Hazelnuts and chocolate, strawberries and chocolate, coffee and chocolate. Some things just naturally go together. I recently gained a greater appreciation for another magical match made in heaven: chocolate and dulce de leche.

Dulce de Leche is a rich and decadently thick sauce used in many pastries and desserts. Once you taste it, it’s probably easier to name the things it doesn’t go with! I first heard about it after my father remarried in 1983. Over the years I’ve learned so much from my Mama Maria, who is of Sicilian descent from Argentina, about cooking and baking, and some of her favorite items from South America like mate and dulce de Leche. But I didn’t quite embrace its true significance until we were recently in Santiago, Chile visiting my step sister Ana living there on a special FDA assignment.

I always thought dulce de leche was a Spanish version of caramel. Well, yes and no. Yes, in that it has a flavor similar to caramel and both sweets are made from a process called carmelization. This is when sugars in a food product, like milk, begin to turn brown when heated beginning at about 320 degrees F. No in that you achieve the end results in two totally different ways. Both recipes, though, require much patience.

In caramel, you slowly heat sugar, and then add water, milk, butter and vanilla flavor to make an assortment of goodies. For dulce de leche, you use condensed or sweetened milk. This is milk that has had almost half of its water removed and then sugar added. Personally, I find dulce de leche not to be as sweet as chewy caramel.

When you have a couple of hours where you can carefully and safely keep an eye on a boiling pot of water, you can make some of this decadent, silky sauce yourself. It is surprisingly simple, but you’ll need 2 hours for soft dulce de leche and about 3 hours for a firm sauce. Here’s a website that you can go to for instructions on how to make your own. Decorated and filled jars make wonderful gifts for friends and family with sweet teeth. Or you may want to bake a batch of some alfajors, a traditional Argentine cookie that, when made properly, melt in your mouth.

As with many foods, dulce de leche evolved in other parts of the world, such as in Northern and Eastern Europe, the Philippines, and in other parts of South America. In Peru and Chile, for example, it is called manjar. Let’s hear it for convergent evolution!

Once you taste it, you’ll understand why its name means “milk honey or milk candy” in Spanish. I now know why Maria gets a sparkle in her eye whenever she hears those three little words: dulce de leche! Once you experience it, let me know if you do, too!

Kraft’s recent acquisition of Cadbury (which includes Green & Black’s) brings to mind other mergers that have occurred in recent history.

When I first began offering chocolate tasting programs in Berkeley, California in the early 1980’s, I fondly recall that there were still family members on the board of Ghirardelli Chocolate. Times have definitely changed. Today this historic American manufacturer it is owned by the Swiss chocolate maker Lindt.

After 40 years of ownership, the Campbell Soup Company sold Godiva Chocolates in December 2007 to the Turkish company Yildiz Holding of Turkey for $850 million. The Godiva managers I speak with in Portland seem very happy with this change of guard. It is as if they finally feel like they are being given the attention and resources they deserve by their parent company.

Nestlé’s owns Perugina, the chocolate company that originated in the Etruscan town of Perugia, Italy and is famous for their Baci confections.

Then there is Hershey that now owns the originally Berkeley, California based Scharffenberger Chocolates.

In the fall of 2006, I had the good fortune to attend a class at Draegers in San Mateo, California with Dr. Robert Steinberg, one of the co-founders of Scharffenberger Chocolates. Personally I remember the excitement of the emergence of Scharffenberger back in the mid-1990’s- what was at the time the first chocolate manufacturer in 50 years. Anyone who has ever gone on one of their factory tours might recall the tour guide proudly announcing that they make in one year what Hershey makes in a day. So, like many, I was very disappointed at the 2005 merger of this giant American manufacturer with this small American artisan one that helped bring chocolate to an entirely new level. A year later Hershey bought Ashland, Oregon based Dagoba.

I realize that loyal customers of companies can be upset by such changes. So at the end of class I asked Dr. Steinberg how he felt about it all. I can still recall his big smile and sparkling eyes, as he stated that he actually disliked all the marketing and the other business aspects of running the company. He was now free to do what he really loves- once again concentrating on the chocolate itself. Coming directly from him, those words made me feel somewhat better.

I somehow feel that he would have been disapppointed to see the eventual close of his Berkeley factory which would move to Illinois. It’s hard to imagine that those personally selected Old World pieces of chocolate machinery by himself and John Scharffenberger are still cranking out all that chocolate that is being marketed across the country. It is fortunate, perhaps, that this phase of the merger happened after Dr. Steinberg passed on in 2009.

