Chocolate for Valentine's Day - oh, yea!
Chocolate for Valentine's Day - oh, yea!
Pat Branning........Down Southern Roads
Don’t let the name of it fool you; it’s simple to make, and you will thank me for introducing this amazing dessert to you for Valentine’s Day or any day. It’s named La Bete Noir - translation: The Black Beast. This may be the perfect dessert for your special day if you love to bake and love chocolate; I mean, really, really love chocolate.
Before we get out our measuring cups and mixers, let’s look at what’s happening Down Southern Roads.
Carolina Chocolate Festival - Feb. 3-4
203 College Circle
Morehead City, NC 28557
Head over to Morehead City this weekend, where you will be welcomed with treats, including toffee, truffles, fudge, cake, and chocolate-covered bacon and strawberries. They will be hosting a chocolate bingo contest, a 5K run that includes hot cocoa, and a pudding-eating contest, among other exciting events. Ever had a 14-layer cake? There will be a charity chocolate collection of these layer cakes to choose from, with all proceeds going to non-profits like the local Boys and Girls Clubs.
This festival attracts participants from all across the country. It’s truly amazing.
Greetings from Valentines, Virginia
If you are a true romantic, you must know about Valentines, Virginia, a small town near the border of Virginia and North Carolina. Hundreds of people flock to this town yearly for a special Valentine’s Day tradition. Valentines, Virginia, is an unincorporated community in Brunswick County with only one business - a combined store and post office. Here, you will find a one-of-a-kind postmark shaped like a heart at that post office.
In the 1950s, Valentine's postmaster Willie Wright started this tradition that continues to this day when he created heart-shaped postmarks for Valentine’s Day. The late postmaster’s wife, Frances D. Wright, tells me, “He designed them himself. One mark featured dogwood flowers, another lace, and another a cupid. All were marked Valentines, Virginia 23887.”
Should you decide to take a drive to this little town, look for a tiny white building with a red heart on its sign out front, or you may mail them envelopes full of cards and get the special postmark. “We’ve had letters come in from every state and from abroad,” says the current postmaster, Kathryn Fajna. She stands ready with the rubber and ink for another flurry of envelopes this February.
If you want to surprise someone special, pop your valentine, already addressed, with money for first-class postage, into another envelope and send it to:
Valentines Postmaster, 23 Manning Drive, Valentines, VA 23887
If you are in Valentines, Virginia, Lynchburg is about 30 minutes away, and there’s a place there you will not want to miss.
I ran across it accidentally while on a trip back home from Roanoke - The Flour District.
The Flour District is a neighborhood bakery and kitchen in Lynchburg that specializes in European-style artisanal pastries. They take great pride in sourcing only locally grown grains and freshly milled flours. The end result is out-of-this-world delicious. If you are in the mood, you can even join one of their popular culinary classes taught by local professionals in the industry. Hey, it might make a great date night!
Let’s Stay Sweet
Our featured recipe is by the famed author of 22 cookbooks, Lora Brody. La Bete Noire Torte is from her book, Growing up on the Chocolate Diet. If you truly love chocolate, this book is full of delicious eating. The recipe became a huge hit when Craig Claiborne first wrote about it and published it in the New York Times. I have only recently discovered it. Get ready for a genuine powerhouse of flavor.
La Bete Noire Torte
1 cup water
¾ cup sugar
9 tablespoons unsalted butter, diced
18 ounces bittersweet ( not unsweetened) or semi-sweet chocolate, chopped
6 large eggs
Ganache
1 cup heavy whipping cream
8 ounces bittersweet ( not unsweetened) or semisweet chocolate, chopped
For the torte:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Butter a 10-inch diameter springform pan. Line the bottom with parchment and butter the parchment. Wrap 3 layers of heavy-duty foil around the outside of the pan, bringing the foil to the top of the rim.
Combine 1 cup water and sugar in a small saucepan. Bring to a boil over medium heat, stirring until sugar dissolves. Simmer for 5 minutes. Remove from heat. Melt butter in a large saucepan over low heat. Add chocolate and whisk until smooth. Whisk sugar syrup into the chocolate and cool slightly. Add eggs to the chocolate mixture and whisk until well blended. Pour batter into the prepared pan. Place the cake pan in a large roasting pan. Add enough hot water to the roasting pan to come halfway up the side of the cake pan.
Bake until the center no longer moves when the pan is gently shaken, about 50 minutes. Remove from the water bath and transfer to a rack. Cool completely in the pan.
Ganache:
Bring whipping cream to a simmer in a small saucepan over medium heat. Remove from heat. Add chocolate and whisk until smooth. Pour over the top of the cake still in the pan. Gently shake the pan to distribute the ganache evenly over the top of the cake. Refrigerate cake in pan until ganache is set, about 2 hours.
Can be made 2 days ahead. Cover and keep refrigerated. Run a knife around the side of the pan to loosen the cake and release the sides. Cut cake into wedges and serve with whipped cream.