Chocolate Cashew Brownie Cake

Assuming you like cashews, it’s really difficult to go wrong with anything that pairs chocolate with that mealy, buttery nut. But while anyone can add cashews to, say, a brownie mix and throw some chocolate frosting on top, this cake offers a more intense experience. Even though I didn’t eat the finished product (gasp), I was compelled, in the name of thorough recipe testing, of course, to sample the chocolate-cashew ganache. My reaction: I wanted to immediately sit down, pour about a cup of it over a bowl of vanilla ice cream, and forget about making the rest of the cake. I can say without hesitation that freshly toasted cashews embedded in rich, creamy ganache makes for a sensational combination.
Although I failed to sample the finished product, I’m still giving this one a solid 4 out of 5 stars. It’s a hearty, decadent, ridiculously calorie-laden (and you wonder why I didn't have a slice) cake that could hold its head high in a lineup of serious contenders for a special-occasion cake.

Rating: 4

Highs:
Really, it’s all about the cashews. I’m finding that a lot of the chocolate cake recipes in this book are very similar in terms of make up, so the cashews help this one stand out. Use freshly roasted cashews to get the best flavor.

Lows:
This thing takes forever to make! Seriously, from start to finish, it’s a good 4 hours. It has to rest or be chilled or otherwise sit alone in a little palace or something for at least 3 hours at various intervals during the assembly process.
Also, between the 3 cups of cashews and the staggering 19 oz. of chocolate, it takes a load off your wallet. In short: only cashew lovers and those ready for a labor of love need apply.

