Hot Spanish Chorizo Meets Chocolate and the Yolk

My first foray with chorizo and chocolate came with this recipe for Bacon Bar and raw and soft Chorizo Stuffed Dates baked with Spicy Oaxaca Red Sauce.  In this latest experiment, I wanted to simplify and break it down as a quick umami seduction.  Ingredients are always important but for this, the right ingredients are CRITICAL. Below are links and exact ingredients and if you follow them… I promise that you will find yourself in a new realm of flavor phenomenon.  The combination of spicy Spanish chorizo atop a slick of tart 74% dark chocolate and a cushion of freshly baked Spanish bread will blow your mind. Seriously, I’m not just talking this up.

Start with this glossy visual — green olive oil beds the river of russet chili oil  that seeps from the chorizo into the dainty caverns of the freshly baked bread, as the dominican chocolate pastilles slowly melt from the heat.  A sprinkle of my favorite Maldon salt atop it all balances the chocolate sweet.  The rich, bitter dark chocolate stands up to the spicy hot chorizo.  And, that bread… the perfect Spanish bread serves as a magic carpet for it all. You must buy the Galician bread and bake fresh. 

For high quality Spanish ingredients, delivered right to your door, try La Tienda.  Once you start exploring this site, you may end up with more than just bread and chorizo.  The Jamon Iberico, Croquetas, Zamorano cheese…. I can almost feel the flamenco dancers stomp on my heart.  These Chorizo + Chocolate bites would work well alongside other tapas.  Or, just consider…breakfast.  In my house, we eat chocolate for breakfast. Seriously good.  Yolks and chocolate, why not?! 

Chorizo + Dominican Chocolate Tapas

Hot Palacios Chorizo from Spain
Traditional Galician Bread – Barra Gallega
Spanish Arbequina Olive Oil
Maldon Salt
Dark Chocolate – 74% Organic Dominica Noir

Per instructions, finalize the baking of the bread in your oven.  When cooled slice bread in 1/2 inch thick pieces. Drizzle with Spanish olive oil.  Place 2-3 broken bits of chocolate on top of the bread.  Place 2-3 slices of hot chorizo on top of the chocolate, sprinkle with Maldon salt.  Place in the oven at 250 for 8 minutes to melt and heat. Take out of the oven and eat immediately.

arriba!

Chocolate Oysters

As I mentioned in the last post, I have been enjoying oysters in my kitchen for the past weeks as I scheme up Valentine’s Day chocolate aphrodisiacs with my dear friend Vanessa. She is an incredible singer songwriter that as I am discovering has an incredible gift for all the senses.  Could she be a super taster super ear, super olfactory etc… is there something to that – could Bob Marley have been blessed with the same astuteness for taste? I digress.  Being that the oyster is the mighty, famed symbol of aphrodisiacs how could I not tempt fate and conjure up something with chocolate. The nuances of an oyster are multifarious. There are many varieties and they range in complexity and strength from delicate to pungently powerful.  My preferred choice for oysters are the Kumamotos from the bays of Northern California. These oysters are like inhaling the sweet breath of the sea.  They smell of fresh tidal pools trapped between the mossy rocks.  James Beard once said that oysters are  “one of the supreme delights that nature has bestowed on man. … Oysters lead to discussion, to contemplation, and to sensual delight. There is nothing quite like them.”

Much like chocolate, the oyster is a mysterious love that cannot fully be explained. For this recipe, I have chosen to anoint the oysters with chocolate in its nearly basic form, the cocoa nib.  Mixed with some fragrant ginger and tart green apple, you will discover a variety of texture while your nose uncovers layer after layer.

Oysters with Cocoa Nibs, Ginger and Green Apple

Yields approximately 1/8 cup and can be used on 2 dozen oysters.

