Guest recipe post: Chocolate Ganache Dessert with Nut Crust

Joan Smith brought Castle Ridge Olive Oil to our 1st Annual Carmel Valley Olive Growers Festival! She has graciously shared some recipes with us and let's start with the best meal of any day: dessert!

Chocolate Ganache Dessert with Nut Crust

Nut crust for chocolate ganache pie (may be used with pumpkin, fruit, lemon curd, or any other filling.)

1/3 C cashews (preferably raw)

1/3 C almonds (“)

1 C almond flour (or cashew flour, hazelnut flour, or regular flour)

1/3 C rapadura (or any raw sugar or regular sugar)

1/3 C coconut oil

½ t Vanilla

1/4 t salt

Place nuts in food processor and process to medium (consistency of coarse ground coffee)

Add rapadura and flour and process to mix. Add about half of the coconut oil and process. Continue to add oil until the mixture holds together and you could pat it down in a spring-form pan (pan that allows you to remove the rim from the base - it makes it easier to serve). Add vanilla and salt, process for last time. Place crust mixture in spring form pan evenly covering the base and teasing it up the sizes of the pan.  (I use a sandwich bag with my hand inside to pat it down - it works without being sticky and shapes the crust more easily.)

Bake in oven at 350 degrees for about 10 minutes - check - if starting to brown - remove from oven.  It will smell very nutty and buttery - yum!

While the nut crust is baking, prepare your Chocolate Ganache

1 C heavy cream (You may add some culinary lavender or a balsamic or fruit vinegar  reduction.* If you are adding liquid, just reduce the cream amount by 2T and add that amount of syrup. It is fabulous!)
9 oz of chopped dark chocolate (Trader Joe’s dark chocolate bar is the absolute best flavor and least expensive!)

Gently warm the cream in a pan on the stove, just until bubbles start to appear around the edge. Don’t boil it. But - if you do - just skim off top and use it anyway. Chocolate makes things very forgiving!

Remove from stove and place chocolate in pan.  Let it sit for a couple of minutes and then start whisking the mixture.  It will blend very quickly and you will have a satiny chocolate ganache!

Pour the ganache over the baked crust. Let it sit on cool counter to firm up. If you want to hurry things along you may chill it. When you chill chocolate it loses the satiny shine on the top - but still tastes great.             

Note: This pie can be frozen for later use so make two if you want or make ahead for an party! - Once it is frozen, defrost about one or two hours before the party - drizzle some caramel lines on top and grate some chocolate on top or grate some nuts and it will be gorgeous!

This whole process takes me about 30 minutes to complete. Easy dessert and quite elegant to serve.  Be certain to serve very small portions. Drizzle with Castle Ridge Olive oil, balsamic syrup, and sea salt.        

*Balsamic Vinegar reduction: Place ½ C of balsamic vinegar in small sauce pan on low burner. Heat until it starts to boil off. When it is reduced down about half, you will have the consistency you need. At that point watch it because it can burn quite quickly.