THE NIBBLE Blog » Chocolate

PRODUCT: Salted Carmels From Sweetness & Light

admin — Fri, 11 May 2012 12:56:52 +0000

Melt-in-your-mouth salted caramels from
Sweetness And Light. Photo by Elvira Kalviste
| THE NIBBLE.

Ferndale, California is a small Victorian village located in Humboldt County, on the North Coast of California. The population was 1,371 in the 2010 census.

The town could be a movie set, with its dozens of well-preserved Victorian store fronts and homes, surrounded by evergreen-covered hills. Close by are extensive preserves of redwood forests (Humboldt County contains more than 40% of all remaining old growth Coast Redwood forests).

And there’s another reason to stop by: Sweetness & Light Handmade Confections.

Sweetness & Light has long been a fixture in the town. When current co-owner (with wife Tami) Matt Toste was in high school, he worked there and began to learn the techniques and skills required to make traditional chocolates. Five years later, he took over operations.

As they’ve been from the beginning, the confections are handmade in small batches using the freshest and best ingredients available: local butter and cream from Humboldt Creamery, real fruit flavors and fine chocolate. Working with copper kettles and marble slabs, the confectioners turn out sweet, old-fashioned goodness.

But not too sweet. The mark of good chocolate candy is that you taste chocolate, not sugar.

We received a gift of chocolate-covered salted caramels and a Moo Bar, a layer of almond-studded caramel topped with a layer of marshmallow, then dipped in chocolate.

We enjoyed them so much, we look forward to ordering a big box of assorted chocolates from the store’s classic repertoire: bonbons, fudge, toffee and truffles. And more caramels, of course.

In addition to wholesome deliciousness, the soft caramel is a bonus for people who don’t like (or can’t have) chewy candies. It melts in your mouth, the softest salted caramels we’ve ever had.

It must be all that moo-velous Humboldt County butter.

Order yourself a treat—or send a gift—at SweetnessAndLight.com.

COOKING VIDEO: Easy Chocolate Covered Strawberries Recipe

admin — Thu, 19 Apr 2012 13:46:25 +0000

Who wouldn’t enjoy chocolate-covered strawberries for Mother’s Day?

They’re easy to make and delight just about everyone, as a light dessert or as gifts for the moms.

You can use your favorite chocolate (dark, milk, white or all three). You can leave the chocolate-covered berries plain or decorate them with your favorite toppings: chopped nuts, crushed toffee, granola, mini-morsels, shredded coconut or sprinkles.

For the most elegant touch, decorate with gold or silver dragées or some opalescent sanding sugar.

TIP #1: QUALITY CHOCOLATE COUNTS. Your chocolate-covered strawberries will taste better, the better the chocolate you use. We buy fine quality chocolate bars, which are very well priced at Trader Joe’s.

TIP #2: SO DO DRY STRAWBERRIES. The chocolate won’t adhere well if the berries are moist from a thorough washing. Instead of washing the strawberries under running water, pat them with a damp towel to clean; then pat them dry and let them air dry (you can also use a hairdryer on the cold setting).

Mmm…we can’t wait until Mother’s Day.

TIP OF THE DAY: Try A Very Different Margarita Recipe

admin — Thu, 19 Apr 2012 11:49:49 +0000

Some chefs are inspired to go beyond classic recipes and create their own unusual take on a dish—or a drink.

Chef Julio Medina, who has an empire* of refined Latin cuisine restaurants in New York City, likes to create special menus, including specialty Margaritas, for each location.

His latest creation, for Toloache, is an homage to spring and Cinco de Mayo that combines traditional Mexican flavors with his classic French culinary training.

*The restaurants include Coppelia, Toloache 50, Toloache Taqueria and Toloache 82, Yerba Buena Avenue A and Yerba Buena Perry.

†Today Cinco de Mayo is primarily a regional holiday celebrated in the Mexican state of Puebla on May 5th. It is actually a bigger event in the United States than it is in Mexico, thanks to American promotional know-how, a large population of Mexican-Americans and other Americans who like Mexican food, music and a good celebration.

