Waukegan, Ill. (Sept. 3, 2013) – Eric Lanlard, celebrity patisserie chef, has tapped into Nielsen-Massey Vanillas in his new book featuring chocolate-centric recipes, Chocolat. Released in September by Mitchell Beazley, Lanlard’sChocolat includes chef secrets, cooking tips and recipes for more than 100 of his most famous desserts, enjoyed by stars like Madonna and Sir Elton John. Whether it’s Devilish Chocolate Brownies, White Chocolate and Passion fruit Cheesecake or Proper Chocolate Mousse, one of Lanlard’s key secrets is: when it comes to chocolate desserts, vanilla is a must.
“True, high quality vanilla is an essential ingredient in most of my chocolate desserts,” says Lanlard. “Imitation or poorly-crafted vanilla can undermine an entire recipe, while full vanilla flavor, like that of Nielsen-Massey Vanillas, enhances a rich chocolate dish and takes chocolate cooking to the next level.”
As with all full-flavored desserts, high quality ingredients are essential for the top-of-the-line recipes that fill the pages of Chocolat. Many of the recipes call for vanilla extracts and pastes like Lanlard’s childhood favorite: Chocolate and Vanilla Marble Cake.
For the perfect pairing of chocolate and vanilla on the palette, try Lanlard’s Marble cake recipe below.
Chocolate and Vanilla Marble Cake
Serves 8
Preparation Time: 15 minutes (plus cooling)
Cooking time: 50 minutes
1 stick unsalted butter, melted and cooled, plus extra for greasing
4 ounces semisweet chocolate, coarsely chopped
5 eggs, separated
2/3 cup superfine sugar
1 cup all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
2 teaspoons Nielsen-Massey Vanillas vanilla extract or paste
Directions
1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F Grease a 9 x 5 x 3-inch loaf pan and line with parchment paper.
2. Melt the chocolate in a heatproof bowl set over a saucepan of barely simmering water, making sure the surface of the water does not touch the bowl.
3. In a large bowl, beat together the egg yolks and sugar until pale, using an electric hand mixer. Beat in the cooled, melted butter, then sift in the flour and baking powder and fold in.
4. Separate the batter into two large bowls. Fold the vanilla into one of the bowls and the melted chocolate into the other. In a large, clean, dry bowl, whisk the egg whites to stiff peaks, then gently fold half of the egg whites into each cake batter.
5. Spoon layers of the batter alternately into the prepared pan, then run through a toothpick or skewer two or three times to create a marbled effect. Bake in the oven for 45 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Let cool in the pan for 10 minutes, then turn out onto a cooling rack to cool completely.
Throughout its more than 100 year history, Nielsen-Massey Vanillas has earned its reputation as a manufacturer of the finest extracts in the world. The full line of Nielsen-Massey’s Pure Vanilla products include: Vanilla Beans and Extracts from Madagascar, Tahiti and Mexico; sugar and alcohol-free Madagascar Bourbon Pure Vanilla Powder; Madagascar Bourbon Pure Vanilla Bean Paste; Madagascar Bourbon Pure Vanilla Sugar, Organic Fairtrade Madagascar Bourbon Pure Vanilla Extract and Organic Madagascar Bourbon Pure Vanilla Beans.
Nielsen-Massey Vanillas also offers a full line of Pure Flavors: Pure Chocolate Extract, Pure Almond Extract, Pure Orange Extract, Pure Lemon Extract, Pure Coffee Extract, Pure Peppermint Extract, Orange Blossom Water and Rose Water. All Nielsen-Massey products are All-Natural, Allergen-Free, GMO-Free, and certified Kosher and Gluten-Free. The company is headquartered in Waukegan, Illinois, with production facilities in Waukegan and Leeuwarden, The Netherlands.
