Celebrate International Chocolate Day with Chocolate Raspberry Garland

I cannot imagine what life would have been without chocolates! The decadent, rich chocolate as we know it today has a humble past, being used as fermented alcoholic beverage cultivated during the Mesoamerican civilization about 3000 years ago. The Aztecs believed that cacao seeds were a Gift of God and used them as a form of currency. It was only in the 16th century after the Spanish conquered the Aztecs, it was served as a court beverage for the first time in Europe and spread across the continent, available only to the elite. It took another two centuries for cocoa powder to be invented and the humble cacao been has since been transformed and used in a lot of different ways!

An Aztec woman generates foam by pouring chocolate from one vessel to another. Pic Courtesy: Wikipedia

Everyday is chocolate day and we need no special day to celebrate this gift of god. However, we can always use an excuse to gorge on chocolate, it being International Chocolate Day today, i’ve tried to use chocolate in its pure form without messing around too much!

Chocolate Raspberry Garland

Chocolate and raspberries are a match made in heaven and a great way to start the week.. 😉

Makes 6 serves
Ingredients :
Chocolate Cupcake :
1/2 banana, chopped
50 g chocolate (60% cocoa)
55 g butter
2 eggs
75 g sugar
30 g all purpose flour
1/2 tbsp cocoa powder

Chantilly Cream :
100 ml whipping cream, chilled
10 g icing sugar, sifted
vanilla extract, 1/2 tspn

Raspberry Coulis :
100 g frozen raspberries/ strawberries
2 tsp sugar
1 tsp lemon juice

Chocolate Sauce :
200 g chocolate (60 % cocoa)

For Plating :
Raspberries

Instructions :

Chocolate Cupcakes :

Preheat the oven to 200°C. Grease a muffin pan and dust with cocoa powder.

Melt the butter and chocolate over a double boiler.

In a mixing bowl, beat the eggs and sugar until pale and fluffy. Lightly whisk in the melted butter and chocolate.

Sift the flour and cocoa powder into the batter and beat until combined.

Spoon the batter into the muffin pan, filling them one-third. Insert chopped banana pieces. Spoon in more batter until two-thirds full.

Bake for about 12 minutes and let cool on a wire rack.

Raspberry coulis :

Bring all ingredients to the boil and simmer until soft. Blend until smooth and strain through a fine sieve and chill until required.

Chantilly Cream :
Keep the bowl and beaters in the freezer for 5 minutes. Beat the cream, sugar and vanilla essence until soft peaks form.

Chocolate Sauce :
Melt the chocolate in a double boiler.

Plating :
Smear coulis across the plate.
Dip the base of the cooled cupcake into melted chocolate. Place chocolate side up over the coulis.
Pipe three rounds of Chantilly cream on one side.
Line raspberries in a circle on the edge of the plate and drizzle the melted chocolate over the raspberries.

Bon Apetit!