ATTENTION ALL CHOCOLATE ADDICTS:

This one’s for you.

There is a gourmet delicatessen and grocery store on South Beach called The Thal Brothers’ Epicure Market.  It is one of the most famous gourmet markets in America, written up in Gourmet and Bon Appetit magazines, featured on The Food Network, and on the Travel Channel.  This market originated the idea of selling fine prepared foods and cooked items right in the store, cooked on site and sold ready to eat.  They’ve been doing it on South Beach since the 1940’s, before anyone had ever heard of Whole Foods or Wegman’s or Trader Joe’s.

This market is where I developed my cooking chops, learning at the elbow of an old Philippine chef who had run the kitchen at the fabulous Fountainbleau Hotel in the heyday of Miami Beach.

The Epicure Market bakery is internationally recognized, and they ship product all over the world, with a secret and proprietary shipping method that permits product to arrive at a destination as fresh as it was just out of the oven.  One of the most sought-after products from the bakery at the Epicure is its Brooklyn Blackout Cake.  It is a frenzy of chocolate flavors that can only be described as deathly (this is the original “Death by Chocolate”).  I have heard it suggested that  the cake be served with whipped cream or high-butterfat vanilla ice cream, or Espresso or marscapone.  Pshaw.!
Make this cake for your loved one and serve it with a cold quart of milk.

And then die happy.

It’s not an easy recipe, but it’s worth the time…

Brooklyn Blackout Cake

For the custard filling:

• 1 tablespoon plus 1 ¾ teaspoons unsweetened Dutch-process cocoa powder
• 2 cups boiling water
• ¾ cup plus ½ teaspoon sugar
• 1 ounce bittersweet chocolate chopped
• 2 tablespoons cornstarch dissolved in 1 tablespoon cold water see Note
• ¼ teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter

For the frosting

• 12 ounces semisweet chocolate chopped
• 12 tablespoons (1 ½ sticks) unsalted butter
• ½ cup hot water
• 1 tablespoon light corn syrup
• 1 tablespoon vanilla extract

Preparation:

• Preheat the oven to 375°F degrees. Butter and lightly flour two (8-inch) round cake pans.
• Make the cake: Place the cocoa in a small bowl and whisk in the boiling water to form a paste.
• Combine the chopped chocolate and milk in a saucepan over medium heat. Stir frequently until the chocolate melts, about three minutes. Remove from the heat. Whisk a small amount of the hot chocolate milk into the cocoa paste to warm it. Whisk the cocoa mixture into the milk mixture. Return the pan to medium heat and stir for one minute. Remove and set aside to cool until tepid.
• In the bowl of a mixer, cream the butter and sugar together. Beat in the egg yolks, one at a time, and the vanilla. Slowly stir in the chocolate mixture. Combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Using a spatula or a wooden spoon, slowly add the flour mixture to the chocolate mixture. Fold in until just mixed.
• In another bowl, whisk the egg whites until soft peaks form. Using a spatula, gently fold the egg whites into the batter.
• Divide the batter between the prepared pans. Bake until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, 35 to 45 minutes. Cool the cakes in the pans on rack for 15 minutes.  Gently remove the cakes from the pans and continue to cool.
• While the cake is baking, combine the cocoa and boiling water in a small saucepan over low heat. Stir in the sugar and chocolate. Add the dissolved cornstarch paste and salt to the pan and bring to a boil, stirring constantly. Boil for one minute. Remove from heat and whisk in vanilla and butter. Transfer the mixture to a bowl, cover and refrigerate until cool.
• Make the frosting: Melt the chocolate in a double boiler over hot, not simmering, water, stirring until smooth. Remove the top of the double boiler from the heat and whisk in the butter, one tablespoon at a time. Return the top to the heat, if necessary, to melt the butter.
• Whisk in the hot water all at once and whisk until smooth. Whisk in the corn syrup and vanilla. Cover and refrigerate for up to 15 minutes before using.
• Assemble the cake: use a sharp serrated knife to slice each cake layer horizontally in half to form four layers. Set one layer aside. Place one layer on a cake round or plate. Generously swath the layer with one-half of the custard filling. Add the second layer and repeat. Set the third layer on top. Quickly apply a thin layer of frosting to the top and sides of the cake. Refrigerate for 10 minutes.
• Meanwhile, crumble the remaining cake layer. Apply the remaining frosting to the cake. Sprinkle it liberally with the cake crumbs. Refrigerate for at least 1 hour before serving.

