Past Newsletters
Vol 5 No 7

In Pursuit of Chocolate

Cookie Shop for Connoisseurs Celebrates Twentieth Anniversary

Scrumptious, chocolate, Shortbread. Imagine rich cocoa, sweet creamy butter, and Guittard chocolate chips combined for a dark, dense, and decadent treat. This is the Chocolate Bliss Shortbread cookie from the Mendocino Cookie Company. Discriminating chocolate aficionados love this cookies as well as a unique offering developed to showcase twenty years of baking innovation called the Mocha Java Chip cookie. The flavor of the richest baking cocoa was punched up with a shot of espresso and paired with Guittard chocolate. The piece de resistance is a sprinkling of crystallized coffee added to each cookie just before baking. It is a taste that beckons for more.

Established in 1984 in the tiny historic village of Mendocino off the Northern Coast of California, the Mendocino Cookie Company is a favorite stop for coastal residents and visitors from all parts of the globe. After fourteen years in a 350 square foot shop this family owned business moved fifteen minutes north expanding their operation to 1,700 square feet. Now located in the historic Union Lumber Company Store building in Fort Bragg, California, two and sometimes three generations of family members enjoy working side by carrying on the tradition of excellence established twenty years ago. Every cookie this family bakes is made entirely by hand without the aid of production machinery. From mixing the dough to hand scooping each and every cookie, the Mendocino Cookie Company is proud to be one of a very few companies still doing this the old fashioned way. Attention to detail and quality control are key in this kitchen.

One Family’s Passion

One of the many reasons the Mendocino Cookie Company has such devoted customers is the fact that only the highest quality chocolate is used. Holding to this superior standard sets Beverlee’s enterprise apart from other cookie confectioners. It is no wonder that she chose Guittard Chocolate Company to supply her chocolate.

Guittard Chocolate

Gary Guittard’s great-grandfather, Etienne Guittard, opened Guittard Chocolate on the San Francisco waterfront in 1868 when the city was young and still glowing from the gold rush. Etienne had originally come to California from France in pursuit of gold, but stayed on at the behest of merchants who recognized his talents as a master chocolatier. For 135 years the Guittard Chocolate Company has been managed with the personal attention and care that can only come from a family-run business intent on continuing a distinguished legacy. Gary Guittard joined the company in 1975.

The Making of a Master Chocolatier
In 2001 Gary announced the E. Guittard artisan line, which is a culmination of his lifelong knowledge of French chocolate-making while returning to some of his family’s nineteenth century methods and recipes. E. Guittard is the result of more than five years of devotion, a few hundred handcrafted batches of chocolate, and continuous analysis by a tasting panel. The new line meets a contemporary niche—a desire for highly sophisticated foods made with traditional methods.

The rare heirloom criollo cacao bean which Gary uses in E. Guittard was also used by the company years ago—a company ad shows workers fermenting Guittard’s criollo beans back in the 1930’s. A visit to the Guittard plant in Burlingame reveals a business that is both modern and steeped in tradition. From the cacao tree growing in the lobby, to displays of chocolate molds, newspaper articles, and packages from by-gone eras, the plant is an historic icon.

Throughout this long history, and under the strong influences of both his father and grandfather, Gary has defined his own palate and style in running the business. Like his father, he encourages feedback from his clients. Gary also acknowledges his father’s influence in not insisting that his own two children join him at Guittard Chocolate, though both have already worked at the plant.

With only nine companies in the United States now making chocolate from cacao beans, and far fewer with expertise in heirloom methods, Gary Guittard holds a position of extraordinary distinction. While continuing to perfect his own chocolate-making skills, he is also active in the industry, serving as current Chairman of the Chocolate Manufacturers Association.

At this point, looking back on a sometimes ambivalent path, Gary happily acknowledges that his work is his passion and that what he is doing more than meets his desire to be creative. Creativity may take the form of adventure in traveling to remote Latin American cacao plantations and working with plantation managers to get fermentation just right. It may mean being flexible in dealing with clients. Anyone who has been with Gary as he tastes, smells, and blends cacao beans—and samples the results of his efforts—would agree that he is one of the most creative and masterful chocolatiers today.

Developing A Chocolate Palate

Chocolate can be heavenly, mellow, sensual, deep, dark, sumptuous, gratifying, potent, dense, creamy, seductive, suggestive, rich, excessive, silky, smooth, luxurious, celestial… If it is none of these things, it is either not quality chocolate, or not real chocolate. That’s right; there are lots of chocolate imposters out there! The following precepts will help you become a true connoisseur in all matters chocolate.

How to Sample Chocolate

• Look at it - Shiny and smooth are hallmarks. The color reflects the percentage of cocoa, therefore milk chocolates would be the lightest.
• Smell it – The best chocolate has a breathtaking full-bodied aroma.
• Break it – Great chocolate breaks clean and makes a cracking sound.
• Melt it – It will slowly melt on your tongue, and as an ingredient will melt smooth and not grainy.
• Taste it - A full-mouth taste with no unpleasant aftertaste will stay on your tongue long after the chocolate is swallowed.

Short Scoop On A Scottish Tradition

The British Empire may have lost world power and momentum during the last 500 years, but there are no signs of a slow down in the empire that has grown around shortbread. Sold in millions of tons around the world, its fame is largely due to the talents of Scottish bakers, and to their determination that shortbread should not be classed as a common biscuit.

It is safe to assume that Scottish shortbread dates way, way, way back. There is a shortbread named Pitcailhly Bannocks, and the Pictish people were first mentioned in Roman literature in 296. The name "Pict" is said to have come either from a Latin word meaning "painted ones" or another meaning "fighter." Both of these accurately depicted the Pictish people. If you are interested in learning more, below is a link that will take you to a compendium of links about Scotland and her often turbulent history - http://www.scotland-inverness.co.uk/links.htm.

Old festive shortbreads were made by the rural communities and shaped into large round bannocks or wheels, or they were baked as rectangles and then broken up into uneven chucks for serving. Later shortbread was often baked in round molds with various designs, and served at high teas.

The Perfect Shortbread

1 cup butter

1/2 cup confectioners' sugar

2 cups all-purpose flour

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). 2 In a large mixing bowl, cream the butter and the sugar. Slowly add the flour and salt, mixing well. Roll out dough with a rolling pin until it is 1/4 inch thick. Cut into desired shapes using cookie cutters. Place on cookie sheet and prick with a fork. 3 Bake for 5 to 8 minutes, or until light brown at the edges.