The Good Stuff

This past Christmas, I received a box of Cacao Barry Dark Chocolate Couverture Origine “Tanzanie” (what a mouthful!) from my boss. I don’t have easy access to fancy chocolates, and having a college student’s budget prevents me from splurging too often, so this was a much-appreciated gift. Since I have a limited supply, I wanted to use the chocolate wisely and not be wasteful!

When I tasted this 75% dark chocolate, I noticed how fruity it is, and it has a sour aftertaste of which I’m not a fan. For Valentine’s Day, I used it to make this mousse, but due to the nature of this particular recipe, the sour taste was highlighted even more, so needless to say I didn’t have very much of it. I figured since I don’t like the taste of the chocolate on its own, I should complement it with other flavours that could tone down the fruity notes. I was in the mood to make chocolate chip cookies, so I decided to go with that, even though CCC’s are simple and don’t require “the good stuff” to make them delicious!

After perusing the different CCC recipes I’ve bookmarked, I settled on this one from David Lebovitz. I love the combination of salt and chocolate, and I like that this recipe uses salted butter, since the unsalted variety is usually substantially more expensive around here. I heard that using European butter elevates these cookies, but that’s a project for another time since I don’t have easy access to real European butter (as opposed to European-style butter). 

 

These cookies turned out superb, and I might even consider them my favourite CCC variety. I know that’s saying a lot, and I have even proclaimed another variety to be my favourite, but these ones combine saltiness, chewiness, and crispiness all in one! Due to the sweet and salty flavour of the cookie dough, the fruity aftertaste of the chocolate wasn’t detectable, and I could only taste the wonderfulness of dark chocolate. I’m also proud that my cookies actually look like storebought ones, and not limp like last time.

I still have a little bit of the chocolate remaining, and I just need to figure out if I want to use them for these cookies again or try something different. :)