This is a simple cold salad with a sensational dressing.  And, you can spice it up to taste.  Feel free to play with the amounts of cumin, chili powder, and hot sauce.  A vegetarian delight for a hot and humid summer day:

Ingredients:

1 15-oz can black beans
1 15-oz can light red kidney beans
1 15-oz can cannellini (white) beans
1 green bell pepper, chopped
1 yellow bell pepper, chopped
1 10-oz package frozen corn, defrosted
1 red onion, chopped
1/2 cup olive oil
1/2 cup red wine vinegar
2 Tbsp freshly squeezed lime juice
1 Tbsp freshly squeezed lemon juice
2 Tbsp white sugar
1 tbsp salt
1 clove smashed and finely minced garlic
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
1/2 Tbsp ground cumin
1/2 Tbsp freshly ground black pepper
1 dash red pepper (read: Tabasco) sauce

1/2 tsp chili powder

Procedure:

In a large bowl, combine beans, bell peppers, corn, and red onion
In a small food chopper, add all remaining ingredients, and pulse until the ingredients are well mixed.
Pour dressing over salad fixin’s and mix well.  Chill thoroughly and serve cold.

Serves 8

I call this dish Vicki’s Noodles because I got the recipe from an old friend named, Vicki, a nurse and confessed Jersey Girl I knew many years ago.  Vicki spent some time in Southeast Asia after nursing school, when there was an unpleasant thing going on between the locals and  the U.S. Army.  She could cook, and was especially adept at Asian cuisine. I have several of her recipes in my notebook. This one is Cold Sesame Noodles. The ingredients beyond the sauce are completely optional. I like to use fresh, crispy bean sprouts.  A chef I once worked with suggested I add red cabbage and some shredded carrot for color and texture.  I liked the way that worked out, and I have also variously included chopped snow peas or sugar-snap peas, which we grow in our garden.  I also often give it a note of Thai by adding some chopped basil and a teaspoonful of fish sauce.  If you like meat in your salad, add grilled slices of chicken or London broil, or try it with cubes of premium dry tofu, drained and dried or lightly grilled.  Play with this one and see what you like.  There’s almost no ingredient you could add that would not make it better. The sauce is a nice sweet and tangy one, but it doesn’t get in the way of any kind of additional ingredient.

My peanut butter of choice is Crazy Richard’s peanut butter, because the only ingredient in the jar is peanuts.  No added oil, salt, sugar, or any stabilizers.  Just peanuts.  It’s the best peanut butter to control the mixture of flavors, which is significant.  I make the dish with whole wheat linguine, but it is just as good with Asian buckwheat noodles, rice noodles, plain spaghetti, or whatever pasta you prefer. Adjust the amount of red chile oil to your own liking. This one is not too spicy. To kick it up, increase the hot chile oil to 1 tablespoon instead of a teaspoon.

Ingredients:

1 lb. whole-wheat linguine (or 8 oz. medium rice noodles, soaked 20 minutes in hot water)

3 tablespoons crunchy peanut butter

3 tablespoons rice wine vinegar

3 tablespoons brown sugar

3 tablespoons soy sauce

1-3 tsp dark toasted sesame-seed oil

1-3 tsp chili-sesame oil

1 tablespoon fish sauce (optional)

1/2 cup chopped peanuts

¼ finely-chopped small red cabbage

1 finely grated carrot

1 handful FRESH (!) bean sprouts

1 bunch fresh scallions, chopped, roots discarded.

Procedure:

Prepare the noodles al-dente’ per the package (1-2 minutes LESS than the recommended package directions). Drain but do not rinse.

While the noodles are cooking (or soaking, if you’re using rice noodles), in a small bowl, combine the next six ingredients (peanut butter through chile oil–seven if you’re including fish sauce) with a whisk until smooth and completely blended.  Add half the peanuts; the carrot, cabbage, and bean sprouts; and all but a handful of the scallions. Toss to completely coat the drained noodles and aside at room temperature.
One half hour before serving, add the protein if you use it, and toss well to coat with sauce. Allow to rest for a half hour, sprinkle the remaining peanuts and scallions over the noodles, then serve (don’t allow this to sit too long. The sauce will eventually break.)

 This dish is meant to be served at room temperature. If you plan to add chicken, it should be grilled ahead of time and chilled.