For Chocolate Lovers

We tend to think of chocolate as a sweet candy created during modern times. But actually, chocolate dates back to the ancient people of Mesoamerica, who drank chocolate as a bitter beverage. For these people chocolate wasn’t just a favorite food, it also played an important role in their religious and social lives. I have to admit chocolate is not one of my favorite foods, but I do find the history of chocolate fascinating. 

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MODERN HISTORY

Europeans drank their chocolate with sugar and milk. As with the Spanish, most Europeans liked their chocolate sweetened with sugar, another expensive and exotic import from faraway plantations. And in the late 1600s, Sir Hans Sloane, president of the Royal College of Physicians, introduced another culinary custom; mixing the already popular chocolate drink with milk for a lighter, smoother flavor.

In 1879, Rodolphe Lindt created another important device: the conching machine (so called because the earliest machines resembled a conch shell). It churned the paste made from cacao seeds into a smooth blend perfect for rich, creamy chocolate bars. The divine drink, builds up resistance and fights fatigue. A cup of this precious drink permits a man to walk for a whole day without food.

Hundreds of new chocolate factories and flavors have come and gone. Over the years, many creative confectioners developed lots of new varieties and flavors of chocolate. A few icons of the early 1900s still survive today. Hershey got his start making chocolate-coated caramels in 1893. And his competitors, the father-and-son team of Mars, created the malted-milk-filled Milky Way after an inspiring trip to the local drugstore soda fountain.

Milton S. Hershey stated, “Caramels are only a fad. Chocolate is a permanent thing.”

During World War II, American soldiers introduced chocolate to the Japanese, where its popularity continues to rise today.

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CHOCOLATE TRIVIA

Chocolate syrup was used to represent blood in the famous 45 second shower scene in Alfred Hitchcock's movie, "Psycho" a scene which took 7 days to shoot. 

Once upon a time, money did grow on trees. Cocoa beans were used as currency by the Mayan and Aztec civilizations over 1400 years ago. When they had too much money to spend, they brewed the excess into hot chocolate drinks.

The Swiss consume more chocolate per capita than any other nation on earth. That's 22 pounds each compared to 11 pounds per person in the United States.

Rumor has it that Napoleon carried chocolate with him on all his military campaigns for a quick energy snack.

The word "chocolate" comes from the Aztec word xocolatl, which means "bitter water".

The amount of caffeine in chocolate is lower than most people think. A 1.4 ounce piece of milk chocolate contains about the same amount of caffeine as a cup of decaffeinated coffee. There is an average of 6 mg. of caffeine in both an ounce of milk chocolate and a cup of decaffeinated coffee, while a cup of regular coffee contains between 65 and 150 mg. of caffeine.

HOT CHOCOLATE CARAMEL Recipe | George Hirsch

HOT CHOCOLATE BERRY CUPCAKES Recipe | George Hirsch

click image to enlarge recipeThis sweet was created in my restaurant years ago, as a hot dessert to satisfy every chocoholic. Think the molten lava of chocolate desserts.

Return to Summer

With record snow this weekend in most of the Atlantic East coast and temperatures pushing the envelope for the whitest, coldest winter in decades, I began my day dreaming of summer 2010 by my East End beaches. 

When I fell into my mid-summer day dream, I pictured myself stopping at Pikes Farm Stand in Sagaponack to pick up their prize vine ripened tomatoes and candy-like white corn on the cob. To serve the tomatoes, I simply slice and drizzle olive oil upon a crusty ciabatta bread topped with freshly ground pepper and a gently torn fresh basil leaf, from my garden. I munch on this snack paired with a crisp cool glass of sauviginon blanc while waiting for my corn to grill to perfection. The corn was picked just one hour before cooking; so with corn that fresh, I like it au natural - no or butter needed.

Rude awakening. It's the beginning of February. But I have something up my sleeve that's very fitting and will put a summer smile on your face and mine. Here's the how-to for cooking up a good pot of Spicy Corn Chowder.

image, Moza

Gumbo vs. Pork

This weekend’s Super Bowl brings on yet another reason to party or entertain. Although, there may not be as much hype this year on GameDay, I feel a certain personal attachment to both cities. I have good friends in both team cities representing New Orleans and Indianapolis.

