Yet Another Chocolate Indulgence

As winter approaches and I wonder if there's enough fat in my diet, I feel moved to share one of my secrets for satisfying winter stews that are not excessively fatty.You can use the bitter tang and the concentrated flavor and fattiness of unsweetened chocolate to add a dimension to almost any stew that will delight ( and mystify ) your guests. For a two quart stew pot or brasier, add about two ounces of
Bittersweet Scharffen Berger Chocolate and a tiny amount of hot pepper.
Of course, this is not really a secret-Mole Poblano has used these ingredients for years. But some prejudiced connection of chocolate with dessert prevents us from using chocolate as a spice.
Why Scharffen Berger? Here's a story:

My European friends are mildly snooty about some of their local products-all of which, in their eyes-are infinitely superior to their American equivalents. A few years ago, I started carrying Scharffen Berger chocolate bars -particularly the semi-sweet-with me to Europe-mostly the blue and yellow wrappers.
At one friend's house, I was always asked to make a mousse au chocolate and so I, naturally, used the Scharffen Berger even though my host had put out a local (Austrian) brand.

The Austrians have some pretty good chocolate themselves and if you ever get a chance to try Zotter's magnificent filled chocolates in their million and a half varieties, be grateful and dive in.

Anyway, the rave reviews that the mousse got-and continues to get-are not based on the recipe, which is basic Basic, but on the remarkable complexity of these lovely chocolates and
particularly on their fruity overtones and beguiling winey finish.
I hear that the company has been sold to Hershey, and so there is no guarantee that the quality will remain as it is. For the moment, I have to say that I think this is certainly one of the
three best chocolates in the world and maybe the best.

--Lynn Hoffman, wine writer and the rich and velvety bang BANG [[ASIN:1601640005 bang BANG: A Novel]]  which has decidedly spicy notes of its own.