Yes, there are positives and negatives to mergers. Yet, it bothers me how the “genealogy” of the chocolate industry seems to have far fewer branches in it these days. Let’s see how this all plays out in the coming years.

Who makes your favorite chocolate bars? How have you felt about these mergers?

For their 55th anniversary last November, NYC’s Serendipity 3 broke the Guinness’s Book of World Records for the largest cup of hot chocolate. Located in the Theater District near Times Square, this popular restaurant filled a huge white cup with approximately 4 gallons of luxurious hot chocolate.

It was made from 12 pounds of their specially blended cocoa (from 14 different cocoas), 8 quarts of heavy cream and one pound of finely shaven French chocolate. It was 100 times larger than the cup of hot chocolate on their regular menu. You’d need a giant group of chocolating loving friends to help you drink it, and you would all be divvying up the 19,000+ calories. This caloric count doesn’t even include the whipped cream which floated like white, fluffy islands on top of the unique beverage. You’d also be “spooning out” in the neighborhood of $600 for this luscious culinary experience.

We may not have NYC’s humongous record-holding cup of hot chocolate on the West Coast. However, Portlanders are blessed with a large selection of places to go “hot chocolating.” We can warm our tummies and nurture our souls with some extraordinary hot cocoa and drinking chocolates all around the Metro this winter.

Last month The Oregonian had an article by Danielle Centoni on “hot chocolate hot spots” in Portland. It included the following popular spots: Alma, Sahagun, Cacao, The Sugar Cube, Coffeehouse Northwest, and Pix Patisserie.

To that list I would also recommend visiting Sweet Masterpiece in the Pearl, your nearest Moonstruck Café, and the Pearl’s Caffé Umbria for a cup of great cocoa, drinking chocolate, and European-inspired mocha drinks. All these choices confirm how passionate Portlanders are, on both sides of the counter, about their chocolate.

Whether you are tasting solid eating chocolate, confections, or in liquid form, just remember that chocolate tasting is very personal. Have a great time “hot chocolating” this season to find your favorites! It is a great time of year to visit or revisit the list of shops mentioned here. Let us know about your top picks. Chocolating: it’s a wonderfully relaxing winter pastime, rain or shine, on either coast.

Someone put a “chocolate” spin on a tale that has been floating around the internet for some time now. Check out our slightly modified version here.

A group of graduates, well established in their careers, were discussing their lives at a class reunion. The holidays were coming up and they decided to go visit their old university professor, now retired, who was always an inspiration to them. During their visit, the conversation turned to complaints about stress in their work, lives and relationships.

Offering his guests a warm beverage, the professor went into the kitchen and returned with a large pot of hot chocolate and an assortment of cups. Some cups were porcelain, glass, crystal, some plain looking, some expensive, some exquisite. He invited his guests to help themselves. When they all had a cup of hot chocolate in hand, the professor shared his thoughts.

“Notice that all the nice-looking, expensive cups were taken, leaving behind the plain and cheap ones. While it is normal for you to want only the best for yourselves, that is the source of your problems and stress. The cup that you are drinking from adds nothing to the quality of the hot chocolate. In most cases it is just more expensive and in some cases even hides what we drink. What each of you really wanted was hot chocolate. You did not want the cup…but you consciously went for the best cups. And soon, you began to eye one another’s cups.”

“Now friends, the professor continued, please consider this: Life is the hot chocolate. Your job, money and position in society make up the cup. It is just a tool to hold and contain life. The cup you have does not define, nor does it change, the quality of life you are living. Sometimes, by concentrating only on the cup, we fail to enjoy the hot chocolate that has been given to us.”

This holiday season, we hope that you spend more time savoring life and less time worrying about what is surrounding it. So next time you have some hot chocolate, be sure to savor every drop and watch your stress melt away!

Happy Holidays from Chocolate Tasting & More!

Back in May, a student named Parker put a recipe card in my mail slot in our school office. Along with the instructions, it had a wonderful photo of the young baker with his pan of delicious biscuits.

Fast forward to November and I finally get around to making this recipe. The only changes I made were to add walnuts and use two chocolate bars I had in my kitchen drawer: Seattle Chocolates’ Dark Chocolate Truffle Bar with 53% cacao and Extreme Dark Chocolate Truffle Bar with 65% Cacao, each 2.5 oz.

Eating these warm biscuits, which resemble a cross between traditional drop biscuits and a cinnamon roll, brought back fond memories of my Mom’s home made biscuits and breakfast biscuits & chocolate syrup my dear Aunt Jean would make on my visits to Baton Rouge, Louisiana. Pure nirvana!

