There is no secret or special trick to making a chocolate “lava” cake. All you do is use any recipe for a chocolate cake and undercook it! Why do we like it so much? The same reason we loved to lick the beaters when Mom made cake batter. The same reason we like cookie dough in ice cream. We like the raw flavor of the dough and/or batter; maybe more than the finished product! This is a really easy, but excellent recipe. You may have to play with the timing a bit to get the cake as “gooey” as you like.

INGREDIENTS

• 8 oz. butter
• 8 oz. Cordillera 53% chocolate discs
• 4 whole eggs (room temperature)
• 4 egg yolks (room temperature)
• ½ cup sugar
• ½ cup flour

PREPARATION

Preheat convection oven to 425°.

Melt butter and chocolate in double boiler over low heat. Whip room temperature eggs with sugar (if need be, heat over hot water until room temperature) in Kitchen Aid mixer until eggs turn canary yellow. On low speed, add chocolate-butter mixture to egg mixture. Add flour to batter a little at a time and blend slowly. Scrape bottom and side of bowl to incorporate all of the flour.

Butter and flour muffin tins. Make sure tin is very clean and dry. Fill with batter. Bake in convection oven for exactly 9 minutes (regular oven about 13 minutes). The center of the cake should be runny. Do not overcook!

Serve warm with vanilla ice cream, chocolate sauce and mint for garnish.

My former restaurant was probably best known for the soufflés we made. I didn’t think they could get better, but using the Cordillera chocolate has indeed “raised the bar”.

INGREDIENTS

• 9 oz. cornstarch
• 9 oz. sugar
• ½ teaspoon salt
• 24 oz. milk
• 8 oz. Cordillera 53% chocolate discs
• 5 oz. Cordillera 70% chocolate discs
• 1 tablespoon instant coffee
• 1 teaspoon Mace (spice available in the store)
• ½ cup rum
• 15 egg yolks
• 15 egg whites
• 1 tablespoon tartar
• 1 cup sugar

PREPARATION

Begin melting chocolate in metal bowl placed over simmering water. Mix cornstarch with milk until blended. Add sugar and salt to the milk and cornstarch mixture and cook over medium heat – stirring constantly – until very thick (should be the consistency of a thick pudding). Mix yolk with rum in a large bowl. Add melted chocolate to rum/yolk mixture slowly and blend well. Add mace and instant espresso. Add pudding mixture to yolk/chocolate mixture and blend well. Place egg whites in a very clean mixing bowl and beat at high speed until whites form a soft foam. Add sugar and cream of tartar. Continue to beat egg whites until you have reached “soft peak” stage. Do not over mix! Using a rubber spatula, gently fold the meringue into the pudding mixture by scraping down the middle, then the sides, turning the bowl one quarter turn each time you scrape. This is generally how I fold two things together. Use whatever method works for you as long as you are gentle in your technique. The meringue should not be completely folded in, there can be some streaking in color. Butter soufflé cups, then line with granulated sugar. Fill sugar-lined soufflé cups to rim and bake for 20-25 minutes at 350 degrees until center of soufflé is no longer runny. You can look at the center by gently lifting an edge of the soufflé and peering inside. When finished, remove from oven and sprinkle powdered sugar on top. With a teaspoon, make a hole in the center of each soufflé and fill with whipped cream. Serve immediately.

My wife and kids vacation in Florida at the same place every year where her family has a home. There is a little ice cream shop on the island that, from time to time, would sell “chocolate peanut butter” ice cream. The first time we tried it we were hooked! For some reason they quit serving it and even though I begged, they were unable to honor my request. I decided that if they were not going to make it, then I would!

Here is the recipe I developed. I have made it with cocoa powder and regular domestic chocolate and it is certainly good, but with using the Colombian chocolate, it is outstanding! I like to make it in the winter so that when I eat it I think of the beach!

INGREDIENTS

• 3 ounces Cordillera 70% discs
• ½ Santander chocolate shavings
• 1½ cup milk
• 2 eggs, lightly beaten
• 2/3 cup sugar
• 1 whipping cup cream
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• ½ cup peanut butter

PREPARATION

Melt both chocolates over low heat. Gradually stir in milk while continuing to heat. You want the consistency to be thick but not solid as you add the milk. Beat sugar into eggs. Stir hot chocolate/milk mixture into eggs. Add cream and vanilla extract. Cool. Just before adding to ice cream maker, stir a cup of ice cream mixture into peanut butter. Once mixed, stir into rest of ice cream mixture. Freeze in ice cream maker according to manufacturer’s instructions.

My wife’s favorite pie and my favorite recipe!

FILLING INGREDIENTS

• 4 egg yolks
• ½ cup sugar
• 2 tablespoons cornstarch
• 2 cups milk
• 4 ounces Cordillera 70% chocolate discs
• ½ teaspoon vanilla

PREPARATION

Mix sugar and cornstarch in a small bowl.

Beat egg yolks in a kettle, and then add the sugar/cornstarch and stir well. Gradually add the milk, stirring constantly. Heat over medium burner until it is thick; gradually stir in the chocolate and heat until thick and boiling. This will take about 10 minutes or so. Remove from fire, add the vanilla, and pour into prepared pie shell. Cover filling with plastic wrap while you prepare the meringue.

