Melt-in-the-mouth puddings for those with a cocoa craving
We discover the joy of cooking with chocolate at an early age, licking the bowl or devouring warm brownies straight from the oven. Chocolate offers such a sensual experience: it melts at just below body temperature, and it is widely believed that this delicious “mouth feel” is one reason it is so addictive. Chocolate also contains psychoactive chemicals such as cannabinoid chemicals (similar to marijuana) and phenylethylamine (which occurs naturally in the body and has an amphetamine-like effect). These little hits heighten your enjoyment — regardless of whether you’re making chocolate crispy cakes or death by chocolate.

DARK MATERIALS

The best dark chocolate is glossy, breaks crisply and releases a complex flavour as it dissolves in your mouth. Different chocolate dishes demand different percentages of cocoa solids. Ganache, which is used for truffles, needs cocoa solids above 70%; mousses require less than 60% or they will set too firmly.

QUICK FIXES

- Slip a few tablets of good chocolate into a sliced croissant or mini brioche and warm in the oven.

- Pan-grill a slice of sourdough bread until toasted, drizzle with olive oil and cover with melted dark chocolate.

- Buy a good vanilla chocolate-chip or chocolate-chip cookie-dough ice cream and serve with sliced bananas. For the ultimate indulgence, drizzle with the chocolate sauce in the profiterole recipe on page 50.

- If craving a chocolate nibble in front of the television, indulge in some home-made popcorn (125g popcorn maize) tossed with 55g melted butter that has been mixed with 2 tbsp muscavado sugar and 1 tbsp cocoa powder.

- Place a tablet or two of dark chocolate in your coffee cup, add strong black coffee and stir until melted for a mocha coffee. Top with cream if you really want to go OTT.