Posts tagged cocoa

Date & Himalayan Pink Salt Truffles

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ts safe to say I’ve been provided with my fair share of artisan chocolate samples for blog experiments. From Green & Blacks to Doble & Bignall the ampersand seems to be a common (and successful) theme here (If we forget the Loving Earth samples. Dairy free, doesn’t count). That said, next in the greedy queue naturally seemed (drum roll)…Doisy & Dam. A superfood chocolate they say! Quickly discovered to be due to the ingredients added and not the output of its consumption. Sadly. So when D&D approached ‘forage in the pantry.’ with a teasing package of goodies to sample I was keen to take up the challenge of a new creation!

Doisy & Dam are indeed just that. Teasing. A mixture of naughty and nice. Chocolate and superfood ingredients creating delicious bars of solid and artisan chocolate. I think the first thing I said on trying these samples was ‘Wow, the textures are great!’ and it wasn’t until researching their background that I discovered their claim for ‘irresistable texture’. They’ve nailed it. Take the ‘Cocao Nib & Vanilla’ bar which is my favourite so far. The cocao not only adds a lovely crunch and texture but a subtle unassuming bitterness to the what is after all a dairy milk bar. Their chocolates are said to never be made with more than eight ingredients (minimum 8% superfoods and have a high cocoa content to squeeze out the room for sugar and fat). Whilst I’m a true 90-99% gal, this comment I can casually breeze over but quite rightly. The flavour is worth it.

So, down to the recipe. The best way to really taste the true flavour of a chocolate (besides sampling fresh from the packet in slab form) is to make something pure. Pure flavours, nowhere to hide. Truffles? Forget chocolate fondants and mousses, truffles really do not hide bad quality. Now I normally lean towards dark chocolate truffles. They are more stable at room temp and have a better flavour and quality.  Whilst my goodie bag contained a mixture of dark and milk, I couldn’t help being drawn towards the ‘Date & Himalayan Salt’ edition and that I did.

A healthy indigence as D&D would say….thats wiped out here sadly with the cream addition…

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s I’ve mentioned I wanted to keep these super simple so they are plainly tossed in cocoa. However for a twist try adding an extra ingredient/texture to the mixture before pouring into the container (e.g. chopped nuts, diced ginger, more cocoa nibs, more salt, coconut…). Equally you can roll the finished truffles in this ingredients of choice instead and forgo the cocoa powder.

Ingredients

  1. Heat the cream in a saucepan until just below the simmer.
  2. Break up the chocolate and stir into the warm cream off the heat. Stir until fully melted and combined.
  3. Line a shallow bowl or tupperware with cling film. Pour the mixture into the dish. It should be about 2cm in thickness but this is optional. Allow to cool, cover and refrigerate.
  4. Once set, place in the freezer for about 1 hour or until hardened. This just makes it easier to cut.
  5. Get a large mixing bowl and add a few tbsp of cocoa powder
  6. Turn out onto a chopping board and cut into pieces (size optional). Mix in the cocoa powder and then store in the fridge in a container.

 

Chestnut Bourbon Biscuits

 

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People often ask me where I get inspiration from for the recipes I blog. This one was unusually the Costa Coffee queue. Whilst waiting for my coffee at the counter I saw a giant bourbon and custard cream for sale. It seems these are the latest fad- giant confectionery which had me pondering that surely they are just the same as 5 normal biccies…? Anyway, its Autumn…chestnuts are littering my parents Wiltshire lawn like an unkept golf course so I thought I’d tackle not only the challenge of making something with them but with the challenge of making something sweet that wouldn’t get my mum rolling her eyes…

FYI. If I’d had a willing bottle of bourbon to hand I definitely would have added a splash to the filling instead of milk!