Chocolate Cashew Brownie Cake
Cake

• 4 ½ oz. semisweet chocolate, broken into ½-oz. pieces




• 6 T plus 1 t. unsalted butter




• 2 ½ oz. unsweetened chocolate, broken into ½-oz. pieces




• ¾ c. plus 1 t. flour




• 5 eggs




• 1 c. granulated sugar




• 1 t. pure vanilla extract




• ¾ t. salt




• ¾ t. baking powder




• 3 T. sour cream

Chocolate Ganache

• 3 c. cashews




• 1 ½ c. heavy cream




• 3 T. unsalted butter




• 3 T. granulated sugar




• 12 oz. semisweet chocolate, broken into ½-oz. pieces

Equipment

• One 9 x ½-inch cake pan




• One 9 x 3-inch springform pan




• Food processor with metal blade

Instructions:
Preheat the oven to 325 degrees Farenheit.
Heat 1 inch of water in the bottom half of a double boiler over medium heat. Place 4 ½ oz semisweet chocolate, 6 T. butter, and the unsweetened chocolate in the top half of the double boiler. Tightly cover the top with film wrap and allow to heat for 8 to 9 minutes. Remove from heat and stir until smooth.
Coat a 9 x ½-inch pan with 1 t. butter. Flour the pan with 1 t. flour, shaking out the excess.
Combine the eggs, 1 c. sugar, and the vanilla extract in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a balloon whip. Whip on high until slightly thickened and doubled in volume, about 4 to 5 minutes. Add the melted chocolate and whip on medium for 15 seconds. Remove the bowl from the mixer and fold in ¾ c. flour, the salt, and the baking powder, using a rubber spatula to combine thoroughly. In a stainless steel bowl, vigorously whisk the sour cream. Add the sour cream to the brownie cake mixture and thoroughly combine.
Pour the brownie cake batter into the prepared pan, spreading the batter evenly. Bake in the preheated oven until a toothpick inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean, about 1 hour. Remove the cake from the oven and cook in the pan for 20 minutes at room temperature. Turn out onto a cake circle and refrigerated, uncovered, for 1 hour.
Lower the oven temperature to 300 degrees Farenheit.
Toast the cashews on a baking sheet in the 300-degree Farenheit oven until golden, about 15 to 18 minutes. Remove from the oven and allow to cool to room temperature. Reserve 36 cashews to decorate the cake. Chop ½ c. toasted cashews into pieces no larger than 1/8 inch in a food processor fitted with a metal blade (these will be used to decorate the sides of the cake). Chop the remaining cashews in the food processor into ¼-inch pieces (to combine into the ganache).
To prepare the chocolate ganache, heat the heavy cream, 3 T. butter, and 3 T. sugar in a 2 ½-quart saucepan over medium-high heat, stirring to dissolve the sugar. Bring the mixture to a boil. Place 12 oz. of semisweet chocolate in a stainless steel bowl and pour the boiling cream over the chocolate. Allow to stand for 5 minutes, then stir until smooth.
Remove 1 c. of ganache and keep at room temperature. Combine the remaining ganache and the 1/4-inch pieces of cashews. Keep at room temperature until needed.
Remove the brownie cake from the refrigerator. Turn the cake top side up and place on a clean, dry surface. Slice the brownie cake horizontally into 3 equal layers. Place the top layer of the brownie cake, cut side down, onto the bottom of a closed springform pan. Using a rubber spatula, spread 1 ½ c. of the ganache and cashew mixture over the brownie cake layer in the springform pan, spreading the ganache evenly to the edges. Place the center layer of the brownie cake on top of the ganache in the springform pan and gently press into place.
Spread the remaining ganache and cashew mixture over the center brownie cake layer, again spreading evenly to the edges. Place the bottom layer of the brownie cake, cut side down, on top of the last ganache layer, pressing gently but firmly into place. Refrigerate the cake at least 1 hour before final assembly.
To remove the brownie cake from the pan, cut around the inside edge of the pan with a serrated knife. Pour the reserved cup of ganache over the top of the brownie cake, spreading the ganache with a cake spatula to create an even coating on both the top and the sides. Press the 1/8-inch chopped cashews into the ganache on the sides of the brownie cake, coating the cake evenly all around.
Evenly space the reserved whole cashews around the top of the brownie cake, ½-inch inside the outer edge of the top. Refrigerate the cake for 1 hour before serving.
To serve, cut the cake with a serrated slicer that has been heated. Allow the slices to come to room temperature for 15 to 20 minutes before serving.

Sushi Tart

“Is that SUSHI?!” was the horrified response of most people when they first saw this bittersweet chocolate tart topped with what does appear to be raw fish of some kind.
This photo definitely requires that you, Gentle Reader (my apologies to Judith Martin), do not judge a book by the cover that this inexperienced-marinator-of-pears produced. This tart is a dense chocolate dream topped with pears that were supposed to be thoroughly marinated in Zinfandel. It’s just that the “thoroughly” part didn’t really pan out when I was at the helm during the marinating stage.

Fortunately, even those taste testers who were wary of its presentation could not deny the rich chocolate flavor that unfolded after the first bite. 

Rating: 5 (assuming you don’t mess up the pears)

Here’s why: The texture and flavor of this tart is like the inside of a dark chocolate Godiva truffle. Only it’s better because you get a lot more chocolate in one slice of this than you would in one of those little boxes of truffles that doesn’t have enough to hit the chocolate-craving spot. (Why is it that gourmet chocolates only come in boxes of not-enough or way-too-many?)

One of my primary questions when tackling this tart was whether it would be better than a flourless chocolate cake. I wasn’t sure if it was worth adding a chocolate tart recipe to a repertoire of perfectly good flourless chocolate cakes (which fit the really-dense-and-tons-of-chocolate-per-slice category). It is. The tart is denser, creamier, and has a hearty crust to soften the impact of all that dark chocolate - unlike a flourless chocolate cake. This is one of those recipes that I would encourage pretty much anyone who loves chocolate to try. If you do, you will find that even if the pears aren’t perfectly marinated, the tart will be no less the edible for it.

Highs (or, more reasons you should make this):
Honestly, it’s really the perfect decadent chocolate dessert, in my opinion. This is my favorite recipe to date because after just one bite I had the “wow” reaction that comes only with a truly rich, dark-chocolate dessert. It has a very strong flavor, but the creamy texture and the crunchy crust provide and also combine for a great texture experience on the tongue.
Tarts are also harder to mess up, presentation-wise than other desserts but are more impressive than brownies and easier than cakes. Also, because this is simply a rich chocolate tart with very little competing flavor, you could swap out the pears for any fruit that can reasonably be paired with chocolate, or add a dollop of whipped cream for a simple, elegant touch.

