Step by Step Raspberry Chocolate Ganache Tart Recipe (NaBloPoMo)

November 11, 2013 by Renee

Last week I went to a luncheon at The Daily Meal. Dorie Greenspan was there I had the ultimate pleasure of receiving accolades from her for my Chocolate Raspberry Ganache Tart. I could not be more thrilled! But truth be told, it’s one of those desserts that’s so incredibly easy that I almost feel guilty! It’s a been one of the staple desserts in my rotation for many a dinner party because of its ease and attractiveness.

The basic recipe is just 7 ingredients. But with the addition of the warm raspberry jam drizzled over the top, it becomes 8. If you happen to have the jam in your house, that’s great, but if not, I wouldn’t go out and buy it just for this recipe! It’s definitely optional and will not change the taste in any way. It just gives the raspberries a bit of a sheen and the chocolate shavings something more to stick to.

To try different variations, to the ganache you can replace the cinnamon and add cardamon and Grand Marnier (one of my favorites!). Or you can make it with vanilla and bourbon, or even Mexican Chili powder or a dash of sea salt. There are so many wonderful flavor combinations you can try to change this basic recipe and make it equally decadent and beautiful.

Raspberry Chocolate Ganache Tart

Ingredients

Crust

3 cups pecans
1/2 cup dark brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
6 tablespoons butter (melted)

Ganache

10.5oz chocolate bars (2 bars 60%, 1 bar 70% – good quality chocolate)
1 1/2 cups whipping cream

Topping

18oz raspberries (3- 6oz. packages fresh raspberries), Depending on the size of raspberries, you may need slightly more or less.

Topping (Optional)

1 heaped tablespoon seedless raspberry jam (heated until liquidy)

Method

Crust

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

In a food processor, add the pecans, dark brown sugar and the cinnamon. Pulse for about 10 seconds until the mixture resembles coarse sand.

Melt the butter and using the food processor feed tube, pour into the nut mixture while running. Once all the butter is added, pulse for another 5 seconds just to incorporate into the mixture. Your crust will be a damp, crumbly mixture that can be pressed easily into your tart pan.

Press the nut mixture into a 12″ fluted tart pan with a removable bottom. Using your knuckle, press the mixture into the flutes and into the bottom around the edge to ensure an even crust.

Bake for 20 minutes or until crust feels firm. Let cool while preparing the ganache.

Ganache

Using a vegetable peeler shave some chocolate curls off of one of the bars of chocolate. Set aside and save.

Chop the remaining chocolate into small pieces.

Over medium-low heat add whipping cream and chopped chocolate to a heavy saucepan.

Whisking constantly, watch for the chocolate to begin to melt and then to become smooth. Continue whisking until the chocolate just begins to bubble and boil.

Once you see the first bubbles, remove the chocolate from the heat. Immediately pour into the prepared crust.

Refrigerate 1-2 hours until set. Can be made a day or two ahead and refrigerated until right before use.

Topping

When ready to serve, arrange raspberries on top of the tart.

At this point you can melt a tablespoon of seedless raspberry jam and gently brush it over the raspberries. Add the reserved chocolate shavings, remove the tart from the ring and serve to wild applause!

I hope you love it just as much as I do! Enjoy!

Step by Step Raspberry Chocolate Ganache Tart Recipe (NaBloPoMo)

Prep time

30 mins

Cook time

20 mins

Total time

50 mins

Author: Renee

Serves: 8-10

Ingredients

Crust

3 cups pecans
½ cup dark brown sugar
½ teaspoon cinnamon
6 tablespoons butter (melted)

Ganache

24oz chocolate bars (2 bars 60%, 1 bar 70% good quality chocolate,)
1½ cup whipping cream

Topping

18oz raspberries (3 6oz. package fresh raspberries)
Topping (Optional)
1 heaped tablespoon seedless raspberry jam (heated until liquidy)

Method

Crust

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
In a food processor, add the pecans, dark brown sugar and the cinnamon. Pulse for about 10 seconds until the mixture resembles coarse sand.
Melt the butter and using the food processor feed tube, pour into the nut mixture while running. Once all the butter is added, pulse for another 5 seconds just to incorporate into the mixture. Your crust will be a damp, crumbly mixture that can be pressed easily into your tart pan.
Press the nut mixture into a 12" fluted tart pan with a removable bottom. Using your knuckle, press the mixture into the flutes and into the bottom around the edge to ensure an even crust.
Bake for 20 minutes or until crust feels firm. Let cool while preparing the ganache.