On is Seattle Chocolate’s bar wrappers is the slogan: “What happiness tastes like.” If Parker’s biscuits were to have a wrapper, it would say “What heavenly breakfasts taste like.”

Thanks, Parker, for your thoughtfulness. You sure know how to make a chocolate lover happy! This recipe is definitely one to try out this holiday season.

Ingredients: 2 cups all-purpose flour
¾ cup sugar, divided
4 teaspoons baking powder
½ teaspoon salt
2/3 cup butter, divided
1 cup chocolate semi-sweet chocolate chips or chocolate of your choice
2/3 cup milk
1 teaspoon cinnamon
Nuts are optional

In a large bowl, combine flour, ¼ cup sugar, baking powder, and salt. Using a pastry blender or 2 knives, cut in 1/3 cup butter until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Stir in chocolate. Add milk; stir until dough holds a shape.

On a floured surface, knead dough lightly. Roll dough into 16 balls. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. In a small saucepan, melt the remaining 1/3 butter. Pour ½ of the melted butter in an 8-inch square baking pan.

In a cup, combine remaining ½ cup sugar and cinnamon. Sprinkle 1/3 of the cinnamon/sugar mixture over butter in baking pan. Place dough balls in a single layer in pan. Brush with remaining melted butter. Sprinkle with remaining cinnamon/sugar mixture.

Bake at 375 for 30 minutes. Cool 10 minutes before removing from the pan. Serve warm.

At first I was very resistant. For some reason, back in 2005, I had heard about Mort Rosenblum’s book “Chocolate: A Bittersweet Saga of Dark and Light,” but never read it. I somehow thought it was one of those many fictional reads giving the impression of starring our favorite food group, yet only using the word chocolate as a marketing lure.

Fast forward four years after the book’s publication and I finally pick up a used copy at Powell’s Books. Here at Chocolate Tasting And More, we take neighborhood walks in search of all things chocolate in the Metro of Portland, Oregon. However, if you are interested in a more global chocolate trail, this is the book for you.

Matt, a former Associated Press correspondence and author of “Olives: The Life and Lore of a Noble Fruit,” admits that prior to his research for his book, he was “a chocolate ignoramus.” Yet 292 pages later, he presents the reader with his in-depth polished, research notes. An intellectual “voyage de cacao”, so to speak.

Rosemblum takes the reader under his investigative wings to discover the origin and history of chocolate: from a tiny Mexican village at the base of a volcano to learn the secrets of authentic mole, to the struggles of cacao plantations in West Africa. Find tiny Parisian chocolate shops tucked away along cobble-stone streets (you smell them before you see them!), and venture through the intimidating doors of Valrhona in the Rhone Valley of France. Experience the difference between Swiss, Belgium, and British choco-philosophies. Closer to home, you, explore the land of Hershey, and a number of West Coat chocolatiers.

One is taken on an intriguing journey around the world from some of the world’s largest urban centers to some of the most remote areas of the globe. Together, you both discover the history, biology, politics and challenges of Theombroma, “the food of the gods.”

Matt connects with some fascinating and passionate folks along the way, including Steve DeVries and Claudio Corallo. He also meets supertaster Chloe Doutre-Roussel, who probably has the best taste buds around.

The book ends in France aboard his boat on the Seine with these chocolate mentors, celebrating the end of his trail. You feel as if you are right there listening to their conversations as you all float along the river.

One of the benefits of waiting to read this book 4 years after its publication is that one can realize what a cacao “psychic” Matt was in predicting some important developments in the chocolate world scene. Today Steve DeVries has his business in Boulder, Colorado, and Claudio Corallo’s company is based in Seattle. Don’t let the domestic locations of these men’s business headquarters fool you. They’ve beaten some amazing odds and today they continue to traverse and work the equatorial belt in search of the best chocolate on earth.

I’d love Matt to do a follow-up book on new developments along the global chocolate trail- and to read some new predictions he’d make in the world of chocolate. We’d all be in for another delicious treat.

My first encounter with Gareth Mark was at Williams-Sonoma across from Pioneer Courthouse Square while doing research for my Downtown Portland Chocolate Walk. Upon meeting him one immediately senses that he is in his element surrounded by all the wonderful culinary products and when he talks about food, especially chocolate, you know that he truly loves his work.

