Delight Your Valentine with These Scrumptious Offerings

Chef's Corner, Food & Wine

Chocolate Molten Lava Torte

Makes 6–8 ramekins 

Ingredients 

2 Eggs  

1/2 cup sugar

1/2 cup grated 72% chocolate 

1/3 cup salted butter (or regular butter, add a pinch of salt)

1/4 cup flour or gluten free flour

Method

  1. Whip eggs and sugar to ribbon consistency
  2. In same bowl, sift the flour on top of egg mixture and mix carefully
  3. In a separate bowl, mix melted butter and melted chocolate; add to mixture and stir carefully until all is combined 
  4. Pour mix into pre-buttered-and-sugared ramekins
  5. Place ramekins directly on the oven rack and bake for 8-10 minutes in preheated 375 oven
  6. Should be crunchy on the outside but soft in the center

Prep the Ramekins

Brush the ramekins with butter. Dust evenly with sugar, tipping out the excess. Set aside 

Chef Lageder’s Cooking Tips and Tricks

  1. Ribbon consistency means to whip the egg and sugar until almost white; the batter should fall slowly through a whisk forming a ribbon 
  2. Delicious served with whipped cream
  3. Placing the chocolate torte right on the oven rack will help them rise, due to air circulation
  4. Molten chocolate torte can be refrigerated for up to one week when well wrapped in plastic, and they bake better when refrigerated first

Strawberry Bellini

6–8 glasses

Ingredients

1 pint Strawberries – ripe, stem removed and rinsed

2 Tablespoons confectioners sugar or honey

¼ cup brandy 

1 bottle sparkling wine or Champagne­–chilled

Method

Place strawberries, sugar and brandy in a blender and blend until smooth. Chill in refrigerator for 15 minutes

Add 3 Tablespoons of mixture to champagne flutes; top each with chilled sparkling wine, garnish with a fresh strawberry and serve

Chef Lageder’s Cooking Tips and Tricks

Sparkling wine instead of champagne is perfectly fine to use for Strawberry Bellini

Caramel Sugar Design

Makes 8 designs

Ingredients

1 cup Sugar

1/4 cup Water

Method

  1. Add water and sugar to sauce pot, stir until sugar and water is combined (one minute)
  2. Reduce for about 10-15 minutes until the mixture turns brown in color
  3. Cool down for about 5 minutes until syrup-like texture
  4. Using a fork, drizzle the mixture in a circular motion on parchment paper–be very careful, the sugar is extremely hot