Tag romantic dinners

Impress Your Date with Parties That Cook’s Chocolate Soufflé Cake with Salted Crème Caramel

0 comments By The Kitchen Whisperer Filed in General Tagged with , , , , , , , January 27th, 2011 @ 6:17 pm

Taking on the task of cooking for your Valentine? Well, you should! Cooking for your date shows you put thought and effort into the evening. Even if you’re planning an elegant dinner out this Valentine’s Day, you can put a personal touch on the night by baking your own dessert. This easy to make Scharffen Berger Chocolate Soufflé Cake with Salted Crème Caramel – the name alone sounds deceptively intimidating – is sure to impress!

Scharffen Berger Chocolate Soufflé Cake with Salted Crème Caramel
This recipe, along with other crave-worthy recipes, can be found in our Dessert Recipe Library!

Ingredients
Prepping the pan:
1 1/2 Tablespoons butter2 Tablespoons sugar

Torte:
6 ounces bittersweet Scharffen Berger chocolate, finely chopped
6 ounces (12 Tablespoons) unsalted butter
4 eggs
1/2 cup sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla

Salted Crème Caramel:
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 cup water
Pinch of cream of tartar
3/4 cup cream
½ teaspoon fleur de sel (sea salt) + more for garnish if desired

Mint sprigs (optional)

Methods/Steps
Preheat the oven to 275º F.

Prepare cake pans: Butter bottom of 8 5-ounce ramekins. Dust the sides of the ramekins with granulated sugar and tap out the excess sugar.

Batter: Melt chocolate and butter in a bowl or double boiler set over lightly simmering water. Once melted, stir to mix and remove from heat and let cool slightly. Separate eggs placing yolks in large bowl and whites in medium bowl. Using a hand mixer, whisk sugar and vanilla into egg yolks until they are thick and pale. Gently (on a lower speed) whisk cooled chocolate mixture into egg yolks. Whip egg whites to soft peaks and fold them into egg yolk/chocolate mixture.

Bake Cakes: Pour batter into the prepared ramekins and bake until raised and just set, about 20-25 minutes. Remove and place on cooling rack.

Make Crème Caramel: Combine sugar, water and cream of tartar in a small saucepan. DO NOT STIR. Bring to a boil and cook until the caramel browns. When the caramel is medium brown, stir in fleur de sel and remove from heat.  Carefully add cream and simmer until ready to use.

Serve: Pour about 2 Tablespoons of caramel on the plate and swirl plate to coat. Invert cakes from ramekins onto plates and sprinkle with a touch more fleur de sel if desired. Garnish with mint. Quick tip: Serving your Chocolate Soufflè warm will melt your date like putty (or salted crème caramel) in your hands. Just saying.

Serves/Makes
Makes 8 cakes

Creative Valentine’s Day Ideas from Parties That Cook

0 comments By The Kitchen Whisperer Filed in Entertaining, General Tagged with , , , , , , , , January 25th, 2011 @ 7:21 pm

Valentine’s Day is slowly creeping up on you. There are now just a little over 2 weeks for you to plan your MOST AMAZING Valentine’s Day ever! No need to freak out. Parties That Cook has a few options for you last minute romancers.

Book a spa visit with a couples massage, and you are sure to earn extra points from your honey. Talk about luxurious, Auberge Du Soleil in Napa Valley offers a Valentine’s Indulgence spa package that actually includes a milk chocolate bath for two in a private outdoor garden. Admit it, you’re melting just thinking about it. Finally, retreat back inside for a full body massage using a decadent massage oil of chocolate and spice. Filling your own tub with chocolate milk is NOT recommended.

Nice restaurants don’t have to come with an expensive prix fixe meal. While it may be easier to have one less decision to make that night, ordering a la carte is better for your wallet. Here’s a list of fine dining establishments in San Francisco and Chicago that stay true to a la carte menus.

Cooking a romantic dinner is another option that allows you to show your personality through food. Check out Parties That Cook’s Valentine’s Day Couples Cooking Classes! Sip on delicious sparkling wine (included) as you and your honey heat up the kitchen and learn to make dishes like Pancetta-Wrapped Plums with Blue Cheese and Sweet Honey-Balsamic Glaze.  The Chocolate-Raspberry Truffles are the cherry, wait, raspberry on top. Hosted in San Francisco, Chicago, and Seattle, these events are sure to sell out.

Don’t have a sweetie? Find him or her at a Valentine’s Day Singles Cooking Class!  Guests are broken into co-ed cooking teams to work on recipes from the evening’s tapas menu. You’ll mix and mingle with other singles while sipping wine and learning how to prepare delicious new dishes. Trust me, it’s better than finding love through your car.

If you’re love life is laughable, check out Mortified SF/Berkeley/LA/Boston’s Doomed Valentines shows. Real stories of awkward Valentine’s Day mishaps may just make you feel better about yourself.