Makes about 15

Chestnut Biscuit

  • 75g raw chestnuts (of precooked vac-packed)
  • 85g dark soft brown sugar
  • 75g softened unsalted butter
  • 110g plain flour
  • 1/8 tsp baking powder
  • Cocoa to dust

Filling

  • 100g butter, softened
  • 85g icing sugar
  • 20g cocoa powder
  • 1 tsp milk
  1. Start by cooking the chestnuts. Score a large cross on the base of each with a knife. Place in a saucepan of water and bring to the boil and boil fast for 3 minutes. Remove from the heat. Drain and you should find the skin is easy to peel off.image
  2. Place in a food processor and blend to a paste with the sugar. Add the butter and puree. Add the flour and baking powder and blend to form a smooth ball of dough.
  3. Form into a disc shape, wrap in cling film and chill in the fridge for 30 minutes.
  4. Preheat the oven to 150°C . Roll out the dough on a floured surface and cut into whatever shape you like, just short of 1cm thick. Place on a lined baking tray and sieve over a sprinkling of cocoa powder.image
  5. Bake for 30-35 minutes until cooked and golden. Remove from the oven and leave to cool.
  6. Next, place the butter, icing sugar and cocoa in a food processor and blend. Add the milk and blend until you have a thick buttercream adding more milk for a thinner consistency.
  7. When the biscuits are cooled, spoon a teaspoon of the chocolate filling onto one biscuit half and sandwich with another.

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Coffee and Olive Oil Truffles

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Oh boy, these are dangerous. My mum’s friend recently provided me with a small, harmless and innocent looking bottle of ‘Coffee Extra Virgin Olive Oil’ (strange I know) with the challenge of making something with it!? On smelling it, my mind went to truffles. After a recent visit to William Curley’s chocolate sanctuary in Belgravia I felt inspired to use some of his sensational ingredient combinations. After trying his rosemary and olive oil chocolates I attempted my own version. With a packet of espresso flavoured Green & Blacks sitting on the shelf too, I thought this would add that extra kick of coffee flavour.

The oil in these, as opposed to the traditional cream, really does make  the truffles feel so much smoother without coating and cloying your mouth….they simply melt away.

Makes about 26

  • 80ml coffee olive oil OR plain Extra virgin olive oil
  • 100g Green & Blacks Espresso Chocolate, chopped
  • 125g Green & Blacks dark chocolate, chopped
  • 60g butter, cubed
  • Pinch salt
  • Cocoa for dusting/ chopped hazelnuts or mixed nuts/desiccated coconut
  1. Place the chopped chocolate, butter, oil and a pinch of salt into a heat proof bowl.
  2. Suspend over a pan of barely simmering water (do not let it touch) and heat gently until melted, stirring often.
  3. Once smooth and emulsified, pour into a clean bowl, cover and chill for at least 3 hours or overnight.
  4. Remove from the fridge. Use a spoon or a melon baller to mould out your truffles. Coat them in cocoa powder, chopped nuts or coconut or whatever else you like. Keep somewhere chilled but cover tightly if you are keeping them in the fridge as chocolate absorbs fridge smells….the last thing you want is a cheesy truffle?

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Chocolate Olive Oil Cake

You know the moments when nothing but a chocolate cake will quite do? This cake is so moist and simple and courtesy of Nigella, the queen of chocolate desserts. With no butter its great for all those lactose intolerant folk and if you use ground almonds instead of flour…..gluten free! Plus, almonds give it an added texture which is really nice. I was slightly disappointed that it didn’t offer a deep and hearty enough chocolate flavour….I would suggest a generous painting in a dark ganache perhaps……? Anyhow, nothing pleased me more than taking a charitable and gluttonous chunk over to some appreciating friends to share the satisfaction. Of course, I kept some for myself too………..now pass me the mascarpone…

  • 150ml olive oil
  • 50g cocoa powder
  • 125ml boiling water
  • 2 tsp vanilla extract
  • 125g plain flour
  • ½ tsp bicarbonate of soda
  • 3 eggs
  • 200g caster sugar
  1. Line a 23cm (ish) cake tin and preheat the oven to 170°C.
  2. Whisk the vanilla and cocoa powder into the boiling water until smooth. Leave to cool a little.
  3. Using an electric whisk or a food processor, combine the eggs, oil and sugar for a good few minutes until pale, frothy and airy.
  4. Pour in the chocolate mixture and combine.
  5. Then combine the flour and bicarbonate and stir into the chocolate mixture.
  6. In the words of Nigella- ‘pour the liquid batter’ into the lined cake tin and bake for 40-45 minutes until a knife inserted comes out clean (although it will be a moist cake)
  7. Serve warm with ice cream, mascarpone or anything that hits the spot!

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