2009 November 06 | dinner with Julie

Archive for November 6th, 2009

Mostly Hot Chocolate and Sugar Cookies

It started snowing this afternoon in Jasper – big, clumpy flakes that fell quickly, like wee snowballs, blowing sideways past the window in the main lodge. We were sitting by the stone fireplace, eating hot seafood chowder and sliders, after an hour or so of full-contact ping pong downstairs. Feel free to hate me a little bit.

It was a fitting reception for the first group arriving for Christmas in November. Chef Michael Smith arrived late in the afternoon with chef Paul Rogalski (of Rouge) followed by Ken Kostick and Karl Lohnes. Chris Standring arrived yesterday, like us, and Gail Hall and the crew from the Edmonton Journal. Next week Anna Olson will come, and one of my favourite ladies of all time – Elizabeth Baird, with her sidekick, Emily Richards. I’m so sad to be missing them. I’ll get over it. Perhaps another hot chocolate will help.

As guests arrived, giant silver tureens of real hot chocolate sat in waiting with bowls full of mini marshmallows and shaved white and dark chocolates alongside. Just inside the main door, a chef baked sugar cookies in the Rolls-Royce of all EasyBake ovens, a $5k little unit I used myself a few Christmas in Novembers ago. As she pulled them out, she dolled them up with icing and coloured sugar so that we’d have something warm to nibble on with our hot chocolate.

It was entrapment; forcing me to fill yet another cup with molten chocolate and chug it down. How could I not? Later, I added red wine (thanks Mission Hill!) to the mix, figuring they’d even each other out. There were also eggnog martinis, by the way, and a buffet so over the top I don’t even know how to start describing it. We’ll have it again on Monday night; I’ll try to summon the energy to tell you about it then. Maybe a hot chocolate will help.

I know I wax poetic on the subject of hot chocolate about every November, but it really is something that’s so dead easy to make, and yet so many people resort to the instant packaged stuff, which is full of all sorts of nastiness. Really, if you’re going to bother, it might as well be fantastic.

So here’s the Real Thing, to take you through winter right and proper.

Hot Chocolate Bisque

adapted from Dorie Greenspan’s Paris Sweets, from Ladurée, via Orangette

Use a really great chocolate for this, like Bernard Callebeaut, Lindt or Scharffen Berger. The blending is more important than you might think; whipping it emulsifies the chocolate and milk, making it perfectly smooth.

3 cups milk, 2% or whole
1/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup water
6 oz. semi or bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped

In a medium saucepan, combine the milk, sugar and water over medium heat; whisk occasionally until the sugar is dissolved. Increase the heat to medium-high and bring the mixture just to a simmer. Remove the pan from the heat and whisk in the chocolate.

Blend right in the pot with a hand-held an immersion blender, or transfer it to a traditional blender. Blend for a minute, until smooth and frothy. Serve immediately; rewarm if you need to get it hot.

Serves 2-4.