A love letter to chocolate

Chocolate doesn’t need a holiday, but Valentine’s Day gives us permission to notice it. Chocolate melts patiently. It waits. It forgives mistakes.

When treated gently, it rewards you with far more than the sum of its parts. That’s not a bad lesson for life or love.

Most of us think we know chocolate, but the labels tell an important story:

• Dark chocolate is made from cocoa solids, cocoa butter and minimal sugar. Higher cocoa percentages mean deeper flavor and less sweetness.

• Bittersweet and semisweet are both dark chocolates and interchangeable in most recipes. Exact cocoa percentages matter less than choosing chocolate you enjoy.

• Milk chocolate includes milk solids and more sugar, giving it a softer, creamier flavor.

• White chocolate contains cocoa butter, sugar and milk solids but no cocoa solids. When well made, it’s still real chocolate.

You may have noticed that some chocolate costs more than others. The difference often lies in better cocoa beans, higher cocoa butter content, fewer fillers and ethical sourcing.

Some of chocolate’s higher cost reflects how cocoa is grown and who benefits. When you’re able, choosing fair trade or ethically sourced brands is a small way to support better practices.

That said, not every recipe asks for your very best chocolate. Cakes, brownies and bark loaded with toppings do just fine with good grocery-store chocolate. Save higher-end bars for simple recipes, where flavor and texture truly shine.

If chocolate has a greatest magic trick, it’s ganache. It sounds fancy, but it’s simply chocolate and cream, and one of the most useful techniques a home cook can learn.

By adjusting the ratio of chocolate to cream, ganache can be thin and pourable or thick and scoopable, serving as a sauce, glaze, frosting, truffle filling or the thing that makes a simple cake feel extraordinary.

And if you want the simplest Valentine’s Day dessert of all, these straightforward chocolate cupcakes never fail. No fuss, just rich flavor and a tender crumb.

Chocolate doesn’t ask for perfection. It teaches patience, provides us with self-care. Say it with me: “Chocolate, will you be my valentine?”

Easy Chocolate Cupcakes

Servings: About 16 cupcakes

Ingredients

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1 cup granulated sugar

1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 cup coffee

1 tablespoon white distilled vinegar

1/3 cup vegetable oil

1 large egg, room temperature

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

Procedure

Preheat oven to 350 degrees with rack centered. Line a muffin tin with cupcake liners.

In a large bowl, whisk together flour, sugar, cocoa powder, baking soda and salt. In a second bowl, whisk coffee, vinegar, oil, egg and vanilla until blended. Pour wet ingredients over dry and whisk just until combined. Do not overmix.

Using an ice cream scoop, portion batter into liners, filling each about two-thirds full. Bake for 20 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool 5 minutes in the pan, then transfer to a rack to cool completely before frosting.

Chocolate Ganache

Ingredients

8 ounces chocolate chips

1 cup heavy cream

Procedure

Place the chocolate chips in a heatproof bowl. Heat the cream, on the stovetop or in the microwave, just until steaming with small bubbles at the edges. Pour the hot cream over the chocolate and let it sit undisturbed for 3 minutes. Starting in the center, gently stir outward until smooth and glossy.

Use warm as a pourable glaze, dip or sauce. Let it cool to thicken for spreading or frosting. Strawberries are always welcome.