Lows:
Obviously, the semi-marinated pears. What I didn’t know before going into this marinating situation was that even if the pears have turned a nice shade of reddish-pink on the outside, the inside has not necessarily been thoroughly marinated. I was in a bit of a rush during the process and didn’t have time to let them soak any longer than the time indicated in the recipe. Plus, as the pears started to soften, I worried that I’d end up with a Pear Mush Tart (so instead I got Sushi Tart – not sure which is worse).
It’s also not a recipe to attempt if you’re short on time or have to do it all in one day. Why? For starters, the tart shell dough has to relax in the fridge for at least 3 hours and then again after being rolled out, and finally once more after being prepped in the pan, I recommend starting this at least one day in advance of when you want to serve it. However, don’t skip this step because unless dough has had time to “relax” in the fridge after being mixed, rolled, and prepped in the pan, it will shrink during baking and ruin the tart.

Bittersweet Chocolate Custard Tart with Zinfandel Soaked Pears
(AKA Sushi Tart)

Chocolate Tart Shell Dough

• 1 ½ c. all-purpose flour



• ½ c. granulated sugar



• 6 T. unsalted butter, cut into 1-T. pieces



• 4 T. unsweetened cocoa



• Pinch of salt



• 3 T. brewed coffee, chilled



• 1 c. rice or pie weights (to prevent the crust from bubbling up while it’s baking)

Zinfandel Soaked Pears

• 1 ½ c. Zinfandel wine

½ c. water

½ c. granulated sugar

1 t. lemon juice

1 t. orange juice

4 ripe Bartlett pears

Chocolate Custard Filling

• 2 Zinfandel-soaked pear halves



• 1 c. heavy cream



• 6 oz. semisweet chocolate, broken into ½-inch pieces



• 2 oz. semisweet chocolate, broken into ½-inch pieces



• 4 eggs



• ¼-c. granulated sugar



• 1 t. pure vanilla extract



• ¼ t. salt

Equipment:

• 9 ½-inch x ¾-inch false-bottom tart pan



• Food processor with metal blade



• Instant-read test thermometer/candy thermometer

Instructions:

Chocolate Tart ShellMix 1 c. flour, ½ c. sugar, butter, cocoa, and salt in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle. Mix on low for 5 minutes, until the butter is “cut into” the flour and the mixture develops a fine, mealy texture. Add coffee and continue to mix on low until the mixture comes together, about 1 minute. Remove the dough from the mixer and form it into a smooth, round ball. Wrap in film wrap and refrigerate for at least 3 hours.
After the tart shell dough has relaxed in the refrigerator for 3 hours, transfer it to a clean, dry, lightly floured sheet of parchment paper. Roll the dough (using the extra ½ c. of flour as necessary to prevent the dough from sticking) into a circle about 12 inches in diameter and 1/8 inch to ¼ inch thick. Refrigerate the rolled dough (leaving it on the parchment paper) for 10 to 15 minutes. Invert the rolled dough into the tart pan. Carefully remove the parchment paper and gently press the dough around the bottom and sides of the pan. Cut away excess dough, leaving a ¾-inch border that should be crimped around the top edge of the pan. Refrigerate for 30 minutes.
Preheat the oven to 325. Line the dough with an 18 inch x 18 inch piece of aluminum foil (using 2 pieces of foil if necessary); weigh down the foil with the 1 cup of rice or pie weights (evenly spread over the foil). Bake the tart shell in the center of the preheated oven for 30 minutes, rotating it 180 degrees after 20 minutes. Remove the baked tart shell from the oven, discard the foil and rice/pie weights, and allow to cool at room temperature. Lower the oven temperature to 300 degrees.