A different but really good Margarita. Photo courtesy Toloache 50 | New York City.

The homage to Cinco de Mayo is the name of the drink: Invaciones Frances Margarita, French Invasion Margarita. The holiday of Cinco De Mayo† commemorates the 1862 victory of a small and poorly-equipped Mexican militia led by General Ignacio Zaragoza Seguin, over the much larger French army at The Battle Of Puebla. It temporarily stopped the French invasion of the country.

The homage to spring: the fresh spring peas and tarragon in the mixture.

Peas and tarragon in a Margarita? Absolutely—and absolutely delish. We present, for your pleasure, the French Invasion Margarita.

THE FRENCH INVASION MARGARITA

Ingredients Per Drink

1¼ ounces blanco Tequila

½ ounce Cointreau (you can substitute another orange liqueur)

½ ounce Remy V (you can substitute Pisco Portón—see below)

1 sprig tarragon (3 inches long)

3 bar spoons (teaspoons) spring peas

1 ounce simple syrup (recipe)

1 ounce fresh lime juice

Ice

Garnish: Small sprig of tarragon

Remy Martin’a unaged eau de vie, V
(pronounced “vee”). Photo courtesy Remy
Martin.

Preparation

1. In a cocktail shaker, muddle together 1 sprig tarragon and the peas. Add the remaining ingredients with ice and shake well.

2. Double strain the Margarita into a rocks glass with fresh ice. Garnish with a small sprig of tarragon.

WHAT’S REMY MARTIN V (PRONOUNCED VEE)?

Produced by the great Cognac maker, Remy V is not a Cognac but an eau de vie. Eau de vie (plural, eaux de vie) is the name given to a spirit distilled from grapes and other fruits that has not yet been aged. At this point it is a clear liquid, like vodka.

It is through aging in oak barrels for at least 2-1/2 years that eau de vie takes on the complex aromas, color and flavors of Cognac. Instead, Remy Martin V is finished with a cold filtration process, like vodka.

Hence the name “V,” a reference to eau de vie (also pronounced “vee,” and meaning “water of life”). It’s unaged Cognac.

And now the challenge: Where to find it. Remy Martin V has limited retail distribution in the U.S.

So here‘s our recommendation: Substitute pisco, a clear, distilled grape spirit from Peru that, like Remy Martin V, is produced in the manner of Cognac. Pisco Portón is an excellent brand, with good distribution.

WHAT’S A BAR SPOON?

A bar spoon is a teaspoon on a long handle, typically 11 inches in length. It is used to measure ingredients and to layer drinks (by pouring the different layers of alcohol over the back of the spoon, where they flow gently into the glass).

The long handle lets the bartender dip deep into jars to scoop up olives and cherries. If you don’t have a bar spoon, it’s inexpensive and doesn’t take up much room. Here’s a good bar spoon.

TIP OF THE DAY: Try Some Chocolate Dragées, A.K.A. Panned Confections

admin — Mon, 16 Apr 2012 09:00:25 +0000

The original dragées* (drah-ZHAY) are sugar-coated almonds. Technically, the nuts are encapsulated in a hard-shell coating. English speakers call them Jordan almonds—not because they’re from Jordan (they’re from Spain). It’s a corruption of the French word for garden, jardin, which refers to the large variety of almond). The almonds can also have a chocolate coating under the sugar. The key is the hard sugar shell.

In America, we see the word used to refer also to panned products. It’s not correct—they’re two different types of coating, dragées having a very hard (and potentially tooth-breaking) sugar shell and panned products having a softer chocolate shell.

Panning is one of the four† basic methods of coating chocolate onto a center (typically hard centers, such as nuts and crystallized ginger). In panning, chocolate is sprayed onto the centers as they rotate in revolving pans (think drums); cool air is then blown into the pan to harden the chocolates.

On a small scale (and before the industrial revolution), nuts are coated on a pan on the stovetop; hence “panning.” The centers can be rolled in cocoa powder or other coating before they harden.

