Instructions
Every mother should learn a simple rule: teach your sons to bake a chocolate cake and they will never be lonely on a Saturday night!
Ah yes, the tried and proven technique for getting what you want in life – use the force. The rich, gooey, luscious force of chocolate that is.
Chocolate is an extremely adaptable ingredient, and can be fashioned into an immense array of things. There are few other foods that have its versatility, nor its wide-ranging appeal. You will, on odd occasion, meet the bizarre individual who professes no love for chocolate. But some dishes can even appeal to the chocolate-averse. In fact I found a solution high in the Alps.
The Swiss are recognised the world over for their talents with chocolate, but on a recent trip I chanced upon a mountain village renown for its chocolate even within Switzerland – Villars. These confectionaries are the treat of choice for the discerning cuckoo clock makers.
But their real skill in managing chocolate comes not through an excess or abundance, but rather their inclination to do less. Less sugar, less butter, smaller portions. By concentrating their efforts to create intensely-flavoured treats, the pastry chefs of Villars break new ground and produce refined, elegant sweets.
One of my favourites is a simple nut-based torte eponymously named for the village: Villars Torte. It’s a strange creation in some ways, as it straddles the worlds of tart and cake, without really fitting comfortably into either. The nearest equivalent that springs to mind is the famous panforte of Siena in Italy.
The Swiss chefs take a sweet shortcrust pastry and line it into a cake tin, reserving some for a lid. The filling is made by combining butter, honey, eggs, nuts, cocoa and a generous dash of local liqueur. Once baked, it is enrobed in chocolate and given as a gift. Indeed the degree of affection one feels for one’s host is in large measure dependant on the size of the Villars Torte offered.
What makes this dessert so truly remarkable is that the taste of the chocolate, honey and nuts is never overwhelmed by the accompanying sweetness. Instead of a broad single experience, the dish comprises distinct layers made up of flavours and textures.
So young men, take care with this recipe. While a mud cake is plain a simple, Villars Torte is complex and fascinating – a combination that seems to promise so much more. So rather than just getting you a date for the weekend, it could lead to an equivalently complicated relationship. Just make sure you’re ready for that, and don’t say I didn’t warn you. The force is indeed a powerful thing!
Villars chocolate torte