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RECIPE: Chocolate-Dipped Apricots (Or Anything Chocolate-Dipped)…& More

January 9th is National Apricot Day. We’re not sure why, since apricot season in the U.S. is from May through August (any fresh apricots found in the winter months have made a long trip from the southern hemisphere).

Yet, you can toast the day with an apricot brandy sour, have apricot jam on your toast or sandwich (cream cheese, goat cheese, ham, turkey), make a pork roast with dried apricots, or use the jam as filling in a Sacher Torte.

Here’s a quick and easy way to turn dried apricots into something festive. If you don’t want to make your own, you can order chocolate-dipped apricots from Bissinger’s or Lake Champlain Chocolates (the latter are kosher-certified).

Don’t like chocolate? There’s another recipe below for glazed dried apricots.
 
 
RECIPE #1: CHOCOLATE-DIPPED APRICOTS RECIPE

These are delicious with tea and coffee, as a petit-four after dinner, or whenever a chocolate yen beckons.

Ingredients For 24 Pieces

  • 24 jumbo whole dried apricots (about 8 ounces; look for moist fruit)
  • 1/2 cup (2 ounces) pistachio nuts, finely chopped
  • 6 ounces dark chocolate*
  • Parchment paper, wax paper or aluminum foil
  • Chocolate tempering machine or substitute
  • _____________________________

    *Dark chocolate compliments the apricots best, but you can substitute milk chocolate or white chocolate. The finer quality the chocolate, the better the confection.
     
    Preparation

    1. For best results, temper chocolate in a chocolate tempering machine. If you don’t own one, melt the chocolate in a chocolate melting pot, microwave oven or double boiler.

    2. Place the chopped nuts on a plate or in a shallow bowl, for dipping.

     
    [1] Make your own or buy them (photo © Bissinger’s).


    [2] Ready-to-eat, from Olde Naples Chocolate.

     
    3. Holding an apricot by the rim, dip about half of it in the chocolate. Give it a quick twist, shake off excess chocolate and tap the apricot against the rim of the bowl if excess chocolate remains.

    4. Before chocolate dries, dip the top of the apricot into the chopped nuts. Place it on parchment paper to set up and cool. If the setup seems slow, place it in the refrigerator for 3 to 5 minutes. Repeat with all apricots.

    If you want to sweeten the apricots, glaze them first. Glazed apricots can also be enjoyed without the chocolate dip.

     
    RECIPE: GLAZED APRICOTS

    Ingredients For 24 Pieces

  • 1 cup water
  • 2 cups sugar
  • 1/8 teaspoon cream of tartar
  • 24 jumbo whole dried apricots (about 8 ounces)
  •  
    Preparation

    1. BOIL the water in a medium saucepan. Add the sugar and stir until it dissolves and a syrup is created. Boil until the syrup reaches 310°F on a candy thermometer (do not stir).

    2. PLACE the pot in a pan of cold water to instantly stop the boiling; then immediately remove the pot and set it in a pan of hot water. (This keeps the syrup at the right temperature.)

    4. DIP each apricot in the syrup, using a skewer. Shake off the excess syrup and and place the apricot on wax paper to dry.
     
     

    CHECK OUT WHAT’S HAPPENING ON OUR HOME PAGE, THENIBBLE.COM.

     
     
      

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    TIP OF THE DAY: When To Use Fines Herbes Vs. “Big Herbs”


    Chervil has been called “the gourmet’s parsley.” A more delicate flavor than parsley, it has a faint note of licorice. Photo courtesy SXC.
      THE NIBBLE’s Chef Johnny Gnall advises: When it comes to cooking, not all herbs are created equal. Some have more delicate flavors and can be lost if cooked the wrong way or paired with foods that are too bold. Conversely, some herbs are so flavorful and strong that if used in excess, they can overshadow proteins and produce alike.

    Centuries ago, French chefs initiated the term “fines herbs” (pronounced “feen erb”), to designate the more delicate herbs. The category generally includes chervil, chives, parsley and tarragon, though it has been known to also include marjoram, savory and a few others, depending on whom you’re asking. This designation is widely acknowledged by chefs around the world: If a recipe calls for “fines herbs,” you can assure it will include the aforementioned four.

    Less official, though no less helpful, is a designation used by chef Jan Birnbaum of Epic Roasthouse in San Francisco, among others. He designates the term “big herbs” to refer to those herbs whose flavors can stand up to heartier meats and vegetables. These “big herbs” include sage, rosemary and oregano, herbs that are very much at home in a roast house such as Epic.

     
    To be consistent with the American term, “big herbs,” we’ll now switch from the French fines herbes to fine herbs.

    FRESH VS. DRIED HERBS

    These herbs, be they “fine” or “big,” are best used in their fresh states to enjoy their truest flavors. Dried herbs tend to have more concentrated flavors, stronger on the palate than their fresh counterparts. You can typically add them to a recipe earlier in the cooking process, as their concentrated strength will stand up to the heat of cooking.

