A milk chocolate with "hand selected whole hazelnuts" no less! The UK equivalent (Cadbury Whole Nut) is one of those bars I do like to indulge in every so often - a comfort food if you will, so I was curious to see how this one compared.

As you open the packet, there is a lovely hazelnutty smell, which I have never really got from the Cadbury version, with the nuts being overwhelmed by the very distinctive, strong tasting Cadbury milk chocolate. Not so here, the milk chocolate and hazelnuts are paired beautifully.

As before, the milk chocolate in this is lovely - creamy, rich and with a relatively good 30% cocoa solids (relative to the so called "dark" chocolates I have had with the same amount). It melts smoothly and compliments the crunchy, fresh-tasting hazelnuts which are copiously scattered throughout the bar. Very moreish.

HOW NAUGHTY IS IT?
No Nutritional Info available

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