ARA Chocolat, Recipes, Ingredients, Bars, Pictures and more at chefshop.com/enews
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A trip to Paris!
A visit with ARA Chocolat
After a full day in the shop, they flew all night to make their late-night connection in JFK to Charles de Gaulle. It made for a very long day.
Facial recognition made going through customs a breeze, thank goodness. And soon they were headed for the center of Paris to the barge.
The barge belonged to a long-time friend from school who had secured a moorage in the heart of Paris, just off the River Seine.
To board the barge, one had to cross the neighboring barge and walk along a narrow 4-inch-wide pathway to then climb on board what was to be their home base for the next week.
What a wonderful way to visit Paris, the Ville Lumiere (the City of Lights)!
The goal was to eat lots of good food, visit as many shops as possible looking for new ingredients and chocolate. Lots of chocolate.
On day two, planned well before even setting foot on French soil (concrete), was a trip to visit Andres and Sabrina, Chocolatiers based in the heart of Paris!
They departed early in the morning, with the mist brushing gently on their faces, crossing the 4-inch-wide gangplank hanging tightly to the metal rail landing on the shore. A short, quick walk to the Metro, and 2 stops later, they were in the 9th arrondissement.
Coming up from the underground, the mist had changed to rain; not enough water to be drops, certainly not enough for an umbrella, just wet enough to be noticed...enough to add to the charm of the adventure.
The walk started on wider streets and narrowed with every turn. As they walked, the Haussmann-styled buildings were so prevalent; it was gloriously Parisian!
As they got closer to their destination, the street narrowed to one lane with a Boulangere, a Fromagerie, and a Boucher, all yet to open as it was early - not even 9 AM.
And then there it was, on the right: ARA Chocolat. With its small window, you could steal a look inside to see the freshly made truffles and chocolate bunnies and eggs all ready for Easter.
Eliza and the actress walked in and were greeted by Andres and Sabrina, the chocolatiers. In a word, they were wonderful! Transplants from Venezuela via a London Michelin-Starred restaurant, they had settled in Paris with their family to make chocolate.
The shop smelled of rich chocolate with fruity notes. The conversation covered all things chocolate, from the tasting of newly made bars to amazing olive oil-infused chocolate truffles!
Andres spoke passionately about how he collaborates directly with cocoa farmers in Venezuela. From changing the timing of when the beans are picked to how long they are fermented and dried before they are bagged up to be shipped to ARA's workshop location. What might seem to be minutiae to the layperson is critical to Andres and the final flavor profiles he creates in all his chocolate!
When they left, after the short 2 hours of intense conversation, the street had come alive. The rain was gone, and the streets were packed with people walking and hanging out at the cafes smoking and playing Uno....
What a glorious day!
Click Here To See Everything Featured in This Newsletter!
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Hiwa Kai Lava Salt
from Hawaii
Heating coconut shells without oxygen creates one of the most absorptive elements known—activated charcoal.
This element, a vegetable form of carbon, is present in all things alive and is safe for humans to consume.
Known to provide relief of the gastronomical type, with the emphasis on gas, it is also used for neutralizing toxic bodies in your body. To us, it makes us see black...Hawaiian black lava salt.
Perfect for show, as it looks good on food. A natural contrast to many foods, Hiwa Kai Black Hawaiian Sea Salt might even provide a safety net if you add it to chili!
Shop now for Hiwa Kai Lava Salt from Hawaii!
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Brontedolci Pistachio Pesto
from Bronte, Sicily
The main ingredient of this pesto from Brontedolci in Sicily is, as you may have guessed, Sicilian pistachios (55%), along with sunflower oil, salt, and pepper. No Basil. Yet, if we think of pesto as mortar & pestle, then this is a savory pistachio pesto.
Look in the jar and see green (with texture). It's the beautiful green of Sicilian pistachios with flakes of black pepper. When you taste it, you will get this wonderful smooth feel that is creamy and then finishes with little tiny bits of pistachios in the pits of your teeth. The "bite" really never ends as you move your tongue around tasting pistachio!