    When cooking with fresh herbs, on the other hand, it is typically best to wait until as late as possible to add them to a recipe, when the cooking process will have a greater effect on their flavor and what chefs call “brightness”—generally the reason one cooks with fresh herbs in the first place.

    That being said, each has its place in the cooking process; even if you are cooking with fine herbs, using a more delicate protein will allow you to cook them without losing their flavor. With bigger herbs, on the other hand, you can more or less throw caution to the wind: they can handle being roughed up a bit. Here are two recipes, one for fine herbs and one for big ones, utilizing the strengths of each to help crate a delicious dish:

     

    RECIPE: FINE HERBS-STUFFED SOLE
    Sole is a more delicate fish and will be complemented nicely by fine herbs. Moreover, the use of the herbs in both stuffing and basting in this recipe will give them even more help in holding up to cooking: strength in numbers, one might say.

    Ingredients

  • 4 sole filets (6-8 oz each)
  • 1 bunch fresh marjoram
  • 1 bunch chives
  • 1/2 bunch parsley
  • 1 bunch tarragon
  •  
    Marjoram: another of the “fine herbs.” Photo by Zsuzsanna Kilián | SXC.
  • 1 cup aïoli (garlic mayonnaise—you can substitute regular mayonnaise)
  • 1 lemon
  • Salt/pepper
  • 1/4 cup melted butter
  •  
    Preparation

    1. Chop herbs and whisk into aïoli, reserving a teaspoon of each. Add lemon juice to taste, until you achieve desired acidity and brightness.
    2. Lay sole filets on a foil-covered baking sheet and season with salt and pepper.
    3. Using a spoon or spatula, place a generous dollop of herb aïoli at one end of each filet.
    4. Roll up filets so that the herbs are in the center, and secure with a toothpick.
    5. Add your reserved herbs to the melted butter and brush each filet generously.
    6. Bake at 350°F for 20 to 25 minutes. Baste with herb butter once or twice throughout the baking process.
    7. Remove toothpick before serving.

    RECIPE: BIG HERBS-CRUSTED LAMB LOIN

    The crust you get on this lamb recipe is absolutely scrumptious. If seasoned and seared properly, it will be crunchy and herbaceous, giving way to tender, medium-rare lamb beneath. This is the beauty of big herbs: they can stand up to lamb’s flavor as well as the searing process. Some of the herbs may char a bit here and there, but overall it works quite well with the dominant flavors in the dish.

    Ingredients

  • 1 boneless lamb loin (roughly 2 pounds)
  • 1 bunch fresh rosemary
  • 1 bunch fresh oregano
  • 1 bunch fresh thyme
  • 3 cloves garlic
  • 2 tablespoons melted butter + 2 tablespoons olive oil, combined
  • 1/4 cup canola oil or grapeseed oil
  • Salt/pepper
  •  
    Preparation
    1. Chop garlic and all herbs, combine, and set aside.
    2. Using your hands, rub the loin generously with the olive oil and butter mixture, making sure to coat the entire surface.
    3. Spread your herb/garlic mixture on a cutting board and roll the lamb loin around in it to create a crust. The better you cover the loin, the more flavor you will get.
    4. Season all sides generously with salt and pepper.
    5. In a large sauté pan on high heat, heat the oil; sear lamb loin on all sides. This will take roughly 5 minutes; do your best to leave the lamb alone as it sears in order to achieve a nice, crispy crust. A little smoke is okay, as the herbs may burn slightly; just don’t allow it to get to a point where smoke is pouring from the pan. (This step can also be done on a grill.)
    6. Finish the lamb in the oven, baking at 400°F for 20 minutes. Remove and let rest for 10 minutes before slicing and serving.

      

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    TIP OF THE DAY: Try A Homemade Kitchen Cleaner


    Save money by mixing your own household
    cleaners. Spray bottles from Liquid Fence.

      Readers of this blog may have picked up the fact that we’re environmentally conscious. We do what we can to minimize our carbon footprint and we look for ways to repurpose everything before tossing the bottle, jar or can into the recycling container.

    As we were cleaning out a cabinet, we came across an empty Windex spray bottle that had been stored, awaiting repurposing.

    Shortly before that, we’d come across Grandma’s recipe for an all-purpose household cleaner. In the early part of the 20th century and for centuries before that, housewives bought the basic ingredients—baking soda, borax, rubbing alcohol, soap (liquid soap was patented in 1865), vinegar and washing soda (a laundry ingredient)—and made their own cleaning products.

    Try this simple all-purpose cleaner, which we’ve been using on counters and appliances:

     

  • Fill an empty, clean spray bottle two-thirds full with water.
  • Fill the remaining space with white vinegar.
  • Shake to blend; spritz away.
  • If you don’t like the smell of vinegar (the aroma evaporates quickly), add a few drops of an essential oil. We had lavender oil on hand. Drugstores and natural food stores should have a selection of popular scents.
  •  
    Not only does it work; the ingredients cost about fifty cents, compared with $3.69 to buy a name-brand bottle.

    If you like the idea of making your own household cleaners, here are recipes for everything from floor cleaner to non-scratch scrubs.

