Hazelnuts, cake and chocolate–three things that just belong together. This sweet potato variation will delight the palate of any cake connoisseur!
Description
- 1-2 sweet potatoes, peeled, resulting in 1 cup mashed
- 3/4 cup canola oil
- 2 eggs
- 1 1/2 cup all purpose flour
- 3/4 cup granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
- 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
- 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 cup Oregon hazelnuts, finely chopped
- 2 ounces semi-sweet chocolate
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1/4 cup half and half
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350F.
- Bring a medium sized pot of water to boil. Add peeled sweet potato and boil until potato is soft. Drain and let cool slightly, then mash. Measure out 1 cup.
- In a large bowl, beat together mashed sweet potatoes and canola oil. Add eggs, one at a time, and beat until well blended.
- In a separate bowl, mix together flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, ground ginger, ground cloves, nutmeg, and salt.
- Gradually add the dry ingredients to the sweet potato mixture, mixing until well combined. Finally, add chopped hazelnuts.
- Using a double boiler pot (or two pots stacked together), fill the bottom pot with 2 inches of water. In the top pot, combine chocolate, vanilla extract, and half and half. Turn heat on high and bring water in bottom pot to a boil, stirring the chocolate mixture until it’s fully melted. Remove from heat.
- Transfer ⅓ of the sweet potato mixture to melted chocolate and mix until fully blended.
- Butter the bottom of a 10-inch bundt cake pan. Pour chocolate mixture in and spread evenly. Next, pour sweet potato mixture in. Bake for 45 minutes. Test to make sure the thickest part is done. Let cool slightly before flipping.
Description
These tender, lightly sauteed green beans will look gorgeous on any Thanksgiving table, but are also simple enough to make quickly for a casual dinner. Hazelnuts add their famous crunch and flavor in a surprisingly delicious pairing.
Ingredients
- 2 pounds of fresh, slender green beans, trimmed
- 3 tablespoons butter
- 2 tablespoons chopped fresh thyme, divided
- 2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 cup coarsely chopped darkly roasted and skinned Oregon hazelnuts
Instructions
- Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the beans and cook just until the beans are becoming tender, about 4-5 minutes.
- Remove from heat and immediately plunge the beans into ice water to stop the cooking and set the color.
- Drain well and set aside for up to several hours in the refrigerator.
- When ready to serve, melt the butter in a large skillet over medium high heat.
- Add 1 tablespoon of the thyme and gently sauté for 1 minute.
- Add the mustard and salt and stir to blend it into the butter.
- Add the beans to the skillet and sauté until the beans are just barely tender, which will take about 7 minutes.
- Toss with most of the hazelnuts and then transfer the beans to a serving bowl.
- Sprinkle with the remaining hazelnuts and the remaining 1 tablespoon of thyme.
Ingredients
Pistachio Aillade
- 1 each garlic clove, grated with a Microplane®
- ½ cup pistachios, whole
- 1 each anchovy, made into paste
- ½ cup pistachio oil
- ¼ each lemon zest
- 1 tablespoon tarragon, minced
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
Lemon Dijon Vinaigrette
- ¼ cup fresh lemon juice
- 3 tablespoons Champagne vinegar
- ¼ cup shallot, minced
- 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
- 2 teaspoons kosher salt
- freshly ground black pepper, as needed
- ¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
Belgian Endive Salad
- 8 heads white Belgian endive
- Lemon Dijon Vinaigrette
- ½ lemon
Assembly
- 3 each Hass avocados, small
- Extra virgin olive oil, as needed
- Maldon sea salt, as needed
Instructions
Pistachio Aillade
In a mortar add pistachios. Pound and grind nuts until fine. Add anchovy, garlic, pistachio oil, lemon zest, tarragon and salt. Mix thoroughly until everything is combined.
Lemon Dijon Vinaigrette
In a small bowl, combine the lemon juice, Champagne vinegar, shallots, mustard and salt and a few turns of pepper. Add the extra virgin olive oil, whisking constantly.
Belgian Endive Salad
Cut off ends of the Belgian endives and peel off the leaves. Save half of the leaves whole and cut the remaining half of leaves in half. Place all the endive in a bowl. In the bowl with the Belgian endive, dress with the Lemon Dijon Vinaigrette, a squeeze of lemon juice and kosher salt.
ASSEMBLY
Cut all the avocados in half and take out the pits. Cut the avocados in half to make quarters. Peel off the skin. Drizzle with extra virgin olive oil and sprinkle with Maldon sea salt.
- Pistachio Aillade
- Avocado quarters
- 1 chunk of Piave cheese
- Belgian Endive Salad
- ½ cup pistachios, whole
- 2 ½ tablespoons pistachios, roughly chopped
- On the center of each plate, smear 1 ounce of Pistachio Aillade into a circle. Place 1 quarter of avocado in the center.
- Grate Piave with a ribbon cheese grater to cover. Pile endive on top, garnish with whole pistachios, and top with 1 quarter of avocado.
- Repeat this for one more layer. Finish the salad with a heavy grating of Piave cheese and top with roughly chopped pistachios.
Ingredients
- 1 1⁄2 ounces Hendrick’s Gin
- 3⁄4 ounce Pistachio cordial*
- 3⁄4 ounce fresh lime juice
- 2 slices fresh cucumber
- 4 leaves fresh mint
Instructions
- Muddle (gently mash) cucumber then add other ingredients in a cocktail shaker
- Add ice and shake well for 20 seconds
- Strain over fresh ice in an Old Fashioned glass
- Garnish with cucumber, mint and a couple of pistachios.
Pistachio Cordial – Instructions (Makes 8 ounces)
- Combine 1 cup sugar and 1 cup water in a pan. Bring to a low simmer and stir for a few minutes until sugar has fully dissolved.
- In a blender place 1/2 cup unsalted, roasted pistachios and add the sugar water
- Optional – add 1 drop of rosewater
- Blend for 30 seconds and allow to sit for 2 minutes
- Strain out solids and collect cordial
- Keep refrigerated until ready to use
Pistachio Rim
- Put half a cup of dry, raw pistachios in a blender or spice grinder and grind finely.
- Be careful not to overgrind as any moisture will turn the ground pistachios into a paste.
- Pour your ground pistachios onto a small plate or bowl.
- Moisten the outside rim of your glass with a cut wedge of lemon or by using some sugar water.
- Then dip the glass upside down into the powdered pistachios so that they stick well onto the rim of the glass.
- Give the glass a gentle tap before turning the right way up, then fill with ice ready to receive the cocktail.
