Chocolate Macarons with black balsam.

140 gm. finely ground almond

250 gm. icing sugar

25 gm. cocoa powder

100 gm. egg white - at room temperature


Blend ground almond, cocoa powder and icing sugar in a food processor till fine.

Whisk egg white till they are white and foamy. Turn the speed up to high adn whip them just until they are firm but still glossy and supple - when you lift the whisk, the whites should form a peak that droops just a little. Leave the whites in the mixer bowl or transfer them to a large bowl and working with a rubber spatula, fold in the dry ingredients gently into the whites in three or four additions. It will seem like a lot of dry ingredients to go into a relatively small amount of whites, but keep folding and you'll get everything in. Don't worry if the whites deflate and the batter looks a little runny - that's just what's supposed to happen. When all the dry ingredients are incorporated, the mixture will look like a cake batter, if you lift with your finger, it should form a gentle, quickly falling peak.

Spoon mixture into a piping bag fitted with a plain nozzle. Pipe into small rounds about 1" in diameter onto parchment paper, leaving about an inch between each round. Rest macaroons for about 20 mins.

Bake at 180C for 10 to 12 mins.

Remove macaroons from the parchment - they should be removed as soon as they come from the oven. You will need to create moisture under the cookies. Carefully loosen the parchment paper , lifting the paper, pour a little hot water under the paper. The water may bubble and steam.Allow the macaroons to remain on the parchment for about 20 seconds, then peel the macaroons off the paper and place them on a cooling rack.

For the ganache place 227 gr.of dark chocolate in a medium sized stainless steel bowl. Set aside. Heat 180 ml. of double cream and 28 gr. butter in a medium sized saucepan over medium heat. Bring just to a boil. Immediately pour the boiling cream over the chocolate and allow to stand for 5 minutes. Stir with a whisk until smooth. Add 20 ml. Black Balsam.Let it for houlf an hour and then sandwich the macarons with the chocolate ganache.



Tips :“Egg Whites are the key element in this recipe. Use egg whites aged several days and bring the whites to room temperature. This is very important to get the most volume out of the whites. Take care to beat them until they are only just firm and still shiny, and don’t be concerned when, as you add the dry ingredients, they deflate - they’re supposed to. Knocking some of the air out of the whites is what will give these macaroons their characteristic smooth top. Keep the whites too firm and you’ll end up with meringue.”

Chile Hot Chocolate with Vanilla Bean Whipped Cream.

1 Bourbon Vanilla bean
Homemade chili powder ground from 2 large dried Pasilla Negro chilies
4 cups whole Milk
280 gr. good semi-sweet/bittersweet chocolate
1 pint heavy whipping cream
80 gr. vanilla sugar

1. Scrape seeds from the interior of the vanilla bean and put them and the pod in the milk in a saucepan.
2. Add most of the pasilla chili powder, holding some back for a garnish.
3. Scald the milk (cook it over medium heat, stirring occasionally, just until steam begins to rise). Remove the vanilla bean pod.
4. Turn the heat to low, and add the chocolate, stirring frequently until the chocolate is completely melted.
5. Whip the cream. Once it has begun to thicken, add vanilla sugar to taste (you’ll probably want at least a half cup). Continue whipping until you get firm peaks.
6. Whisk hot chocolate until frothy, pour into mugs. Just prior to serving, top each with a dollop of the vanilla bean cream and dust lightly with your reserved chili powder.

Makes 4 servings with extra whipped cream.

Balsamic Chocolate Truffles (with a wink of cherry)

Balsamic Chocolate Truffles (with a wink of cherry)



226 gr. dark chocolate, chopped

100 ml. cream

2 Tablespoons balsamic vinegar

8 dried cherries

100 gr. cocoa powder

Put balsamic and cherries into a small pot and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer 5 minutes. Remove cherries and discard. Set balsamic aside to cool.

Melt chocolate and cream in a double boiler (or a heat-proof glass bowl over a pot filled with water), making sure the water is hot, not boiling. Place melted chocolate in a small bowl and add the cooled balsamic. Mix well. Cool in the refrigerator about 1 hour. Let sit at room temperature for 1 hour, until firm but moldable.

Roll mixture into one inch balls and place on a parchment lined tray. Pour cocoa powder into a shallow dish and roll balls to cover. Serve immediately or store in an airtight container up to one week, but don’t keep them all for yourself.