Family Birthdays

Each year our children get their choice of dessert for their birthday.

A Chocolate Bundt Cake for One

This past November, Jason (our son-in-law) became the first one to indulge in our Chocolate Bundt Cake with Caramel and Chocolate Sauces for his birthday celebration.  Melinda loves to surprise people so she hid the treasure deep in the trunk of their car as they traveled to Florida for a friend’s wedding.  They shared with friends who gathered from all over the country and we were awakened at 2 a.m. with a text message – thanks for the “Awesome Gift”.  We smiled and went back to sleep.

A Boston Cream Pie for Another

A year ago Melinda, our oldest daughter who lives in Myrtle Beach decided she wanted a Boston Cream Pie.  This really isn’t a pie at all but a different sort of cake.  Bill thought it would be tricky driving 3 ½ hours to Myrtle Beach with it so he decided to bring it to her in parts.  Then part of the celebration was her putting it together herself.  This is such a fun thing parents can do it with their kids we decided to share it with you.

This is an old New England Recipe that uses powdered sugar on top.  We use our own chocolate fudge sauce on top (sorry it’s still a secret) which you can pick up from us, dust with cocoa enriched powdered sugar, or make a quick chocolate glaze (we’ll give you that one..but don’t go sharing it hehe!)

Boston Cream Pie Recipe

• ½ cup butter or margarine
• 2 ½ sifted cake flour
• 3 teaspoons baking powder
• ½ teaspoon salt
• 1 ½ cups granulated sugar
• ¾ cup plus 2 tablespoons milk
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2 eggs

• Cream Filling
• Confectioner’s sugar or Chocolate Glaze

Making a Boston Cream Pie

1. Stir butter just to soften
2. Combine flour, baking powder, salt, and sugar and add to butter
3. Add ¾ cup milk and the vanilla.
4. Mix until dry ingredients are dampened.
5. Beat for 2 minutes at low speed.
6. Add eggs and remaining milk.
7. Beat for 1 minute longer.
8. Pour into 2 -9 inch layer cake pans
9. Bake in preheated oven at 375 degree F for 20 to 25 minutes.
10. Turn out on cake racks, cool, and put together with Cream Filling
11. Sprinkle with confectioners’ sugar or top with chocolate glaze.

Cream Filling Recipe

• 1/2 cup sugar
• 2 ½ Tablespoons cornstarch
• 1/8 teaspoon salt
• 1½ cups milk
• 2 egg yolks, beaten
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Making Cream Filling

1. In a heavy saucepan mix sugar, cornstarch, and salt.
2. Add ½ cup milk, and stir until smooth.
3. Add remaining milk, and cook over low heat, stirring constantly, until smooth and thickened.
4. Stir mixture into egg yolks.
5. Pour back into saucepan, and cook for 2 minutes longer, stirring constantly.
6. Cool, and add vanilla.

If you want to keep it easy and be done, top with some confectioners sugar (or confectioner sugar mixed with cocoa powder!)

A chocolate fudge sauce is also a great way to enjoy it but the time making a fudge sauce may be more hassle at this point.  If you don’t have any of ours a last ditch quick and easy idea is to make a fast chocolate glaze for it.

Quick Chocolate Glaze Recipe

• 1 cup whipping cream
• 8oz semi-sweet (50-55%) chocolate chips or broken chocolate
• 2 tbs unsalted butter

Making Chocolate Glaze

1. Cut the butter into chunks and let come to room temp.
2. Put chocolate into medium sized bowl
3. Heat whipping cream in small sauce pan to near boiling (but not boiling)
4. Pour hot cream over chocolate and stir until smooth.
5. Stir in butter completely.
6. Pour over cake.

There are lots of old family variants of these recipes, do you have one to share?

A few new secrets coming to light, a white chocolate truffle and a milk chocolate truffle. We’ve desired to create a best of class version of both but we’re really sticklers for quality, taste, and texture. Developing that takes time but the rewards are going to be so very sweet.

We know you have preferences and with that you’re allowed to vote for more than one. While we’re guessing there are a majority of dark chocolate lovers who are here I bet there is a desire for some quality milk chocolate and white chocolate delights. What say you?

The Center City Green Market in Charlotte has been bouncing around the last couple of years uptown and while our own commitments have precluded us from being as involved as we’d like we still like to support local farms, artisans, and crafters in our region.

