Hi Gang, can you believe we’re already in our second edition? It feels like we just published the first one. Mind. Blown. And yet here we are, in mid-February, in full chocolate fervor. It’s Valentine’s season, and next to Christmas, this is where this thing we call chocolate life is having its most massive panic.
Stan and I, partners in life and business, and parents to two beautiful children, decided many, many years ago — my word, we’ve been together for an eternity (all joy!) — that we never wanted to go out for Valentine’s Day. We both spent several years working in restaurants before we started Valerie Confections and know how hectic this holiday can be. By the time we reach the 14th every year, all we want is a great night at home with each other and our kids.
Making Valentine’s Day a family affair sparked our now-yearly tradition of pizza and really fabulous Champagne. I want ease and comfort on February 14th, no fuss. I just want to feel the love and eat and drink something really delicious.
And there’s an element of charm in the pizza-Champagne mash-up because you can go high-low. You know, pair a $20 pizza with a $200 bottle of Champagne and have the best night ever. Luckily, in Los Angeles, we have a fantastic lineup of pizza. Here are some of my favorite pizza joints, Champagnes, and sparkling wines. (If you’re outside out L.A., there are a couple of places on the list that could ship to you.)
I do love Champagne, especially when I’m celebrating or feeling a little whimsical, but I thought this was a perfect opportunity to solicit the words of an expert. My friend Jill Bernheimer, who owns an incredible wine shop in the city, DomaineLA, chimed in to Hi Gang with some of her thoughts on pizza and Champagne pairing.
“When talking about fatty foods, acidity in the wine pairing is key. Of course, there is no shortage of cheese in pizza and no shortage of acid in Champagne. It’s a natural complimentary pairing,” Jill told me. “Go for flavors that are not competing, but also stand on their own. Don’t concern yourself with getting overly precious with your pairing.”
Cheers!
XO,
Valerie
A few years back, I was invited to a lunch at Pizzana that paired Roe Caviar with the restaurant’s iconic Cacio e Pepe pie. That combination got me thinking about some of my favorite pizza upgrades, if you’d like to make your Valentine’s pizza night a little more luxe:
Roe or Tsar Nicoulai caviar: So decadent. A kiss of briny flavor.
Shaved truffles from Truffle Brothers: Go for the real thing and let the showering of truffles be a celebration in itself.
Chili crisp from Fly By Jing or Lao Gan Ma: The spicy-crunchy condiment of the moment, from one of LA’s most exciting food companies and a classic Chinese producer.
MASTER CHOCOLATE AT HOME
When you read about chocolate-making, it’s generally kind of terrifying and overcomplicated, with a lot of talk about crystallization and different fats. If the thought of giving something homemade for Valentine’s Day is appealing to you, I’ll tell you this: You can easily be a home chocolatier. All you need to know is how to read a thermometer. It’s that simple.
So just have fun with it. Get a little messy and taste things as you go. At the end of the day, if you create a box of truffles for a loved one or friend, it is just such a joyful feeling. It’s how I started a company, after all.
So follow these two simple recipes below, and seriously DM me at @valerieconfctns if you find yourself lost or stressed rolling Crème Fraîche bonbons or making your chocolate-dipped fruit. I’m here for you and your chocolate-making adventures.
CHOCOLATE-DIPPED FRUIT
I have nothing against strawberries, but this recipe is all about being creative and using all the gorgeous dried fruit you can find nowadays. The chocolate-dipped fruit makes for a beautiful gift. Should you want more visual instruction, here’s a vintage video of me making this recipe.
Ingredients:
2 pounds 61-72% chocolate feves (discs) or bars, chopped
Dried oranges, pears, apples, figs and more!
Equipment/Supplies:
Parchment paper
2 sheet pans
Medium-sized glass bowl
Silicone or bendable spatula
Digital thermometer
Microwave
Directions:
Line two sheet pans with parchment paper.
Place 1.5 pounds of the chocolate in a glass bowl. Melt the chocolate in a microwave, stirring every 45 seconds with a silicone spatula.
Using a digital thermometer, check the temperature when the chocolate is fully melted, and continue heating in shorter time intervals until you reach 120F.
Place the bowl on top of a dish towel for stability and add the remaining chocolate a few pieces at a time with one hand while stirring with the other. Continue this process until the temperature reaches 90F. At this point, the chocolate is ready to use.
Dip each piece of dried fruit halfway into the chocolate, shaking the fruit so the excess chocolate falls off. Place the chocolate dipped fruit onto the parchment-lined sheet pan. When the sheet is filled, place it in the refrigerator for 2 minutes, or until set.
Package the chocolate fruit in a decorative box. Store in a cool, dry place. Do not refrigerate.
CRÈME FRAÎCHE TRUFFLES
The tangy flavor of crème fraîche brightens the chocolate in this delicate truffle and imparts a velvety texture to the ganache. This recipe makes about 50 truffles.
Ingredients:
2 cups (11 ounces) 61 % chocolate, finely chopped
¾ cup plus 2 tablespoons (7 ounces) crème fraîche
3 tablespoons (1.5 ounces) unsalted butter, softened
1 ½ pounds bittersweet chocolate, tempered*
½ cup each of powdered sugar and cocoa powder, mixed together
Directions:
Line a 9x13x1-inch baking pan with parchment paper.
Set a large mixing bowl on a dishtowel and fill with the chopped chocolate.
Spoon the crème fraîche into a small saucepan and bring to a boil over a medium heat, about 2 minutes.
