Homemade Dark Chocolate Nutella {vegan!}

My favorite part about being married is the idea that my husband and I get to become our own family, start our own traditions, and build a life on our terms. It's pretty awesome. Obviously, one of our family values is good food. We gladly spend the extra couple cents for organic produce, our favorite date nights revolve around food, and cooking together, however challenging it can be in our little kitchen, is one of our favorite activities.

So last year I, unknowingly, started a tradition by making Nate homemade nutella for christmas. I sneakily bought all the ingredients and whipped it up while he was at work then wrapped it and put it under the tree. It was everything nutella should be and more. It was nutella but fresh and real tasting with texture and warmth from real roasted hazelnuts and creamy melted chocolate, minus the chemicals and preservatives. I remember thinking I never realized how processed nutella tasted until I had the good stuff. 

So this year while we were brainstorming unique gift ideas we knew we had to re-create the homemade nutella. We made the first batch with classic milk chocolate. Then with leftover hazelnuts we figured we'd make ourselves a batch, the only problem was we ran out of milk chocolate. We figured since it was just us we'd experiment with dark chocolate. After some taste tests, we upped the amount of hazelnuts a tad and decreased the amount of chocolate a tad. Then to make up for the added bitterness and decreased sugar from the dark chocolate we added an extra tablespoon of sugar. And tada it was just as good as the original with added richness from the dark chocolate. As we stood over the sink comparing the two while licking the spatula and bowl of the food processor we realized our new version is vegan! 

So literally minutes after accidentally creating it, I'm writing to you about homemade dark chocolate nutella: the perfect diy christmas gift. It's so rich, so creamy, and so real tasting. It really does put processed traditional nutella to shame. Because really, what says "I love you, you're special, merry christmas" like a giant jar of homemade nutella? You can bet your chocolate smeared fingers it will be enjoyed until the spoon hits the bottom of the jar! 

Homemade Dark Chocolate Nutella {vegan} 
Adapted from Buzzfeed Food 
Makes 1 pint or 2 cups 

3 tbsp baking soda, if your hazelnuts contain skins
1 1/4 roasted hazelnuts
11 oz dark chocolate (I used 55% cocoa) 
3 tbsp grapeseed oil (or canola oil) 
4 tbsp confectioner's sugar - see notes
1 tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1.5 - 2 tsp sea salt 

Ideally, look for hazelnuts with the skins already removed. If you can only find hazelnuts with the peels intact (like me) you will need to peel them. The easiest peeling method is to bring 2 cups of water to a boil in a medium saucepan. Once water begins to boil add 3 tbsp baking soda, it will foam. Add your hazelnuts and continue to boil for 3 minutes. After 3 minutes, remove 1 nut and test to see if the skin is easily removable. If not, boil longer then retest. Once the hazelnuts are done transfer them to a bowl of ice water. Remove the skins, they should easily peel off, and dry the nuts. 

Toast the hazelnuts at 350 degrees for 5-7 minutes until fragrant and lightly browned, even if your hazelnuts are pre-toasted like mine I still do this step as I feel it boosts the flavor. Set aside. 

Melt chocolate in a double boiler. If, like me, you don't have a double boiler, in a small saucepan, bring an inch of so of water to a bowl. Top saucepan with-heat proof bowl, I used pyrex, making sure it doesn't touch the water. Once the water boils pour the chocolate into the bowl and stir until completely melted. Remove from heat and set aside to cool slightly. 

In a food processor blend hazelnuts and oil until they reach the consistency of smooth paste. You made need to scape down the sides with a spatula a couple times. Add the sugar (starting with 4 tbsp - you can add more later, if needed), cocoa powder, vanilla, and salt and process until completely combined. Pour in the melted chocolate and process until completely smooth and incorporated. Taste and adjust sugar and salt if needed. 

Notes: 
Depending on how dark your chocolate is you may need to add more sugar. I used 55%, so if you're using something much higher you will definitely need to add more sugar to combat the bitterness. We found salt also helped a surprising amount in bringing out the flavors and decreasing the bitterness, so feel free to up that as well. Just taste to gauge. 


 

Persimmon Pecan Crumble Bars {Vegan!}

The man and I are hosting a little holiday potluck this weekend, as if the holidays didn't give me enough of an excuse to bake my brains out. We got our tree, decorated our tiny apartment, and washed the dog - we're super excited about it.

