I’ve just made a shocking discovery. For the past 50 years February 14 has been without a patron saint. It appears that in 1969 St. Valentine was quietly stripped of his saint’s day privileges by the Catholic Church. (It was unable to determine the real Valentinus among three early Christian martyrs. Traditionalists can be assured that St. Valentine’s name will always appear on the Hallmark calendar.) Those of us who believe food is the most appropriate expression of love see our opening to initiate a new holiday. I’m declaring February 14 as World Chocolate Day!
Chocolate is a sensual food; it romances your mouth all the way from those first seductive aromas as it melts on your tongue, to the unctuous way it coats your mouth, and its final bittersweet finish. Eating chocolate is a purely pleasureful experience. Try getting that buzz from a greeting card!
Chocolate awakens the senses and fills one with a sense of well-being. I’m not making this up. The alkaloid theobroma in chocolate is a clinically proven mood elevator. Consuming chocolate is a great inducement to falling in love and a mood-brightener when falling out of love. Best of all, you don’t need a prescription,
For timid celebrants I recommend starting your adventures with the white chocolate. It is faux-chocolate made with sugar and milk solids and no cacao. It’s the perfect placebo.
I’d like to share a recipe for Chocolate Mousse that will be on party table this weekend. It’s adapted from the French Women Don’t Get Fat Cookbook by Mireille Guiliano. Happy first World Chocolate Day on Monday. Enjoy it with those you love.
CHOCOLATE MOUSSE
Ingredients for 4 (expect leftovers)
2 bars chocolate (Lindt 70% - 80% cacao preferred)
2 tablespoons butter cut into small pieces
1/2 cup egg whites at room temperature
2 tablespoons confectioners’ sugar
1/2 whipping cream, chilled
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Optional Garnish: grated chocolate or whipped cream
Directions:
- Break the chocolate into small pieces. Combine them in a glass bowl with the butter and microwave on full power for one minute. Stir and return to the oven for another 30 seconds. If the chocolate is half-melted, remove it and stir until the chocolate is smooth. If it’s not, microwave another 15 seconds.. Let the chocolate cool to warm once it is smooth.
Beat the whites to soft peaks and then sift on the sugar continuing to beat until they are firm and glossy.
Turn the whites into a clean bowl. Fold one-third of the whites into the chocolate, then gently scrape the chocolate mixture into the whites. Fold whites into chocolate until just mixed.
Add the vanilla to the cream and beat to soft peaks. Fold the cream into the chocolate mixture in two installments. Divide into serving dishes and chill for at least two hours. If you hold the mousse for several hours, chill the mousse in the bowl and divide it at serving time.
