Bizcochos de chocolate -- Chocolate biscuits, a Pinedo recipe

As I was reading through my translations of the Pinedo book, I tried to imagine the recipes--how they were made and what they were like when they were completed.  (Search this blog using the keyword "Pinedo" to see more details about this book.)

Some recipes didn't seem to be complete.  I left open the possibility that a recipe might be using a technique I was unaware of, so I didn't automatically assume the recipe was wrong.  Often I looked at other books or websites to see if I could find the same or similar recipes for confirmation.

This recipe, Bizcochos de chocolate, found on page 30, was one that caught my attention.  "Bizcocho" can mean a biscuit, a muffin, or a cake.  Ms. Pinedo used different words for muffin and cake, so I translated it as "Chocolate biscuits."

My Translation

Chocolate biscuits.

Beat or stir six fresh eggs well in a mortar, with one ounce of fine powdered chocolate and four ounces of well-ground sugar. All this is mashed, as I said, in a mortar until it turns into a paste; it is placed on papers or in molds.

I noticed there was no flour mentioned, which seemed odd to me.  So I looked at one of Ms. Pinedo's recipe sources, Nuevo cocinero mejicano (NCM), and found the same recipe on page 77.  That recipe said to use four ounces of flour and ten ounces of powdered sugar.

Ah, a challenge!

I wondered if Ms. Pinedo found a way to make the biscuits without using flour, or if she just made a mistake.  I had to try her recipe.

I had to decide what she meant by powdered chocolate.  My instinct was to get a tablet of Mexican chocolate, the kind you dissolve in hot milk or water for a beverage.  That would provide the chocolate flavor, some fat, and some added flavors like vanilla or cinnamon.

My Redaction (first attempt)

1 ounce Mexican chocolate 

6 eggs

4 ounces powdered sugar

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Line a pan with parchment paper or set out paper muffin cups.

Crush the chocolate tablet in a mortar until finely powdered.  Use a sieve as necessary to separate the powder from the pieces that still need to be crushed.

Mortar and pestle at the ready!

Crushed to a powder.

Mix the chocolate, sugar, and eggs together.  ...  ...  ...

My Notes

This is where I ran into problems.  When the ingredients were mixed, the result was very soupy.  It was clear that the wet-to-dry ratio was wrong.  I was convinced that if I tried to bake it in any amount, I would end up with an omelette.

Chocolate omelette?

It is possible that my large eggs were bigger than those Ms. Pinedo used.  Perhaps I should have used four instead of six.  However, it did not seem likely this recipe was correct.

So I switched to NCM's version.  I added the four ounces of flour and six more ounces of powdered sugar to the mixture.

Improving the wet-to-dry ratio

A thorough mixing yielded a mixture that was more like a batter, although it did not become a paste as the recipes described.  It was this I decided to bake.

Batter up!

I expected cookies, so I used a ladle to put some batter onto parchment paper and some in a thin layer inside muffin cups.

They baked for 7 minutes, then cooled so I could handle them.  

I was surprised at how fluffy they were!  Even the very thin ones on the paper had risen and had air bubbles.  

On paper

In muffin cup

The flavor was good -- I could taste the flavors from the Mexican chocolate (vanilla, cinnamon) but they didn't really taste like chocolate.  I think if you call it a chocolate biscuit, it should taste like chocolate.  

I decided I should try to bake the ones in the muffin cups with more batter, to get more of a muffin-like result.  I filled the cups to about half full.  Those baked for 15 minutes, which was just right.  A pick inserted in the middle came out clean.

I liked these, too.  The flavor was the same as the thinner ones.  There was more to bite into, which I liked.  One thing that bothered me were the "tubes" I could see inside the biscuit.  This made me think of quick breads that are stirred too much.  The texture wasn't quite right - they were a little rubbery.  One guest taster thought they were dry.  And I still wanted to taste chocolate.

There should not be tubes

So I took the rest of the batter and mixed in 2 tablespoons of cocoa powder.  This made the batter thicker.  These baked for 15 minutes, too, at half full or a little more.

Now that looks like chocolate.

Contrast:  with cocoa powder on the left.

These definitely tasted like chocolate.  The texture was better!  I suspect I should have started with the cocoa powder instead of the tablet of Mexican chocolate.

Barely any tubes.  More even texture.

My guest taster liked them all but agreed that the chocolate biscuits were the best.  

My next goal was to determine what recipe would work without having to make all the adjustments.  I wanted to start with cocoa powder (not Mexican chocolate), flour, and powdered sugar.  Then I would add the beaten eggs one at a time until I thought the wet-to-dry ratio was right.  

It turns out that three eggs was just right.  Two made it dry, and three made it a thick batter.  No, I never got a paste.

