Celebrate National Chocolate Week With Some Scrumptious Cocoa Treats

At Her.ie we are sweetie experts and are always willing to do a bit of taste testing in the bakery.

To celebrate national chocolate week, we’ve come up with a couple of tasty weekend recipes that will induce the Friday feeling, leave way for a scrumptious Saturday and of course give you some Sunday satisfaction!

A weekend of chocolate lies ahead! 

Friday’s Instant Chocolate Mousse

Friday night is not one that should be spent hovering over an oven and baking a masterpiece! We love this quick, easy and admittedly a bit bold chocolate mousse. This dessert doesn’t need to spend a long time in the fridge to set, and can be enjoyed as soon as you’ve finished!

Ingredients

50 grams of soft unsalted butter

275 grams of dark chocolate chopped into small pieces

60 mls of boiling water

250 mls of double cream

One teaspoon of vanilla extract 

Method

Melt the butter, chocolate and water in a saucepan on a low heat.

When the ingredients have melted, remove the mixture from the heat.

Whip the cream and vanilla extract until thick and fold together the cooling chocolate into the mixture until you have a smooth mousse.

Divide the mousse into four large glass ramekins or six smaller ones and chill until you want to eat.

Quick and easy choclate mousse is perfect for a Friday night 

Saturday is a Day For Rachael Allen’s Cheesecakes Brownies

We are addicted to Rachael Allen’s Cake Diaries and she had our mouth watering with her recipe for her cheesecake brownies. We think they are the perfect Saturday treat for your children and of course yourself.  Yum!

Brownie Ingredients

100 grams of butter (cut into cubes)

100 grams of dark chocolate (in drops or broken into pieces)

125 grams of caster sugar

One pinch of salt

Three eggs beaten

75 grams of self-raising flour

One tablespoon of cocoa powder

Cheesecake Ingredients

200 grams of cream cheese

Two egg yolks

75 grams of caster sugar

20 centimetre square cake tin

Rachael’s Method

Preheat the oven to 180°C (350°F/Gas 4). If the cake tin has a removable base, butter the sides and line the base with a square of baking parchment, otherwise line the base and sides of the tin.

Place the butter and chocolate in a saucepan and melt over a low heat. Stir just until smooth, then remove from the heat and beat in the sugar and salt, followed by the eggs. Sift in the flour and cocoa powder, add the chocolate chips and stir in.

Tip the batter into the prepared tin and spread out using a spatula. In a clean bowl, beat all the ingredients for the cheesecake mixture together until smooth. Dot heaped teaspoonfuls of this mixture across the top of the brownie batter in the tin, then use a skewer or knife to swirl the two mixtures together, right across the tin and up to the edges.

Bake for 30–35 minutes or until the middle of the cake still wobbles slightly when you gently shake the tin – a skewer inserted into the centre should come out with a little moisture on it.

Remove from the oven, place on a wire rack and allow to cool completely in the tin before carefully removing the cake and cutting into squares to serve

 

Rachael Allen's scrupmptious cheesecake brownies

Sunday’s Smoldering Hot Chocolate

We love this recipe, which pumps up the volume and transforms a boring old cup of hot chocolate by adding a spicy savory twist. It’s the perfect treat after your Sunday roast in front of the latest episode of Downton Abbey. Don’t knock it until you try it! 

Ingredients

One pint of milk

One fresh red chili

60 grams of good quality dark chocolate

Half a cinnamon stick

One pinch ginger

One pinch of salt

A drop of vanilla extract

Method

Place you milk in a saucepan on a low heat.

Make an incision down both sides of your red chili, but do not cut in so deep as to expose the seeds.

Place the chili in the milk and warm gently for five minutes along with the cinnamon stick.

Place your finely chopped chocolate into the saucepan and stir until melted.

Heat for a further ten minutes until the mixture thickens slightly.

Pour the hot chocolate into two mugs and garnish with a dollop of whipped cream and a thin slice of chili.

For those interested in a spicier beverage, cut the chili in half and remove the seeds before adding it to the milk.

Chili hot choclate is perfect for a Sunday night in front of the telly