Today I attended one of his free, Sunday technique classes. The topic: All About Ice Cream. Need I say more?! There were about 15 people in attendance on this unusually warm and humid overcast day to get “the scoop on the scoops. “

His Xocoatl Sorbet was truly amazing with its intriguing combination of dark chocolate, cinnamon, vanilla, chiles and sea salt. These ingredients all mingle together in a way that is hard to believe that the resulting creation contains no dairy. Way to go if you’re watching the fat or calorie meters.

The second sample was an even more surprising. Upon receiving my little paper soufflé cup with the light caramel colored ice cream, I immediately caught the wafting aroma of maple syrup. It tasted as good as it smelled. Then the shock came when he told us the ingredients. No maple syrup was mentioned. Did I hear him correctly? Yes, this was Candy Cap Gelato. Candy Cap is the common name of an orange colored fungus that grows in forests of western North America. I soon discovered that Candy Cap was this year’s challenge ingredient for this annual ice cream class. You can find both of these recipes on his blog: www.stumptownsavoury.com

Mark your calendar for next year’s ice cream class (No pun intended, Chef Mark!) to see what the next challenge ingredient will be. If you don’t want to wait until then to attend one of these weekly technique classes, check out the Williams-Sonoma website for upcoming topics at: http://www.williams-sonoma.com/cust/techniqueclass_popup/content.cfm

Just so you know, Gareth is known to offer a chocolate class every once in a while. So be sure to check back often.

Last fall I had an email interview with James from www.Tasting.com, a new website that was being developed in the UK. Unfortunately, for all of us, it seems the website never made it off the ground. You might want to check back periodically and see if it ever gets launched. In the meantime, here’s the interview. Thanks, James, for the opportunity and I wish Tasting.com all the best.

1. What is most revealing to you on your tours?
I’m continually amazed that even long time residents discover new shops and places during our tours.  Isn’t that human nature? We all tend to have our favorite routes and places. And everyone is quite surprised at all the chocolate we find. So it gives me great satisfaction in helping people look at a neighborhood in a slightly different way.

2. Do you pair chocolate with anything else, like wine and whiskey, when people taste during the tour?
Each tour may vary in regards to the different stops we make. We generally have 5 or 6 main stops. We’ve explored chocolate martinis and pairing chocolate with coffee, wine and beer.

3. Do you start with low cocoa and end with high cocoa content during a single session?
I realize that this is the preferred sequence, however, during our walking tours this can be a challenge. It’s also interesting because when I first started giving chocolate tasting programs in the early 80’s it was recommended to start with the higher cocoa content (less sweet) since it was believed back then that sugar would dull your sense of taste.

4. Do you cover chocolate products made with more specific types of chocolate, like single origin?
Some of the chocolate products we sample have contained more specific kinds of chocolate, like single origin. We explore a little of everything on our walks- bars, confections, drinks, desserts- you name it. You can think of our programs as neighborhood searches for ALL things chocolate.

5. A bit about you – how did you get introduced to chocolate or how did it become such a passion?
There is the saying, “First you eat chocolate and then chocolate consumes you!” Well, in some ways that saying could apply to me. I’ve always loved chocolate. I have fond memories of my grandmother baking Sicilian cookies that had wonderful chunks of dark chocolate in them. I also grew up in San Francisco not far from the Ghirardelli Chocolate Factory. As an adult I became an educator, and my main interests have revolved around natural and human history, science, and food, so chocolate was a natural topic for me.

6. What does it cost? Is there a minimum group size? What is the best time of year? How far or how short in distance? Do you do just walking tours? Can walks be made shorter or longer?
The public walking tours are geared for adults, are 3 1/2 hours in length, and cost $37 – 42. The minimum group size is three and maximum is 10. I feel it is important keeping the group size small to make it more personal and so people can ask questions. For me, anytime is a good time for chocolate! However, our programs are held seasonally from March through November. We cover 1-2.5 miles per walk depending on the route.  Private walking tours are also available for groups and are $28 for a minimum of 6 participants.  All of our programs can be tailored to meet a group’s specific needs.

7. What other tours do you do?
We currently have three walking tours in the Portland Metro Area: Downtown Portland, Pearl District and Lake Oswego. Right now all my programs have to do with chocolate.  I also offer a 6 week interdisciplinary, hands-on class called Chocolate Creations for 3rd-5th Graders, Arm Chair Chocolate Tastings, and an Immerse Yourself in Chocolate program that includes drinking and eating chocolate tastings, and making truffles. We’re also in the middle of planning two new routes and our first Mobile Tasting Tour.