Sophisticated malted milk balls that multitask. Photo courtesy Recchiuti Confections.

*In French, the word also refers to nonpareils and is slang for bullets (small shot). Dragée à la gelée de sucre is a jelly bean.
†The other methods are enrobing, panning and molding or shell molding.

RECCHIUTI CONFECTIONS MALTED DARK MILK REVOLUTION

One of our favorite chocolatiers, Recchiuti Confections, sent us a new product, called Malted Dark Milk Revolution. The confection looks like chocolate-covered macadamia nuts, but the centers are crunchy malted cookies (think malted milk balls) accented with fleur de sel. The centers are then coated with layers of dark milk chocolate (high-percentage cacao milk chocolate, typically 38% or more).

There’s no hard sugar shell, so they’re easy on the teeth.

Recchiuti calls these gourmet malted milk balls are a revolution because they use dark milk chocolate and an accent of fleur de sel, which provides a nice counterpoint to what in other hands can be a too-sweet confection.

For us, the concept of chocolate-coated malted milk centers has been around for a while, regardless of what type of chocolate or seasonings are added. So instead, we think of the name as a pun on the number of times the centers go around in the drum—from 20 to 60 “revolutions,” according to Recchiuti.

We immediately used the little bites:

With after-dinner espresso and coffee, instead of a cookie or a carré/napolitan of chocolate (they more than satisfy).

As a topper for ice cream and frozen yogurt—much more delicious than a maraschino cherry.

As a quick chocolate fix. (Full disclosure: We love good malted milk balls. Our favorites are these mint malt balls from Marich.

A YUMMY GIFT

Malted Dark Milk Revolution is a lovely small gift, especially for those who like the play of sweet and salty. It’s available in two sizes at Recchiuti.com: a 5-ounce box for $11.00 and 12-ounce box for $19.00.

Recchiuti also has a sampler of panned products (called the Dragée Sampler) that we love for Mother’s Day and Father’s Day gifting, 12 ounces, $29.00. It includes Recchiuti’s heavenly Burnt Caramel Almonds, Burnt Caramel Hazelnuts, Peanut Butter Pearls and Cherries Two Ways.

Learn more at Recchiuti.com.

FOOD HOLIDAY: National Chocolate Covered Raisins Day

admin — Sat, 24 Mar 2012 12:38:18 +0000

The gourmet version of Raisinets, from Lake
Champlain Chocolates (certified kosher).

Today is National Chocolate Covered Raisins Day. In the form of Raisinets, the dried-fruit-in-a-candy-shell is a movie theater staple and the third-largest selling candy in U.S. history.

To make the candy, raisins are coated with oil and spun in a hot drum with milk or dark chocolate. They’re then polished to a shine.

Raisinets are the earliest brand on record, introduced by the Blumenthal Brothers Chocolate Company of Philadelphia in 1927 (the brand was acquired by Nestlé in 1984).

We don’t know that the Blumenthals originated the concept. Hard chocolate was invented in 1847, enabling confectioners to develop all types of chocolate candies (the history of chocolate). No doubt, chocolate-dipped fruit was in the repertoire.

See all the food holidays.

COOKING VIDEO: Make Your Own Chocolate Peanut Butter Cups

admin — Fri, 16 Mar 2012 09:02:14 +0000

Peanut butter cups: We love them!

How can you make the everyday peanut butter cup even better? Create them yourself, using better ingredients than are used in mass-marketed PB cups.

The trick is to buy the most delicious chocolate morsels (or gourmet chocolate) and the tastiest peanut butter. You can use your favorite “shade” of chocolate—dark, milk or white—as long as it’s great stuff.

The good news: The “recipe” is easy.

And it’s timely: You can make peanut butter cups for Easter, topped with jelly beans or other candy Easter ornaments.

Have fun with this one!

