Chocolate
conjures up images of decadence and deliciousness at once. You
can eat it, drink it, cook with it, pair it with just about anything
– Chocolate is a food hero.
It’s
been celebrated throughout the centuries and is the stuff of dreams
for many. As a high quality speciality product in its own right
and as an essential ingredient in baking and patisserie it now has a
starring role on South Africa’s food stage and it deserves to be
taken seriously.
For
pure indulgence, the reader is taken on a tour of the country’s
emerging chocolatiers, patisseries, food emporiums, cafés,
restaurants and hotels that offer anything from a melt-in-the-mouth
chocolate truffle, to a full blown afternoon tea. Our innovative
Cape Winelands now offer scientifically matched flavour profiles for
chocolate and alcohol pairing,with Waterford Wine Estate blazing the
trail.
The
book charts chocolate’s history and its cultivation and explains
the difference between fine and not so fine chocolate. There are
masses of fabulous chocolate recipes that have a distinctly South
African slant and for those who want to learn more, the book includes
a number of culinary institutes that offer full or part time
chocolate, and patisserie skills training. The index lists local and
European chocolate makers and distributers from whom you can buy
small or larger quantities of top quality couverture chocolate.
Turning
the pages of this book will spark your sense of indulgence and make
you want to join in the fun.
Author & Publisher: Di Burger, Stacked Publications (www.stackedpublications.co.za)
Photographer: Riehan Bakkes