Absolutely Chocolate! Book Review

Time for a book review :) When it comes to food and desserts in particular there are definately fashions that come and go over time. But there is one ingredient that will never ever fall out of favour and that is chocolate. Whether your a traditionalist who loves their organic 70% cocoa solids or a person who bows to the delights of milk chocolate or white it is hard to find a person who doesn't love one of the many variants now available.

But can you or do you cook with it? I have recently received Absolutely Chocolate written by the editors of Fine Cooking.

To say this book is a bible to all things chocolate would be a huge understatement, to start with it's a very hefty hardback, secondly it not only gives you ten large sections of recipes it also teaches you everything you could ever wish to know about chocolate.

After a rather mouthwatering readthrough I decided to test the book out by making the Fastest Fudge Cake with Ganache Drizzle. The instructions were very clear and to the point and I had no trouble interpreting the recipe. They were not lying about the cake being fast either, it was whipped up in a flash but certainly wouldn't have looked that way to guests.

 

We served it to four adults and three children and the general consensus, after all the oohing and ahhing over the shiny ganache, was that the cake was delicious and we could all have eaten a second or third slice. Even the children loved it which suprised me as it had quite a sophisticated flavour. It would make a gorgeous end to a dinner party (but without the time and effort of other possible dishes).

Would I recommend this book?

Without a doubt, the recipes are beyond beautiful to look at and eat. They're easy to follow and a lot are very quick. Plus the book looks grand in it's own right and would look great sat on a coffee table for guests to flick through.

Could it be improved in any way?

Honestly I have struggled to think of a way in which this book can be improved. The only thing I can think of is that occassionally it mentions using certain brands of biscuits etc but isn't terribly clear on suitable alternatives, but most people can work these out for themselves.

Plus

If you love chocolate as much as me then keep your eyes peeled to the blog as this coming Thursday I'm launching a big new giveaway that will be right up your street!

Book Details

Title: Absoltuely Chocolate

Author: Editors of Fine Cooking

ISBN: 9781600851339

RRP: £20.00

Publisher: Taunton

Publication Date: Autumn 2009.

Mum's Chocolate Biscuits / Cookies

My Mum has made gorgeous biscuits for as long as I can remember. When I was little everyone in my school knew about them and I could swap them for all manner of goodies, although I rarely relinquished them. Friends, neighbours, everyone seemed to be aware of them and they were requested at every event and gathering. We even had American tourists tell us they were the first proper 'cookies' they had tasted in the UK.

The somewhat humorous secret behind these amazing biscuits? That everytime Mum made them they turned out differently. She frequently lost or forgot the recipes and she had a 'throw it all in the bowl' approach to baking. But apparently this is the secret that alludes so many.

One of the all time favourites had to be her chocolate biscuits, these are so quick and easy that I had to share this not so secret family recipe with you all.

You'll Need

4oz butter or margarine (I use stork)
4oz granulated sugar
1oz custard powder
4oz self raising flour
1oz cocoa

Step 1

Put all the ingredients into a bowl and mix! Preheat oven to 150C, 300F, Gas Mark 2.

Step 2

Use hands to roll into small balls and place apart on a lined or greased baking tray. Mark the top of the biscuits with a fork.

Step 4

Bake in the oven for 15 minutes. Cool on a wire rack.


Step 5

Try not to eat them all at once :) See I told you they were easy!