I discovered vegan baking several months ago and every time I experiment with a new vegan recipe I feel amazed at what great things can be made with purely whole, plant-based foods. Seriously, dates, bananas, flax seeds, coconut oil - amazing stuff. So when I found out that not one, not two, but three vegans RSVPed to our potluck the first words that entered my mind were "I'VE GOT THIS!" 

I've been working on a vegan hot chocolate that is deadly good, stay tuned. And yesterday, inspired by the 8 persimmons that have been sitting in our fruit basket for weeks (those things last forever), I veganized my favorite crumble bars by smitten kitchen. It was surprisingly easy, and minus the time it takes to peel and dice the fruit, this recipe is a breeze. 

The persimmons are subtle and sweet and the crumble is addicting to say the least. These make a great holiday potluck dish, and if you're wondering, your meat-eating, vegan-skeptical friends will never be able to tell! 

Vegan Persimmon Pecan Crumble Bars 
Adapted from smitten kitchen
Fills a 9x13 inch pan with approximately 30 small bars 

For the crust + crumble: 
2 sticks vegan butter (I used Earth Balance) 
1 flax egg (1 tbsp flax seed meal, 3 tbsp water, 1/4 tsp baking powder)
2 cups all purpose flour 
1 cup rolled oats
1/4 cup toasted pecans, roughly chopped 
1 cup brown sugar, packed 
1/2 tsp salt 
1 tsp baking powder 
1/2 tsp cinnamon 
1/4 tsp nutmeg 

For the filling: 
10 small fuyu persimmons, (about 2.5 cups) peeled & diced 
2 tbsp lemon juice 
2 tbsp cane sugar 
1 tbsp corn starch 
1/4 tsp cinnamon 

Prep work: Chop the vegan butter into small cubes and place in the freezer for 20-30 minutes. Prepare the flax egg by whisking together flax seed meal, water, and baking powder in a small bowl, let sit for 20 minutes. 

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Line a 9x13 inch baking dish with parchment paper, making sure it covers the edges - this will make it easier to pull the bars out once their baked. Rub the parchment with excess butter or spray with coconut oil (I used Trader Joe's coconut oil spray). 

Prepare the filling. In a medium bowl, combine peeled and diced persimmons with lemon juice, sugar, corn starch, and cinnamon. Set aside. 

Prepare the crumble: In a large bowl whisk together flour, oats, pecans, sugar, salt, baking powder, cinnamon, and nutmeg. Add in cold butter cubes and flax egg. Using your hands (or a pastry cutter) to gently break up the butter pieces until the mixture looks like sand with large pea-sized butter chunks. 

Pour about 2/3 of the crumble into the bottom of the baking dish and press it down until it forms a solid crust. Top with the filling then sprinkle remaining crumble on top. Bake for 30-35 minutes. Let cool completely before cutting into squares. Refrigerate until cold and serve. 

Notes: 

• Not vegan and want to use traditional ingredients? Use two sticks of real unsalted butter in place of the vegan butter, and 1 large egg in place of the flax egg. 
• I think these taste best served cold, the crumble thickens and I feel like the flavors are brought out more, but you could totally serve these warm or room temperature, they will just be messier. 
• I froze these for our party this weekend. I'll post an update, but I'd imagine they freeze great. 
• Can't find persimmons? You can make these bars with pretty much any fruit. I've made over 4 flavors of smitten kitchen's bars, all of them varying just slightly. These things are so simple, feel free to experiment. 

Homemade Rugelach 3 Ways: Chocolate Raspberry, Cinnamon Apple with Toasted Pecans, & Honeyed Fig with Goat Cheese

The five years I spent living in NY shaped my life in so many ways. It was the city that introduced me to my husband, it educated me, and taught be how to support myself. I feel indebted to all living in NY taught me as well as all the city introduced me to including (and especially) a love for rugelach. Since moving to California, I've noticed when I mention my love for the stuff, I get a weird look followed by a "isn't that a green you put in a salad". No, that is arugula. Get it together, people. But I hear it over and over again. Apparently it's not a thing out here, because literally not a soul knows what I'm talking about. And what a shame that is. 

So if you're unfamiliar with the classic Jewish delicacy, let me introduce you. Rugelach are perfect bite-size pastry morsels. The flakey, moist dough is made of about 80% cream cheese and butter. And the fillings? Oh the fillings. Traditionally there are chocolate flavors, and jam flavors with nuts and raisins and things of that sort. Choosing between the two is always a painful process which results in me buying an entire bag of the stuff and devouring it before I make it to the subway.

