Miso Chocolate Tart with Black Sesame–Chocolate Graham Cracker Crust
You know that episode of Sex and the City where Miranda makes a chocolate cake, has a nice big slice, then continues to go back into the kitchen to cut small slivers throughout the evening and into the next night before she eventually has to throw it away, but then fishes one more bite out of the garbage can before pouring dish soap on it and calling Carrie to suggest she be checked into the “Betty Crocker Clinic”? Well, that’s what this chocolate tart will do to a person. It lingers on your palate and in your mind, beckoning you back for more.
That’s why it’s really best to make it for a dinner party. My intent with suggesting a chocolate recipe in February is naturally inspired by Valentine’s Day. But this year I’m thinking about inviting friends over, and not just couples. Let’s face it, Valentine’s Day is the worst day of the year if you’re single and looking, so wouldn’t it be lovely to have a convivial dinner party to attend—especially if there’s a decadent slice of chocolate tart awaiting at the end of it?
Here a typical press-and-bake graham cracker crust is spruced up with chocolate grahams and flecked with black sesame seeds for a striking assemblage. (Side note: Once when I made this, the grocery store was out of chocolate graham cracker sheets so I used animal-shaped chocolate graham cookies and it turned out just the same.) The nutty, crunchy crust lays the foundation for a velvety-smooth filling that would have Miranda rinsing off the dish soap for just one more bite.
I like desserts a little more savory-sweet than super sweet. The addition of miso mixed with melted dark chocolate adds depth and umami, an almost buttery quality, and saltiness to balance the sweetness in the truffle-like ganache. All desserts need salt, and usually more than a small pinch—remember that and all your sweet endings will be the better.
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Dried Apple Hand Pies
As the dried apple slices rehydrate and cook in each delicate hand pie, they transform into a saucy, concentrated filling. To create a smoother, rather than chunky, apple filling, smash apples with the side of a spoon while stirring.
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Dried Apple Hand Pies
As the dried apple slices rehydrate and cook in each delicate hand pie, they transform into a saucy, concentrated filling. To create a smoother, rather than chunky, apple filling, smash apples with the side of a spoon while stirring.
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Sweet Potato Pie with Honeycrisp-Kabocha Salad
With more eggs than a traditional pumpkin pie, this pie-version is much richer and matches the creamy texture of the accompanying licorice ice cream.
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Pecan-Pumpkin Cream Pie
This pie slices beautifully to reveal not one but two fillings: both pumpkin custard and gooey, syrupy pecan. Chef Joanne Chang’s technique ensures the bottom of the pie shell is perfectly cooked and avoids sogginess. Cooling the blind-baked pie shell with weights keeps it hotter, and flatter, longer.
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Grill-Baked Apple Galette
Being a gal who lives on the rustic side of life (mismatched dishware, Mason jar centerpieces, a general disregard for fussiness), fruit galettes have long been my go-to desserts. I love how you can roll the crust into a haphazard circle, top it with a heap of the season’s best fruit (lightly sweetened, casually spiced), flop over the ragged edges, and bake something wildly fragrant, bubbly, and downright gorgeous.
Because I’m somewhat obsessed about making the most of my fire and the lingering heat that a bed of embers provides, lately I’ve been baking galettes on the grill. I love how a chimney of charcoal can carry you through cocktails (see charred citrus margaritas) to dinner to dessert. It’s easier than it sounds, particularly when you think about working your grill as an oven (e.g. grill-roasted chicken). Just as a chicken benefits from the unique “charred” flavor of charcoal, so do fruit and pastry. The first time I grill-baked this tart, I slid the parchment onto a pizza stone. I should have realized that the concentrated heat would blacken the bottom of the crust before the fruit had time to cook—and it did. Now I drape the pastry into a lavishly buttered cast-iron skillet or enamel-coated baking dish, and the results are perfect (with the added bonus of not heating up my kitchen).
When the berry conga line of summer transitions to fall, it’s apples that capture my attention—particularly thin-skinned varieties like Pink Lady that don’t need peeling (their skins have a snappy cider flavor). I’ve loved the combination of black pepper and pastry since I bit into the pepper-flecked flaky apple tart at Poilâine in Paris. The subtle warmth shoots through the buttery crust (and caramel sweetness of the fruit) like a swallow of Cognac on a winter day. Here I use pink peppercorns, which have a more delicate floral flavor. There’s no shame in embracing the color motif (what’s life without whimsy?) so in addition to those Pink Lady apples I also use Himalayan pink salt, but feel free to swap in another sweet-tart fall apple variety and your favorite fancy salt.
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