Simple Coffee Chocolate Sauce
Chocolate and water don’t like to mix. Why are we doing it here? Just to prove we can, I guess, and to make a smooth, rich chocolate sauce to pour over a torte, a bowl of ice cream, or just to spoon out of the pan (c’mon, we know you do that, too).
8 oz. dark chocolate buttons ¼ cup strong hot coffee
Pour the hot coffee over the unmelted chocolate buttons in a Pyrex-type bowl, and whisk like your life depends on it until all is blended and smooth. You may have to heat it for 30 seconds or so in a microwave to keep it melting. Whisk ’til it gets through the “awkward” stage and gets smooth and shiny. Use right away.
Spicy Hot Chocolate
2 cups milk of your choice ½ cup dark chocolate buttons
1 tsp Mexican vanilla (or 1½ Ground chipotle powder to taste
tsp. regular vanilla if that’s (available in jars at store)
what you have available ½ tsp. cinnamon
Sweet, hot, savory, what’s not to love? Heat milk until very hot, but don’t boil, and remove from heat. Quickly whisk in chocolate and keep whisking until smooth and no chocolate lumps remain. Then, stir in vanilla, and add enough chipotle powder to make it pleasantly spicy for you (I used ¼ tsp.). If you want the taste but no spicy heat, try fresh paprika or even smoked paprika, available at most upscale stores that sell spices in bulk. Enjoy immediately! Makes two cups.
White on Dark Chocolate Cookies
1 cup white sugar 1 ¼ cups Sunrise cocoa powder
¾ cup packed brown sugar 1 ¾ cups all-purpose flour
2 cups white buttons 2 teaspoons baking soda
2 eggs 2 cubes unsalted butter
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease cookie sheets.
In a large bowl, cream together the butter, brown sugar and white sugar until light and fluffy. Add the eggs one at a time, beating well with each addition. Combine the cocoa, flour, and baking soda. Gradually stir into the creamed mixture. Finally, fold in white chocolate chips. Drop by rounded spoonfuls onto the prepared cookie sheets.
Bake for 8 to 10 minutes in the preheated oven, until puffy but still soft. Allow cookies to cool on baking sheet for 5 minutes before removing to a wire rack to cool completely. Makes about 2 dozen ample cookies.
Fruit Juicy Cocoa Sorbet
This is a very chocolaty non-dairy dessert, easy to make, but it does require an ice-cream or sorbet freezer.
1 cup sugar + 3 cups water
1 cup unsweetened Sunrise cocoa
12 oz. can of fruit juice concentrate. I used passion orange one time and straight orange juice the next, and both worked fine.
Combine sugar and water in large saucepan. Heat, stirring until sugar is completely dissolved. Whisk in cocoa. Remove from heat, stir in frozen juice concentrate. Chill in refrigerator.
Freeze in ice cream maker according to manufacturer's directions. Return to refrigerator freezer to firm up. I think most fruit juice concentrates would work, but I prefer tropical flavors, such as passion fruit or guava.