Ganache

Using a vegetable peeler shave some chocolate curls off of one of the bars of chocolate. Set aside and save. Chop the remaining chocolate into small pieces.
Over medium-low heat add whipping cream and chopped chocolate to a heavy saucepan. Whisking constantly, watch for the chocolate to begin to melt and then to become smooth. Continue whisking until the chocolate just begins to bubble and boil. Once you see the first bubbles, remove the chocolate from the heat. Immediately pour into the prepared crust.
Refrigerate 1-2 hours until set. Can be made a day ahead and refrigerated until right before use.

Topping

When ready to serve, arrange raspberries on top of the tart. At this point you can melt a tablespoon of seedless raspberry jam and gently brush it over the raspberries. Add the reserved chocolate shavings and serve!

Notes

The basic recipe is just 7 ingredients. But with the addition of the warm raspberry jam drizzled over the top, it becomes 8. If you happen to have the jam in your house, that's great, but if not, I wouldn't go out and buy it just for this recipe! It's definitely optional and will not change the taste in any way. It just gives the raspberries a bit of a sheen.

To try different variations, to the ganache you can add cardamon and Grand Marnier. Or you can make it with vanilla and bourbon, or even Mexican Chili powder or a dash of sea salt.

There are so many wonderful flavor combinations you can try to change this basic recipe and make it equally decadent!

Potato Crisp, Roasted Vegetable, and Herbed Goat Cheese Napoleon Recipe

May 14, 2013 by Renee

Next weekend I am attending Eat, Write, Retreat in Philadelphia. It’s the first conference this year that I am attending and I cannot be more excited. Attendees were invited to enter the Amazing Apps Culinary Challenge where they would be shipped a surprise ingredient to create a healthy appetizer. As an extra special bonus, entrants were also sent several OXO tools to aid in the creation of our dishes. My secret ingredient was a variety of potatoes from the The United States Potato Board (USPB). OXO also sent along a 3-in-1 Adjustable Potato Ricer and three of their graters- a Zester, Medium and Coarse graters. I am such a geek for new kitchen tools and I absolutely love OXO for their high quality, durable products, not to mention their Good Grips, which makes them so comfortable to use!

Most people think of potatoes as they do rice, a relatively boring side dish, a starch that often needs to be complimented by another vegetable. But in reality, potatoes are incredibly versatile and can stand alone on a plate. They are also very healthy, at just 110 calories for a medium sized potato and packed with vitamin C. Did you know, if eaten with the skin on, a potato has more potassium than a banana? Well, it does- one of the fun facts I learned from reading the materials that were sent along with the potatoes. Also, potatoes are completely FAT-FREE! That fact alone should make them even more appealing for adding them to your diet. They already are one of my most favorite foods.

Because they are so versatile, it took me a long time to narrow it down to just one idea for this challenge. In the end, I combined many of my favorite flavors to make one incredible stack of potato goodness, a Potato Crisp, Roasted Vegetable, and Herbed Goat Cheese Napoleon.

Potato Crisp, Roasted Vegetable, and Herbed Goat Cheese Napoleon Recipe

Prep time

45 mins

Cook time

20 mins

Total time

1 hour 5 mins

Author: Renee

Serves: 4

Ingredients

For the Crisps:

4 Medium Potatoes
2 Egg Whites
4 Tbs. Butter
2 Tbs. Heavy Cream
2 Tbs Chives, chopped
3 Tbs Freshly Grated Parmesan Cheese

For the Filling:

2 Red Peppers, Roasted over an open flame and peeled
2 Medium Zucchini, thinly sliced and dry grilled
1 cup Goat Cheese (Pre- Made Herbed or Create your own; Garlic, Chives, Onions, Thyme, Rosemary etc.)

For the Topping:

1 Medium Onion, thinly sliced
1 Tbs. Flour
2 Tbs. Vegetable Oil
Olive Oil and Balsamic Vinegar to Drizzle

Method

Peel and chop potatoes. Boil until soft. Pass the potatoes through the OXO 3-in 1 Adjustable Potato Ricer into a large bowl.
Add butter, egg whites, heavy cream and chives. Fold in until smooth but gently so as not to create a gummy mixture.
Using the OXO Medium Grater, grate Parmesan cheese directly into the potato mixture. Fold in without over working the potatoes.
Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
Create a template out of a thin piece of cardboard (part of a pizza box lid works great!) by cutting a 3"x 3"square from the middle. Place the template on a silicone baking mat. With a spatula, spread an even layer of potato over the template. Remove the template and there will be a square of mashed potato on your mat. Repeat until you have 20 squares.
Bake the squares for 8-10 minutes, being careful that they do not get too brown.
Remove from oven and cool.
Prepare the fried onions by dredging the onion slices lightly in the flour and then frying in the vegetable oil over medium heat until brown and crisp. Drain on paper towels and set aside until ready to use.