      

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    TIP OF THE DAY: Best Low Calorie Foods

    Love great food but need help sticking to a New Year’s resolution?

    We never start a diet without loading up on these favorites from our Diet Nibbles Section. Each is so delicious yet low in calories.

  • Bare Fruit Cinnamon Apple Chips. Almost as satisfying as apple pie. A .4-ounce serving is 29 calories. The chips are feather-light, so it’s a nice serving size. Get some. Read our review.
  • Blackberry Patch No Sugar Added Syrups. At 35 calories a tablespoon, add some to yogurt, use as a dipping sauce for apple slices or anywhere you need some sweetness. In Blackberry, Blueberry and Maple Pecan, one tablespoons is 25 calories. Get some. Read our review.
  • Bilinski’s Chicken Sausages. Low in fat and as little as 70 calories for a juicy link, we enjoy these with an egg for breakfast, for lunch with sauerkraut, in many dinner recipes and as protein-packed snacks. Get some at the supermarket—brands vary by region. Read our review.
  • Boylan’s Bottleworks Diet Sodas. Nobody makes better soda—regular or diet—than Boylans. The diet sodas—black cherry, cola, creme, orange and root beer—have 0 calories. Get some. Read our review.
  •  
    Combining the crunch of chips with the flavor of apples, we love this low-calorie snack from Bare Fruit. Photo by Hannah Kaminsky | THE NIBBLE.
     

  • FAGE 0% Greek Yogurt. Instead of sour cream, try this thick, tangy yogurt. Or, sweeten it with honey or fruit preserves for dessert. Get some at supermarkets nationwide (Chobani and Oikos are equally delicious); 15 calories/tablespoon, 90 calories per six-ounce container. Read our review.
  • Garlic Farms Garlic Juice. A calorie-free spray that adds fresh garlic flavor to anything. Get some. Read our review.
  • Infused Whitefish Roe. At just 20 calories a tablespoon, crunchy caviar is a most delicious snack atop a slice of cucumber. The roes are available plain or in flavors such as citron, mango, passionfruit and wasabi. Get some. Read our review.
  • The King’s Cupboard Sugar-Free Chocolate Sauce. When you’re dying for chocolate, a spoonful of this luscious, fudgy sauce is more than satisfying. One tablespoon is 55 calories. Get some. Read our review.
  • La Nouba Sugar Free Marshmallows. Better than supermarket marshmallows; no one will believe they’re sugar free! Three plump marshmallows have 41 calories. Get some. Read our review.
  • PB2 Peanut Butter Powder. With just two grams of fat and 45 calories per serving, PB lovers have a healthy alternative to full-fat peanut butter (at 190 calories per serving and approximately 16 grams of fat). Reconstitute it into a spread or sprinkle it on yogurt and other foods. Get some. Read our review.
     
    Do you have favorite low calorie products? Add them to this list!

      

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    TIP OF THE DAY: Clean Out The Gadgets, Pots & Pans


    When was the last time you used the wok? Time to start woking or give it away. Electric wok from Aroma.

      A few days ago, we suggested taking time to clean out the spice cabinet.

    Now, how about those kitchen gadgets, pots and pans? It’s a great weekend task, and other household members can join in, help and vote: what stays, what goes.

    Last weekend we went through our two overstuffed gadget drawers and found three lemon zesters, eight corkscrews, an electric uncorker we haven’t used in the two years since we received it as a gift, six vegetable peelers, a mango slicer that didn’t work for us and a manual egg beater we haven’t used in decades. Oh, and a gadget that turns radishes into roses for crudité platters.

    Elsewhere in the kitchen were grungy spatulas among newer ones. Two sterling silver cake servers from a past life of lavish entertaining. Seven bowl scrapers (we don’t use them, but companies keep sending them to us). Plastic containers piled so high, the stacks keep falling over.

     
    Among the pots, pans were much larger space hoggers. Stainless steel frying pans we haven’t used in the years since we switched to nonstick surfaces. Specialty items like the tamago pan we last used around 1990, to make Japanese omelets for sushi. A beautiful like-new double-sided waffle maker—but we’ve given up the pancake and waffle group for protein-focused breakfasts. An electric wok we liked, but out-of-sight-out-of-mind, we haven’t used in a year.

    If you’ve got a similar situation, this Tip Of The Day will solve it.

  • Toss out anything worn or grungy.
  • Put everything that doesn’t deserve the space it takes into a box. If you’re undecided about certain things, put them in a second “TBD” box. Consider them for a day, then move them into the first box.
  • Ignore emotions that tempt you to keep Grandma’s egg beater and the pricey juicer you only used once.
  • Invite friends and neighbors to stop by for coffee and to take their pick. Donate everything left over to a cooking school or a thrift shop.
  • If you like to organize events and can resist the temptation to acquire things you don’t need, you can host a white elephant party to help your friends donate their excess paraphernalia.
  •  
    Enjoy the extra space you’ve freed up. We live in a small apartment with no storage lockers or other storage space.

    But even if you live with a luxury of space, someone else can enjoy your white elephants.

      

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