Raw Chocolate [Hardcover]

Matthew Kenney (Author), Meredith Baird (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: February 1, 2012

Now you can enjoy one of the great tastes and textures in raw-raw chocolate. Raw chocolate can be made without a lot of fuss and with great results. This book features truffles, fudge, buttercups, fruit, smoothies, bonbons, and more. With cacao beans and health-promoting ingredients like goji berries and maca, raw chocolate is even healthy for you!

Matthew Kenney is a chef, restaurateur, caterer, and food writer. He has appeared on the Today show, the Food Network, and numerous morning and talk shows. Matthew splits his time between New York and Maine.

Meredith Baird has been an integral part of the Matthew Kenney team since 2008. She assisted in writing and developing recipes for Everyday Raw Desserts and Everyday Raw Express, as well as helping with the Matthew Kenney Restaurant and Academy. She lives in New York. No-fuss healthy options for the world's sweet tooth

Editorial Reviews

From the Inside Flap

Experience one of the great tastes and textures in the raw food world-raw chocolate. Raw chocolate is expensive to buy, but can be made without a lot of fuss and with great results. And with cacao beans and health-promoting ingredients like goji berries and maca, raw chocolate is good for you, too.

This book features all flavors and types of chocolate: truffles, fudge, buttercups, dipped fruit, smoothies, bonbons, and more. Learn to make raw chocolate that is as beautiful as it is delicious with Matthew Kenney and Meredith Baird's Raw Chocolate.

Matthew Kenney is a chef, restaurateur, caterer, and food writer. He has appeared on the Today Show, the Food Network, and numerous morning and talk shows. He is also the author of a number of cookbooks including Everyday Raw, Everyday Raw Desserts, and Everyday Raw Express. Matthew splits his time between New York and Maine.

Meredith Baird has been an integral part of the Matthew Kenney team since 2008. She assisted in writing and developing recipes for Everyday Raw Desserts and Everyday Raw Express, as well as helping with the Matthew Kenney Restaurant and Academy. She lives in New York.

Adrian Mueller grew up in Lucerne, Switzerland, and currently resides in New York with his wife and son. As a photographer, his aim is to create images that connect with a viewer's personal memories, to ensure an emotional and lasting impression.

Jessica Acs is a researcher and creative director residing in Toronto, Canada. Passionate about natural foods, nutrition, and wellness, she believes the practice of a mindful lifestyle is first expressed through our everyday food choices.

About the Author

Matthew Kenney is a chef, restaurateur, caterer, and food writer. He has appeared on the Today Show, the Food Network, and numerous morning and talk shows. Matthew splits his time between New York and Maine.

Meredith Baird has been an integral part of the Matthew Kenney team since 2008. She assisted in writing and developing recipes for Everyday Raw Desserts and Everyday Raw Express, as well as helping with the Matthew Kenney Restaurant and Academy. She lives in New York.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 144 pages
• Publisher: Gibbs Smith (February 1, 2012)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1423621050
• ISBN-13: 978-1423621058
• Product Dimensions: 8 x 0.8 x 9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.6 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (21 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #46,069 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #10 in Books > Cookbooks, Food & Wine > Baking > Chocolate

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

16 of 17 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars A Chocolate Work of Art! February 29, 2012

By M. Falso

Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase

This book is beautifully written, photographed and inspiring. It's edgy and modern, with sophistication and flair. There are so many creative recipes and wonderful gourmet flavor combinations. I really appreciate the stunning photography and modern flavorings of these chocolate confections. I'm also glad that there are other chocolate-inspired recipes that are beyond the bonbons, bars, buttercups and truffles (for instance, fudges, marzipan, gianduja, buckwheat nib cereal, smoothies, and drinks, just to name a few). I'm excited to try many of these creations.

Personally, I was so happy to see a recipe for white chocolate! I've made 3 recipes from the book and they have all turned out better than expected. My only issue with any of the recipes thus far is the white chocolate base. While the flavor is spot on, the use of coconut flour in the chocolate makes for a very gritty texture. However, I like it so much that I continue to make it regardless.

My only issue with this classic book is that there are some gaps in information about ingredients, for instance, like chocolate liquor/paste. I personally know what it is and how to use it, there is no explanation for what it is, how to use it, and why to use it. Another part that is missing from this book is actual processing of the raw chocolate and how it is made, especially raw cocoa butter, raw cocoa powder, and the raw cocoa bean.I know that it is not the intent of the book to show you how to make chocolate from bean to bar, but it would really make the book a more complete all-around raw chocolate book. This does not detract from this beautiful book, but I believe it would only benefit the inclusion of this information.