1 teaspoon finely chopped ginger
1 teaspoon cocoa nibs
4 tablespoons rice wine vinegar
1 teaspoon tamari
2 Tablespoons olive oil
1 teaspoon granny smith apple brunoise
1/2 teaspoon sugar

Clean and shuck oysters. Find step by step instructions here. (I prefer Kumumoto oysters. You can order them here.) Mix all above ingredients together and let it sit for ten minutes. Spoon onto a perfectly plump and sumptuous oyster, admire her beauty and gently sip the briny, fresh mother of the pearl.

Bacon Bar and Chorizo Stuffed Dates with Spicy Oaxaca Red Sauce

This recipe is inspired by a signature dish of likely my favorite restaurant in Chicago, avec. Chef Koren Grieveson is epic and this is the spot I bring all out of town and in town guests to not only experience the food but the creative, easy going vibe. The air pulses with energy, the communal seating promises a chance encounter and the room buzzes with great tunes. It is an absolute must-try. They don’t take reservations and thank God they are open late. I think this is the only late night spot in Chicago where you can eat something other than a burrito. Can anyone tell me why Chicago closes shop so early? avec is open until midnight on weekdays and 1 am on weekends.

The taleggio foccaccia and bacon wrapped chorizo stuffed dates are two of my passions on the menu. I have created my own version of Koren’s dates, by of course, adding chocolate to the dates and in the sauce. The magic of that salty and spicy meat, a touch of sweet chocolate and some acidic tomato is heightened by a roasting process that brings it all together. Spread the flavor and try it out.

Bacon Bar and Chorizo Stuffed Dates with Spicy Oaxaca Red Sauce

yields: 15 stuffed dates & sauce

For bacon bar stuffed dates:
15 medium-sized Medjool dates
2 chorizo sausages, casings removed, raw and spicy
1, 3 oz. Vosges Mo’s Bacon Bar (or 3 segments Couverture Bar, cut into 4 pieces per square)
8 slices Nueske’s Applewood Smoked Bacon
1 batch of Spicy Oaxacan Red Sauce (recipe follows)
cilantro for serving

For Spicy Oaxacan Red Sauce:
1/4 cup olive oil
1 medium sweet Spanish onion, sliced
3 cloves garlic
1 tsp salt
1 tbsp sugar
1 tbsp tomato paste
1/4 cup red wine or sherry to deglaze
1 lb skinned, heirloom tomatoes or canned San Marzano tomatoes
2 oz. Vosges Haut-Chocolat Oaxaca Bar
1/2 dried chipotle chili, reconstituted in water, seeded
1 tbsp olive oil to finish
salt to taste
3 splashes liquid smoke
1 tsp cumin

Cut the dates on one side lengthwise and remove the pits. Break each 3 oz. bacon bar square into 4 pieces. Cut bacon strips in half. Stuff each date with 1 tbsp of chorizo and place a piece of bacon bar in the center of the chorizo. Fold chorizo around chocolate and close date. Wrap each date in half a piece of bacon. Sear bacon-wrapped dates over high heat in an ungreased pan until crispy. Set aside.

Preheat the over to 350 degrees. Heat 1/4 cup olive oil in large stock pan. Add onion and garlic with salt and sugar, cooking over medium heat until translucent. Add tomato paste and deglaze pan with sherry; cook until the majority of alcohol is boiled off, about 3 minutes. Add tomatoes, Oaxaca bar and chipotle chili. Cook over medium heat for 10 minutes. Purée with an immersion blender until smooth. Add cumin, liquid smoke and season to taste with olive oil and salt.

In a deep baking sheet (about 1″ side walls) pour Oaxaca red sauce about half-way up the sheet. Transfer the seared dates to the baking sheet, spacing each about 1 inch apart. Bake the dates in sauce for 25 minutes. Serve in sauce, garnish with cilantro and bacon bar shavings.

