LCBO Food & Drink Early Summer 2020

Sweet & Salty Chocolate Cake With Crunchy Topper Who can resist a decadent piece of rich choc- olate cake, right? Lightly salted but otherwise classic, this style of cake is totally customiz- able. The switch-up is a fast ganache for the icing (which is easily doubled if you want to ice the cake sides). Get creative with the top- pings. Chocolate-covered (or plain) pretzels and roasted peanuts are a good starting point. On set, our food stylist added crumbled OMG Clusters (a mix of graham, toffee bits and nuts). Broken cookies, donut pieces or chocolate-dipped strawberries make for fun additions as well. See TIP for make‑ahead instructions. Butter for greasing pans Cocoa for dusting CHOCOLATE CAKE 3/4 cup (175 mL) cocoa powder, sifted 1 cup (250 mL) hot water 1 cup (250 mL) buttermilk 1 tbsp (15 mL) vanilla 2 1/2 cups (625 mL) all-purpose flour 1 tsp (5 mL) kosher salt 1/2 tsp (2 mL) baking powder 1/2 tsp (2 mL) baking soda 1 cup (250 mL) unsalted butter, at room temperature but still slightly cool 1 cup (250 mL) granulated sugar 1 cup (250 mL) lightly packed brown sugar 4 eggs, at room temperature GANACHE AND TOPPING 1 cup (250 mL) whipping cream 8 to 9 oz (225 to 255 g) good-quality semi-sweet or bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped 1 cup (250 mL) small chocolate-covered or plain pretzels, broken a little 2 Grease three 9-inch (23-cm) round cake or springform pans with butter. Line with parch- ment paper. Lightly dust with cocoa. 3 To prepare cake, whisk cocoa powder with hot water in a medium bowl. Slowly whisk in buttermilk and vanilla. 4 In a separate large bowl, whisk flour with salt, baking powder and baking soda. 5 Place butter in bowl of stand mixer. Using whisk attachment, beat over low speed until fluffy. Slowly beat in both sugars. Beat in eggs one at a time. Gradually beat in one-third flour mixture, then half of cocoa-buttermilk mixture. Repeat additions, until blended after each addition, ending with flour mixture. Don’t worry if mixture separates a little; it will come 1/4 cup (60 mL) roasted peanuts 1 Preheat oven to 350°F (180°C).

CLASSIC FRENCH 75 Understated and elegant, what’s not to like about this classic gin cocktail? Offer cocktails on demand or whip up a pitcher for a crowd (recipe follows). 1 oz gin 1/2 oz freshly squeezed lemon juice 1/2 oz Simple Syrup (recipe on page 118) 3 to 4 oz Champagne or sparkling wine Lemon peel twist or wisp, for garnish 1 Pour gin, lemon juice and Simple Syrup into an ice-filled cocktail shaker. Shake until chilled. Using a julep strainer, pour into a Champagne glass. Top with Champagne. Rub edge of glass with twist. Garnish glass with lemon twist. Makes 1 cocktail BIG-BATCH FRENCH 75 1 In a large pitcher, stir 8 oz gin with 1/2 cup (125 mL) freshly squeezed lemon juice, 1/2 cup (125 mL) Simple Syrup (recipe on page 118) and 1/2 cup (125 mL) cold water. (The water replaces the ice dilution that is incorporated when this cocktail is shaken.) Refrigerate until chilled, about 1 hour. When ready to serve, top with 1 bottle (750mL) Champagne or sparkling wine. Pour into glasses. Garnish with lemon twists. Makes 8 cocktails Switch and swap in your favourite seasonal greens or whatever looks best. The idea here is a light salad that is a stand-in for veggies and dip. Instead you have pretty whole-leaf greens for dipping in or drizzling with simple, tangy-sweet vinaigrette. It feels fancy because of the Champagne vinegar (although you can use white-wine vinegar) plus there are flowers! 1/4 cup (60 mL) Champagne vinegar 1 tsp (5 mL) honey CHAMPAGNE-vinegar-DRESSED WHOLE-LEAF SALAD 1/2 cup (125 mL) good-quality extra virgin olive oil 3 very small heads of lettuce such as frisée, arugula, red oak or leaf 1 Belgian endive or Treviso radicchio A handful of edible flowers, for garnish 1 Whisk vinegar, honey, Dijon and salt in a me- dium bowl. Very slowly whisk in oil in a steady thin stream. 2 Serve lettuce and endive on a platter gar- nished with flowers or separate onto plates. Pour dressing into individual bowls for dipping. Makes 8 servings with 3/4 cup (175 mL) dressing 1 tsp (5 mL) Dijon mustard 1/2 tsp (2 mL) kosher salt

back together with the final addition of flour. Be careful not to over-mix. 6 Divide and evenly pour into prepared cake pans. Lightly tap on the counter. 7 Bake in centre of preheated oven for 35 to 55 minutes until a cake tester inserted into centre of each cake comes out clean. Remove to cooling racks. Let cool for 10 minutes, then turn cakes out onto cooling racks, top-side down. Let cool completely. 8 Meanwhile, prepare ganache. Pour whip- ping cream into a small saucepan. Set over medium and heat until hot and steaming, 3 to 5 minutes. Be careful not to burn the cream. Place chocolate in a medium bowl. Pour hot cream over chocolate. Using a rubber spatula or a wooden spoon, stir until very smooth. Let stand to firm up a little, about 45 minutes. 9 When cakes are completely cool, set 1 layer on a cake plate or serving dish. Using a serrated knife, cut off and even out top so it’s level. Pour one-third of ganache overtop. Spread to edges. Repeat with remaining cake layer and ganache. Spread some of the ganache over the edges. 10  Just before serving, sprinkle top with bro- ken pretzels and peanuts and cut into wedges. Makes 8 large or 16 small servings TIP Ideally this cake is enjoyed the day it’s made. If making ahead, ganache-iced cake will keep well covered and refrigerated for up to 2 days. Bring to room temperature before serving. Un-iced cake layers can also be tightly wrapped and frozen for a week or 2. Defrost until at room temperature and proceed with preparing ganache. CHOCOLATE MILK COLD BREWSHOTS Making cold brew at home is easy. “Brewing” with cold water often extracts less of the acidic aspect of coffee, making it pretty tasty. Make up a batch in advance then serve up with a little milk. Make it chocolate milk for the cocoa lovers. 1/2 cup (125 mL) coarsely ground good-quality coffee 3 cups (750 mL) filtered water 1 cup (250 mL) chocolate or whole milk (optional) 1 Add coffee to a French press. Pour water overtop. Don’t press. Cover and refrigerate for 24 hours. 2 Press coffee. Pour through a coffee-filter- lined funnel into a pitcher. If making ahead, cold brew will keep well, covered and refrigerated for a week. Just before serving, pour into small shot-style glasses. Top with milk, if you like. Makes 2 3/4 cups (675 mL) cold brew

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EARLY SUMMER 2020 FOOD & DRINK