I treat most of the chocolate cookbooks in my collection like one would a John Grisham mystery – nice to read but sincerely hoping that nothing like that ever happens to you.
But as I love chocolate I wished passionately for a book that would allow me to cook with it without disaster or at least one that didn’t, like government, kept on promising and not delivering.
Yes, I have read the words “you can’t mess this up” many times before. I see it as a challenge rather than an encouragement.
Disaster might be too strong a word when it comes to my house as runny chocolate mousse, split chocolate or chocolate ice cream that looks funny are all consumed with equal passion, but one always aims to improve.
Chocolate by Katelyn Williams provided me with another opportunity to try my hand at mastering the beloved ingredient. It didn’t disappoint.
You can’t help but love an author who starts a recipe with the following phrase: “This isn’t really a recipe. These are directions for magic. Make the mix and have it ready for chocolate emergencies.”
I can honestly say I have ticked this very important New Year’s goal off my to-do list.
(Read the following sentence in a voice of breathless excitement). I have been trying to make truffles for ever. Fortunately, Williams’s “end of the month truffles” are basically foolproof.
My grandmother had a whole list of commandments about cooking – and these included not cooking in a hot kitchen. The truffles in this book worked even on a day that the temperature rose above 38°C.
Then there’s a recipe for no-churn chocolate sorbet. I don’t really know how to describe it but it is unbelievably great. It is the thing one needs to keep on hand in an election year or while watching the Zondo Commission as I am sure that, if anybody should do a study, it would be great for anxiety, depression and general annoyance with politicians and the like.
Some of the recipes look like the type of thing you might have to make without drinking wine but most are easy and straightforward.
Next on the list to try is the white chocolate and lemon cream ice box cake. It combines my favourite cookie (Lemon Creams) with white chocolate, cream cheese and cream and sticky chocolate ginger baked pudding (something for when the weather has calmed down.)
I can’t wait to continue my adventure with this exceptional book. Chocolate, by Katelyn Williams, is published by Human & Rousseau and the recommended price is R380.
RECIPE: NO-CHURN CHOCOLATE SORBET
“You have not lived until you’ve had chocolate sorbet!” writes former Top Billing food editor and award-winning SA food blogger Katelyn Williams.
“Something between a sorbet and soft serve, this is bitter-sweet but not rich - perfect for a hot day.”
Serves 6
Time until you can eat it: 3 hours
Difficulty level: Easy
Ingredients
900ml (3 and 2/3 cups) water
250g (315ml) white sugar
60g (150ml) good-quality cocoa powder
100g good-quality dark chocolate (70% cocoa), chopped
150ml (2/3 cup) chocolate liqueur
Method
In a saucepan, heat half the water and all the sugar together until dissolved, then add cocoa powder and whisk until slightly thickened.
Remove from the heat and stir in the chopped dark chocolate until melted.
Whisk in the remaining water and liqueur. Pour into a large Ziploc bag, then place flat on a baking tray in the freezer until frozen solid.
Break the frozen mixture into pieces and place in a blender or food processor. Blend until smooth, then decant into a storage container and return to the freezer for 45 minutes or until firm.
When ready to serve, place the sorbet in a piping bag fitted with a star nozzle and pipe it into cups or cones.