Chocolate Day 2022: Valentine's Day, the annual festival to celebrate love, romance and friendship is the time you look for innovative ways to make your loved one feel special. From setting movie dates, sending love letters to planning memorable candle-light dinners with them are some of the ways to spend some quality time with your lover.
If you are someone who loves to cook or bake, Valentine's Week (February 7-February 14) is perfect for you. From Rose Day, Propose Day, Chocolate Day, Teddy Day, Promise Day, Hug Day, Kiss Day to Valentine's Day, you can make each of these days special for your loved one.
Chocolate Day is celebrated on the third day of Valentine's Week and on this people exchange sweets and chocolates to show their affection. Chocolate Day is the perfect occasion to treat your loved one considering it can make its way into almost every dessert.
In case, you are planning to impress your loved one with your cooking or baking skills, here are some recipes you can try at home.
1. Chocolate Shake
Recipe by Dayal Singh Negi chef at Foodya, Noida Sector 63
Ingredients
3 tbsps of Hershey’s chocolate syrup
1.5 cup (350 ml) of chilled milk
1 tsp vanilla essence
2 scoops of vanilla ice cream
1 Kitkat bar with broken sticks
4-6 large ice cubes
Method
* Add 2 spoons of chocolate syrup, 1 scoop of ice cream, vanilla essence and ice cubes in a blender.
* Blend till the ice cubes have been finely crushed.
* Next, add the milk and blend it all again.
* Drizzle the empty glass with a large spoonful of chocolate syrup.
* Pour the milkshake in the glass and top it off with a scoop of ice cream. Stick the pieces of Kitkat on the ice cream to decorate the glass. Slide in a metal straw and enjoy!
2. Eggless Chocolate Cake
Recipe by Home chef Nivedita Gangay
Ingredients
1 cup Flour
1/4 cup cocoa powder
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp coffee powder
3/4 cup milk
1/2 tbsp vinegar
3/4 cup Regular Sugar
1/4 cup oil
1 tap vanilla extract
Coffee cream Frosting
1 Cup Whipping cream
2 tbsp Powdered Sugar
1 tbsp Coffee Powder
1 tbsp Hot Water
Directions
Making the cake
* Powder the sugar
* Mix milk and Vinegar and keep it aside for 10 minutes
* Sieve - flour, baking soda, cocoa powder and salt - set aside
* In a large bowl - Mix oil and sugar and add the add milk + vinegar to it
* Add sieved flour to the mix
* Whisk the mixture to form a smooth batter (The batter will be a bit watery and runny)
* Do not use electric whisk as it will over mix the cake batter
* Transfer it to a greased 6-inch baking tin and bake it as follows -
For Baking without Oven
* Heat a huge Kadhai or pot over medium flame put an inverted steel plate or a steel stand in it - cover with a heavy lid and pre heat for 10 mins
* Transfer the cake tin into the pre heated kadhai and bake for 30-40 mins on low flame or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean
For Baking in Oven
* Pre heat the oven at 180 Degrees for 10 mins
* Transfer the cake tin and bake for 25-30 mins or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean
For Coffee Cream Frosting
* In a cold bowl - add chilled whipped cream and start whisking it using an electric whisk
* Continue whisking at high speed for 4-5 mins till stiff peaks form
* In a separate small bowl - mix hot water and coffee to form a paste
* Add the coffee paste and powdered sugar to the cream and whisk once more till everything is well combined
* Keep it in refrigerator till its ready to use
Assembling the cake
Once the cake is baked - let it cool completely before taking it out of the tin. Remove the cake and cool it in refrigerator for atleast 15 minutes. Apply the coffee cream frosting on the cake with a spoon. Dust with some cocoa powder on top.
Your cake is ready to be devoured.
