W

hen your mom
exclaims, "It's to die
for!" she must be talk- .
ing about a sinful
Chocolate Heart of Darkness cake.
Or maybe she's gushing over the
elegantly French Chocolate Pistachio
Madeleines or Excessively Expressive
Espresso Ecstasy. If these chocolate
fantasies sound a bit "over
the top," they are. They're
featured in chef Marcel
Desaulniers' ode to cocoa,
Death by Chocolate Cakes
(HarperCollins, $35).
Guru of ganache
Desaulniers is executive
chef and co-owner of the
Trellis Restaurant in
t4.
Williamsburg, Va., and
winner of the 1999
James Beard'Award for
Outstanding Pastry Chef in America.
His newest chocolate celebration
serves up some of the most seductive
creations ever, including a birthday
cake created for Julia Child.
Desaulniers' own mom and her circle
of chocolate-lover friends contributed
some quick-and-easy recipes.
Says the book's back flap, "Death by
Chocolate Cakes truly takes the cake
and then takes it to where it's never
been before."

— Linda Bachrack

PHOTOGRAPHY BY

DUANE WINFIELD

• DECEMBER

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