* CHOCOLATE
We had a fab. chocolate evening in February 2008.
This article is about what we learned about
chocolate...
Chocolate goes with almost anything including mint, strawberries, ice cream, bananas, and even savoury dishes like chilli or in something like red wine and chocolate sauce. Chocolate can be enjoyed in just about any form, so why not try ice cream with warm chocolate sauce, grilled bananas with melting chocolate, or poires Hélène? Or a chocolate fondue or chocolate fountain in which you can dip strawberries, raspberries, blackberries, biscuits, nuts, dried fruit... Try strawberries dipped in melted chocolate, or with melting chocolate poured over, or dip and eat when the chocolate has cooled and hardened.
The good news is that good-quality dark organic chocolate is actually good for you!
Recipes
This recipe for vegan 'Mars' bars plus variations is published here with the kind permission of Veggies. Veggies say that you can make your own - but it's better to buy theirs! (Veggies' food is available at all good demo.s.) You can see more Veggies recipes at www.veggies.org.uk/recipes
Vegan 'Mars' bars
Nougat
2 cups of s. milk
9 oz s. margarine
24 oz sugar
2 tbsp vanilla essence
12 oz dried s. milk
Put the milk, margarine and sugar into a thick-bottomed saucepan and heat, without stirring, on a low heat until it bubbles all over and triples in size.
Keep at this heat for 2 minutes (if you have a sugar thermometer, it should be 235° F/112.8° C). Cool.
Add the vanilla essence and the dried s. milk and beat till creamy.
Pour into baking trays roughly the size of 48 Mars bars and freeze for an hour.
Toffee
12 oz sugar
12 oz s. margarine
250 ml s. cream
3 tbsp Golden Syrup
Put everything in a thick-bottomed saucepan and heat on a low heat till it bubbles all over and triples in size.
Keep at this temperature for 4-5 minutes, stirring constantly.
Pour the toffee over the nougat and freeze for another hour.
Cut into Mars bar-size pieces and re-freeze until the toffee is solid (this can take a couple of days).
Melt 1,200g of vegan chocolate in a microwave if you have one (3 minutes full power per 100g) or place in a bowl above a saucepan of boiling water till melted.
Coat the bars with chocolate and place on a greased tray. Re-freeze. Defrost to eat.
The 'Marathon' variation
Replace vanilla essence with 340g of crunchy peanut butter and 20g chopped, unsalted peanuts.
Note: these basic nougat and toffee recipes can be used to make a whole range of vegan versions of chocolate bars.
www.veggies.org.uk
Boozy chocolate mousse
Ingredients
100g vegan chocolate
250 ml s. cream
1 tbsp brandy
Notes
This is very rich so you don't need huge amounts of it - this is enough for 5 or 6 servings.
Method
Melt the chocolate.
Pour into a mixing bowl, add the soya cream and brandy and whisk until the mixture thickens (about 5 minutes using a hand whisk).
Spoon into ramekins and chill for a few hours. Grate some of the chocolate and sprinkle over the ramekins just before serving.
from Animal Aid's 'The Veggie Collection' at www.animalaid.org.uk/veggie/recipes.htm
Mocha chocolate cake
Cake
8 oz (225g) self-raising wholemeal flour
6 level dssp cocoa powder
1 level tsp bicarbonate of soda
1 level tsp cream of tartar
2 tbsp soya flour
7 oz (200g) caster sugar
9 fl oz (250 ml) water
Filling
2 oz (55g) vegan margarine
4 oz (55g) icing sugar
1 tsp coffee essence or v. strong coffee
few drops of vanilla essence
Topping
1 bar vegan chocolate
1-2 tbsp boiling water
chocolate-covered coffee beans
1. Pre-heat oven to 200ºC/400ºF/gas mark 6.
2. Sift flour into a basin with the cocoa powder, bicarbonate of soda and cream of tartar. Add soya flour and sugar, and then mix together. Stir in the water.
3. Turn evenly into 2 greased 7" sandwich tins. Bake in the pre-heated oven for about 25 minutes. Leave in the tins until cool before turning out.
4. Make the filling: cream the margarine with half the sugar, then add remainder and cream again. Stir in coffee essence or strong coffee gradually to required consistency. When smooth, add a few drops of vanilla essence.
