Suzi's Blog

Devils on Horseback

by Brian on July 26th, 2010 in Recipes No Comments

I am not, as my family maintains, a prejudiced man. I simply have guiding principles. One of them is not to ever eat certain foods. I have a Top 10 list of the foods I will not touch, let alone allow to enter my body. There are about 30 items on the Top 10 list. Yes, it’s crowded there, but I have very rigorous standards.

From time to time, I will reconsider. Sometimes there is a recipe with such appeal that I think one of my Top 10, or Top 30 or whatever, might be capable of salvation.

I don’t like dates. I never have. If I eat sticky food, I want immediately to take a shower. It’s just my way. And God knows that if you get within five feet of a date, some part of it is going to collect on your fingertips.

I am addicted to chocolate. I like jalapeno. I adore bacon. So I saw this recipe on The Tasting Table, a wonderful website, and I thought if they can do dates, so can I.

It turns out, this is a perfectly sumptuous recipe. The contrasting flavors come in layers that just confuse you a bit. The whole date flavor is just lost amidst the bacon, chocolate and jalapeno. Oh the date is there, because there is undoubted sweetness on the tongue. But the chocolate kicks in and then jalapeno, and you are left asking yourself, “What did I just eat? And can I have another?”

This appetizer has substance so plan on only 3 or 4 per person. A substantial cocktail is suggested to accompany the strong flavors of this enormous nosh.

Devils on Horseback

Yield: 8 servings

Ingredients:

• 12 strips of bacon, halved crosswise
• 24 dates, pitted
• 6 squares of bittersweet baker’s chocolate, broken into shards
• Fleur de sel or other coarse sea salt
• 12 marcona almost, halved
• ½ jalapeño, seeded and thinly sliced into ¼-inch pieces

Preparation:

Preheat the oven to 300F. Arrange the bacon on a baking sheet and warm in the oven for 15 seconds., the remove and let cool. Turn the oven up to 400F.

Stuff each date with a piece of chocolate, a few grains of fleur de sel, half a macron almond and a piece of jalapeño. Wrap each date with a strip of bacon and place on a baking sheet, seam side down.

Bake for 5 t0 7 minutes or until the bacon on is golden brown. Serve immediately.

Changes and Considerations:

Truthfully, Suzen and I did not get the 15 seconds bit for warming the bacon. Just let the bacon come to room temperature before assembly. You do have to ponder the thickness of bacon; we used some very thick bacon from Fleishers, our Kingston butcher. We needed to cook for about 20 minutes. That thickness may also mean you want to use toothpicks to secure each rollup and ensure they do not unwind during cooking.

Finally, if you do like things sweet, then before you place them in the oven, top each one with a teaspoon of dark brown sugar. It makes a big difference. Very sweet. Very sticky. After I ate them, I needed a shower. I didn’t mind at all.

Source: TastingTable.com

Really Simple Chocolate Sauce

by Brian on June 25th, 2010 in Cookbook Reviews,Really Simple,Recipes No Comments

Many of you get this blog via RSS, that button you push to get a new post every time one is ready. What does RSS stand for? Really Simple Syndication.

Simple can be very good. At times, like on a hot summer day, we like our food simple. So in the coming weeks, I’ll post some Really Simple recipes: ones that are still delicious, yet very easy to make.

I said “summer” and summer is the time for ice cream. I’m neutral about nudity as a life style, but I adamantly believe ice cream should be fully dressed. Chocolate sauce, not just syrup but real sauce, is a staple in our kitchen.

This recipe, from The Perfect Scoop by David Lebovitz, can be made in five minutes, stores for a couple of weeks, and makes any ice cream a treat.

Here are a couple of things you should know. First, David lives in Paris and has fully adopted the French style to marvelous desserts. So, this syrup is very good. And not very sweet. Be prepared to be a bit surprised at first, and then, upon consideration, fully pleased.

Second, this recipe calls for a cup of cocoa powder and David says get the best cocoa you can. He means it, for the dominant flavor is cocoa. Cocoa powder, good powder, is not cheap. A cup of cocoa powder is a culinary investment, but it’s the wise investment here. You’ll get well over a pint of sauce that gives you great mileage. The flavor is so intense that a small amount is all you need on your ice cream, in your shake, or in your coke. You do make chocolate cokes, don’t you?

Take five minutes and create this flavor multiplier.

Really Simple Chocolate Sauce

Yield: 2 cups

Ingredients:

2 cups water
1 cup unsweetened Dutch-process cocoa powder
1 cup corn syrup
4 ounces semisweet chocolate

Preparation:

Put the water, cocoa, and corn syrup in a tall saucepan. Whisk to blend, turn on the heat and whisk occasionally while bringing to a boil. When the mixture is boiling, lower the heat to simmer and whisk for three minutes.

Remove from the heat, add the semisweet chocolate, and whisk to mix. Serve while still warm. Cool to room temperature, then refrigerate. This sauce stores in the refrigerator.

Why a tall sauce pan? When the mixture first begins to boil, it can double in volume in seconds. Be careful! If you need to, lift the pan from the heat and continue whisking.

Source: The Perfect Scoop by David Lebovitz