Rocky Road,a universal favourite and the simplest way to make it...

'All you need is love. But a little chocolate now and then doesn't hurt', said Charles M Schultz and I couldn't agree with him more! Topping a bar of chocolate would be a chocolate dessert or a slice of gooey chocolate cake.But you can easily have something in between and that something is the famous 'Rocky Road' a cross between chocolate, dessert , chocolate cake and everything else. 

My version, best served with an Espresso/Cappuccino

Historically, Rocky Road was invented in Australia in 1853 as a way of on-selling confectionery spoiled by the long journey from Europe. Gold miners in towns outside of Melbourne, such as Ballarat, were wealthy but uncultured. Cunning businessmen took advantage of these men, mixing the spoiled confectionery with low quality chocolate and other 'filler' ingredients, such as locally foraged nuts. The name Rocky Road is derived from the 'Rocky Road' travelers had to take to get to the gold fields.

That version of Rocky Road has come a very long way since and it has now developed into a fine art form, and is sometimes served in upmarket restaurants worldwide as a specialty dessert for people who will pay hundreds of dollars for it.

The main ingredients  in traditional Australian Rocky Road are marshmallows, dark or white milk chocolate,jelly,desiccated coconut,glace cherries,nuts, particularly peanuts,Turkish delight and strawberry sauce.

A minor variation is the American Rocky road and its main ingredients are marshmallows,milk chocolate,walnuts or almonds.The most popular version of Rocky Road in the U.S. is in ice cream form, which consists of chocolate ice cream, marshmallows (or sometimes a "marshmallow swirl"), and nuts. 

Here is my very simple and quick version of Rocky Road which will not take you more than  hour, which includes the preparation as well as the baking time.

All the ingredients neatly lined up 

Ingredients

4 bars of dark dessert/cooking chocolate

Half a bag of large white marshmallows

Vanilla essence to taste

Half a packet of small, dried figs

Half a pack of strawberries

Grated coconut to taste- I used about 500 gms for this entire batch

Peanuts to taste.

 Break chocolate into bits

 Melt over a pan of hot water, stir

 Mix all the ingredients into melted chocolate and stir gently

Pour the  mix on a greased baking tray and cover with grated coconut.

Bake at 150 c for about 25-30 mins or until done.

Cut into squares or shape into balls. Refrigerate till ready to serve and then bring out to the table. 

These are eaten best accompanied by an Espresso/Cappuccino  and if you want an added dash of fun, top with add a dollop of whipped cream/ice cream.

Crepes in the Latin Quarter, St Michel Paris- Simple, quick and oh so delicious...

Entering the busy market, The Latin Quarter, Paris

The Berry version -sinfully decadent 

One late evening this June, having visited the Notre Dame Cathedral, we found ourselves in the exciting and very vibrant Latin Quarter or the 'Quartier Latin' in Paris.

That was when I spotted this little shop

The name itself evokes images of bohemian Paris at its height.In spite of the loss of its former identity, the many little streets surrounding what was the Left Banks true student and intellectual center continues to attract tourists and Parisians who hope to discover or possibly even resurrect a little of that eclectic sense of change that we read of in Camus, or Sartre.

The Latin Quarter is bisected by the Boulevard St. Germain and the Boulevard St. Michel. These are the two main arteries running through the area, with the hundreds of crooked streets leading off them. The tree lined Place St. André des Arts, which was a gathering place for many French artists, is still ringed with bistros and restaurants. 

It was in exactly one such street that we came upon this little crepe shop and I just stopped, completely fascinated by the obvious popularity of the place as well as the speed and efficiency of the crepe maker.


A crêpe or crepe is a type of very thin pancake, usually made from wheat flour (crêpes de Froment) or buckwheat flour (galettes). The word is of French origin, deriving from the Latin crispa, meaning "curled". While crêpes are often associated with Brittany, a region in the northwest of France, their consumption is widespread all over the world.. Crêpes are served with a variety of fillings, from the most simple with only sugar to flambeed crepes Suzette  or elaborate savoury versions with a range of vegetarian as well as non vegetarian fillings .

The busy crepe maker was just starting one 

He was  swift and very efficient

Ensuring that it is golden brown and crisp

Hmm, looks just about right!

The crepe maker was just starting one of the crepes and the number of people waiting for their turn was quite substantial. You see,  crepes are really an 'anytime snack' which is one of the reasons for their popularity. Add to it, the range of sweet and savory flavors as well as the fairly economical pricing and what you have is a clear winner!




He put the batter onto the hot plate and ensured that the colour was 'just so'- The end result, a crisp, delicious and golden brown crepe.  











That of course, is the secret of street food like this- it has to be something that everyone can tuck into- and walk way feeling as if it was the best meal on earth, at that moment in time!





















The only little problem as far as we were concerned was that we had already had our dinner,  a large one at that, so there was really no scope to actually eat this delicious concoction. 

OK folks- its ready now

Walking out having had a delightful experience

But then of course, there is always a next time and that's well worth waiting for....