There are recipes you pin and think "oh that looks good" then there are recipes you see and think "oh my god, I have to drop everything I'm doing and make this right now. Where have you been all my life?!" This is the latter. At least for me. So when I saw Deb's recipe for rugelach while thumbing through the Smitten Kitchen cookbook last year I did exactly that. 

So for Thanksgiving this year, instead of making a bunch of elaborate pies and cakes, I decided to jazz up this perfect pastry with some festive fillings - and what I created was a rugelach sampler of sorts. Chocolate Raspberry is classic, rich, bold and my favorite of the three. Cinnamon Apple with Toasted Pecans (Nate's favorite) feels warm and cozy and tastes like Thanksgiving, and Honeyed Fig with Goat Cheese is sophisticated and savory. Oh and to top it all off, this stuff is super hands-on and fun to make, if you're into that kind of thing. They transport me to my favorite Italian pastry shoppe in the east village with the added charm of being perfectly homemade. 

Homemade Rugulach: 3 Ways 
Makes 48 (16 of each flavor) 
adapted from The Smitten Kitchen Cookbook 

For the dough: 
1 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature 
8 oz (1 brick) cream cheese, at room temperature 
1/2 tsp salt 
2 cups all purpose flour 

Chocolate Raspberry Flavor: 
1/3 cup raspberry jam 
1/2 cup (3 oz) bittersweet or dark chocolate, finely chopped 

Apple Cinnamon with Toasted Pecan Flavor: 
1/4 cup pecans, chopped and toasted 
1 granny smith apple
1.5 tbsp lemon juice 
1/4 cup sugar 
1 tsp cinnamon 

Honeyed Fig with Goat Cheese Flavor: 
1/2 cup packed (4 oz) dried black mission figs  
3 oz goat cheese, room temperature 
1-2 tbsp honey 

For the egg wash: 
1 large egg yolk 
1 tsp water 
turbinado sugar for sprinkling 

Make the dough. In a stand mixture, beat the butter and cream cheese together on high until light and fluffy. In a separate bowl whisk together salt and flour. With the mixture on low, slowly add the flour mixture to the butter mixture a little at a time until completely combined. Be careful to not over-mix. Transfer the dough to a large piece of plastic wrap and cover, forming it into a solid disc. Refrigerate for at least 2 hours (or up to 3 days). 

Prepare your fillings. Small prep bowls or ramekins come in very useful here. Heat the jam in a small saucepan until it loosens and becomes easily spreadable. Set aside. Finely chop chocolate. Chop and toast pecans. Core, peel and dice the apple into tiny 1/8 inch cubes, place in a bowl with lemon juice and toss to combine. In a separate bowl, combine cinnamon and sugar. Remove fig stems. Place figs in a food processor and pulse until finely minced. Stir goat cheese to loosen it and make it easier to spread. 

Divide your dough into 3 equal parts. Place 1/3 of the dough on a lightly floured, cold, work surface (keep the remaining refrigerated). Roll out the dough into a 12-inch circle. It doesn't matter at all if it's a perfect circle. Apply fillings (see details for each flavor below). Place a large piece of wax paper over your fillings and gently press them into the dough - this makes the rolling process slightly less messy. Using a pastry wheel or a knife, cut your dough into 16 pieces (like a pizza - see photos). Starting from the outside, tightly roll each slice. Transfer the rugelach to a baking sheet lined with parchment, then place in the freezer (or fridge if you're like me and live with a freezer so tiny not even the smallest baking sheet will fit) for 10-15 minutes. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. In a small bowl, whisk together the egg yolk and water. Remove rugelach from freeze, paint the tops with egg wash and sprinkle with turbinado sugar. Bake for 20-25 minutes until the tops just begin to brown. Continue with remaining two thirds of the dough. 

• For the chocolate raspberry flavor: Spread an even layer of jam over the entire surface. Top with chocolate. 
   
• For the apple cinnamon: Sprinkle cinnamon sugar over entire surface. Drain the liquid from the apples as best and possible, then top the dough with apples and pecans. 
   
• For the honeyed fig with goat cheese: Spread a thin layer of goat cheese over the entire surface. Sprinkle with minced fig, then drizzle with honey. 

Notes:

You really can't go wrong with the fillings. Feel free to substitute or add things if the spirit moves you. Or add everything! The original recipe was a sort of "everything" flavor with jam, chocolate, pecans, and cinnamon sugar. 

Stores at room temperature for three to four days, in the fridge for about a week, and in the freezer for up to two months.