VALENTINE’S DAY: Gourmet Chocolates

admin — Wed, 08 Feb 2012 19:06:46 +0000

We love getting gifts from Chocolat Céleste (it means “heavenly chocolate” in French), a Minneapolis-based artisan chocolatier. The ganache fillings are delicious and the cocoa-butter transfers that decorate the tops are lovely.

If you’re looking for a special box of chocolates for Valentine’s Day, head over to the website and take your pick.

Gift boxes filled with heavenly chocolates are available from 2 pieces to 24 pieces, $7.00 to $64.00.

Read our review of Chocolat Céleste.

Pretty in pink: Valentine chocolates from
Chocolat Céleste.

VALENTINE’S DAY: Valrhona, France’s Favorite Chocolate

admin — Mon, 06 Feb 2012 21:24:35 +0000

A French spin on Valentine chocolate. Photo
courtesy Valrhona.

Speak to French chocolatiers and pastry chefs—or anyone trained in the world’s leading culinary schools—and odds are that their chocolate of choice is Valrhona.

It’s one of our favorites, whether for baking or for snacking.

Nestled in the middle of the vineyards of Tain l’Hermitage in the Rhone Valley, France, since 1922 Valrhona has produced the finest chocolate couverture.

A highly regarded pioneer in the prestige chocolate world, Valrhona did not sell its chocolate direct to the consumer until 1986. Prior to then it sold couverture only to chocolate manufacturers.

More recently, the company has created bonbons and other chocolate confections. For Valentine’s Day there’s a gold-speckled, heart-shaped red box holding 15 heart-shaped bonbons:

5 dark chocolate hearts filled with a tiramisu-flavored chocolate ganache

5 milk chocolate hearts filled with caramel

5 white chocolate hearts: White chocolate and Grand Marnier

Available exclusively through the Valrhona online boutique for $29.99, it’s waiting to be sent with your personal message, to someone who’d adore a box of fine French chocolate.

More about Valrhona chocolate.

TOP PICK OF THE WEEK: Antidote Chocolate Bars

admin — Wed, 01 Feb 2012 17:53:50 +0000

Banana, chile and 77% cacao bar. Photo
courtesy Antidote Chocolate.

People who like very dark chocolate and cacao nibs may find a surprising delight in Antidote Chocolate Bars.

These innovative bars, made in Ecuador with Arriba Nacional cacao beans, are 50% conventionally roasted chocolate and 50% raw cacao nibs.

The result is profound, earthy and higher in antioxidants than just about any other bar.

In addition to basic bars, there are innovative flavor combinations, too:

77% cacao bars in Almond + Fennel, Banana + Cayenne, Red Flower + Berry, Rose Salt + Lemon

84% cacao bars in Essential (plain), Ginger + Gooseberry, Lavender + Red Salt, Mango + Juniper

100% cacao bars in Raw Cacao + Nibs (plain), Raw Cacao + Dates

The higher the percentage of cacao, the lower the amount of sugar. The 100% cacao bars have no added sugar (although the dates supply natural sugar).

If your Valentine wants an intense chocolate experience, pick up a few bars or a gift set at AntidoteChoco.com.

Read the full review.

Talk the talk of a chocolate expert. Pick up terms in our Chocolate Glossary.

VALENTINE GIFT: Sugar-Free Chocolate Hearts

admin — Wed, 01 Feb 2012 14:36:38 +0000

If your Valentine loves chocolate but is on a sugar-restricted diet, the Choclatique artisans have the solution: Their Sweet Deceit 100% Sugar-Free Chocolate in heart shapes are certain to make someone happy.

The assortment includes solids and truffles (chocolate ganache centers). The chocolates are also gluten- and nut-free and al-natural (no preservatives or artificial flavors).

The chocolate and fillings, which are made with maltitol, taste as close as can be to the “real thing.”

Eight pieces are $20.00, 15 pieces are $35.00 and 30 pieces are $65.00

Buy them at Choclatique.com.

Find more of our favorite sugar-free candy.

You won’t find better sugar-free chocolate than this. Photo courtesy Choclatique.