Assemble the Napoleon:

On a plate, lay down one crisp, add a layer of herbed goat cheese, followed by another crisp. Add a layer of red peppers followed by another crisp. Add a layer of herbed goat cheese followed by a crisp. Add the zucchini layer and a crisp. Top with the fried onions.
Drizzle with olive oil and Balsamic vinegar and serve to many "oohs and ah's" from your guests.

See how it’s done-

Method

1. Peel and chop potatoes. Boil until soft. Pass the potatoes through the OXO 3-in 1 Adjustable Potato Ricer into a large bowl.

2. Add butter, egg whites, heavy cream and chives. Fold in until smooth but gently so as not to create a gummy mixture.

3. Using the OXO Medium Grater, grate Parmesan cheese directly into the potato mixture. Fold in without over working the potatoes.

4. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.

5. Create a template out of a thin piece of cardboard (part of a pizza box lid works great!) by cutting a 3″x 3″square from the middle. Place the template on a silicone baking mat. With a spatula, spread an even layer of potato over the template. Remove the template and there will be a square of mashed potato on your mat. Repeat until you have 20 squares.

6. Bake the squares for 8-10 minutes, being careful that they do not get too brown.

7. Remove from oven and cool.

8. Prepare the fried onions by dredging the onion slices lightly in the flour and then frying in the vegetable oil over medium heat until brown and crisp. Drain on paper towels and set aside until ready to use.

Assemble the Napoleon:

On a plate, lay down one crisp, add a layer of herbed goat cheese, followed by another crisp. Add a layer of red peppers followed by another crisp. Add a layer of herbed goat cheese followed by a crisp. Add the zucchini layer and a crisp. Top with the fried onions.

Drizzle with olive oil and Balsamic vinegar and serve to many “oohs and ah’s” from your guests.

Serves 4.

Disclosure: As an Eat Write Retreat registrant, I received samples from The U.S. Potato Board and a variety of OXO tools to help create this recipe. With this post I am eligible to win prizes in the Amazing Apps Culinary Challenge. All thoughts and opinions are my own with a big shout out ‘Thank You’ to OXO for the awesome tools!

Bagel Recipe for the Blizzard

February 8, 2013 by Renee

Since I am usually the first one awake in the house, even on the weekend, I often sneak out and make a run to the local bagel store. I bring back coffee for Renee and 11 bagels for the family to wake up to. The 12th (and sometimes 13th) bagel is eaten by me on the drive home. However, since we are likely to be snowed in this weekend, I am making bagels at home. Here is the bagel recipe I use most frequently. Now, if you are getting snowed in, you don’t have to run out either!

Kitchen Conundrum’s Bagel Recipe

Prep time

2 hours

Cook time

30 mins

Total time

2 hours 30 mins

Author: Ari

Recipe type: Bread

Serves: 6-8

Ingredients

1 packet Yeast (Instant Dry Activated)
1½ tablespoon Sugar
1½ cup Water (Hot)
3½ cups Bread Flour
2 teaspoons Salt
Toppings (Sesame Seeds, Poppy Seeds, Pretzel Salt, Fried Onions, Fried Garlic etc.)

Method

In a small bowl, using ½ cup of the hot water add the yeast and the sugar. Stir and let sit for 10 minutes until frothy.
In a large bowl, combine the flour and the salt. Form a well in the middle and add the yeast mixture. Continue mixing in the flour from around the well until it is all combined while slowly adding the remaining water.
Turn the dough out onto a well floured surface. Knead it for about 10 minutes until it is smooth and firm. Form the dough into a ball and place into a lightly oiled bowl, cover with a kitchen towel and let rise in a warm place until doubled in size, about 1 hour.
After the dough has risen, punch it down and let rest for 10 minutes. Divide the dough into 8 equal pieces (6 if you want larger bagels). Roll the pieces into balls, then push a hole through the center with your thumb, making it a bit wide.
Place the bagels on a baking sheet and cover with a damp towel. Let the bagels rest in a warm place for another 10 minutes.
While the bagels are resting, fill a large pot with water and bring to a boil. At this time also preheat oven to 425 degrees F.
Drop the bagels into the boiling water one at a time being sure not to crowd the pot. Once they float to the top, boil for one minute, then flip it over for another minute. Remove the bagels from the water with a slotted spoon and place on the baking sheet. At this point you can add the toppings by dipping the bagels into bowls filled with your favorite toppings. The water from the boiling acts as the adherent. Return them to the baking sheet.
Bake for 18-20 minutes until nicely browned.
Serve with butter, cream cheese, lox or whatever else you would like!