Grand Cru Araguani - 72 percent cocoa from a blend of Criollos and Trinitarios beans from Venezuela.
He also gave me some cocoa, the provenance of which is not so certain since it's a collection of dessert leavings.
He also gave me some cocoa, the provenance of which is not so certain since it's a collection of dessert leavings.
I would like to think though that the cocoa is Valrhona as well.
I used both the Araguani feves and the cocoa in this cake.
I used both the Araguani feves and the cocoa in this cake. Its texture was crumbly on the fork, like smooth mashed potato in the mouth.
The double chocolate gave the cake a deep, slightly bitter, burnt finish.
The almond slivers added a bit of crunch, resulting in a contrasting mouth feel.
Ingredients
8 oz butter
12 oz self-raising flour
5 oz brown sugar
5 oz castor sugar
4 eggs
2 oz cocoa
4 oz dark chocolate (melted)
4 teaspoons honey
3 fl oz milk
pinch of salt
almond slivers to sprinkle on top of cake
Method
Cream the butter with the sugars and honey. Beat in the eggs. Add the salt and cocoa to the flour and fold this into the butter mixture, alternating with the milk. Mix in the melted chocolate. Transfer to a springform tin that has been buttered and dusted with flour. Sprinkle the almonds on the cake mix. Bake in an 180 degree oven for about an hour.
The next time I make this I will use yoghurt in place of the milk and add some orange rind to give it a slightly sharper citrus note.
