Vegetarian

Salt and Pepper Chocolate is one of our more exotic, but top-selling, flavor combinations. The idea was given to us by one of our customers, who had seen a similar chocolate bar on a trip to Paris. This surprisingly elegant flavor pairing is an eye-catching chocolate treat to set out at the end of a dinner party.

Tempered chocolate solidifies easily into a hard, shiny chocolate that snaps when broken. It can be worked into a variety of shapes, spread into sheets, and used in molds. Tempering chocolate also keeps cocoa butter from rising to the surface of the chocolate and “blooming” into unsightly light brown patches. Many chocolate experts will teach you to temper using the marble slab method: You heat your chocolate, then pour it onto a cool marble slab, stirring and working the chocolate with a bench scraper until it has cooled to the proper temperature and then returning it to your bowl. This is a beautiful, classic French method to use, but as large marble slabs aren’t readily available for this purpose, here’s how to use the seed method. Be sure to have an accurate digital thermometer on hand.

While this Ginger Truffle makes a treat appropriate for Thanksgiving and the holiday season, it’s not exclusive to that time of year. With its candied ginger topping, it’s a refreshing chocolate treat even in the summer months. At Tribeca Treats we sometimes offer a variation on this, adding 2 tablespoons of dark rum to the ganache, for our Dark and Stormy Truffles.

A colorful platter of crudités and dip is a sure crowd-pleaser for a party—or simply as a snack. As an alternative to lemon-thyme dip, serve the vegetables with the white-bean dip on page 51.