Recipes from professional Chef Tallyrand:

• Chocolate Tart with a Hot Chocolate Syrup Sauce •

Valentines Day Special . . . which must mean chocolate!

Before I even start on food this week; I would like to take this opportunity to wish my Mother a Very Happy Birthday! (February 2nd) and it would have been, well still is I guess, her forty-sixth Wedding Anniversary on Valentine's Day (my father passing away some years back) . . . Happy Birthday Mum!

Love and chocolate . . . why do they go so well together? Could it be as scientists tell us that eating chocolate is not only good for the heart (in small amounts that is) but also that eating this delectable of all foods produces the same chemical reaction in us that happens when we fall in love?

Or could it be there is just something darn right sensual about the food?

Whatever it is, I am not one to argue, I just enjoy it immensely. I am not usually someone with a sweet tooth but, if it is chocolate, I just cannot resist! Which might have something to do with my increasing waistline as I get older . . . older but wiser and improving with age, well that's my excuse anyway!

In fact, when out to dinner last night with friends, I had to indulge myself with the dessert that was described on the menu as "R18 : rich, home made chocolate ice cream with crunchy chocolate shards served with a chocolate sauce and in a pool of hot sex"! Boy was it good, and deserved the R18 rating! Hot Sex by the way is the name of a chocolate liqueur . . . just in case you were wondering?

So for this special day of the year, why not try this delectable chocolate tart? I love to serve it by cutting it into three small wedges per person, criss-crossing them on top of each other, drizzling the plate with a hot chocolate syrup sauce (the recipe for which I have also included), scattering a few raspberries around the plate and giving it a light dusting of either icing (powdered) sugar or cocoa depending on the colour of the plate being used, then serving crème fraiche or a thick, unsweetened yoghurt separately.

Talk about decadent!

Chocolate Tart

Ingredients

cooking chocolate	150	gm
unsalted butter	50	gm
whipping cream	50	ml
egg whites	7	pc
caster sugar	60	gm
egg yolks	5	pc
plain flour	50	gm
unsweetened cocoa powder	30	gm
chopped walnuts	100	gm
icing sugar		sq
plain chocolate	150	gm
milk	50	ml

Method

1. Place walnuts on a baking tray, sprinkle with icing sugar and glaze under a very hot salamander
2. Grease and flour a 28 x 3 cm round pastry ring and place on a baking sheet
3. Melt the cooking chocolate over a warm bain marie (double boiler), stir in the butter pieces with a spatula until fully incorporated and the mixture is smooth
4. Stir in the cream and remove from heat and cool
5. Whip egg whites to soft peaks adding the sugar gradually
6. Stir in the egg yolks
7. Sprinkle in the flour and cocoa
8. Fold in the chocolate and butter mixture and mix gently
9. Pour half this mixture into pastry ring, sprinkle with the walnuts and pour over remaining mixture
10. Bake in a preheated oven at 180°C, for 15 minutes
11. Allow to cool for 10 minutes before turning out onto cooling rack, allow to rest for one hour
12. Melt the plain chocolate in a warm bain marie and thin down with the milk
13. Place the cooling rack on a tray and spread the above mixture over the tart
14. Allow to cool

Chef's Tip:

Walnuts may be replaced with other nuts or fruits

Chocolate Syrup

Ingredients

brown sugar	60	gm
water	60	gm
cocoa	3	tbs
golden / corn syrup	125	gm

Method

1. Combine the sugar, water and cocoa in a pan and stir to remove any lumps
2. Add the golden syrup and bring gently to a boil, while stirring
3. Boil for 30 seconds and remove from heat
4. Use straight away or keep warm in a bain marie (double boiler)

Enjoy and bon appetit . . . . .

Published 03 February 2003