Tuesdays with Dorie BCM: Chunky Chocolate Fruit-and-Nut Bars

January 14, 2020 at 1:59 pm | Posted in BCM, candy, groups, sweet things, tuesdays with dorie | 7 Comments
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chunky chocolate fruit-and-nut bars

Dorie describes these Chunky Chocolate Fruit-and-Nut bars as both nougat’s crunchy cousin (a very timely comparison, since we made her Honey-Nut Nougat just last month) and as a homemade version of a Chunky candy bar. The raisin-hating child version of me would not have touched a Chunky with a ten foot pole, but the adult version of me has more evolved tastes and would now gladly consume this mass-produced packaged product. Haha.

This is an easy recipe– it really is. You just need some toasted nuts, some chopped dried fruit and some melted chocolate to make it. It’s totally customizable to your tastes and to the contents of your cabinet. It’s not even really a recipe, it’s just stuff mixed together. And yet, I managed to screw a few things up and fumble my way through it. Ironic, since my day job is actually making chocolate candy.

For my nuts I used cashews, which I burned when I toasted them, so I toasted more. For my dried fruit, I used a pre-mixed blend of golden raisins, cranberries, cherries and blueberries that I buy at TJs. I also put in some crystalized ginger and some candied orange peel. For my chocolate, I used a bittersweet 72%. I decided I didn’t need to eat a full 8×8 pan of this, so I scaled everything back by a third to fit in a small loaf pan I have. Or I tried to, at least…I must have divided the chocolate incorrectly in my head, because I only had enough to coat my add-ins, not to stick them together. I just eyeballed a little more to seal my fruit and nut glob together and pressed it into the pan. Even if it looks a little rough and I needed a nap afterwards, it was all good and tasty in the end (I secretly ate up all the little bits with a spoon and they were fab!), and that’s the moral of today’s story.

Dorie recommends lining your pan with cocoa-dusted parchment paper and then dusting more cocoa on top of the finished chocolate mix and laying another piece of parchment on top as you press it in to the pan. I did line my pan with parchment, and I lined it so it acted as a sling, but I skipped all the cocoa powder and also the top parchment sheet. I’m guessing the cocoa is to help the mass release from the pan, but when chocolate gets cold it contracts, and since this is stored in the fridge, I didn’t see the need for it.

For the recipe, see Baking Chez Moi by Dorie Greenspan (it’s also here, along with a great video). Don’t forget to check out the rest of the TWD Blogroll!

Tuesdays with Dorie BCM: Honey-Nut Nougat

December 24, 2019 at 8:42 am | Posted in BCM, candy, groups, sweet things, tuesdays with dorie | 8 Comments
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honey-nut nougat

Happy holidays! Is Christmas Eve too late to show you a fabulous edible, homemade gift idea? I admit that I am one of those last minute types, but I really think it isn’t too late, as this Honey-Nut Nougat can be ready to cut up in a just couple of hours (provided you have a candy thermometer and an abundance of nuts in your pantry). And anyway, we still have plenty of party-time ahead of us. This isn’t difficult to make, but the instructions are lengthy, and since you’ll be dealing with a hot sugar syrup, it’s advisable to read them all the way first. Trust me, I would almost never say that, as I would almost never do that, but here it’s important, because timing is everything in candy-making.

You can find nougat in every Italian deli/specialty shop year-round, but the nice thing about making it yourself, aside from the freshness and the fun, is getting to choose exactly what goes into it. Dorie’s recipe uses heaps of roasted nuts, so I went for a combo of hazelnuts, almonds and pistachios, along with tart dried cherries. Nougat is traditionally formed between sheets of edible rice/wafer paper to help with the stickiness, but you can use cornstarch and powdered sugar instead. I actually had the rice paper, which I bought the last time I was in Australia (now that I write that down, it seems like a weird souvenier)…you can also get it online and in decorating supply stores.

This is delicious–chewy and full of nuts and honey flavor–and it lasts for a few weeks, so if you don’t take it to a holiday party, you can just cut off little hunks as you want them. Which will probably be often.

For the recipe, see Baking Chez Moi by Dorie Greenspan. Don’t forget to check out the rest of the TWD Blogroll!

Tuesdays with Dorie DC: Chocolate Saucisson

December 19, 2017 at 12:01 am | Posted in candy, cookies & bars, DC, groups, sweet things, tuesdays with dorie | 8 Comments
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chocolate saucisson

Sometimes I want to make something just because it amuses me. That was the case with this Chocolate Saucisson (or salami). I just love this…especially the powered sugar “mold” on the outside. It’s a confection that’s made all over Europe, but I think the chocolate salami is actually having a moment here in New York. This holiday season I’ve seen them for sale at several of the small “fancy food” shops around Brooklyn and Manhattan. TWD– so on trend!

