"Filbertella" Dairy-Free Chocolate Hazelnut Butter

Filbertella

(Vegan Hazelnut Chocolate Butter)

Adapted from Vitamix by Blue Heron Kitchen

If you own a Vitamix or a similar quality blender (or if you’ve been given one during this holiday season), take a break from smoothies and plain nut butters. Here’s a seriously indulgent, gift-giving-worthy, dairy-free killer chocolate nut-butter.

Making the hard caramel candy is a cinch. If you have a Silpat (silicone baking pad), even cinchier. If you don’t have silicone, line a jelly roll pan with parchment paper (or foil). Truc: as the syrup begins to darken and turn a nice, rich, golden caramel color, remove it from the burner. Here is a situation where time keeps on slippin’ into the future. Because it’s so bloody hot, sugar syrup temperature continues to rise, even off the burner. And for goodness sake, don’t text while you make candy. Pour it onto the sheet and quickly tilt to allow it to spread thinly. It’ll be quick to cool and will be perfectly crisp.

(FYI: This is the beginning of making praline! – from here, you’d stir in nuts to the caramel, spread it out, cool it and grind it up! – then, fold your praline into meringue for a divine nut meringue !)

Use excellent quality hazelnuts. If you can find Italian hazelnuts that are already skinned and roasted, you’ll be doing the Teaberry shuffle while your Vitamix rolls up its sleeves. I found them at Fairway. There’s a great Italian market in Chelsea Market .. or go to Arthur Avenue (and have a slice at Full Moon.) Mis en place and roast and skin them a day or two or three before. I keep a jar of skinned hazelnuts in my kitchen at all times. You should too. Granted, this is a larger quantity than a jar. But it’s yontif and nothing is small this time of year.

For cocoa, I recommend Valrhona or Guittard for the finest chocolate flavor. I opted for some lovely French walnut oil. You can use hazelnut oil. If you have neither, use a flavorless or 'fruity' oil. Extra virgin olive oil will be too heavy. Always use excellent quality, pure vanilla extract. I always use Baldwin’s. Always use excellent quality ingredients.

This is a unique and splendid gift. Bring it to your host with an excellent baguette or with a dozen croissants. Bag up a small jar with a breakfast brioche as you say goodbye to your holiday party guests.

Or treat yourself and your family: smear it on bread, on bananas or apples, spoon some on pancakes, waffles or French toast, or lighten it with whipped cream (oops, there goes the vegan) and pipe it into cream puffs. Sandwich it between two plain cookies, or use it as the chocolate for s’mores. Then, there’s the spoon approach.

You may never buy another jar of Nutella again.

This one’s for my long-gone Wheaten Terrier, Hazel.

peace and love,

jane

Ingredients:

1 cup (200 g) granulated sugar

½  cup (120 ml) water

4 cups (540 g) raw hazelnuts (or toasted/skinned hazelnuts and skip steps 1,2 and 3)

½  cup (43 g) unsweetened cocoa powder (Valrhona or Guittard recommended)

1 ½  tsp. pure vanilla extract (I recommend Baldwin’s)

2 Tbsp. (30 ml) walnut or hazelnut oil

pinch of kosher salt

Procedure:

Preheat oven to 350°F (180°C).

1.    Place hazelnuts in a single layer on a baking sheet. Toast in the oven until the skins are almost black and the meat is dark brown, about 15 minutes. Stir the nuts halfway through baking to ensure an even color.

2.    To remove skins, wrap cooled hazelnuts in a clean kitchen towel. Rub until most of the skins come off.

3.    Line a baking sheet with foil.

4.    Combine sugar and water in a 3 to 4 cup (720-960 ml) saucepan. Cover and bring the mixture to a simmer over medium heat. Remove the lid and wipe down the sides of the pan with a wet pastry brush or a scrunched-up paper towel dipped in water. Cover and cook for 2 minutes or until the sugar is completely dissolved.  Uncover and cook until the syrup looks like pale amber maple syrup.

5.    Immediately pour the caramel onto the lined baking sheet. Tilt the sheet to spread the caramel as thinly as possible. Let harden completely, about 15 minutes.

6.    Break cooled caramel candy into small pieces and place into the Vitamix container and secure lid.

7.    Select Variable 1.

8.    Turn machine on and slowly increase speed to Variable 5.

9.    Blend for 15 seconds. Stop machine and remove lid.

10. Add the nuts to the Vitamix container and secure lid.

11. Select Variable 1.

12. Turn machine on and slowly increase speed to Variable 10, then to High.

13. Blend for 1 minute, using the tamper to press the ingredients into the blades. Stop machine and remove lid to scrape down the sides. Continue blending until nuts are free flowing.

14. Add remaining ingredients to the Vitamix container and secure lid.

15. Select Variable 1.

16. Turn machine on and slowly increase speed to Variable 10, then to High.

17. Blend for 2 minutes (or less) using the tamper to press the ingredients into the blades, until you’ve achieved desired consistency.

Passover Meringoons (Nutty Macaroons!)

Meringue meets Macaroon

for Passover

“Meringoons”

Blue Heron Kitchen

Hazelnut Meringoons

The original recipe, from Joan Nathan’s “Jewish Cooking in America”, is called “Mississippi Praline Macaroons”. Passover begins at sundown tomorrow; and there’s no time to research what makes a macaroon a macaroon. These are not ones you’ll find at Ladurée, nor are they anything like the previous published recipes.

They’re nutty and delicious. And they’re dairy-free.

I add cream of tartar, but you don’t have to. Those who are not ‘strict’ during this holiday use it. But those who adhere to the rules, don’t. So, don’t use it. But be very careful that no trace of egg yolk gets into your egg white. Do make sure that your bowl and beater are both without a trace of fat or oil. If there’s a speck of fat, you won’t achieve lift-off.

Ingredients:

3  size ‘large” egg whites (room temperature)

1 cup dark brown sugar (be sure it’s fresh and moist and lump-free)

1 cup roughly chopped hazelnuts OR pecans OR nuts that you adore, plus additional whole or half nuts (2 ½ dozen) for the tops of each cookie

(truc: toast them first to release oils. Hazelnuts: you’ll need to toast and then rub them in a tea towel to remove the outer skins.)

pinch of salt

¼ tsp. cream of tartar (optional)

Procedure:

Preheat the oven to 275º F. and line three baking sheets with parchment paper.

1.     Beat egg whites until they form soft peaks. Add pinch of salt and, if using, cream of tartar. 

2.     Continue beating, gradually adding the dark brown sugar, one teaspoon at a time, until the whites are very stiff. (They will look shiny)

3.     Fold in the chopped nuts by hand.

4.     Using a teaspoon, or a 1 ½ inch round scoop, drop the batter with about and inch between each cookie. Press each cookie down, flattening it (slightly … don’t smash it all the way down!), and then place a whole hazelnut or a half a pecan on the top of each cookie.

5.     Bake in preheated 275º F. oven for about 20-30 minutes, depending on size of cookies, how much you’ve flattened them, and how accurate your oven temperature is. The cookies should be slightly firm but still shiny. They will firm up as they cool. Be careful they don’t get brown or really dried. This will render them, as my Grandpa would have said, “boint”.

Hope you find the Afikomen!

Peace, love and zei gezunt!!

jane

Yield: approximately 2 ½ dozen (parve!)