Valentine's day is exactly one month away and I'm elbow deep in chocolate recipes. I've been searching for ideas and inspiration for sweet, edible tokens of affection. Recently while watching a food show on TV, I saw chocolate soup being served at a popular chocolate bar/buffet. Patrons were proclaiming their love (between slurps of soup) for the warm, velvety smoothness and rich chocolaty flavor. I got out a pen and paper and wrote:
In my search I've found so many variations on chocolate soup, I didn't know which one to try! They all sounded so rich and almost too heavy. (Does anyone really want a heavy dessert on date night?) After a few trial runs, I decided to make my own.
RECIPE:
Soup :
- A cup of skim milk
- A cup of fat free half and half
1/3 cup fat free sweetened condensed milk
- 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract
- A cup of bittersweet chocolate chips OR 6 oz. bar chocolate chopped.
- 2 tbsp cornstarch
- 2 tbsp cold water Garnish
- 2 oz. low fat cream cheese
- 2 heaping tbsp marshmallow cream
Soup:
In a medium saucepan, over medium heat, stir together the
skim, half and half , sweetened condensed milk and vanilla extract.
Bring the mixture altmos to a boil.
Put the pan on low heat, add the chocolate and whisk, until the
chocolate start to melt.
Combine the cornstarch and water to a form a slurry.
Add a slurry a little at a time, whisking constantly, until the soup is thik
and smooth.
You will know it is ready when the bubbles are gone and the
chocolate has thikened, about 5 to 7 minutes.
Carefully pour into two bowls and garnish.
Topping
Microwave the creamcheese at 10 sec. intervals
or until it can be stirred smooth. Add marshmallow cream
to the cream cheese and mix welll.
Dollop on top of the soup, or transfer mixture to pastry
bag and pipe design.
I wanted to lighten the soup without compromising the richness or velvety texture. I mixed skim milk with fat-free half and half to maintain the creamy texture. I also found that I could not tell the difference (in the completed soup) between the fat-free and regular sweetened condensed milk. One of my favorite elements of this dish is the marshmallow & cream cheese garnish. It provides an interesting and needed flavor contrast.
I used Ghiradelli semisweet baking chips, but the variations on this recipe are as numerous as there are varieties of chocolate. I would imagine an orange infused chocolate bar would pair well with a little Grand Marnier in this soup. I also think a big fat biscotti crouton (or many of them) would be a delicious addition.
This dessert should be served warm. I have a jar of gourmet ice cream topping called "chocolate crunch" that I used for further garnishing. Completed, the soup is rich and velvety just like the full-fat version. The flavor is a bit like a rich chocolate pudding. If I could describe where chocolate soup lives, it's somewhere between rich hot chocolate-ville and chocolate pudding city.
I think this would be an excellent Valentine's day dessert to share with someone special, even if that someone special is your Grandma. I view the holiday as a celebration of all kinds of love, and not just the romantic variety. I'm hoping to share more chocolaty recipes with you before V-day arrives, and I can't wait to see what everyone else will be cooking up!
Fonte/source: http://www.sprinklebakes.com/2010/01/chocolate-soup-for-two.html
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