My Redaction (final attempt)

4 ounces flour

10 ounces powdered sugar

1 ounce cocoa powder

3 eggs

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Set out 10 - 12 paper muffin cups on a baking sheet or in a muffin tin.

Mix dry ingredients together.  Beat the eggs together, then add to the dry mixture.  Stir well.

Ladle or spoon into muffin cups; fill about half full.  Bake for 18-20 minutes, or until a wooden pick inserted into the center comes out clean.

A thick batter

Into the cups.  This is too full.

Notice the smooth tops?

Dense.  Moist.

The Verdict

The smooth tops after baking gave me a hint.  One bite told me the rest.  These are brownies!

Or perhaps proto-brownies.  They weren't as dense and moist as a typical modern brownie, and they weren't "fudgy", but they tasted like chocolate and were enjoyable to eat.  

Comparing them to modern brownies, they did not require butter (which would have made them moister) or baking powder/soda.  They didn't need salt or vanilla.  If I had baked them for about 18 minutes instead of 20, they might have been moister.  

The flavor was chocolate, the sweetness level was just right, and I liked the texture.  They were chewy, too.

Success, finally!

Rock Fish in sauce -- a Pinedo recipe

My neighbors, G & T, gave me some dorado filets that G had caught himself.  Wonderful of them to share it with me!  I had to do it an honor by cooking a Pinedo recipe.  (Search this blog under the keyword "Pinedo" to see all of the posts and why she is important to me.)

This recipe is on page 203.

My Translation

Rock fish in sauce.

         Cut the fish into large slices. On the other hand, onion and garlic are fried in butter with salt and pepper, and when the onion is well browned, a glass of claret wine is added.

         Place the fish slices in this sauce, covering the casserole well and letting it cook over a low heat for fifteen minutes.

My Redaction

True confessions:  I made this recipe twice.  The first time was with some store-bought tilapia.  I want to present both versions so you can make choices.  The italicized ingredients are the ones that differ between versions.

First version:

1 pound tilapia

1 large onion, sliced into narrow strips 1 to 2 inches long

2 tablespoons butter

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon pepper

1 tablespoon chopped garlic

6 ounces cabernet wine  

Second version:

1 pound dorado

1 large onion, sliced into narrow strips 1 to 2 inches long

3 tablespoons butter

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon pepper

1 tablespoon chopped garlic

6 ounces pinot noir wine

Ingredients with the dorado

Melt the butter in a Dutch oven.  Add the onions and cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until they begin to brown.  Add the garlic, salt, and pepper; cook a few minutes longer, stirring continuously to avoid burning the garlic.

Add the wine and stir well.

Add the fish filets.  For the tilapia, I spooned about half of the onion-wine sauce over the top of the fish.  For the dorado, I put the filets in skin side UP and made sure the filets were imbedded in the sauce.

Turn the heat to low.  For the tilapia, I forgot to cover the pan, so it cooked 23 minutes until the meat was flaking.  For the dorado, I covered the pan and cooked it 15 minutes for the meat to be flaky.

Onions just starting to brown, with seasonings added.

The entire sauce.

Note that the filets are pushed down into the sauce for cooking.

Cooked.  One filet was turned over to check on doneness.

The Verdict

I served the filets in a bowl with some of the sauce spooned over the top.  It was good to have the onion mixture already on top of the fish when served.  I didn't include a lot of the liquid into the bowl.  I used a spatula to move the filets to our plates, which included the cooked onions but not the liquid part of the sauce (not much, anyway).

I think some fresh parsley on top would have been pretty.

The meat was, as said, flaky, and very moist.  The flavor was good in both cases, with two differences.

First, the tilapia needed more salt, which is why I increased the salt quantity for the dorado version.  The sauce on the tilapia was bright and tangy, which I thought came from the cabernet (acid and fruity) and the pepper.  I chose cabernet because it is close to claret, which I didn't have on hand.

In contrast, the dorado had just the right amount of salt, but the sauce was not as bright or tangy.  The pinot noir just didn't have the robust flavor of the cabernet, so while it was good, it was not as good.  I wanted that tang on my tongue.

In both versions, my guest taster and I thoroughly enjoyed the fish.  The fact that I didn't overcook them (and I think it would be hard to do it with this technique) made it good, and the sauce with the onions made it even better.  The onions were cooked enough that they added their sweetness, the butter added a good mouthfeel, and the garlic-salt-pepper seasoning was just right.  The garlic flavor was a supporting role:  it didn't stand out but it did add its distinctive flavor to the background.

Success, twice!

I have to say that this recipe is very easy to prepare, and I got a lovely main course out of it.  While everything was cooking, I put together the rest of the meal.  For example. the dorado had a side Caesar salad, a quinoa pilaf, and some cranberry sauce.

A good dinner.