I am currently on a turtle search. No, not along the coasts of Florida or Mexico, but a turtle search of the pecan, caramel and chocolate kind.

Can’t say that I’ve always been interested in these confectionery morsels. However, my husband has very fond memories of visiting his grandfather’s Darzes’ Candy Shop in Eldora Iowa. Louis Darzes’ most popular item was his turtles- roasted pecans and caramel dipped in milk chocolate. I’ve enjoyed listening to these verbal trips down memory lane.

We’ve both been in a nostalgic mood lately and have embarked on a quest for the most delicious turtle we can make. I quickly found that there are as many different chocolate pecan turtles, as well, actual turtles! Last night I decided to take the first step and make my first batch of turtles. The recipe was taken from www.Cooks.com

I used 18 pieces of Kraft vanilla caramels (my goal is to make my own caramel, but one has to start somewhere), 2/3 tsp. water, 1 cup of pecan halves and 4 oz. of Ghirardelli 60% dark chocolate chips.

The caramels were melted in a double boiler. After adding the water and the pecans, the mixture was stirred until the pecans were evenly coated. They were then dropped on wax paper and cooled before being dipped in chocolate.

This recipe made 11 turtles, with just enough left over melted chocolate to make a few cups of drinking chocolate. (Waste not one drop of melted heaven!) The turtles ended up looking more like mounds of clusters. They were good, but were chewier than I had hoped for. This could be because I left the mixture on the stove a bit longer than needed. Next time, I will take the pot off the heat and mix a little quicker. I’d like the pecans to be crispier and I also want my turtles to look more like their namesake.

The caramels brought back memories of the Brach’s caramels found in grocery stores. It also made me think a lot of Milton Hershey. Did you know he started out making caramels? Yet after seeing chocolate making machinery at a World’s Fair decided that “Caramels are only a fad. Chocolate is a permanent thing.”

Many people from Eldora have fond memories of watching one of Louis’ skilled chocolate dippers, Mrs. Alvina Woods, give dipping demonstrations in the Darzes shop window. In a newspaper interview in the Des Moines Tribune on Thurs. Jan 15, 1959, Louis said “If I were a younger man, I wouldn’t be afraid to open a shop next door to any of the big name national candy shops. If you use quality ingredients and give good service, the word just naturally gets around. The customers will come.” Milton Hershey once said, “Give them quality. That’s the best kind of advertising.” Sure sounds familiar.

I would have given anything to have been with my husband as a young boy visiting this family candy shop of old and to meet Louis Darzes. He sounded like an Iowan Milton Hershey, a kindred spirit, and man of my heart.

Have you ever made chocolate pecan turtles? I’d be interested in hearing about your photo-of-turtle-for-blogexperiences. In the meantime, stay tune for more Darzes Turtle Adventures.

There was a stir in the media when last week when Scottish doctors came within 2 votes of passing a tax on chocolate, which many feel contributes greatly to the overweight problem in the British Isles. Fueled by increasing cases of obesity and Type 2 diabetes, the tax would have been similar to that on alcohol and tobacco.  What’s your take on a chocolate tax? Would it make you eat less of your favorite food group?

Yet the positive health benefits of chocolate, such as the antioxidants in dark chocolate which cut risks of cardiovascular disease, have been known for some time now.  Just last month, studies also showed that dark chocolate may also help reduce cancer risks.

So what is a chocolate lover to do?

As far as chocolate goes, it might be helpful to repeat the following “cacao” mantra: More is NOT Better, More is NOT better, More is NOT Better…

Although it is high in antioxidants, chocolate is also unfortunately high in sugar, calories and fat. So it may be useful to consider chocolate  as an “extra” part of one’s diet and one luxury that needs to be eaten in moderation.

One recent study suggests eating 1 ounce every three days. When subjects ate more than this amount, there were no additional reported benefits.

Bummed to hear this news? In the long run, this finding may actually help all us chocolate enthusiasts to more consciously savor each and every morsel.

First,  pick a quality dark chocolate with 60% or higher cacao content. Then when you taste it, try not to chew and just let the chocolate melt on your tongue for a more satisfying experience. Now the harder part- try not to eat more than ONE ounce every three days. How does this break down? That comes to about  9-10 grams per day (A 3 ounce bar is equal to 85 g).

We can think of this as the new One Ounce Dark Rule to live by. It would force us to read the Nutrition Facts on the bars and do a bit of math. So it’s good “brain aerobics,” too! (I think I’ll use this  the next time I cover Measurement and the Metric System with my Third Graders!).

Enjoy! And let me know how this all works for you.