3. Dark Chocolate Pudding with Malted Cream
Recipe by Executive Chef Amit Kocharekar, The Resort Mumbai
Ingredients
For the pudding
• 60g butter
• Butter, plus extra for the ramekins
• 2 tbsp cocoa powder
• 100g 70% dark chocolate
• Dark chocolate soup pots with double cream in spoons
• 2 eggs
• 100g caster sugar
• ½ tsp malt powder
For the cream
• 100ml double cream
• 2 tbsp muscovado sugar
• 1 tbsp malt powder
To serve
• 3 glacé cherries, cut in half
• 1 tbsp chopped salted pistachios
Method
* Butter three ramekins, dust with cocoa and set aside. Heat oven to 200 degrees. Melt the butter and chocolate in a bowl over a pan of simmering water.
* In a separate bowl, whisk together the eggs and sugar until light and fluffy, then whisk in the chocolate mixture with the malt powder and a pinch of salt.
* Divide the mixture between the ramekins and bake for 14 minutes until they are just cooked with a slight wobble in the middle to make a fondant, or 18 mins for a pudding. Remove from the oven, turn out and serve warm now, or leave to cool in their ramekins.
* Whisk the cream, sugar and malt powder together to soft peaks. Carefully turn the puddings out onto plates, cherries and pistachios, and serve with the malted cream.
4. Chocolate Karanji
By Executive Chef Amit Kocharekar, The Resort Mumbai
Ingredients
• 1 sugar
• 1 cup refined flour
• 1/2 cup suji
• 1tsp poppy seeds.
• 1/4 cup Dry fruits
• 3 tablespoon Cooking oil
• 1 teaspoon Cardamom Powder
• Oil for frying.
For the filling
- Take a heavy bottom pan, put oil, add rawa and cook it
- Put some ghee in the pan and then cook the moong dal. At the same time make the sugar syrup and once the moong dal is cooked pour the sugar syrup in it.
- Take a heavy bottom kadai, add ghee, rawa and sugar abd cook it. Then add the dry fruits and keep it for cooling.
* For making the outer layer take the maida in a bowl. Make a depression in the center and pour the hot ghee into it mixing it with the flour thoroughly with your fingers.
* Knead the flour and other ingredients slowly by pouring the water and milk in the mixture a little at a time.
* Once the dough is pliable yet firm, cover it with a damp cloth
* Take one of the small dough pieces and with the help of a rolling pin, shape it into a small circular poori, 3-4 inch in diameter.
* Divide the poori into half, pour in 1-2 tablespoon of the filling of the moong dal one side, and carefully fold the other half, closing the poori-shaped dough completely.
* In order to shape these pooris, press them on the cutting board, and carefully remove the extra dough using a karanji cutter.
* Once done, keep it aside to be fried. Repeat the same procedure for the remaining dough balls and cover the prepared karanjis with cloth when done.
* Finally, deep-fry all the prepared karanjis in hot oil, turning them continuously till they turn golden brown. Cool them down and then coat with the chocolate.
* Your lip-smacking, hot and crunchy chocolate Karanji is ready to eat.
5. Chocolate Foundante
By Executive Chef Amit Kocharekar, The Resort Mumbai
Ingredients:
Egg 200gms
Sugar 150gms
Butter 200gms
Valrhona Dar chocolate 200gms
All-purpose flour 120gms
Method
* Beat the egg and sugar together till fluffy
* Melt the chocolate with help of double boiler then add butter into it
* Then add melted chocolate and beaten egg mix to it with cut and fold method.
* Then add flour in similar fashion
* Keep mixture aside, then apply butter on mold and dust with flour.
* Then pour this mixture in mold, bake at 210°c for 8 to 10 minutes
* Then serve with Vanilla ice cream
6. Cherry Berry Chocolate Whipped
By Executive Chef Amit Kocharekar, The Resort Mumbai
Ingredients
Elle & Vire cream 200gms
Butter 50gms
Valrhona Dark Chocolate 100gmms
Fresh cherry compote 100 gms
Fresh berry compote 100gms
Method
* Heat the cream, add butter, and chocolate
* Keep this mixture for 1 hr
* After an hour, beat this mixture again till it's fluffy
* For presentation pour this mixture in a glass then put cherry compote and then again add chocolate mixture, finished with berry compote
