Oaxacan chocolate mocha cake
1 pound Oaxacan bittersweet chocolate, chopped plus 3 ounces, melted
8 ounces (2 sticks) unsalted butter
6 large eggs
2 tablespoons finely ground espresso beans
2 cups pecan halves
2 cups crema, recipe follows
1/2 cup confectioner's sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Line a 9-inch round cake pan with parchment paper. Place a large heatproof mixing bowl over simmering water, or on the top of a double boiler. Stir together chopped chocolate and butter, until melted. Remove from the heat. Place a mixing bowl over warm tap water. Add eggs and beat with an electric mixer, until light in color and tripled in volume, about 3 minutes at medium speed and then high speed for another 5 minutes. Gently fold half of the eggs into the chocolate mixture.
Then fold in espresso beans. Add the remaining eggs, folding gently, until a few streaks remain. Be careful not to overmix. Pour batter into the cake pan. Place cake pans in a bain marie (water bath). Place in the oven and bake for 5 minutes. Cover the cake pan with aluminum foil and bake, still in the bain marie, and additional 10 minutes. Set aside to cool on a rack for 45 minutes, then refrigerate for at least 6 hours, to overnight. Turn oven down to 350 degrees. On a baking sheet spread pecan halves. Toast until golden, about 10 - 15 minutes. Set aside to cool. To remove cake from pan, place the pan over a low burner for a moment or two. Run a sharp knife around the inside edge to loosen the cake. Invert onto a platter.
Whisk the crema or creme fraiche with the sugar and vanilla until peaks form. Pile the stiff cream on the chocolate cake. Then, using a spatula, spread it out to the edges to make a thick even layer of cream over the top, being careful not to drip the white cream onto the sides of the cake. Refrigerate for 10 minutes to set. Arrange pecan halves on top of the cream to form a circle around the outside edge. Dip your fingertips or a fork into the melted chocolate and drizzle over the center in a free-form pattern. Refrigerate until serving time. The finished cake can be held overnight.
Crema
2 cups heavy cream
1/4 cup buttermilk
In large bowl whisk together cream and buttermilk. Cover and set in a warm place (a gas oven with just the heat from the pilot light for example) for 8 hours. Place in refrigerator. Can be kept for up to a week.
Hot chocolate
2 cups milk
1 disk of Mexican chocolate or (4 ounces dark bitter chocolate)
1 vanilla bean, split lengthwise
Warm the milk and chocolate in a saucepan. Scrape the seeds from the vanilla bean and add the seeds and bean to the milk.
Stir with a molinillo or whisk until the chocolate is melted and the mixture begins to boil. Remove from the heat and froth the chocolate with the molinillo or the whisk. Serve immediately in ample sized mugs.
Mexican Champurrado
A special hot chocolate thickened with masa and flavored with piloncillo and aniseeds
1/2 cup fresh masa (corn dough) or 1/2 cup masa flour (masa harina) mixed with a 1/4 cup hot water to blend
2 1/4 cups milk
1 1/2 cups water
1 disk Mexican chocolate
3 tablespoons piloncillo, chopped or 1/3 cup brown sugar plus 2 teaspoons molasses
1/4 teaspoon crushed aniseeds (optional)
I N S T R U C T I O N S
Place the water and the masa into the jar of a blender and blend until smooth. Transfer to a medium sized saucepan.
Add the milk, chocolate, piloncillo (or sugar, molasses combination) and the aniseeds if you wish to use them. Bring the mixture to a simmer, whisking with a molinillo or whisk until the chocolate and sugar is melted and well-blended. Strain the mixture through a medium sieve (optional) and serve hot, in mugs.
Mole Poblano with Chicken
Mole, pronounced (MOH-lay) is from the Nahuatl molli , meaning ';concoction, or mixture';. Red mole is from central Mexico in the Puebla and Oaxaca regions, also know as the Land of Seven Moles. Other mole colors include brown, black, green, and yellow. This red mole is a rich, dark, reddish-brown sauce usually served with poultry. Generally, mole is a smooth sauce blended of onion, garlic, several varieties of chilies, ground seeds and a small amount of chocolate. It is important to note that not all moles contain chocolate. The traditional mole is usually served over turkey.
I N G R E D I E N T S
1 (4 - 5) pound chicken, cut up in at least 6 - 8 pieces.
4 dried pasilla chilies
4 dried mulato chilies
6 dried ancho chilies
or 14 dried ancho chilies.
2 cups boiling chicken stock, fresh or canned
3/4 cup blanched almonds
I cup coarsely chopped onions
3 medium tomatoes, peeled, seeded and coarsely chopped, or I cup drained, canned Italian plum tomatoes
1/2 cup lightly packed seedless raisins
2 tablespoons sesame seeds
I tortilla, broken in small pieces
I teaspoon finely chopped garlic
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground canela cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
1/2 teaspoon ground coriander seeds
1/2 teaspoon anise seeds
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
6 tablespoons lard
2 cups cold chicken stock, fresh or canned
11/2 squares unsweetened chocolate
2 tablespoons sesame seeds
I N S T R U C T I O N S
NOTE: Review the instructions for handling of chilies before you begin this recipe.
Heat 4 tablespoons lard in 12'; - heavy skillet over medium-high heat. Sprinkle chicken with salt and pepper. Add chicken to skillet and cook until brown on all sides, about 12 minutes. Reduce heat to medium-low and continue to cook until almost cooked through approximately 20 - 25 min. Remove chicken and drain on paper towels. Set aside. Drain any excess lard from pan, do not rinse pan.
While the chicken is cooking, prepare the mole (sauce). Prepare the chilies using the method described. In a large bowl, pour 2 cups boiling chicken stock over the prepared chilies and soak them for about 30 minutes.
Blend the almonds in the jar of an electric blender until they are completely pulverized. Force the nuts through a sieve and return them to the blender with the chilies, their soaking liquid, the onions, tomatoes, raisins, 2 tablespoons of sesame seeds, tortilla, garlic, cinnamon, cloves, coriander, anise seeds, salt and-pepper, and blend at high speed until the mixture is reduced to a smooth puree.
Alternative - Make Sauce By Hand
To make the sauce by hand, put the chilies, onions, tomatoes, tortilla and garlic through a food mill set over a large bowl and discard any pulp remaining in the mill. With a pestle, pound the almonds, sesame seeds and anise seeds in a mortar until they are pulverized, force them through a sieve, then stir the mixture into the chili puree. Stir in the chilies' soaking liquid and add the cinnamon, cloves, coriander, salt and pepper.
Preparation Continued
In a heavy 10 - inch skillet, melt 2 tablespoons of the lard over moderate heat. Pour in the mole and simmer it, stirring constantly, for about 5 minutes. Add the cold stock and the chocolate. Cook, uncovered, over low heat, stirring frequently, until the chocolate has melted. Cover the skillet and set it aside off the heat. Using the skillet the chicken was cooked in, return the chicken to the skillet. Pour the mole sauce over the chicken, turning the pieces about in the sauce to coat them evenly. Cover the skillet and simmer over low heat for about 30 minutes, basting the chicken now and then with the sauce.
To serve, arrange the pieces of chicken on a heated platter and pour the sauce over them. Sprinkle the top with 2 tablespoons of sesame seeds.
Makes 6 - 8 servingsRecipes using Oaxacan chocolate?
Shouldn't this question be written in Aztec?
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