Zinfandel Soaked PearsPlace the Zinfandel, water, ½ c. sugar, lemon juice, and orange juice in a 2 1/2 quart saucepan. Whisk to dissolve sugar. Set aside.
Peel one pear. Cut the pear in half from stem end to bottom. Core each half (preferably with a melon ball/parisienne scoop) Place the 2 halves into the Zinfandel mixture. Repeat this procedure with the remaining pears, immediately placing the peeled and cored pear halves into the Zinfandel. Heat the pears over medium-low heat until they are cooked through, about 35 to 40 minutes (turn the pears once or twice while they are cooking).
Note:Depending on the size of the pears, it may be necessary to add up to 1 cup of water to poach the pears. In any case, the poaching liquid should almost cover the pears. If pears discolor after being removed from the ice water, they probably were not cooked through; otherwise, they should not discolor for at least 24 hours.
Use a slotted spoon to transfer the pear halves to a bowl of ice water. Handle the soaked pears gently when cooling in ice water. If the pears are moved too vigorously into the ice water, the surface will become cut and bruised.
When cool, remove the pears from the water and drain them on a baking sheet lined with paper towels. Reserve 2 pear halves for the chocolate custard filling. Cover the remaining pears with film wrap and refrigerate until needed.

Chocolate Custard Filling
Place 2 pear halves in a food processor fitted with a metal blade. Puree the pears by pulsing for 20 to 30 seconds. Hold at room temperature until needed.
Heat 1 inch of water in the bottom half of a double boiler over medium heat. Place the heavy cream, semisweet chocolate, and unsweetened chocolate in the top half of a double boiler. Tightly cover the top with film wrap. Allow to heat for 8 to 9 minutes. Remove from heat and stir until smooth. Set aside until needed.
Place the eggs, pureed pear, ¼ c. sugar, and vanilla in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment. Beat on high for 1 minute. Add the melted chocolate mixture and beat on medium for 20 seconds. Remove the bowl from the mixer, add the salt, and use a rubber spatula to combine thoroughly. Pour the filling into the prebaked tart shell. Place the tart on a baking sheet and bake on the middle shelf of the preheated oven for 45 minutes, until the internal temperature of the tart filling reaches 170 degrees (use the thermometer to determine internal temperature). Remove the tart from the oven and cool at room temperature for 1 hour. Refrigerate the tart for 1 hour (do not remove from the tart pan).


Garnishing and Serving
First, cut the tart with a serrated slicer. Heat the blade of the slicer under hot running water before making each slice. Second, remove the pear halves from the refrigerator. Cut each half into a quarter by slicing the half from stem end to bottom. Make a fan out of each quarter by cutting 1/8-inch slices starting ¼ of an inch from the stem end. Gently press down on the slices to produce a fan effect. Decorate the top of each tart slice with a pear fan and serve.
The tart may be kept in the fridge for 2 to 3 days before serving. The pears should be cooked and used within 24 hours, though.

A La Peanut Butter Sandwiches

I almost skipped over the recipe for these little chocolate-peanut butter sandwich candies when making my recipes list. I don't really have an interest in making candies or smaller chocolate treats because I just don't think you get as much caloric "value" for effort. But I am a sucker for the chocolate-peanut butter combination, and what with variety being the spice of life and all, I decided to give them a try.
It was well worth it. Though small, these chocolate-peanut butter candies are the secret to indulging a down-home desire for a Reeses Peanut Butter Cup at even the most upscale event. (And I know we all encounter this dilemma regularly.)
I would love to say that they're also delightful to make, but the process is a bit of a pain in the rear. However, I think it's worth it if you love the chocolate-peanut butter combination and can invest in some good-quality chocolate.

Rating: 4

Here's why: Just as your teeth pierce the thin dark-chocolate top and bottom layers of the quarter-sized candies (and you think, "Oh geez, I'm going to end up spraying little chocolate shards all over the person next to me and there's no way this cocktail napkin is up for the job."), the smooth, creamy, peanut-y chocolate ganache filling gently becomes the dominant texture and flavor (and handily absorbs all the little chocolate shards, too, sparing your neighbor). Just as it softly melts and fades away, you think, "Wow, that little guy packs a punch." And you reach for another, because, after all, they're very small. Barely a nibble, really.
But, flavor experience-wise, like eating at least three Reeses Peanut Butter Cups. And so much more elegant, to boot.