This seems more like a candy than a cookie to me, although it does have cookies in it. It’s no-bake, with the crushed cookies and dried fruit and nuts bound into a log by a truffle-like chocolate mixture (containing raw eggs, btw). I used Thé Brun cookies that I had leftover from the Moka Dupont I made a couple months ago, apricots and pistachios, but I think you could certainly mix up the add-ins. A little slice of the saucisson is all you need, because it’s really rich. That said, I keep going into the fridge to cut off slivers, so I’m glad I only made a small one!

For the recipe, see Dorie’s Cookies by Dorie Greenspan. Don’t forget to check out the rest of the TWD Blogroll and happy holidays!

Tuesdays with Dorie BCM: Desert Roses

November 14, 2017 at 12:04 am | Posted in BCM, candy, groups, sweet things, tuesdays with dorie | 6 Comments
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desert roses

“Desert Roses” is an exotic sounding name for the easiest candy you will ever make, using the most plain and simple thing you can think of– cornflakes cereal. That’s right, I present you with cornflakes, bound together into tasty, crunchy little globs with butter and chocolate. Stirring in some shredded coconut, dried fruit and almonds makes them a bit more interesting, and is encouraged.

If these look familiar, it’s because they’re sister sweets to the Chocolate-Cornflake Haystacks we made from Dorie’s Cookies back in May. The Haystacks had similar add-ins (coconut, dried fruit and nuts), but they also had egg and were baked, making them a little chewy. These Roses never see the oven (non-bakers, take note!), though, and are all crunch once they harden up. Now that I’ve sampled both, I prefer the Desert Roses. In fact, I can’t think of a better use for a box of cornflakes.

For the recipe, see Baking Chez Moi by Dorie Greenspan. Don’t forget to check out the rest of the TWD Blogroll!

Tuesdays with Dorie BCM: Chocolate Truffles

December 13, 2016 at 8:12 pm | Posted in BCM, candy, groups, sweet things, tuesdays with dorie | 10 Comments
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chocolate truffles

My mom used to make her own Chocolate Truffles every year and bring them with us to Christmas dinner at Grandma’s house. They were delicious…soft, creamy and rich…and boozy with Cognac, too. Not so child-friendly, but it was a once-a-year treat, so we’ll cut her some slack. Also, it was the ’80s, so no one cared. Why my mother has stopped making these, I am not sure, but I wanted to recreate them myself with this recipe.  I added in a glug of Cognac to the ganache and rolled the truffles in cocoa powder, just like she did.

At the restaurant where I work, I’m the chocolatier (it always embarrasses me to say that, btw). I make primarily molded chocolates and piped decorations but I’ve learned to work with chocolatey stuff pretty quickly. I even manage to keep my jacket and apron mostly clean these days (the bowl that I work from is often another story). If you have “hot hands” you may find the truffle rolling process frustrating and super messy.  Using a little cookie scoop can help to preshape them before rolling them in your hands. Food-safe gloves help with the mess, too.

For the recipe, see Baking Chez Moi by Dorie Greenspan. Don’t forget to check out the rest of the TWD Blogroll!

Tuesdays with Dorie BCM: Chocolate-Covered Toffee Breakups

November 10, 2015 at 12:01 am | Posted in BCM, candy, groups, sweet things, tuesdays with dorie | 15 Comments
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chocolate-covered toffee breakups

Halloween may have come and gone, but that day’s just the kick-off to candy season, if you ask me.  Now we’re done with the store-bought candy bars and lollies and can move on to some homemade treats, like these Chocolate-Covered Toffee Breakups.  I’ve made caramels and brittles before, but this is the first time I’ve made my own toffee.  It was super simple, but I do think you need a good thermometer for candy making.  I didn’t bother with the buttered parchment setup and flipping the toffee back and forth on cutting boards.  I just lined my baking sheet with a Silpat and I was easily able to lift and flip the cooled toffee.  In fact, I did all the work just on that one sheet.  I also didn’t bother with stirring my nuts into the toffee base before spreading it out.  That was totally a brain fart…I just forgot.  The plus side to that was that my toffee was extremely easy to spread nice and thin. Thinking of my upcoming trip to Sydney (which I will actually be in the middle of by the time this posts), I used macadamia nuts and a flaky Aussie finishing salt to top the chocolate-coated toffee.  I coated the bottom with dark chocolate as well, but let off the salt and nuts so it would sit flat.  It broke easily by hand into nice, clean shards.

There’s something very pleasing about the crunch of toffee.  I like it more than brittle.  These make a great little after dinner nibble, ice cream sundae topping or homemade gift.  For the recipe, see Baking Chez Moi by Dorie Greenspan. Don’t forget to check out the rest of the TWD Blogroll!

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