Chocolate Granola – Take That, Count Chocula!

Chocolate Granola – Take That, Count Chocula!

Siti R on May 11, 2018

I know chocolate granola sort of sounds like candy, but introducing cocoa into the mix not only makes it delicious, it also actually makes it better for you! Possibly. No one is really sure. The point is this really tastes great, and would make a wonderful treat for the chocolate lover, mother or otherwise, in your life.

I showed amazing restraint not adding anything more that oatmeal and almonds, since I really think that’s the best plan for the chocolate base, but I would have no problem with you accessorizing this as you see fit. Coconut flakes are an obvious choice, as are other usual suspects like dried fruit, any and all nuts, and assorted seeds.

If you want a stickier granola, that will more easily clump together, you can up the brown sugar and maple syrup a bit, as I used the bare minimum in this recipe, but I think it’s plenty sweet enough, especially if you’re a fan of dark chocolate.

Speaking of chocolate, I used Guittard’s Cocoa Rouge, a Dutch-process cocoa, which has a lower acidity than regular cocoa, and works perfectly flavor-wise. However, I’ve heard that type of cocoa doesn’t retain as much of the nutritional value, due to the way it’s processed. The good news is, any high-quality cocoa will work here.

By the way, I was only half-kidding about making this for someone, and then keeping it all for yourself, so best play it safe, and make a double, or triple batch. No matter how much you make, or what you add in, I really hope you give this a try soon. Enjoy!



Makes about 3 1/2 cups of Chocolate Granola:

1/3 cup packed brown sugar

1/4 cup maple syrup

2 tablespoons vegetable oil

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

3/4 teaspoon kosher salt (or 1/2 teaspoon fine salt)

pinch of cayenne

3 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa (Dutch-processed if possible)

2 cups rolled oats

3/4 cup chopped almonds

- Mix, and bake at 250 F. for about an hour, or until as crunchy/chewy as you like.

Nipples of Venus (Capezzoli di Venere) - Keeping Abreast of the Latest in Valentine’s Day Confections

Nipples of Venus (Capezzoli di Venere) - Keeping Abreast of the Latest in Valentine’s Day Confections

Siti R on February 06, 2018

I don’t remember much about the movie, Amadeus, which isn’t surprising, since I don’t remember that much about the early eighties in general, but I do recall the famous “Nipples of Venus” scene. At the time, I wondered if that was actually a real thing, or just something made up for the movie, but since there was no Internet yet, I never found out.

Fast forward thirty-plus years later, and inspired by a viewer’s request, I finally learned that these were in fact real, and very delicious, thanks in part to star of the show, chestnuts. While not a common ingredient, chestnuts aren’t that hard to find, and worth the effort, since they work really well in this.

If you must, another nut like almond, or hazelnut, should work about the same, especially when you consider your guest, or guests, will be fairly distracted by the eye-opening appearance. Speaking of Netflix and chill, you could show Amadeus after dinner, with these served as a sexy snack during the viewing. From there, you’re on your own. Regardless of whether you serve these on Valentine’s Day or not, I still really hope you give them a try soon. Enjoy!

Ingredients for about 24 Nipples of Venus:

5 tablespoons unsalted butter, room temp

1/3 cup white sugar

6 ounces dark chocolate

14 ounces whole chestnuts

pinch of salt

pinch of cayenne

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/4 cup brandy

*8 ounces white chocolate, chopped, divided

1/3 cup powdered sugar

enough milk to make a very thick paste

1 or 2 drops red food coloring

*This is more white chocolate than you need for coating, but that's how this stuff works. Just eat the rest. 

Chocolate Croissants – But Just Barely

Chocolate Croissants – But Just Barely

Siti R on January 16, 2018

I’ll admit to being pretty underwhelmed the first time I had a chocolate croissant, or “pain au chocolat,”as I’d mispronounce it; but eventually I realized the relatively sparse amount of chocolate wasn’t any kind of stinginess, but rather the true secret behind this amazing pastry.

