Hi again,
Came across a recipe for Gourmet Rocky Road. A great one that looks and sounds delicious. But it reminded me of the rocky road a made a few Christmas’s in a row that was very similar if not the same, but without the Gourmet label. To make mine I wander through the supermarket and choose ingredients as I go that I can envisage in a new-aged rocky road. I then made a big batch, half of which was dark chocolate and the other half with white chocolate. My method is exactly the same as the recipe but mine are free form clumps into a try, rather that the squares that the recipe produces. The result is a miss-match of what I think of as interesting, non-traditional rocky-road additions in a rustic presentation. But all this time, they were Gourmet! Jokes aside, it asks the question where the Gourmet label site with people, how does an ingredient qualify and turn something traditional or even modern into “Gourmet”. I guess in this case it is the addition of Pistachios and Cranberries, which are delicious and becoming more popular (again or for the first time depending who you ask) as methods of jazzing up the traditional recipe.
I started getting even more experimental with my Rocky-Road clumps and added mini meringues and other dried fruit on occasions, which is daring and I think it even might take it into the child treats category rather than a Gourmet or Traditional category. But it shows how one addition, subtraction, or tweaking can change the impression food gives and who it might appeal to. A traditionalist might steer clear of the Meringues or cranberries in favour of glace cherries and marshmallows and the more hip and modern might jump for the pistachios and cranberries over the glace cherries!
The point is that you can mix up recipes, they don’t need to be followed word-for-word. You might even make something up that you end being famous for! People loved my deliciously unhealthy Rocky-Road and was asked to make it on numerous occasions, which was a real compliment. If you have ever thought “I wonder if it would be nice with cream in it?” or “I wonder if there is a recipe that uses chicken instead of beef”, be that person that tries it out! It’s not the worst thing if it doesn’t work, out (It may seem like it at the time) but, trust me, it will be ok and there will be something else that works out and makes up for the shortfall. I think I am better at making up and changing savoury recipes as I find them more forgiving, so when I get creative with something sweet like the rocky-road, it is a huge achievement for me! But I’m still forever retrying my luck in the sweet territory and coming up with new ideas that more than often fail, but oh well, I will just try and try again! The payoff eventually will be marvellous and I will have learnt so much along the way!
Xo
NJC
No comments:
Post a Comment