Chocolat... Ah...

I wanted to watch Chocolat again for quite some time and I would always forget or when I remembered I'd be busy. I was not going to watch it today, but there was a recipe that caught my attention a few days ago and I had this urge to try it. I had no idea how it's going to taste and I was intrigued. You see, I got this book a while ago, book about Cooking with Chocolate. Yes, it had a lot of dessert recipes and chocolate drinks, but it also had a section about cooking, just plain cooking... with chocolate. And a recipe for Chocolate Ravioli with Ricotta just called my name. I had to make it!!!

I also had some left over sponge cake and what can you do with it? It's simple. Rum Balls! I love those little desserts, they taste like it's an elaborate cake that took you hours to prepare, but they only take a couple of minutes to mix together.

At that point I knew that it is time to watch that movie again. I ate Rum Balls and I watched the movie and drooled over chocolates (and melted over Johnny Depp). I still was not satisfied. Something was missing. That scene when they have a chocolate dinner was stuck in my mind. The chocolate sauce over meat... Mmm... I've never tried anything like it. But I had a recipe just for that. It was exactly what I needed. Shrimp in Chocolate Sauce.

And then I was in Chocolate Heaven.

Chocolate Ravioli with Ricotta

Shrimp in Chocolate Sauce

Rum Balls

FoodTV Blog: June Challenge

I was not going to take a part in this month's Food for Thought challenge, but then I had four lonely egg whites lying in the fridge, so why not, I thought. I carefully read through the recipe and right away I was alarmed. I've made my share of meringues. I know how to make them big, small, flat, round, soft, crispy, with or without nuts. This recipe went against everything I know about making the meringues.

Why would I add the sugar after the egg whites are whipped to stiff peaks? The sugar is usually added while the egg whites are being whipped, this insures that all this sugar has time to dissolve. Why would I add cream of tartar after the egg whites are already whipped? Cream of tartar helps the egg whites to whip better, but if they are
already whipped, what's the point? Why, oh why, would I add icing sugar with cornstarch? Icing sugar already contains cornstarch, why does this recipe call for more? I could honestly taste the cornstarch in the final product. And lastly, why does this recipe need so much sugar? The general rule is to put 1/2 cup of sugar per two egg whites, not 2/3. Too much, way too much.

As you can see, I had a lot of questions and problems with this recipe, but I still decided to give it a try. I followed all the instructions and as I suspected the meringues weren't good at all. Too much sugar, too much cornstarch. I wasn't impressed, but I am glad that I tried something new. It's always fun to try out new
recipes.