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Product Description
The first cookbook from America's premier chocolate makers, filled with recipes, kitchen tips, and dazzling photographs
As Americans have become fascinated by chocolate, and especially high-quality chocolate, one name has risen above the rest: Scharffen Berger. Founded in 1996 by Robert Steinberg, a physician and amateur chef, and John Scharffenberger, an award-winning vintner, the company's confections have won a following among food professionals and home cooks alike. Now, in their first cookbook, the duo shares their passion with the world.
The Essence of Chocolate features more than one hundred spectacular -- and often simple -- recipes drawn from the Scharffen Berger files and from two dozen top pastry chefs. It is divided into three sections: "Intensely Chocolate," which includes such decadent treats as That Chocolate Cake, in which the sumptuous flavor of chocolate is the star; "Essentially Chocolate," with lighter chocolate desserts like White Velvet Cake with Milk Chocolate Ganache or Brown Butter Blondies; and "A Hint of Chocolate," with recipes that use chocolate's spicier qualities to their best effect, like Vegetarian Chili and John's Cocoa Rub. And all will work magnificently with any high-quality chocolate. Filled with helpful tips, sumptuous photographs, and the story of how chocolate is really made, here is a book that is every bit as seductive as its subject.
Amazon.com Review
Established in 1996, Scharffen Berger has become America's preeminent maker of cooking chocolate. Essence of Chocolate, by the firm's founders and food writer Susie Heller, offers more than 100 recipes for a broad selection of delights like Chocolate Pudding Cakes, Chocolate Marbled Gingerbread, Cocoa Caramel Panna Cotta, and Chocolate Chunk Cheesecake, as well as savory edibles made with chocolate like Tortilla Soup and Chile-Marinated Flank Steak. Unusual recipes also include the likes of Chocolate Chunk Challah and TKOs, a homemade version of Oreos that leaves those favorites on the supermarket shelf.
Arranged by chocolate intensity, the recipes come from the company's files and from chefs including Flo Braker, Jim Dodge, Thomas Keller, and Stephanie Hersh. Although the formulas vary in difficulty, most are within the range of all cooks interested in making something terrific. Readers should note, however, that the recipes require chocolate with specific cocoa-solids contents--62% semisweet, for example--that may be difficult to find. Most cooks will know, however, that one high-quality chocolate of similar cocoa content can usually replace another. With narrative sections in which Steinberg and Scharffenberger trace (at perhaps excessive length) their career trajectories, interesting asides such as "Bread and Chocolate," lots of chocolate lore, and a good primer on how chocolate is manufactured--plus color photos--the book makes a happy addition to the chocolate lovers' kitchen library. --Arthur Boehm
Essence of Chocolate: Recipes for Baking and Cooking with Fine Chocolate Reviews
Essence of Chocolate: Recipes for Baking and Cooking with Fine Chocolate Reviews
| 26 of 30 people found the following review helpful  Superb, Well-Rounded Chocolate Book, This review is from: Essence of Chocolate: Recipes for Baking and Cooking with Fine Chocolate (Hardcover) What's Good: There are many things to love about this book. Let's start with presentation - it is beautifully bound and nearly every recipe is accompanied by a gorgeous photograph. Though I understand that not every cookbook can include photos I still give them bonus points when they do. It's not just about seeing what the finished product will look like; I also love to sit and leaf through the recipes, enjoy a sort of visual feast. "The Essence of Chocolate" is entirely satisfying on this front.The recipes are both unique and varied, ranging from favorites such as cakey brownies and chocolate drop cookies to more exotic things like cocoa chiffon cake, banana caramel cake and candied almonds. The recipes are not limited to desserts. This book also includes unexpected dishes that incorporate chocolate, for instance, chili-marinated flank steak and BBQ sauce. The Chocolate Pull-Apart Kuchen I made last month came from this book, as did my Apricot & Chocolate Challah, which... Read more 31 of 37 people found the following review helpful Rich dual memoir and even richer recipes. Buy It., By Amazon Verified Purchase This review is from: Essence of Chocolate: Recipes for Baking and Cooking with Fine Chocolate (Hardcover) `The Essence of Chocolate' by Scharffen Berger Chocolate founders, John Scharffenberger and Robert Steinberg is a `culinary memoir duet' where the principal authors take the roles more of `Executive Producer' than true writer or even editor. Most of the recipe writing chores are assumed by a fairly large stable of well-known chocolatier practitioners such as Alice Medrich and David Lebovitz plus a number of other culinary luminaries such as Rose Levy Beranbaum, Michael Chiraello, Michael Richard, Jacques Pepin, Thomas Keller, and Rick Bayless. Most of the yeoman's work on the book appears to have been done by Suzie Heller (a collaborator with Jacques Pepin and Thomas Keller), the recipe tester and (I suspect) editor, Ann Krueger Spivack (a collaborator with Cat Cora and Michael Chiarello), and `Bouchon' photographer, Deborah Jones.Scharffenberger and Steinberg are former vintner physician respectively, who joined up in the early 1990s to create what has become the only... Read more 5 of 5 people found the following review helpful rich in chocolate!, By Lynn "Lynn" (San Francisco, Ca.) - See all my reviews This review is from: Essence of Chocolate: Recipes for Baking and Cooking with Fine Chocolate (Hardcover) beautiful book with original chocolate recipes that i haven't seen before... and i own lots of lovely cookbooks. I'm so picky when it comes to adding to my cookbook collection and this one deserves to be a part of the collection.Tonight i made The Chocolate Cake recipe which was intense, very rich and delicious. Like most of the chocolate cake/cupcake/baked hot chocolate cake recipes in the book they are RICH... so experiment with the percentage of cocoa and have fun baking. I think all the chocolate cakes need to be served with fresh (homemade whipped creme) for the perfect taste and mixture of sweetness. This book also makes for a beautiful gift |
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