comfort foods

Dark Chocolate Walnuts Périgord

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A Perfect Gift From France!

After a trip back to Le Vieux Couvent to study with ARTISTS Rita Carpenter & Stacy Levy hiking around a lot in The Lot, munching the delicious Périgord walnuts, and falling over in a food coma—I decided I should try to make the decadent morsels here in North Carolina. You are asking, “What was I thinking?” After all of those croissants and other irrésistibles how will your zippers cooperate?

(The gorgeous fabric in the picture above is the napkin created by Raleigh City Farm’s Artist in Residence, Julia Einstein. You can purchase the napkins and fabric from Spoonflower at Designs by j-einstein.)

Well, I am not in a French walnut food coma but I am in a very dreamy place with my Pacific Northwest Organic Walnuts. Back in the U.S., I also sauntered into my local La Farm Bakery just to ease my transition from all the REAL French (in France) butter, chocolate, and wine. The result, mon cher? I lost a few kilos in Paris from running up and down Metro stairs but gained a few pounds when I returned (obviously depressed) to the U.S. binging on croissants and these walnuts. Enjoy!

  • 16 ounces of walnuts
  • 1 cup sugar
  • 1/2 cup water
  • 4 ounces of bittersweet or semi-sweet baking chocolate
  • 2 teaspoons of French butter (salted or not)
  • 1 cup Dutch dark cocoa
  • 2 tablespoons (+/-) confectioner’s sugar
  • +/- 1/4 teaspoon Fine sea salt (optional)

WALNUTS: Roast 16 ounces organic walnut halves at 350° F for 10 minutes, stirring after 5 minutes. Set aside.

GLAZE: Set a cooling rack over a large baking sheet lined with parchment for the glazed walnuts. Cook 1 cup sugar + 1/2 cup of water in a large skillet (big enough to hold the walnuts in a single layer) swirling the mixture until it’s a toasted a golden caramel color. You’ll need to work fast or the glaze will become too dark too fast.

Toss in the walnuts, stirring quickly to thinly coat them with the glaze. Quickly spoon them onto the cooling rack that is over the parchment-lined baking sheet. THIS will burn your fingers terribly so do not touch the glazed nuts until they have cooled a bit. Once a bit cool, break them apart into single walnuts or similar chunks. Let. cool completely.

CHOCOLATE: In a double-boiler (stainless steel bowl over a saucepan of hot water), melt 4 ounces bittersweet baking chocolate (not chocolate chips) and 1 teaspoon French butter. Stir until smooth. Remove the bowl from the heat and toss in the walnuts. Spread the chocolate-coated nuts on the parchment-lined sheet left from the glaze procedure above. Sprinkle immediately with the cocoa mixture and let cool completely.

COCOA: Sift together 1 cup Dutch dark cocoa powder and 2+/- tablespoons of confectioner’s sugar. I add 1/4 teaspoon very fine Fleur de Sel (sea salt, pulverized) but it’s optional. Sprinkle this mixture through a sieve over the chocolate-coated walnuts. Let the nuts cool completely, then toss in the cocoa mixture left that did not stick to the nuts.

Store in an airtight glass (not plastic) container at room temperature in a dark dry place.

I hide them from myself—because—Je ne peux pas les empêcher de sauter dans ma bouche. I can’t stop them from jumping into my mouth.

Heaven… Artichokes & Oysters

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Inspired by my new housemate Thomas Keller via Masterclass. I learn something new with EVERY interchange. These days, I am talking back to “Chef” as I fondly address him.
  • 1 T avocado oil
  • 1 large fennel bulb, sliced 1/4 inch
  • 1 large shallot sliced thinly
  • 6-10+ garlic cloves, smashed & peeled
  • 1 large carrot, sliced diagonally & thinly
  • 1/2 t sea salt
  • 1 T lemon juice
  • 1/4 c Sauvignon Blanc
  • 2 C + water
  • Bouquet Garni: 3 thyme sprigs, 8 peppercorns, 2 large bay leaves, parley sprig (Chef puts these in cheesecloth.)
  • 2 cups water with juice of 2 lemons to keep artichokes from browning. (I strained this “lemonade” after use and am drinking it.)
  • 4-6 large artichokes, leaves, stem & thistle removed. Keep in lemon juice & water as you work as they quickly oxidize. Clean the heart that’s left so all of it is edible. (I added the stems that I had trimmed as well but I did compost all of the leaves.)
  • 12 oysters
  • 4+ T Kerry Gold butter, clarified
  • 2 garlic cloves, smashed
  • Maldon Salt flakes

