Milk of the Gods - Willie's Cacao

I hope everybody is enjoying the Diamond Jubilee!  The Queen must be exhausted all that hand waving, trumpet fanfares, speeches and meals to consume! Hats off to the 12 choir members or should that be drowned rats who continued undaunted, through rain, rain and even more rain. They remained at their posts, smiling some even crying, risking pneumonia, trench foot and running make-up, to belt out song after song at Sunday's Thames pageant. One of the twelve was even berrated by her mother for putting her hood up on national TV! Talk about keeping up appearances. They should all receive a medal as far as I'm concerned. Didn't anybody in the BBC consider it might rain? Where was Plan B? Rule, Britannia!

Before trying Milk of the Gods from Willie's Cacao why not make some Food of the Gods! A quick and easy brunch recipe....

Portebello Mushrooms and Poached Eggs on Toast

Ingredients:

3 Large Portebello Mushrooms
6 tbsp olive oil
1 knob of butter
Several Sprigs of Thyme
Salt and Pepper
3 Whole Eggs
Vinegar
3 Slices of toast (I used Granary)

Method:

1. Line your grill pan with foil.
2. Prepare the mushrooms wiping them gently with a piece of damp kitchen roll.
3. Rub the olive oil over all surfaces of the mushrooms.
4. Season each mushroom well with salt and pepper and sprinkle with thyme leaves.
5. Grill on a medium heat for 10-12 minutes, turning occasionally until the juices start to flow. Use the butter to stop them drying out.
6. Meanwhile prepare the poached eggs. To a pan containing an inch and a half of boiling water add a splash of vinegar and 1/4 tspn of salt.
7. Break the eggs gently into a shallow bowl. Just before adding the eggs to the pan stir the boiling water vigoursly to create a whirlpool effect - this will help to keep the whites surrounding the yolks.
8. Bring the water back to the boil and turn to simmer very gently and cook for 4-5 minutes to your own personal taste.
9. Place the mushrooms on warmed plates and top each with a poached egg. Serve with hot buttered toast and a further twist of black pepper. Yum!

Ok, that's lunch sorted! Now it's time to taste some milk chocolate from Willie's Cacao.  

Rio Caribe 44

Milk of the Gods - A 44% milk chocolate from the Hacienda San Agustin estate near the Rio Caribe, cocoa butter from Barlovento (Spanish for windward), sugar cane from Guadeloupe and British Organic milk. Perfect ingredients indeed.

This single estate chocolate gives off a distinctive caramel and malty aroma which continues through as you bite into your first chunk. The sweetness from the sugar cane is there but it is not overpowering and it doesn't leave that nasty caustic feeling on the back of your throat that you might get with some milk chocolates.  I found that the cocoa flavour was fairly subtle probably because it is being masked by caramel and a 'condensed milk' flavour which is very pleasant and comforting.  Overall a very tasty bar of milk chocolate, 8/10. £1.90 for a 50g Single Square, buy here from the Chocolate Trading Company.

Luscious Orange - Cuban 65

Philip, c'mon your turn to wave and then you Mark...
c'mon Anne even the corgis can manage this!

If this picture doesn't get you in the mood to celebrate the Queen's Diamond Jubilee then perhaps there is no hope for you. The old Sea Containers building by Blackfriars bridge is due to be raised to the ground and replaced by a brand new hotel, to be precise, a Mondrian Hotel.  I imagine this is one of the grandest construction hoarding's ever seen in London and perhaps this is going to be the start of a new trend.  More pictures of Royals and perhaps Prime Ministers will be appearing all over the capital peering down from on high. Shrouding buildings before they are reduced to rubble, much like their parliamentary careers, makes a great statement. Personally, I don't mind looking at Royalty but pictures of David and Nick might be a bit too much! Okay enough flag waving lets enjoy some chocolate.....

Baracoa 65 - Cuban

Well, we can't grow cocoa beans in the UK. However, Willie's Cacao is just one of a handful of people that actually make chocolate from scratch in the UK. In fact he even has his own plantation in Venezuela. I believe the lovely Hugo Chavez still allows him to take the beans out of the country. Over the past few months I've tasted several single squares from Willie and I hope Luscious Orange which by the way is not a description of a new phone tariff, lives up to the other offerings. The Baracoan beans (Trinitario) are found in the eastern tip of Cuba and have a delicate honey flavour. 


The tobacco aroma is good, no mention of Cuban cigar though, but a good powerful beginning.  Considering there is only 0.1% of orange oil listed in the ingredients it is fairly pungent and may be overpowering for some people. Mixed with the bitter and slightly rough chocolate producing an almost 'blood orange' taste in the mouth, with a hint of sweetness which is probably the honey. The fruity orange, leaves a slightly bitter feeling on the back of the throat. More zingy than luscious perhaps but this chocolate has plenty of character! The texture is slightly grainy but it melts easily providing plenty of chocolate saliva, so to speak.

Certainly, a very distinctive, robust, bitter orange flavour which stands out on its own and maybe a bit too much orange for some peoples liking. Overall a very enjoyable chocolate. £1.80 for a 50g single square. Good to taste some dark Cuban, no crisis here, 8/10. To buy on line follow the link.