Tag: baking

Chocolate (Mint) Truffle Tart – Make Your Mouth Happy Now

(Unapologetically adapted from a recipe in epicurious to make it simpler, more efficient, and more delicious. You’re welcome.)

This is one of my simplest, most-delectable, most-requested desserts, as well as one of the most elegant. I’ve been asked what bakery I purchased it from. After tasting this, you’ll want to keep chocolate graham crackers and whipping cream on hand as staples, just for this recipe. At least, that’s why I sure do.

Makes one 9-11″ round tart (depending on how large your pan is). Because you’ll need a tart pan of some kind here. Mine is 11″ round fluted, 1″ deep. Initial recipe called for 9″ round, 1″ deep fluted pan. It’s your chocolate tart = It’s your call. (Sometimes I’m kind of convention-bucking like that.)

INGREDIENTS:

For crust:

* 9 chocolate graham crackers (this is one of the packs inside the box), finely ground/crushed (1 cup)

* 5 Tablespoons butter, melted

* 1/4 cup sugar

For filling:

* 1 1/4 cups heavy cream

* 1 1/2 cups semisweet chocolate chips (9 oz)

* 2 large eggs

* 1/2 teaspoon vanilla

* 1-2 teaspoons peppermint extract (depending on your minty preference – I like it stronger)

* 1/4 teaspoon salt

For glaze:

* 2 Tablespoons heavy cream

* 1/3 cup semisweet chocolate chips (2 oz)

* 1 teaspoon light corn syrup

* 1 Tablespoon warm water (the temperature is important!)

PREPARATION:

Make crust:

– Preheat oven to 350 degrees F with rack in middle.

– Stir together all crust ingredients (I use my food processor for this part) and press evenly up sides and on bottom of tart pan (I use a fork for this part).

– Bake for 8 minutes. (I know that’s oddly precise. I have reasons, Grasshopper.) 

– Set aside to cool while you prepare the filling.

Make filling:

– Dump chocolate chips into a medium-ish microwaveable bowl. Pour heavy cream on top. Microwave on high about 1 minute. Take out, stir, and return to microwave for 30 seconds more. Stir till smooth (I use a whisk).

* Should you be lacking in a microwave: Bring cream to boil in small saucepan. Pour over chocolate chips in bowl, let stand 5 minutes. Gently stir till smooth.

– In another smallish bowl, whisk together eggs, salt, vanilla, and peppermint extracts. Stir into chocolate mixture. Mix till smooth.

– Pour/scrape chocolate mixture into crust.

– Bake for 17-18 minutes AND NOT A MINUTE MORE! This is if you are looking for that delectably melty chocolate-truffle texture.  Set aside on rack to cool completely, about 1 hour.

Make glaze:

In small microwaveable bowl, dump the 1/3 cup chocolate chips and pour in the heavy cream. Microwave for about 30 seconds (watching because the cream will boil over!), and stir till smooth.  (Again, non-microwave people: small saucepan on stove, heat cream, turn off heat, mix in chocolate till smooth, continue with recipe.) Stir in corn syrup, then warm water.

Pour glaze onto tart, then tilt and rotate tart (carefully) so glaze coats top evenly. Let stand till glaze is set, about 1 hour. If the tart cools too much during this time, the glaze will set more quickly but will lose that patent-leather shine.  (I don’t know if this is deeply important to you but I thought I’d mention it.)

Note: Tart is exquisite the day it is made, but can be made, without glaze, 1 day ahead and chilled. Bring to room temperature before glazing.

VARIATIONS!

Because this tart is ridiculously and wonderfully adaptive to suit all your chocolate dreams.

* Chocolate, Straight Up – Omit peppermint extract, increase vanilla to 1 tsp. No apologies – this is chocolate heaven. Use bittersweet chocolate (no more than 65%) in the filling if you have it!

* Chocolate-Orange  – Omit peppermint extract, add 1-2 tsp orange extract, and 2 tsp finely grated orange zest to filling.  Sprinkle additional orange zest over glaze before serving, if desired.

* Chocolate-Mocha – Omit peppermint extract. Add 1 Tbsp finely ground espresso to filling. Decorate with   chocolate-covered coffee beans on glaze, if desired.

* Chocolate-Bourbon– Omit peppermint extract. Add 1-2 Tbsp bourbon whiskey (such as Jack Daniel’s) to filling.

* Mayan Chocolate (one of my personal favorites) – Omit peppermint extract. Add 2 tsp ground cinnamon, 1/2 tsp ground cayenne, and use Mexican vanilla if you have it.  Decorate top of tart with a couple cinnamon sticks, or one or two small dried red peppers if you’re feeling feisty and your guests won’t be too scared. (Invite me!)

I’m so excited for you to try this -Let me know how it turns out!

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Make Easy Buttermilk Biscuits Today! (Plus a Quick Shortcake Variation!)

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Hot, flakey biscuits with a tender, steaming center and a slightly golden, crisp exterior, spread with melted butter and fragrant-sweet honey or jewel-toned jam… Who’s hungry to get baking?

I used to find biscuits rather painful to make in large quantities for my large family (biscuits for ten hungry people means a LOT of biscuits), with all the cutting-in of shortening and scrubbing out of measuring cups and such.

