Everybody's doing it

Blogging about food. It might have inspired a little jealousy, based in the fact that I cook once or twice a month. I'm more of an eater, but there was a time when I used to bake.

Growing up, I'd clamber onto the counter tops, opening cabinets and using their doors as step stools for a boost. Mixing together flour, baking soda, water, syrup, food coloring, and salt in the hopes of creating an edible delight instead of the glop that usually resulted from these explorations. Several years later, I discovered recipes, and became an amateur chef, baking cookies from a roll of Pillsbury. I've come to specialize in sweets: brownies, cakes, puff pastries. I tend not to bake that often, though, because I'm not so diligent about getting to the gym as I am when it comes to adding extra chocolate and butter.

Why don't I just pick healthy meals to cook? you might wonder (or not). Most of the reason why I don't cook is because my boyfriend is a control freak in the kitchen. We have a gadget for everything, and instead of taking the time to learn its proper use, I am intimidated; the kitchen is his thing, so rather than get excited about going to Williams-Sonoma, I tend to criticize his obsession with potato ricers, mozzarella slicers, microplane graters for lemons and ones for parmesean, flavor infusers, bamboo steamers. Seriously. We have all those things.

So I recently jumped on the bandwagon, since I've been getting some flack for doing my nails while Jer cooks (I don't even want to help clean up! Ungrateful, I know). I've started my own collection of kitchen utensils and appliances: an apple slicer for my daily breakfast of apples & peanut butter, a Cuisinart food processor, cute plates from Crate & Barrel, table linens, a glass pitcher, stemless wine glasses, etc. I realize that these "utensils" are more decor related, but it's a start. Especially now that I have a beautiful new Kitchen Aid Artisan mixer, courtesy of my wonderful executive chef.

I tested its performance by making chocolate chip cookies, which some of you at Georgetown had the privilege of trying. After that, I made these delicious chocolate heart cakes in the spirit of Valentine's Day--a pseudo-holiday for which I just realized we have no plans. How anti-romance! We're trying to find reservations and looking at Komi, so I'll let you know how it is provided we can get a reservation.

The chocolate heart cakes were delicious, and I'm really pleased with my silicone heart muffin tray that I absolutely had to have. The recipe includes instructions for a ganache that was easy to make and rewarding--when served warm, the cakes are fluffy and moist, but the ganache melts and acts as a molten chocolate cake would, flowing from the center like liquid velvet. I topped with ice cream and strawberries, but I think Crème Anglaise would suit it better next time.

The recipe is for six, and I ate four of them. Make extra if you're having guests over.

Chocolate Ganache Heart Cakes

Ingredients:
Cocoa powder for dusting
6 oz. bittersweet chocolate, chopped into small bits & pieces (I used Valrhona, some of the best baking chocolate, which you can get from Trader Joe's for 3 bucks a bar; Scharffen Berger is also good and available there for the same price)
1 Tbs. heavy cream
3 Tbs. unsalted butter, cut into small cubes and softened
2 eggs plus 1 egg yolk
1/4 cup sugar
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1/8 tsp. salt
1 Tbs. all-purpose flour
Freshly whipped cream or vanilla ice cream for serving (or Crème Anglaise recipe to follow)

Directions:

Position a rack in the center of an oven and preheat to 400ºF. Grease a 6-well heart baking pan and dust with cocoa powder. In a heatproof bowl, combine 2 oz. of the chocolate and the cream.

Set the bowl over but not touching simmering water in a small saucepan and melt the chocolate, stirring occasionally, until smooth and blended, 1 to 2 minutes. Transfer the ganache to a small bowl and refrigerate until firm, about 20 minutes.

In another heatproof bowl, combine the remaining 4 oz. chocolate and the butter. Set the bowl over the saucepan of simmering water and melt, stirring constantly, until smooth and blended, 2 to 3 minutes. Remove from the heat and let cool for 10 minutes.

In a bowl, combine the eggs, egg yolk, sugar, vanilla and salt. Using a handheld electric mixer or a balloon whisk, beat until thick ribbons fall from the beaters or whisk and the mixture is nearly triple in volume, 5 to 6 minutes. Sift the flour over the bowl and gently fold until just blended. Add the chocolate mixture and gently fold together until smooth and blended.

Divide the batter among the wells of the prepared pan. Remove the ganache from the refrigerator and form into 6 teaspoon-size balls. Place 1 ball on top of each cake and press gently. Bake until the cakes pull away from the sides of the wells and the tops are just firm, 9 to 11 minutes. Transfer the pan to a wire rack and let cool for about 5 minutes. Invert the cakes onto the rack and transfer to individual dessert plates. Serve warm with freshly whipped cream or vanilla ice cream (or Crème Anglaise, below).

For the Crème Anglaise:

1 cup milk
1 cup half-and-half
4 egg yolks
2 eggs
1/3 cup sugar
1/8 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract

In a saucepan over low heat, combine the milk and half-and-half. Heat to just below boiling. In the top pan of a double boiler, whisk together the egg yolks and eggs until just blended, then add the sugar, salt and vanilla. Gradually whisk in the hot milk mixture. Place over the bottom pan of boiling water and cook, stirring constantly, until the mixture is thick enough to coat the back of a spoon, 2 to 3 minutes. Do not let it boil. Immediately remove from the heat and let cool slightly to thicken.