Highs:
Great presentation - What's great about these is that they end up looking pretty, even if you kind of screw up the cutting and assembling process (as I did). And if you don't have a perfectly round cookie cutter, use a little flower shape or whatever you can find. Mine look like deformed four-leaf clovers because all I could come up with in that size was a butter-pat cutter. But because they're small and like little sandwiches, they still end up looking nice, even if you have two left hands during the assembly process.

Something different - When was the last time you either served, or were served, something like this at a wedding/baby shower/holiday party? It's different, it's chocolate and peanut butter-y: hard to go wrong with that.

Lows:
Pouring the melted chocolate into the pans is fun. Getting the cold chocolate out is not. Especially when you are trying not to: a) leave tons of fingerprints all over the cold chocolate, b) break the edges of the chocolate shapes as you cut through the chocolate, and c) bring up pieces of the lining paper as you lift up the cut chocolate pieces.
Because of the fingerprint problem, I definitely recommend using the roasted peanuts on top. I, unfortunately, burned the peanuts while trying to roast them, and was relieved that I didn't actually have to serve them to anyone other than myself, since it's unlikely that even the best of friends would find candies with my fingerprints all over them particularly appetizing.
A little dollop of ganache topped with a peanut covers up the print you'll leave behind while assembling the little sandwiches.

Otherwise, these are fun to make and serve - delicious and different.


Penny Sous (AKA A La Peanut Butter Sandwiches)

• 24 whole, unsalted, shelled Virginia peanuts


• 1/2 c. heavy cream


• 6 T. creamy peanut butter


• 14 oz. semisweet chocolate, broken into 1/2-oz. pieces

Equipment:

• 3 baking sheets with sides


• Instant-read thermometer


• 1 1/2-inch round cookie cutter


• Parchment paper


• Pastry bag with medium straight tip

Instructions:

Preheat oven to 325. Toast the peanuts on a baking sheet in the preheated oven until golden brown, about 6 to 7 minutes. Remove the peanuts from the oven and set aside until needed.
Heat the heavy cream and the peanut butter in a 1/1/2-quart saucepan over medium-high heat. Stir with a whisk to combine thoroughly. Bring the mixture to a boil. Place 6 oz. of semisweet chocolate in a stainless steel bowl. Pour the boiling cream and peanut butter mixture over the chocolate, and allow to stand at room temperature for 5 minutes. Stir until smooth. Refrigerate the peanut butter ganache for 30 minutes.
Cover the bottom of a baking sheet with film wrap.
Heat 1 inch of water in the bottom half of a double boiler over medium heat. Place the remaining 8 oz. of semisweet chocolate in the top half. Heat the chocolate uncovered, while stirring constantly, until it has melted, about 4 to 5 minutes. Transfer the melted chocolate to a stainless steel bowl, and continue to stirl until the temperature of the chocolate is reduced to 90 degrees, about 5 minutes.
Pour the chocolate evenly over the entire surface of the sheet (the chocolate should be about 1/8-inch in depth). Place the baking sheet in the refrigerator and use a 1 1/2-inch round cookie cutter to cut 48 circles. Remove the circles by placing your hand underneath the film wrap and pushing the circles out, one at a time. Place the cut circles onto 2 baking sheets covered with parchment paper (24 circles per baking sheet), and then put them in the freezer for 20 minutes.
Remove the circles from the freezer. Fill a pastry bag, fitted with a medium-sized straight tip, with the peanut butter ganache, using your index finger to gently press the center of the top circle into place. Pipe the equivalent of 1/4 teaspoon of peanut butter ganache onto the finger imprint on the top chocolate circle. Set a single, whole roasted peanut into the ganache. Keep the Penny Sous refrigerated until needed.