Dark Chocolate, Nicoise Olive, Prosciutto & Buffalo Mozzarella Panini

In the previous post, I explained my newfound love of the real McCoy, fresh (meaning 2 days old or younger) Mozzarella di Bufala. It is not easy to find in the U.S. or should I say close to impossible, so if you are unable to get your hands on this more stringy, elastic and I would say a bit rubbery, fresh cheese there are alternatives. What you typically find in the States is buffalo mozzarella that has been resting in its water for weeks and therefore the consistency becomes softer and softer, closer to a burrata style than an authentic buffalo mozzarella from Campania. Don’t get me wrong, I love burrata and I truly enjoy the mozzarella di bufala that is imported, but it is far from its mother. So, go with a firmer style mozzarella or try your stateside buffalo mozzarella and you will be ok.

Whichever cheese you use, be SURE to place the sliced mozzarella between sheets of cloth towels for at least 10 minutes before using it to help eliminate the excess water in the cheese. Otherwise, the excessive liquid will make your panini soggy. And my friends, there is nothing worse than soggy panini.

Ok, so now let’s get straight to it. The flavors that are so critical here as the threesome of dark chocolate, olive and prosciutto, which bring out the umami depth when they are melded together.

Wrap these sandwiches in parchment and take them to your backyard for a picnic. Pair them with your favorite bottle of Italian Barbaresco, I love GAJA.

Dark Chocolate, Nicoise Olive, Prosciutto & Buffalo Mozzarella  Panini

Yields One Sandwich

Equipment needed: Panini press or waffle iron or clothes iron and cast iron pan (for more on these tricks, click here)

1 ½ oz buffalo mozzarella
2 slices thick Italian country bread,  about 1/2 inch thick and 4-5 inches wide
2 tbsp olive oil
5 nicoise olives, pitted and sliced
1 oz dark chocolate : Vosges Organic 74% OR 66% Enchanted Mushroom Bar OR plain 55% cacao
a sprinkle Murray River Pink Salt
3 slices prosciutto, La Quercia (new prosciutto sulfite free from Iowa)
2 basil leaves

Cut mozzarella and place on a towel to absorb excess water. If you put straight onto the bread you will have a soggy panino. Brush olive oil on all sides of the bread. Place olives, dark chocolate and salt on one side followed by the mozzarella, basil and prosciutto. Press to golden brown and serve immediately.

For more panini making tips, go here.

Short Ribs with Licorice, Chocolate and Chocolate Beer
The secret to these short ribs is time spent up front.  The good news is that a little planning ahead will result in an easy, succulent, hearty dish to serve guests or enjoy yourself on a busy weeknight.

I love dark, mineral-y and not overly hoppy beers.  The beer in this recipe has chocolate and coffee in it, which works well with the meat and added chocolate.  I highly prefer short ribs on the bone which add to the succulent flavor.  Once you marinate these ribs for 2 days and then slow cook them for 3 ½ hours, you have a number of options:

Warm the finished short ribs in the oven and serve them alongside potato puree with a little chocolate braising liquid over the top and a side of mustard seed roasted brussels sprouts.

Use leftover short rib meat inside Chinese steam buns. Freeze them for an easy weekday meal or party appetizer.  For sauce to serve with the buns, mix 1 cup of hoisin sauce with 2 Tablespoons of cocoa powder, a dash of sriracha chili sauce and a generous handful of cilantro.

To Drink?  A dark chocolate beer of course.  Try… Rogue’s Chocolate Stout or Southern Tier’s Mokah stout brewed with chocolate and coffee.

Short Ribs, Licorice, Chocolate and Beer
3 lbs bone in short ribs
2 bottles of 560 ml imperial Mokah stout brewed with coffee and chocolate
4 tbsp cocoa powder
½ cup freshly squeezed orange juice and zest of an orange.

Mirepoix:
1/2 medium onion, diced
5 garlic cloves, minced
1 small carrots, diced
1/2 celery, diced parsley stems, a handful
1 bay leaf
1 tbsp fresh tarragon
2 Chinese star anise

Short Rib Browning:
½ cup flour
½ tsp salt
½ tsp white pepper
3 tbsp canola

Sauce:
2 oz 55% cacao dark chocolate
2 tbsp butter
salt and white pepper to taste

Pour beer slowly onto the cocoa powder and mix to dissolve then add orange juice, mirepoix and spices into a non reactive wide pan or pot (glass or ceramic is best).