5. Make the topping: melt the chocolate in a double saucepan and add boiling water. The more water added, the softer the topping. 6. Spread on top of cake and leave to set. Decorate with chocolate- covered coffee beans.
www.vegansociety.com/html/food/recipes/cakes.php
manufacturers:
Plamil - all vegan products, including chocolate.
www.plamilfoods.co.uk/
Booja Booja - vegan chocolate confectionery, especially truffles.
www.boojabooja.com/
Troody skrumptious - hand-made vegan chocolate bars and truffles in many flavours available by mail order in the UK; said to make the best vegan truffles.
www.troodyskrumptious.co.uk/
Hotel Chocolat - some vegan chocolate.
www.hotelchocolat.co.uk/
Montezumas - some vegan chocolate, including truffles.
www.montezumas.co.uk/
Green & Black's - all organic, some vegan chocolate.
www.greenandblacks.com/uk/index.php
Divine - Fair Trade company; some chocolate products 'may contain traces of milk', which is apparently the best they can manage from a vegan point of view – the others are 'not suitable for vegans'.
www.divinechocolate.com/home/
Vegan Organica - vegan chocolate products range.
www.venturefoods.com
on-line stores:
Animal Aid - truffles, hazelnut crunch rochers, boxed chocolates, fudge, bars, Plamil chocolate.
www.animalaidshop.org.uk/chocolate.htm
Ethical superstore - quite a few varieties of Fair Traded vegan chocolate such as the dark varieties of Green & Black's and Divine and even the new couverture bar from Organica.
www.ethicalsuperstore.com/category/food-and-drink/chocolate/
Viva! - boxed chocolates, bars, Tropical Source chocolate, fudge, chocolate beans.
www.viva.org.uk/vivashop/
Dietary needs direct - a good range of chocolates and sweets which are suitable for vegans.
www.dietaryneedsdirect.co.uk/cnb/shop/
Veganstore.co.uk - cookies, Tropical Source chocolate, chocolate spread, Whizzers chocolate beans, fudge, rich (73% cocoa) chocolate bars, also good range of products for children including Easter products, and now stocking vegan 'Bounty' bars and peanut bars similar to Snickers.
www.veganstore.co.uk
Chocolate goes with almost anything including mint, strawberries, ice cream, bananas, and even savoury dishes like chilli or in something like red wine and chocolate sauce. Chocolate can be enjoyed in just about any form, so why not try ice cream with warm chocolate sauce, grilled bananas with melting chocolate, or poires Hélène? Or a chocolate fondue or chocolate fountain in which you can dip strawberries, raspberries, blackberries, biscuits, nuts, dried fruit... Try strawberries dipped in melted chocolate, or with melting chocolate poured over, or dip and eat when the chocolate has cooled and hardened.
The good news is that good-quality dark organic chocolate is actually good for you!
Recipes
This recipe for vegan 'Mars' bars plus variations is published here with the kind permission of Veggies. Veggies say that you can make your own - but it's better to buy theirs! (Veggies' food is available at all good demo.s.) You can see more Veggies recipes at www.veggies.org.uk/recipes
Vegan 'Mars' bars
Nougat
2 cups of s. milk
9 oz s. margarine
24 oz sugar
2 tbsp vanilla essence
12 oz dried s. milk
Put the milk, margarine and sugar into a thick-bottomed saucepan and heat, without stirring, on a low heat until it bubbles all over and triples in size.
Keep at this heat for 2 minutes (if you have a sugar thermometer, it should be 235° F/112.8° C). Cool.
Add the vanilla essence and the dried s. milk and beat till creamy.
Pour into baking trays roughly the size of 48 Mars bars and freeze for an hour.
Toffee
12 oz sugar
12 oz s. margarine
250 ml s. cream
3 tbsp Golden Syrup
Put everything in a thick-bottomed saucepan and heat on a low heat till it bubbles all over and triples in size.
Keep at this temperature for 4-5 minutes, stirring constantly.
Pour the toffee over the nougat and freeze for another hour.
Cut into Mars bar-size pieces and re-freeze until the toffee is solid (this can take a couple of days).
Melt 1,200g of vegan chocolate in a microwave if you have one (3 minutes full power per 100g) or place in a bowl above a saucepan of boiling water till melted.