But now, thanks to this recipe that uses oil instead of shortening, mixing is a snap. Then a quick rolling out, cutting up, and then the blissfully brief baking time (12-15 mins) means that you and I can enjoy the delightful biscuit-joy much sooner. And much more often.

(As a quick side, I’m using this dough to make pigs-in-a-blanket tonight – one of my kids’ favorites!)

Heat up that oven, lovely, and let’s get baking!

Makes 12+ biscuits – Recipe adapted from Bob’s Red Mill recipe

INGREDIENTS

  • 2/3 cup buttermilk (As a quick substitute, I use whole milk or cream mixed with about 2 Tbsp vinegar or lemon juice, stirred and left for about 5 mins)
  • 1/3 cup canola or vegetable oil
  • 2 cups all-purpose flour
  • 1 Tbsp baking powder
  • 1 tsp salt

DIRECTIONS

1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.  In a small bowl, stir together buttermilk and oil.  In a medium bowl, combine flour, baking powder, and salt.

2. Add milk mixture to flour mixture, combine till well mixed. Shape into a ball, place on floured surface and knead 4-5 times (too much kneading will make the dough tough).

3. Roll dough out to desired thickness (I aim for 1/2″ to 3/4″), and using a cookie cutter (or just a round glass dipped in flour), cut out 12 or so biscuits. (My mom used to use a sharp knife and make rectangular biscuits – whatever floats your biscuit boat.) Place about 1″ apart on a baking sheet.

4. Bake in center of preheated oven for 12-15 minutes or till biscuits are starting to turn light brown. Serve with butter and jam. And honey. Or lemon curd. And whipped cream. Or for lunch with tuna fish. Or chicken salad. Or with Chicken a la King. Or as a side to a hearty beef stew or a vegetable-rich broth or a creamy chowder or spicy chili… (I’ll stop now.)

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* Quick & Easy Shortcake Adaptation!

For when you have fresh fruit and want a delicious, quick (and easy!) dessert or brunch option:

To flour mixture, add 2 Tbsp white sugar.

If desired, add 1/2 tsp vanilla to buttermilk/oil mixture.

Proceed as directed. After baking, quickly halve and butter shortcakes, then top with sliced fruit or berries sweetened as desired, with whipped cream or a small scoop of vanilla ice cream.

UBER-EASY Option for when you DON’T have Fresh Fruit: Substitute freezer jam. Then top with whipped cream. I do. It’s amazing. No one complains – they’re too busy snarfing it up and making happy, thankful sounds.

Enjoy as soon as possible.

Happy baking! (Let me know how your biscuits turn out! And then please post a link to this article on your social media, thanks!)

– Maria

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Chocolate Sea Salt Cookies

These are some of my most favorite cookies. They are rich, dark, chocolatey, and have that tang of flakey sea salt. And they use only one stick of butter! Seriously reasons to rejoice.

This is an adaptation of Valerie Aikman-Smith’s recipe in the cookbook Salt, which was given to me as a birthday gift, and I flipped through the book to the dessert section where I landed on this and was immediately smitten forevermore. (Thank you, Hana!)

I make a recipe, then bake only one dozen, and save the rest of the dough in an airtight container in the fridge. It’s like a surprise present for myself later when I am craving a warm, gooey, chocolatey mouthful of joy but only have the patience to scoop out blobs of cold dough and bake for 10 minutes to experience the melty, dark bliss these contain. I wish you the same joy.

INGREDIENTS:

  • 1 cup all-purpose flour
  • 1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
  • 1/2 tsp baking powder
  • 1/2 tsp baking soda
  • 1/4 tsp salt
  • 2/3 cups semisweet chocolate chips
  • 1 stick butter, softened, at room temperature
  • 3/4 cup brown sugar
  • 1/4 cup white sugar
  • 1 egg
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract
  • 1 Tbsp dark or light rum (not white), optional
  • 1 1/3 cup semisweet chocolate chips (Yes, this is a second set of chocolate chips. If you’re like me, you’re already excited about this fact.)
  • Fleur de sel (if you’re super fancy) or regular sea salt
  1. Heat oven to 350 degrees F/180 degrees C.
  2. Whisk flour, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a smallish bowl.
  3. In another smallish microwave-proof bowl, carefully microwave the 2/3 cup of chocolate chips in spurts of 20 seconds or so, stirring after each set of seconds till smooth and melted.
  4. Cream together butter and sugars with a mixer (or electric handheld beater) on high speed till light and fluffy, scraping down bowl as necessary. Add egg, vanilla, rum, and melted chocolate. Continue to beat till smooth. Reduce speed to slow, add flour mixture. When that is well mixed, stir in remaining 1 1/3 cups chocolate chips.
  5. Put mixture in refrigerator for 5 mins to harden slightly (or if you’re like me, skip this part because extending the wait seems unbearable at this point). Scoop tablespoons of mixture onto lightly greased baking sheet, about 2 in/5 cm. apart. Flatten slightly with spoon. Sprinkle a little fleur de sel or a pinch of good sea salt on top of each cookie and bake in preheated oven 10 mins.

Makes approximately 24-36 cookies, depending on size of ‘tablespoons’. I make this last for at least three separate batches of 12, because they’re just exquisite when they’re warm-from-the-oven.