Product Description

This book might easily be the most lavish, the most complete, and most beautiful book ever published on the subject of that most sensuous of all foods—chocolate. Filled with history, anecdotes, and recipes, and featuring hundreds of lavish full-color photos, The Golden Book of Chocolate is literally a chocolate lover’s dream come true. A fascinating detailed account chronicles chocolate’s origins among the Aztecs of ancient Mexico, its importation to Europe, and the development of the modern chocolate industry as we know it today. But recipes are at the heart of this book. Separate chapters are devoted to chocolate’s central role in easy-to-follow recipes for:

• Cookies • Bars and Brownies • Muffins and Cupcakes • Pastries • Elegant Desserts • Pies and Tarts • Puddings and Creams • Tea and Coffee Cakes • Layer Cakes • Candy • Savory Dishes • Drinks • Basic Recipes

Each recipe includes a list of ingredients, step-by-step instructions, and a large, full-color photo of the finished item. The book’s final “Basic Recipes” chapter shows how to prepare chocolate ingredients that go into the making of other chocolate-based delicacies. They include chocolate pastry cream, chocolate custard, chocolate sauce, and several other sumptuous ingredients. This beautiful book is embellished with a ribbon place marker bound into the spine and features golden-tipped page edges.
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A Capsule History of Chocolate
Among the Aztecs the drinking of chocolate was confined to the royal house, the lords, and the nobility. A report by Spanish conquistador Bernial Diaz del Castillo noted that Montezuma drank chocolate several times a day from beakers made of pure gold. The Spanish brought chocolate to Europe in the late 1500s, and by the 1660s it was a favorite drink of Renaissance Italian noblemen. In the 1800s it became a popular drink among the literary figures who gathered in London’s coffee houses, and in the nineteenth century the world’s first chocolate candy was produced in the city of Bristol, England .

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #69695 in Books
• Published on: 2008-10-01
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Hardcover
• 700 pages

From Publishers Weekly
Enrobed in gold foil like a high-end chocolate bar, this fat tome offers chocolate lovers a rich variety of ways in which to enjoy their favorite treat. Cookies, brownies, cupcakes and cakes, mousses and every other decadent sweet dish imaginable—plus some unusual savory ones—are all featured in full-page, easy-to-read spreads accompanied by lavish photos. The recipes are ranked in three levels of difficulty, with the majority given the easiest rating, though not always deservingly, and their styles span the range from homey, traditional offerings such as no-bake chocolate squares and several chocolate chip cookie variations, to refined, restaurant-quality desserts like chocolate crème brûleé as well as a few more exotic creations (shortbread with passion fruit drizzle; white chocolate and lime Bundt cake). The book opens with a comprehensive overview of the science, history and business of chocolate, though any true chocolate lover will likely already be up to speed on the health benefits of the cacao bean. Unfortunately, after that introduction the authors forgo further tips or hints about ingredients or preparation. Nonetheless, this will make an attractive gift for anyone keen on chocolate, whether or not they choose to try their hand at the recipes. Full-color photos throughout. (Nov.)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Review
“Enrobed in gold foil like a high-end chocolate bar, this fat tome offers chocolate lovers a rich variety of ways in which to enjoy their favorite treat. …This will make an attractive gift for anyone keen on chocolate, whether or not they choose to try their hand at the recipes.”


—Publisher’s Weekly, October 6, 2008





“For the true chocoholic mom. The beautiful volume contains recipes for cookies, bars and brownies, elegant desserts, tea and coffee cakes, candy savory dishes, drinks and more. Full-color photos illustrate step-by-step recipes, and chocolate history and anecdotes enrich the book as well.”


—Fancy Food & Culinary Products, February 2009

“Merely looking at this latest title from Italian cookbook author Bardi could be enough to send readers into a proverbial chocoholic sugar-induced coma. While this could be seen primarily as a gift book for the chocolate lover, its visual appeal alone will undoubtedly attract library users. Recommended for public libraries.”


—Pauline Baughman, Library Journal, February 2009



“This book might well be the most lavish, most complete and most beautiful volume ever published on that most sensuous of all foods—Chocolate. Filled with history, anecdotes, delicious photos, and, of course 300+ mouth-watering recipes from deserts to drinks. It’s a chocoholic’s literary dream come true.”


—The Putnam County Courier, November 26, 2008



“…more than enough to satisfy a chocoholic’s wildest dreams.”


—Bookpage, February 2009

From the Inside Flap
(back cover)
With recipes for more than 300 luscious treats--cookies, bars, brownies, muffins, cupcakes, pastries, desserts, puddings, ice cream, cakes, candy, drinks, and savory dishes--this is the only chocolate cookbook you’ll ever need.

Read the opening chapter for an entertaining introduction to the exotic story of chocolate, from its origins in ancient Mexico to its worldwide popularity today.

Customer Reviews

A chocoholic feast for eyes and palate
A gold-wrapped tome with heavy gilt-edged pages and luscious full-page color photos of each easy-to-read recipe, from Honey Walnut Brownies to Chocolate and Sour Cherry Crepes, this is a chocoholic's indulgence.

Organized traditionally - Cookies, Bars and Brownies, Puddings and Creams, Elegant Desserts, Candy, Layer Cakes, etc. - recipes are ranked by level of difficulty, with preparation and cooking times listed separately. A Savory chapter includes Mole, of course, but also Shrimp with Chocolate Sauce and Chocolate Fettuccine. I'll stick with the Chocolate Praline Tarts or the Cassis Truffles or the Rummy Mud Pudding.

The book begins with a chapter on chocolate history and concludes with a Basics chapter - Ganache, Sauces, Sponge, etc. It's comprehensive and clear and comes with a place-marker ribbon. But cooks are not going to want to get this exquisite volume smeared with chocolate. No matter, feasting the eyes is easier on the waistline.

Fantastic to look at, and even better to cook from!
I flipped through this book for quite a while before I finally decided I had to have it. I'm a pastry chef and probably own 50+ chocolate specialty books -- I am now a proud owner of this one as well. The book just looks cool. I'll admit, I was suckered into it just because of the shiny gold cover. Each page edge is coated in a gold leaf that just makes the book feel rich. The recipes are all accompanied by full color photos, which is so important. I am always more tempted to cook things if I can see a photo first.

And the other thing I love is that most of the recipes utilize typical household ingredients that you should have in your pantry. Of course there are a few specialty ingredients here and there, but it's not like you'll be spending loads of money on ingredients to cook these recipes.

The book is very clearly organized into categories, consisting of Cookies, Bars & Brownies, Muffins & Cupcakes, pastries, elegant desserts, Pies & Tarts, Puddings & Creams, Tea & Coffee Cakes, Layer Cakes, Candy, Savory Dishes, Drinks, and Basic Recipes.

I would definitely recommend this to the chocoholic in your life, or dessert addict. I've already cooked quite a few of the recipes and have a bunch more bookmarked for future dates. Happy Baking!

Chocolate Lovers
This is not a chocolate cookbook for ultra snobs. This is not a cookbook like Chocolate Obsession or by someone who cooks at The French Laundry. Most of these recipes are easy and have ingredients that are already in the cupboard. I have a lot of chocolate cookbooks that I seldom use, but this has recipes for day to day. Recommended.