Using this Brontedolci pesto di pistachio as it was intended is even better than that. Take pasta, cook it al dente, drain with a touch of pasta water left, twirl and twist in the pesto in the pan and plate into small bowls. This is the perfect side dish and very filling! Or, if convention is not your thing, think a dollop on your fish or with tofu!
Pesto is full of basil. Well, not always. Interestingly, it is translated here (and in many places in the world) as a green sauce made with basil.
Except that pesto has more than just one meaning. It also means to pound, beat, grind, trample on, work over, and pestle. To pestare, pestle perhaps is pesto.
One could speculate that the ancient Romans, who made and ate a paste of cheese, herbs, salt, oil, vinegar, and nuts, are the originators of pesto.
The nucleus of modern-day pesto started in North Africa and India when basil became the main ingredient. Basil pesto took hold in Provence (as pistou) and in Liguria (as Pesto alla Genovese). In the 1860s, a recipe for pesto with basil was published in La Cuciniera Genovese. Then the recipe traveled with the immigrants to the New World.
Italian basil pesto was introduced to a much wider audience when Italian immigrant and University of Washington Professor, Angelo Pellegrini's pesto recipe was published in a 1946 issue of Sunset Magazine. The recipe consisted of a little bit of this and a little bit of that, with no precise measurement.
This makes sense when you think that pesto, which translates to crush or bash, is a combination of just a handful of ingredients mashed together. You can see how you might want to add a little more or a little less of one thing or another to match your palate.
To make a typical pesto, you crush fresh young basil, Italian pine nuts, add Parmigiano-Reggiano, sea salt, and olive oil. (The Silver Spoon New Edition.)
That's all it takes; a mortar and pestle, elbow grease, and you can make your own. Or, you can use a food processor, though the results are less textural and more paste-like.
Shop now for Brontedolci Pistachio Pesto!
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Chateau Virant A.O.P. Olive Oil
Amazing Gold Medal Award-Winning French Olive Oil!
This oil is smooth and special every year.
To the nose, it is wild and full of olive and is super tingly to the inner nostril hairs.
The color is a light yellow-green, without any dark shadows or edges on the spoon.
To the tip of the tongue, there are some great wonderful soft touches. It feels good. The flavor of the oil is distinct and you can taste it with just a touch.
Full of richness, a mouthful will surprise you. It starts like a nice French oil, buttery and vapory, and just as it disappears there is an explosion of olive and just before, if you pay attention, your nose will tingle again, and then you will get this, almost an assault, a large push of tickle, actually a massive tickle that makes you cough. Some might think it is a peppery finish, which it is, yet it is not an Italian peppery kick.
It starts so round and finishes with a great olive cloud. The punch is the surprise and the flavor is so special. This is the best this oil has been in forever!
Chateau Virant Famille Cheylan, AOP Huile d'Olive D'aix-en-Provence, is the Concours General Agricole, Medaille d'OR (Gold Medal) winner, Paris 2020!
Shop now for Chateau Virant A.O.P. Olive Oil!
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Parmigiano-Reggiano - Spring Milk
cutting the end of April
One way in which Parmigiano-Reggiano differs is the season during which they were started. This is a spring cheese, meaning that it was begun during the spring months. Parmigiano-Reggiano is also made at other times of year, and each of them have their merits.
Spring cheeses are often the most pungent and herbaceous due to the concentration of fresh, spring grasses and young wild herbs and garlic where the cows forage. As compared to, say, milk collected in the winter when the cows are fed a higher concentration of dry hay.
Preorder Parmigiano-Reggiano now from ChefShop.com!
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This Week's Recipes |
Avocado Orange Salad Recipe
We made this avocado orange salad recipe for our company the other night and it received many compliments. So very bright and fresh looking. This summer fresh salad is perfect on a hot day - and quick to make.
Black Bean and Chocolate Chili Recipe
We sell a lot of beans. And, we also sell a lot of chocolate. Although we do not often think about chocolate as a savory food, we love to find savory applications for it. Not only does it add greatly to the flavor of the dish, but it makes the dish even more healthful—not to mention interesting.
Roasted Red Potatoes & Garlic Cloves Recipe
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DESIGN: JODI LUBY & COMPANY, INC. NEW YORK CITY, NY; EMAIL STRATEGY: CRM Group USA, SEATTLE, WA
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