Scharffen Berger, we’ll miss you
I had the pleasure of touring the Berkeley Scharffen Berger factory before it closed and moved operations to some Hershey plants in Illinois. I haven’t noticed a change in the quality of chocolate, but I have noticed a change in me. Since I’ve learned that production halted in that tiny little Berkeley building, there’s some small void that exists when I reach for my stash of Scharffen Berger bittersweet chocolate. I’m reminded that it comes from a seemingly soulless megabrand that adds heaps of sugar to mask its lack of quality in chocolate. The connection I once had with it has vanished, and I often wonder if it shows in my baking.
Again, I haven’t noticed a change in its quality, but the romantic in me says I should go and look for another chocolate to use in my cookies and chocolate banana cream pies (any recommendations besides the lovely Valrhona?). But I can’t seem to let go. (Click on “Read the rest of this entry” for recipe)
MINI CHOCOLATE BANANA CREAM PIES
(Pastry cream recipe adapted from Professional Baking, Wayne Gisslen)
- Yield: 6 mini pies
- For pastry cream:
2 cups milk
1/2 cup sugar, divided
2 egg yolks
1 whole egg
3-1/2 tablespoons cornstarch
2 tablespoons butter
2 teaspoons vanilla
4 ounces Scharffen Berger bittersweet chocolate - Whipped cream:
1 cup heavy cream
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 tablespoons confectioner’s sugar - 1 to 2 bananas, sliced
6 mini graham cracker pie or pre-baked pastry dough pie crusts
Optional garnish: Chocolate shavings
Procedure:
1. In a heavy saucepan, dissolve 1/4 cup sugar in milk and bring just to a boil. Remove from heat.
2. With a whisk, beat egg yolks and whole egg in a stainless-steel bowl.
3. Sift cornstarch and remaining 1/4 cup sugar into eggs. Beat with whisk until smooth.
4. Temper the egg mixture by slowly beating in the hot milk in a thin stream (this will prevent eggs from curdling). Return mixture to heat and bring to a boil, stirring constantly. When mixture comes to a boil and thickens, remove from heat.
5. Stir in butter and vanilla. Mix until butter is melted and blended.
6. Stir in melted chocolate until smooth and combined.
7. Pour cream into a clean bowl and cover with plastic wrap. Cool and chill for a few hours or overnight. When ready to use, whip the chilled pastry cream until smooth before using.
8. To make whipped cream: In a mixing bowl, combine heavy cream, vanilla and sugar and beat until stiff peaks form. Chill until ready to use.
Pie assembly:
1. Place sliced bananas in pie crusts. Top with a chocolate pastry cream. Repeat with another layer of bananas and chocolate cream.
2. Top pies with whipped cream. Garnish with chocolate shavings.
Side note: March Madness is a month-long challenge in which I will post Monday through Friday for the entire month. I hope you will humor me in reading!
– Cynthia Furey
March 4th, 2009 at 6:18 pm
I really enjoy Green and Black’s (http://www.greenandblacks.com/) – they have easily the best white chocolate I’ve ever had, and their other stuff has all been good too. Alas, they’re now owned by Cadbury (UK), so they’re not a magical independent either anymore (though it’s “run as a separate business”).
March 4th, 2009 at 10:04 pm
Yum, these pies look so tasty!
I agree–I was so sad about the closing of the Berkeley factory. I agree with the above poster that Green and Black’s is definitely terrific, as is Phinney 3400 (though they’re more about flavored/nutty/etc. chocolate than baking chocolate). Even so, nothing beats the milk chocolate with salted almonds from Sharffen Berger!
March 5th, 2009 at 1:04 pm
I often just use good old Ghirardelli when I bake because it’s hard to find anything else without driving to the Whole Foods an hour away, and I can’t afford anything better normally. However I do buy slightly more expensive “eating chocolate” and my two favorite brands are Green & Black (especially dark chocolate with ginger) and Dagoba (dark chocolate with lavender and blueberry is definitely the best). Green & Black is good because it’s fairly easy to find in most health food stores since it’s organic.
March 6th, 2009 at 8:01 am
I know just what you mean. I was so thrilled to find Sharffen Berger after reading about them in Alice Medrich’s book. I loved the idea that they were a little chocolate maker who believed in quality over quantity and I went nuts when I was able to find it in my local store. Before that I had been ordering it online. Now, all the mystique is gone and its just like using some generic pumped out by the ton brand. I guess I will be searching for a new chocolate as well.
March 7th, 2009 at 5:48 pm
I love how rustic and homemade your pies look. Nicely done.
Suggestions for chocolate would be Callebaut. Also if you live near a Whole Foods, they normally will sell a few brands of high quality chocolate. I recently bought some El Rey Venezuelan dark chocolate there that was good. There is some hope for good chocolate
March 8th, 2009 at 9:10 am
I didn’t know the Sharffen Berger factory closed down!!! That is so sad. My sister took me there when she lived in San Francisco. We sat at the back of the room during the introduction part, so the dish of samples would end up with us and we didn’t have to pass them to anyone else
March 11th, 2009 at 12:07 pm
You guys — looks like there’s a chocolate tasting in my future with all of these suggestions!
July 15th, 2009 at 8:18 pm
I know this is an old post, but I just found your blog and have to add my two cents. I work for Hershey, and frankly, I don’t eat very much of the chocolate we sell. The quality of cocoa is bad, and they add too much crap to it. I wish I had tasted SB before we bought it, as Hershey just seems to ruin the companies they buy.