Properly done, this should ride that line between sweet pastry and a savory bread, so don’t overdo it with the chocolate chunks; otherwise you’ll lose that beautiful balance. Other than that, not much can go wrong. Just be sure to bake them until nicely browned, and let them cool before enjoying.

While this will work with that dough in the tube, I’d like to think you’d make a batch of your own dough using our recently posted croissant recipe. Don’t worry, it only seems like a lot of work. Either way, I really do hope you give these chocolate croissants a try soon. Enjoy!

Ingredients for 12 Chocolate Croissants:

1 batch of croissant dough from this recipe (split in half for two batches of 6)

about 1 cup roughly chopped chocolate chunks, or chips

1 large egg, plus 1 tablespoon of water for the egg wash

coarsely ground sea salt

- Bake at 400 F. for about 20-25 minutes, or until well-browned

Chocolate Bark – Temper, Temper

Chocolate Bark – Temper, Temper

Siti R on December 15, 2017

In addition to sharing an easy, and beautiful edible holiday gift idea, I wanted to make this chocolate bark so I could test a simplified technique for tempering chocolate without a thermometer. It sounded too good to be true, but worked fairly well, which is the problem. Is fairly good, okay? 

Properly tempered chocolate will snap when broken, and retain that gorgeous glossy sheen. Poorly tempered chocolate is sort of dull grey, and the texture is soft, and waxy. This was somewhere in the middle.

Using this method, you will get close to properly tempered chocolate, and you might get lucky, and actually end up with perfectly tempered chocolate, but in hindsight, since using a thermometer isn’t really hard, and the extra steps required not that strenuous, I’ll probably just do it the right way next time.

In fact, I may do a future chocolate truffle video as an excuse to show you the “professional” method, but in the meantime, check out this great article I found on Allrecipes, as well as this video from Monarch Media that does a good job of explaining the steps. There are also hundreds of other videos online that take you through the procedure. Regardless of which method you go with, quick and imprecise, or deliberate and exact, I stand by my assertion that this would make a great holiday gift. I hope you give it a try soon. Enjoy!

Ingredients for about 36 pieces of Chocolate Bark

1 1/2 pounds dark chocolate (70% cacao)

1 cup toasted walnuts, chopped

1 cup shelled, roasted, salted pistachios

1/2 cup dried gogi berries

about 1/2 teaspoon coarse sea salt

Chocolate Soufflé – Perfect for Your Valentine (Unless I’m Your Valentine)

Chocolate Soufflé – Perfect for Your Valentine (Unless I’m Your Valentine)

Siti R on February 10, 2017

With everybody’s favorite made-up holiday right around the corner, I thought I would finally post a chocolate soufflé. I’m not sure what took so long, other than the fact that soufflés have never been my favorite delivery system for chocolate.

Sure, they’re visually impressive, which is key for a special occasion dessert, but the chocolate does get a bit diluted by all those air bubbles. Also, I’ve always been much more of a cold, or room-temp chocolate dessert guy, and never gone nuts for things like lava cakes, and baked puddings.

Having said that, I’m sure I’m in the minority, and you and your special someone will enjoy these just fine. I developed this recipe for two, since that makes a lot of sense, but it should scale up without issue. If you want to add some type of liquor to this, you can add it to the milk and flour mixture after you turn off the heat.

Rum works beautiful, as does coffee, orange, or raspberry liqueur.  Above and beyond that, if you really want to impress your date, you could also whip up a sauce to serve along side. I’m thinking either a berry puree, or maybe a coffee crème anglaise would pair perfectly. Either way, sauced or not, I really hope you give this a try soon, and it gets you lots of compliments. Enjoy!

Chocolate soufflé for two 5-oz ramekins):
melted butter and sugar to prep ramekins

1 tablespoon butter  

1 tablespoon flour

1/4 cup plus 1 teaspoon cold milk

pinch salt

pinch cayenne

2 ounces dark chocolate (I like something around 70%)

1 large egg yolk

2 large egg whites

pinch cream of tartar (you can use a few drops of lemon juice or vinegar instead)

1 tablespoon white sugar, added in 3 additions