New Orleans' great city screams rich food culture with its strong Cajun, French and Spanish roots. But, on the surface you may scratch your head thinking - does Indianapolis bring to mind any signature dishes as sexy as gumbo and jambalaya? Well yes. For Indiana, think German influence in the heartland and with substantial hearty foods beyond Orville Redenbacher. (Yes, Orville started his company in Indiana, the state of corn.) Vision foods more like bratwurst, bockwurst, German wieners with sauerkraut, red cabbage and choice spicy German mustards. Maybe even the prized Indiana pork with Kassler Rippchen, a smoked pork loin dish. 

You can mix a menu with dishes from the “Crescent City” and from the “Hoosier State”. Flip a coin and pick my gumbo recipe, or BBQ pork sandwich, or both. Either way, they’re both delicious winners!

Staff of Life

Four simple ingredients provide the staff of life; water, flour, salt, a rising agent. I believe good bread is a serious and important subject and anyone who knows their craft deserves the spotlight. I have great appreciation and respect for those who do it right. 

Lucky for me, locally, I have a top master bread baker at Blue Duck Bakery Cafe, in Southampton, NY. Their artisan breads are made in the old world tradition of European bakers. Simply, well done.

“The technique and observation of sensitivity of the artisan baker produce distinctive and personalized loaves of bread. Artisan bread may differ from day to day and loaf to loaf with variations in shaper, color and texture due to human touch and the breads’ organic nature. Each loaf is formed by hand, assessed by the eye and subject to the baker’s judgment at every step”, Keith Kouris, master baker, The Blue Duck Bakery Cafe.

My passionate beginnings as a chef were rooted in bread baking, taught by master bakers. You had to learn respect of the ‘basic four’ ingredients and how they react, based on a variety of circumstances; like weather and the 'living product's' own conditions, due to bread’s organic nature.

It used to be that to experience the taste of a European Bakery you had to travel across the pond. That is no longer true. You can receive a fire oven baked loaf from Poilâne, Paris via mail. Yes, it can be done. Poilâne ships loaves daily; like the Breadclub 5 Loaf Pack, so you can let your family and friends in on the good dough.

Poilane, Paris

The Poilâne Story: In 1932, a young baker from Normandy came to Paris to open his first shop. The bakery was located in the artsy Saint- Germain des Prés district. Large round off-white crumb sourdough loaves (below) are a traditional French bread. Pierre Poilâne saw a dual advantage to his four pound loaves: they kept longer and could be cut into large slices. Pierre's son Lionel carried the passion for bread and what he called "retro-innovation". The old tradition continues today as this thriving family business has expanded beyond Paris - now in London; with grand daughter carrying on in grand-father's and father's floured footsteps.

The Poilâne Loaf: The signature loaf is made of 4 ingredients: sourdough, flour, water and sea salt from Guérande. It is a round loaf with a thick, golden crust as it is cooked in a wood-burning oven. It carries the signature mark P for Poilâne. Each loaf weighs about 4lbs or 1.9kg (weight may vary as each loaf is handcrafted). Well suited with meats, soft cheeses as well as foie gras or salmon. The size of the slices makes it a good bread for sandwiches.

Poilane Bread

Friends, I would love to finish this post with a recipe replicating the bread from the image above. But honestly it can't be done. The magic in that wood-fired brick oven just can't be duplicated in your home kitchen range. Yes, baking bread at home can be done. I just can't bring myself to selling you on the idea that it is going to look or taste remotely like that. Today, I am encouraging you to support your local bakery or market and buy a good loaf.

Punxsutawney Cakes

Happy Groundhog Day. Those of you that know me, know it's my favorite holiday tradition of the year. I love the excitement of the anticipated sign of spring from the Seer of Seers, Punxsutawney Phil on February 2nd each year. Who would believe the little weather predicting rodent would be 75-90 percent accurate. How about that! I'd say that's more predictable than any certified meteorologist.

However, I really feel Groundhog Day took on an all new meaning years back after watching Bill Murray in Groundhog Day, the movie. Imagine being able to eat all the pancakes and donuts you like and repeat it again the next day, and the next?     

So in honor of Punxsutawney Phil and Bill Murray here's my Punxsutawney Pancakes Recipe. Hearing the alarm clock at 6AM on Groundhog Day just isn't the same without a tall stack of pancakes and carafe of good coffee to wake up to.

Punxsutawney Pancakes Recipe

Happy Groundhog Day to you all.

View Original Groundhog Day Movie Trailer on TCM.