BOOK FEATURE : : : :

One of life's greatest pleasures is biting into a warm chocolate chip cookie.

Now imagine topping the cookie with chocolate truffle fudge sauce and vanilla whipped cream. Or, how about swapping out that traditional gooey goodness for a layered mocha mousse, chocolate chip bread pudding, or a chocolate-covered chocolate chip cake?

THE ESSENTIAL CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKBOOK offers 45 recipes that cover all the dessert bases—cookies, cakes, candies, brownies, tarts, frozen treats, and more. Chocolate chips saturate these recipes inside and out, so there's also a guide to the differences between these tiny indulgences. Using milk, semisweet, bittersweet, and white chocolate, expert author Elinor Klivans (Big Fat Cookies, Cupcakes!) encourages readers to discover their favorite chocolate chip recipes by, of course, tasting them all.

What are you waiting for? Give your sweet tooth what it craves right now! Dive into the cookie and cream tart below, or choose from a selection of Kilvans' irresistible chocolate chip recipes on our website. Plus, don't forget you can always find new treats from the Chronicle kitchen every Wednesday on our blog. Life's greatest pleasure just got a whole lot greater.

CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIE AND CREAM TART

This tart is a combination of three classics: chocolate chip cookies, whipped cream, and fudge sauce. The crust is a thick chocolate chip cookie that is spread with chocolate truffle fudge sauce and covered with vanilla whipped cream. As it cools, the center of the baked cookie sinks slightly, which makes room for the truffle filling.

Makes 10 servings

Mixing time: 20 minutes for crust, filling, and topping
Baking: 350° F. for about 17 minutes

Crust
1 cup plus 2 tbsp unbleached all-purpose flour
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, melted and cooled slightly
1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
6 tbsp granulated sugar
1 large egg
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 cup (6 oz) semisweet chocolate chips

Filling
1/4 cup heavy whipping cream
1 tbsp unsalted butter
2/3 cup (4 oz) semisweet chocolate chips
1/2 tsp vanilla extract

Topping
1 cup cold heavy whipping cream
1 tbsp powdered sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract

Make the crust: Preheat the oven to 350° F. Butter a 10-inch springform pan.

Sift the flour, baking soda, and salt into a medium bowl and set aside.

In a large bowl, using an electric mixer on medium speed, beat the butter, brown sugar, and granulated sugar until smoothly blended, about 1 minute. Add the egg and vanilla and mix until blended, about 1 minute. The mixture may look slightly curdled. On low speed, add the flour mixture, mixing just until it is incorporated. Mix in the chocolate chips.

Use your fingers to spread the dough evenly over the bottom of the prepared pan. Bake just until the top begins to turn golden but the center is still soft, about 17 minutes. Cool the crust in the pan on a wire rack.

Make the filling. In a medium saucepan, heat the cream and butter over low heat until the cream is hot and the butter melts. The mixture should form tiny bubbles and measure about 175° F. on an instant-read thermometer; do not let the mixture boil. Remove the pan from the heat, add the chocolate chips, and let them sit in the hot cream mixture for about 30 seconds to soften, then whisk until all of the chocolate is melted and the filling is smooth. Stir in the vanilla. Let the filling cool and thicken at room temperature for about 30 minutes.

Leaving a 1-inch edge uncovered, spread the sauce over the crust. Refrigerate for about 30 minutes to firm the filling.

Use a small sharp knife to loosen the sides of the crust from the pan and then remove the sides of the pan. Use a sharp knife to loosen the crust from the bottom of the pan and then a wide metal spatula to slide the tart onto a platter.

Make the topping. In a large bowl, using an electric mixer on medium-high speed, beat the cream, powdered sugar, and vanilla until firm peaks form. Spread the whipped cream over the chocolate filling, mounding it slightly in the center.

Serve, or cover carefully and refrigerate for as long as overnight. Serve cold.

More Cooking Titles

LUSCIOUS CREAMY DESSERTS
http://www.chroniclebooks.com/lusciouscreamy/

Ready for melt-in-your-mouth goodness? These scrumptious recipes are the latest mouthwatering morsels from Lori Longbotham, author of the successful Luscious Desserts series.

SOUP'S ON!
http://www.chroniclebooks.com/soupson/

Soup's On! includes 75 tempting and delicious recipes from some of world's most respected chefs and cooking teachers.

WHERE FLAVOR WAS BORN
http://www.chroniclebooks.com/whereflavorwasborn/

This extraordinary cookbook from celebrated author Andreas Viestad explores the culinary wonders along the legendary spice route, from Zanzibar to India to Bali and everywhere in between.

KITCHEN PLAYDATES
http://www.kitchenplaydates.com/

Sophisticated entertaining—with kids? Lauren Bank Deen proves that it is not only possible, but great fun, too!

CHRONICLE BOOKS
680 SECOND STREET
SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94107
415.537.4200

Thank you for subscribing to Book Blast: Cooking. If you wish to ***, click here.

Email webmaster@chroniclebooks.com with comments or questions. If you can't see this, go to
www.chroniclebooks.com/
BOOKBLAST/cooking030508.html