Inside the “goodie bag” I brought home from the DPI Food Show, were three hefty samples of chocolate from DeZaan Gourmet. As mentioned in my review of the show, I attended a chocolate session taught by Culinary Executive at DeZaan Gourmet, Kim Rothrock. In addition to learning several ways to use their low-temperature melting chocolate (95%), I learned that cocoa must be farmed using sustainability practices because cocoa can only grow within 15% of the equator. Without sustaining, chocolate will be gone within thirty years… I want my grandchildren to enjoy chocolate all their lives… just like The Man and I have…
I also stopped at the Facerock Creamery booth and chatted with Owner, Greg Drobot, which reminded me that I had two blocks of their cheese in Spaulding’s cheese fridge: their Aged Cheddar and their garlicky Vampire Slayer… Brad Sinko, from Beecher’s Handmade Cheese, is the head cheesemaker at Facerock and a native of Bandon, Oregon, the home of Facerock Creamery. Last year at the Oregon Cheese Festival, Brad gave me some samples of their tasty curds which I reviewed at that timea>.
I got to thinking about combining the two food groups, chocolate and cheddar; a cookie should be a a natural palette for melding the two tastes. Much to my surprise I couldn’t locate a recipe on the internet, which usually indicates the two don’t pair well together… how could that be?
I decided to throw caution to the wind and create my own recipe using one I found at food.com as a starting point.
Here’s what I did:
Ingredients:
1 Cup of VBCC Butter, room temperature
8 Ounces Facerock Aged Cheddar, Finely shredded
2 Cups All-Purpose Flour
1/2 Teaspoon Sea Salt
1 Teaspoon Ground Cayenne Pepper
1 Cup Chopped Pecans (I used roasted but unsalted)
1 Sample Bag of DeZaan Gourmet Temptation 58% Cocoa Morsels (there was no amount shown on the bag but it measured to about 1 cup of morsels smaller than conventional chips)
Preparation:
Using a food processor, cream the butter and cheese together until it reaches a silky texture.
Remove mixture from processor and transfer to large mixing bowl.
Using a large spatula, add flour, salt and cayenne and mix well.
Add pecans and chocolate morsels.
Form balls and add to lightly greased cookie sheets. Press down with fork or palm of hand (assuming you keep your hands clean when cooking and baking…)
Bake at 325 degrees for 25 minutes, until just firm and lightly brown.
Serve naked or with your favorite jams and jellies. (Of course, I used Food by Bob preserves.)
Because the “cookie” has no added sugar, you get four taste sensations: savory, spicy heat, nutty and sweet. It doesn’t get much better…
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