MERINGUE INGREDIENTS

• 4 egg whites
• 1 tablespoon cornstarch
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• 1/3 cup water
• ½ teaspoon vanilla
• ¼ teaspoon cream of tartar
• ½ cup sugar

PREPARATION

Preheat the oven to 350° and place oven rack in the middle.

In a small pan, combine the cornstarch, 1 tablespoon sugar, and water. Cook for several minutes over medium heat, stirring constantly. The mixture will thicken and become translucent. Cool.

Beat the egg whites until frothy, then add the vanilla, cream of tartar, and ½ cup sugar. Beat until foamy. Add the cornstarch mixture and continue beating until the meringue forms soft peaks; if you lift some with a spoon or spatula, it should form a peak that stands up. The meringue will also look shiny.

Remove the plastic wrap from the pie and spread the meringue carefully over the filling. Start by spreading it around the edges, being sure to seal the edges of the crust. Pile the meringue into the middle of the pie and make some decorative swirls with your spatula.

Bake for about 20-25 minutes. The meringue should be lightly browned. Check it frequently for the last 5-10 minutes to make sure the peaks don’t burn.

I think you will enjoy this menu. The salad is one of the best I’ve had in a long time. The citrus dressing works perfectly for the Anjou pears and blue cheese. The tilapia is truly outstanding and the New York Cheesecake with Dark Chocolate Ganache is very simple to do.

Inspiration for the tilapia dish came from a great restaurant called The Dunes, owned by one of my favorite chefs, Jean George. I had the good fortune to eat there several years ago and had a great dish similar to this. This is my version. It sounds a bit strange to pour a broth around the mashed potatoes, but the blending of the potatoes with the broth is truly incredible. Enjoy!

In This Menu:

• Tilapia with Wasabi Potatoes and Miso Broth
• Anjou Pear Salad
• Cheesecake with Dark Chocolate Ganache

Wasabi Whipped Potatoes

• 1½ pounds of Deli mashed potatoes
• 1 small bag of fresh spinach
• 1 tablespoon Wasabi powder mixed with 2 teaspoons orange juice (water is fine, juice is better)

Bring 1 quart of water in a medium saucepan to boil. Add spinach. Cook for about 1 to 2 minutes, drain, and run spinach in cold water immediately to cool and set the color. Place cooked spinach and wasabi in food processor and pulse, scraping sides frequently until spinach is fairly smooth.

Heat potatoes in microwave, loosely covered, for about 3 minutes, stirring occasionally until potatoes are ready to serve. Place potatoes in a large bowl and add spinach-wasabi mixture. Stir the spinach into the potatoes until you have a consistent color. Keep warm.

For the asparagus:

• ½ bunch asparagus, washed and trimmed
• 1 teaspoon soy sauce
• Coarse kosher or sea salt to taste
• 1 tablespoon dark sesame oil (in Asian section of our store)

Blanch the asparagus in lightly salted boiling water for about 3 minutes or until crisp-tender; do not overcook. Remove from heat and refresh under cold water; drain well. In a small saucepan, toss asparagus with remaining ingredients until evenly coated and warmed through.

For the fish:

• 1 cup Panko bread crumbs
• ¼ cup black sesame seeds
• 1 teaspoon salt
• ¼ teaspoon black pepper
• 4 fillets of tilapia
• ½ cup olive oil

Preheat oven to 400°. Mix sesame seeds with bread crumbs, salt, and pepper in small bowl. Lay fish on a cookie sheet or baking tray with an edge. Brush each fillet with half of the olive oil. Set remaining olive oil aside. Sprinkle Panko mixture liberally over each fillet. Lightly dab the remaining olive oil on top of bread crumbs to help it brown.

Bake fillets for 12 minutes. Remove from oven.

To plate:

Put about a 3/4 cup scoop of the potatoes in the center of a shallow bowl. Carefully place fish on potatoes. Pour ½ cup Miso broth around potatoes. Top fish with 4 asparagus spears. Serve immediately.

For the dressing:

• 2 teaspoons minced, fresh ginger
• Juice of one navel orange
• ½ teaspoon sugar
• ¼ teaspoon salt
• ¼ teaspoon black pepper
• ¼ cup plus 2 tablespoons vegetable oil

Put ginger in a small bowl with the orange juice. Add sugar, salt, and black pepper. Slowly drizzle oil into juice while beating with a wire whip continuously until all of the oil is gone.

For the salad:

• 2 cups ice water
• Juice of 1 lemon
• 2 Anjou pears
• ½ cup chopped walnuts
• ½ cup blue cheese
• 4 small handfuls of your favorite lettuce blend

Mix ice water with lemon juice in a small bowl. Cut pears into quarters and remove core. Slice each quarter into three slices. Place slices in the acidulated water (fancy chef term for water with lemon!). The lemon will keep the pears from turning brown. In another bowl toss the lettuce with about 2 tablespoons of the dressing. Have four plates ready and place equal amounts of the dressed lettuce in center of each plate. Remove pears from water, drain, then place in same bowl you tossed the lettuce in. Add the walnuts and blue cheese to pears. Add dressing and toss to coat pears completely. Stack pears on top of lettuce and serve. Serve immediately.

1 New York Cheesecake from our bakery

For Ganache:

• 1 cup good quality, dark chocolate
• ½ cup heavy cream

In a double boiler, melt chocolate. Add cream and mix well with a wire whip. Remove from heat and ladle over center of cheesecake. Serve immediately.