Ted Boyd had a simple idea that took a lot of engineering to deliver. Take an empty box store in the center of the city and turn it into a beautiful holiday market. With little time to spare he and his team of volunteers pulled it off, and quite well I must say.

Located near the heart of Charlotte at 101 N. Tryon. We were there for their opening on December 3rd but they are also open December 5th, 9th, 10th, 11th, 12th, 15th, 16th, 17th, 18th, and 19th. The Secret Chocolatier will definitely be there the 16th through the 19th. We might be able to do more but we’re running around pretty heavily as it is.

Twelve has a variety of local and regional crafters from homemade spices, neighborhood honey, jewlery, kids t-shirts, a wreath bar, our chocolates, David French & local artists, and more.

If you’re in the area or know those who are, won’t you join us at supporting local?

While our season for these has concluded we’ll still happily make these delicious chocolates on special request.

Unlocking Molasses in Chocolate

We have been trying to figure out a good way to intertwine chocolate and what are basically the sugar waters (fructose) of the cane and tree families.  It is not easy. We want the flavor but not the added water and sugar. In the end sometimes you can reduce the natural syrups further increasing the flavor.  Others you will begin removing some of your cream to balance the water.  It took us a while to find a balance where we didn’t compromise the creamy texture of the chocolate truffle ganache.

by Claus Rebler

Sorghum Molasses from Underwood Family Farm

There are many types of molasses out there.  Sugar cane or sugar beet molasses is usually called Blackstrap but I don’t know any regional farmers that raise cane (well..hehe!) in our area.  I do however know that Underwood Farms has a field of sorghum that they harvest. Christy gave us the heads up this year and I really wanted to be there for the harvesting but like many weekends we were overcommitted as it was.

Christy , Michael and a team of others helped them break down the sorghum over a week and we took charge of many a liter of dark amber molasses.  The stuff is straight up delicious.  In our truffles it adds a savory sweet quality.  Overtones of oak, dark vanilla sugar like a crisp waffle, even a light overtone of wood–maybe a young oak.  Very interesting and nuanced.

We will continue to refine our recipe and usage over time and we really want to since maple syrup is an option I’d like to see too!

Have you experimented with molasses in a non-traditional use?  Let us know!

– if you want to try some of Underwood Family Farms beef or pork it’ll treat you right as well.  Visit them at the NCDA Market in Charlotte.

As Hot As Possible at the Market

Adding hot peppers to chocolate is a very binary experience. Meaning you either love it, or hate it. We have a large following locally who desire our ancho pepper chocolate truffles and chide us all year long waiting for their return. During our first week of Fall infusions we couldn’t keep them stocked at any of our markets.

Sourcing Ancho Peppers

Ancho is another thing we can proudly source locally.  We use Eric and Cathy of As Hot As Possible for our ancho peppers.

We had been growing peppers in our backyard garden for about 8 years and then……  WE MOVED. So, we went from our tiny backyard space to 4 acres of open horse pasture. A “blank canvas of green space” to cultivate. Very exciting. [...] We had no idea what our first year vegetable garden would produce. We planted our primary crop of hot chili peppers, tomatoes and a few other veggies to try. Everything did remarkably well.

They support the community in many ways. We are very happy to be friends and source from people who steward their land with love and care.

Everything is grown without chemical fertilizers or insecticides. All natural, Earth friendly produce. We practice sustainable gardening principles. What is good for the earth is good for us.

Dried Ancho Pepper

Dark Chocolate Ancho Infusion Magic

It takes a little work getting the infusion right. We take beautiful dried anchos and weigh out the fleshy parts against the seeds and have found a balance we enjoy.

We wanted to capture that something, the essence, of a really tasty ancho. Smokey, earthy, a little raisin or currant. It should make your tongue tingle but not set you on fire. Topping it all off is a nice kick of heat when you swallow. It’s really quite a nice experience if you’re a fan of savory-sweet chocolate.

We’re going to have anchos until we run out which if we’re lucky will give you a long enough time with them before we let the flavor rest until next they bloom again. Then once again we will hear the chiding of desire for them to return. Seasons are so much fun.

Check the Matthews Community Farmers Market website for availability of ourselves or As Hot As Possible.