In a sauté or saucepan large enough to hold the hearts & liquid to cover them, add oil and sauté the shallots, fennel & carrots with salt until just limp. Add garlic, cook 1 minute. Add bouquet garni, liquids & simmer for about 10 minutes while you prepare the artichokes.

Place the artichoke hearts in the pan. Adjust liquid so it just covers the hearts. Submerge a clean (all natural with no dyes) tea towel over the hearts to keep them moist. Cover.

Simmer on low. Cook until the hearts just yield to a sharp point. I use a toothpick or skewer. It’s easy to overcook these so check frequently. It will take at least 10 minutes but maybe up to 30 depending on your artichokes.

When almost done, remove the hearts & keep warm. (I had a waiting saucepan on low heat & recovered them with the tea towel.)

Add the oysters to the vegetables, cover. Simmer about 2 minutes until the oysters are barely heated. They’ll continue to cook as you shell them. Open the oysters & set aside. (Clams or mussels would be great too!)

Heat the clarified butter. Add the 2 garlic cloves & cook for 1 minute.

Place your veggies on a service plate. Add the artichoke hearts, cut into cubes. Arrange oysters on the side. Drizzle the entire plate with the garlic butter. VERY lightly sprinkle with a bit of Maldon Salt.

I drank the broth. Ate all the garlic & licked the pan.

Hmmmm, maybe a crusty baguette would be a nice addition.

ENJOY!

Best Possible Chili Ever

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Chilly out means chili in. Vegan. My mother was a test kitchen — and we were her focus group. She tried hundreds of chili recipes. Some were so spicy, it became a challenge for us four kids. “Whoever eats this gets all the pie!” My brother Chris always won because NOTHING could stop him from that pie. Lemon Meringue was my mom Ruth’s specialty.
THIS IS THE WINNER CHILI MOM!

Possibly The Best Chili Ever

  • 12 oz. Impossible Meat™ ground beef or your choice of “meat” or mushrooms or more beans
  • 1 package McCormick™ Original Chili Mix *
  • 1 can pinto beans (Goya™ organic)
  • 1 14 ounce can tomato sauce
  • 1/2 c diced tomatoes (peeled and seeded)
  • 2 T avocado oil
  • 1/2 C chopped yellow onion
  • 2 cloves fresh garlic, minced 
  • 1 t ground turmeric
  • 1 T dry onions
  • 1 T chili powder +/- heat as you prefer
  • 1 T mushroom powder (reishi or a blend)
  • 1/2 t asafoetida powder (helps legume digestion, oniony flavor, member of the celery family) 
  • 1 t fresh minced oregano
  • 1 t dry oregano leaves (+ immunity)
  • 1 t ground cumin
  • 1/4 t fresh black pepper (+ nutrient absorption)
  • 1 T psyllium husks
  • 3-5 astragalus root strips (+ immunity)
  • 1/2 – 1 cup of water

Heat the oil in a pot large enough to hold all the ingredients. Brown the Impossible with 1/4 t sea salt, trying to keep some chunks. Add onion & garlic. Turn heat to low until alliums are clear. Add remaining herbs & spices and stir well. Add 1/2 C water, beans, tomato sauce, psyllium & tomatoes. Add more water for the thickness you prefer. Simmer gently for 10 minutes. Remove astragalus & discard. Serve with green onions, cheese or faux cheese and crackers. I like a glass of milk with my chili. Have soy, oat, almond or grass fed diary according to what makes your body happy.

  • You can make your own chili mix if you like. I know, McCormick’s is a non-organic item which is usually NOT my go to. BUT comfort memory of this McCormick blend won in this recipe.
This recipe is dedicated to Lenice Ruth Keele Chambers, my mom, who was the best test kitchen ever.