chocolate

Eclair Extravaganza!

   Adam Zolkover

These eclairs were pastries of necessity, people.  With almost four dozen eggs haunting my fridge, I really had no choice but to act rashly.  But the thing with making eclairs for no particular occasion is that they can only be done in batches of two dozen.  And with only three or four people to devour them — that’s a high per capita rate of pastry cream.

Eclair Extravaganza!

Eclair Extravaganza!

I cannot — alas — give you a recipe.  It isn’t mine to give.  But if you’re interested, I would highly recommend investing in a copy of Pastry: Savory & Sweet by Michel Roux. It is short, cheap, and has lots of pictures.  But despite those things, I have not seen a better book for making elegant pastries at home.

Tempering Chocolate Using the Seed Method

   Adam Zolkover
Tempering Chocolate Using the Seed Method

Tempering chocolate used to drive me crazy. There were several years there where I’d make chocolate dipped shortbread to send around to friends and family as gifts for the holidays. I would grit my teeth, pull out my electronic thermometer, marble slab, and heating pad, then fuss with getting my chocolate up to 130F, then down to 88F, then back up — just a hair of a hair, mind you — to the point of liquidity.

Achieving and maintaining those precise temperatures required constant vigilance. It always made a huge mess. And half the time, despite my best efforts, I missed my marks anyway, and my chocolate-dipped treats turned out streaky and waxy and gross, and totally unfit for service in yuletide care packages — or anywhere else.

Chocolate Whiskey Cake

   Adam Zolkover
Chocolate Whiskey Cake

A Dolley Madison cake, I told my friend Linda. That’s what I want to make you for your birthday. That’s what it’s called? That’s what I call it. It’s a historical recipe — supposedly her favorite when she was First Lady. It’s a sponge. With caramel icing. No chocolate, then? Linda sounded disappointed. Then: But […]

Chocolate Macaroon Fail!

   Adam Zolkover

I think that I wanted it too much. That was the problem. Passover is coming, it’s my favorite holiday of the year, and what better way to celebrate here at Twice Cooked than with chocolate coconut macaroons. Parve, kosher for Passover, chocolate coconut macaroons. But alas. I suppose that it wasn’t to be. Here’s the […]

Chocolate-Chocolate Chunk Cookies (Now with Cherries and Almonds!)

   Adam Zolkover

Sometimes I cook because I’m excited about a new idea.  Sometimes, it’s because I’m hungry, or because I want something specific, or because I want to impress my friends, or because I’m guilted into it by Sarah, who tells me:  Really?  You want to order in again?  Didn’t we just get a bunch of vegetables […]