Coat the bars with chocolate and place on a greased tray. Re-freeze. Defrost to eat.
The 'Marathon' variation
Replace vanilla essence with 340g of crunchy peanut butter and 20g chopped, unsalted peanuts.
Note: these basic nougat and toffee recipes can be used to make a whole range of vegan versions of chocolate bars.
www.veggies.org.uk
Boozy chocolate mousse
Ingredients
100g vegan chocolate
250 ml s. cream
1 tbsp brandy
Notes
This is very rich so you don't need huge amounts of it - this is enough for 5 or 6 servings.
Method
Melt the chocolate.
Pour into a mixing bowl, add the soya cream and brandy and whisk until the mixture thickens (about 5 minutes using a hand whisk).
Spoon into ramekins and chill for a few hours. Grate some of the chocolate and sprinkle over the ramekins just before serving.
from Animal Aid's 'The Veggie Collection' at www.animalaid.org.uk/veggie/recipes.htm
Mocha chocolate cake
Cake
8 oz (225g) self-raising wholemeal flour
6 level dssp cocoa powder
1 level tsp bicarbonate of soda
1 level tsp cream of tartar
2 tbsp soya flour
7 oz (200g) caster sugar
9 fl oz (250 ml) water
Filling
2 oz (55g) vegan margarine
4 oz (55g) icing sugar
1 tsp coffee essence or v. strong coffee
few drops of vanilla essence
Topping
1 bar vegan chocolate
1-2 tbsp boiling water
chocolate-covered coffee beans
1. Pre-heat oven to 200ºC/400ºF/gas mark 6.
2. Sift flour into a basin with the cocoa powder, bicarbonate of soda and cream of tartar. Add soya flour and sugar, and then mix together. Stir in the water.
3. Turn evenly into 2 greased 7" sandwich tins. Bake in the pre-heated oven for about 25 minutes. Leave in the tins until cool before turning out.
4. Make the filling: cream the margarine with half the sugar, then add remainder and cream again. Stir in coffee essence or strong coffee gradually to required consistency. When smooth, add a few drops of vanilla essence.
5. Make the topping: melt the chocolate in a double saucepan and add boiling water. The more water added, the softer the topping. 6. Spread on top of cake and leave to set. Decorate with chocolate- covered coffee beans.
www.vegansociety.com/html/food/recipes/cakes.php
manufacturers:
Plamil - all vegan products, including chocolate.
www.plamilfoods.co.uk/
Booja Booja - vegan chocolate confectionery, especially truffles.
www.boojabooja.com/
Troody skrumptious - hand-made vegan chocolate bars and truffles in many flavours available by mail order in the UK; said to make the best vegan truffles.
www.troodyskrumptious.co.uk/
Hotel Chocolat - some vegan chocolate.
www.hotelchocolat.co.uk/
Montezumas - some vegan chocolate, including truffles.
www.montezumas.co.uk/
Green & Black's - all organic, some vegan chocolate.
www.greenandblacks.com/uk/index.php
Divine - Fair Trade company; some chocolate products 'may contain traces of milk', which is apparently the best they can manage from a vegan point of view – the others are 'not suitable for vegans'.
www.divinechocolate.com/home/
Vegan Organica - vegan chocolate products range.
www.venturefoods.com
on-line stores:
Animal Aid - truffles, hazelnut crunch rochers, boxed chocolates, fudge, bars, Plamil chocolate.
www.animalaidshop.org.uk/chocolate.htm
Ethical superstore - quite a few varieties of Fair Traded vegan chocolate such as the dark varieties of Green & Black's and Divine and even the new couverture bar from Organica.
www.ethicalsuperstore.com/category/food-and-drink/chocolate/
Viva! - boxed chocolates, bars, Tropical Source chocolate, fudge, chocolate beans.
www.viva.org.uk/vivashop/
Dietary needs direct - a good range of chocolates and sweets which are suitable for vegans.
www.dietaryneedsdirect.co.uk/cnb/shop/
Veganstore.co.uk - cookies, Tropical Source chocolate, chocolate spread, Whizzers chocolate beans, fudge, rich (73% cocoa) chocolate bars, also good range of products for children including Easter products, and now stocking vegan 'Bounty' bars and peanut bars similar to Snickers.
www.veganstore.co.uk