13 of 14 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars Stunning Flavors Created by Effort April 11, 2012

By H. Roth

Format:Hardcover

Raw Food reaches past trendiness into a normal part of life these days. Restaurants, cookbooks, and even most kitchens are equipped to produce raw dishes that satisfy the palate and your hunger. Most cooks have a food processor, definitely needed to get the best results from "Raw Chocolate."

Preparing raw recipes involves some challenges. For example, many require advance planning. A home primarily eating a raw diet has the usual nuts soaking on a daily basis. Those exploring this approach to food or the raw-curious must handle the "Raw Chocolate" cookbook with deliberate intention.

Read the cookbook first--from getting oriented to ingredients, techniques and timing--to choosing a couple of initial recipes that inspire you, I don't recommend plunking the book down on your counter and diving in. I love jumping into a new recipe; here, you are likely to end up doing a header into the muck under the lake. Although paralysis is unlikely, the "now" scenario makes success equally elusive.

Take the time to understand the special ingredients, add them to your pantry, and plan ahead for these recipes. The time and effort is worth the investment.

A good starting place is the Macadamia Brittle. Once you've created a batch of tempered chocolate you may feel impatient to complete a recipe. Consider starting with the brittle. The combined powerful presence of the chocolate base, rich macadamia nuts and swarthy smoked salt reminds my mouth of a dinner party with my best friends. The flow of great conversation, interesting dishes, and the comfort of friendship resides in the flavors of each piece.

One recipe I tested demonstrated the planning needed to complete the recipe. Fortunately, the authors made sure to tell you in the recipe it takes three steps. We found "Blueberry Bliss" to be a rewarding effort. Purity of chocolate flavor is one of the joys of raw chocolates. In many cases we've become accustomed to eating chocolate vastly changed by heavy processing. When you get the specified ingredients and follow the instructions, chocolate reveals a different personality. The bigger, stronger flavors pair with a more delicate touch on the tongue rewards the home cook who commits fully to these recipes. Blueberry Bliss combines this different chocolate reality with health-boosting, flavor-happy blueberries.

One note on the Bliss recipe and other candy-cup items in this book will make things easier. I used the mini-cup silicon molds. Although I don't care for silicon baking pans (floppy, out-of-control and hard to manage in the oven for my taste) the baking cups are dream. I didn't even need paper liners, though they fit in perfectly. Easy to chill, clean, and fill, those cups made the day.

Despite the surfeit of chocolate joy, a white chocolate recipe tore up the tracks and stopped the train dead in place. Part of the fascination with this recipe is the transformation that occurred. Everything was in the food processor, doing the raw food NASCAR routine. Stop the machine, check the texture, taste the results, start the engine and repeat. And repeat. All of a sudden, something changed. The color lightened, the texture lost any tiny remaining graininess. Then the taste: the component flavors disappeared into a deadly blend that dropped me to the kitchen floor in a full-on swoon. I thought only Victorian women swooned, until I tasted "White Chocolate Fudge."

The ingredient list is pleasantly short for a raw recipe. Clearly soaking the nuts makes them something more than yummy tree-fruit. Raw food techniques intimidate some people. If I can bribe you into giving them a try based on the phenomenal results in "White Chocolate Fudge" or "Blueberry Bliss" you won't regret venturing into Raw Chocolate territory.

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful

2.0 out of 5 stars Worst Fudge Ever October 10, 2012

By Robert Scanlon

Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase

We love raw food at our house. I made the white chocolate fudge. There was way too much sweetener for the amount. It was a complete and total waste of the expensive ingredients I used to make it. I really regretted having made it.

While the book is nice to look at, the recipes I have tried are not tasty enough for me. They are way too sweet without any complexity. The sickly sweetness was nauseating - and I love sweet things. I wouldn't normally write a poor review but the recipes I tried (and that were followed, even after adding only 7/8 of the sweetener so it didn't overflow during transfer from bench to blender) had me heading here to report.

I will try another few recipes when I have time because I won't give up just yet (and I will update this review with any success I have. I am not one to ruin recipes ever). The fudge recipes are definitely lacking something. I will go back to my old fudge recipe (raw) that has a far better consistency - pretty close to the traditional fudge. To HAVE to keep the fudge in the fridge to the last second without it becoming a melty mess is not appealing to me. This stuff melts on touching.

Will try something of a different nature from this book in the near future. Wish me luck. I may scour the other reviews to see what others are raving about. Don't start with the fudge.