Add the short ribs bone-side up and marinate in the refrigerator, completely covered by the liquid at least 24 hours. I prefer to go up to 2 days. When meat is well-marinated remove and pat dry. Pour the marinade into a 2 qt saucepan and slowly bring the marinade to a boil. Skim off white bubbly impurities with a slotted spoon. Reduce to low and simmer for 10 minutes.

Preheat oven to 275F. In a medium size bowl mix flour, salt and white pepper. Dredge the short ribs on all sides and place on a plate. Heat an enamel coated, cast iron, Dutch oven (le crueset is my favorite) on medium high heat. When hot, add 3 tbsp canola oil and sear the short ribs on all 4 sides until brown, 2-3 minutes each side.

After caramelizing the meat, pour off the excess oil, top off with stock to cover meat. The meat should be completely covered with liquid, if you fall short add some additional stock. Cover with parchment paper followed by the lid. Place in oven at 275 F for 3-4 hours. When meat is tender and falls apart at the piercing of a fork, they are finished (keep cooking if they are not fork tender, they should fall apart with ease). Remove from the oven and let the ribs cool for 20 minutes in the braising liquid.  Carefully, remove, the short ribs with a slotted spatula and place on a resting plate covered with foil. If you are going to reserve the ribs to eat later, wait until they have cooled for 15 minutes, wrap and put in the refrigerator (They can be stored there for up to 2 days.)

Strain out vegetables and discard and save the liquid. Skim off the fat on the top  (or place in fridge, let the fat solidify on top and then easily lift off the solid fat layer). Take the remaining liquid, bring to a boil and reduce by a 1/3 then take off heat, wait 10 minutes and whisk in chocolate, butter and salt and pepper to taste. Pour sauce over short ribs if reserved warm and sprinkle meat with Maldon salt crystals. It is always critical to sprinkle a finishing salt atop meats just before serving.

If you have refrigerated your short ribs, reheat by placing them in a pan pouring sauce over the top, covering with parchment and lid or aluminum foil and heat in the oven at 275 for 20 minutes until hot.

Fresh Ricotta Cheese with Olive oil and Dark Chocolate

I first experimented with cheese and chocolate while developing the Rooster truffle.   The dark chocolate truffle combines taleggio cheese with organic walnuts and anchors the Collezione Italiano.   Included in the collection are four other savory flavors with Italian inspiration.

Ricotta is a much milder cheese but works just as well with dark chocolate.  Ricotta is a fresh, snowy white cheese with the texture of cottage cheese.   It has a rich but mild slightly sweet flavor and can be used for savory or sweet dishes.  You must use FRESH ricotta for this recipe!  If you have trouble finding it, you can always make your own.

Using quality ingredients is paramount.  One of my favorite things to do is pair the perfect combinations of olive oil , salts, peppers and other ingredients.  Finally, I match them to their chocolate mate.  For this recipe, I crumbled a 65% Venezuelan dark chocolate atop the cheese. 

Serve this Ricotta with an hors d’oeuvre plate.  I included nuts, cherries, a few other cheeses and some black pepper crackers.  The La Panzanella black pepper crackers might just be the best crackers I have ever had in my life!

Fresh Ricotta Cheese with Olive Oil and Dark Chocolate

2 cups (or lbs.) Fresh Ricotta Cheese
3 tablespoons  Extra Virgin Olive Oil (try Barilla)
A pinch  Pink salt (try Murray’s River)
A pinch  White Pepper
1 1/2 ounces  Dark Chocolate (try 65% dark, Venezuelan)

Place Ricotta in a dish.  Stir in salt and pepper.  Drizzle with olive oil.  Chop dark chocolate into fine slivers and sprinkle atop.   Serve with crackers.