Pour the boiled crème fraîche over the chopped chocolate and let it sit for 1 minute. Using a small rubber spatula, begin stirring the cream and chocolate together, in one direction, focusing on the center of the mixture. Continue stirring until smooth and glistening, about 2 minutes.
Add the softened butter and stir until it is completely melted, about 1 minute.
Pour the ganache into the prepared baking pan, scraping the bowl clean with the rubber spatula.
Cover the ganache with a second piece of parchment paper.
Place the baking pan in the coolest part of the kitchen to set, about 4 to 6 hours.
Prepare a second baking pan with parchment paper. Using a small scoop or a melon baller, create small balls of ganache and set on the prepared baking pan. In about 1-2 hours, the truffles will develop a thin crust which makes dipping the truffles substantially easier.
Place the bowl of tempered chocolate on top of a heating pad with the tray of ganache balls to the left, and the lined baking pan to the right. Put the powdered sugar-cocoa powder mixture in a medium bowl.
Using a dipping fork, submerge a truffle in the tempered chocolate, then lift it up and tap the fork against the edge of the bowl so excess chocolate drips back into the bowl. Place the truffle on the sugar-cocoa mixture and wait for about 20 seconds before rolling it. Place the finished truffle on the lined baking pan and repeat with the remaining truffles.
Store in the refrigerator for up to 1 week.
Tip: Placing a dishtowel, or any small hand towel underneath a mixing bowl will stop the bowl from moving while you are stirring ingredients. This method is particularly helpful when mixing.
*Use the same microwave method in the Chocolate-Dipped Fruit recipe to melt the chocolate.
THE PERFECT VALENTINE’S PAIRING
With all this talk of chocolate, I cannot even tell you how excited I am for Valentine’s week at the new Valerie Confections in Glendale. We have friends coming: The cute HeirloomLA folks just launched a floral division of their company, which is so smart, considering their use of flowers in catering installations is always so beautiful. I can’t say enough great things about HeirloomLA: First, I love the founder, Matthew Poley. And they catered our wedding, so we’re lifelong devotees.
On the 13th and 14th, HeirloomLA is having a floral pop-up in the garden where they’ll be selling farmers’ markets bouquets. We’ll make sandwiches, we’ll be open longer hours, and we’ll have more chocolate than you can possibly imagine. We might even have a sip or two of something special to share with you. Pop in to find something sweet for your Valentine. See you next week!
GOING BTS AT SMALLHOLD
I’m so into Smallhold, a company that started growing mushrooms in Brooklyn and has expanded to a production facility here in the Vernon area of Los Angeles. (L.A. pals, is it just me or is everything worth talking about happening in Vernon these days?) First of all, the mushrooms they grow — umami-rich Blue Oysters, spongy Lion’s Manes, and big, buttery Trumpets — are absolutely delicious. Secondly, the company’s goal is to make organic mushrooms more accessible to more people while having a lower carbon footprint and using less water than traditional mushroom farms. It’s a win-win.
I recently got an in-person tour of the 34,000 square-foot Vernon farm, and it is fascinating. I wandered into the climate- and humidity-controlled “chambers” where the mushrooms are grown on substrate made from timber waste (only accessible by these crazy high-tech roll-up doors — so cool). I find the work they’re doing so inspiring, and the product is so delicious that I’ve been cooking with the mushrooms pretty much nonstop since I learned about them.
CURRIED MUSHROOM TOASTS
We recently served Smallhold mushroom toasts at an afternoon tea in our Glendale garden. Smallhold mushrooms are MEATY. True sustenance is found in these beautiful fungi, so I played around with 1:1 meat swaps in a couple recipes and my word, do they work well in this curried salad. Spoon this simple but flavorful salad onto toasted crostini, or serve it in a standard sandwich. And how about trying the blue oysters in a Waldorf salad or a mushroom marsala? Yes, please.
Ingredients:
3 pounds blue oyster or yellow oyster mushrooms, brushed clean and cut into 2’ pieces
4 tablespoons curry powder, divided
3 ounces honey, divided
4 ounces olive oil
9 ounces peeled, finely diced apple
3 ounces minced shallot or red onion
6 ounces sour cream or Greek yogurt
4 ounces mayonnaise
2 ounces lemon juice
2 teaspoons ginger powder
1 tablespoon Kosher salt
Directions:
Preheat the oven to 350F.
In a large bowl, toss the mushrooms, 2 Tablespoons of curry powder, 2 ounces of the honey, and the olive oil. Spread evenly over a sheet pan and roast for 15 to 20 minutes, stirring every 5 minutes.
Allow cooked mushrooms to come to room temperature. Mix in remaining ingredients and chill until it’s time to serve.
JOIN ME FOR BBQ BOOTCAMP
“Welcome to BBQ Bootcamp!”
That’s truly the way I start every BBQ Bootcamp I host up at the Alisal Ranch in Solvang, CA (the next one is coming up in early March, but more on that later). It’s such a thrill.
My love affair with BBQ started more than 10 years ago when I was completely alone on book tour in Texas for nine days. As I thought to myself, “What am I going to do in Texas?” I decided to use my time researching and tasting as much BBQ as possible.
Fast-forward a few years. At the time I was stalking every BBQ restaurant and pop-up, and I quickly realized that there were two things missing in that world. Number one: women. Number two: dessert. So I took it upon myself to infiltrate the community and figured out how to successfully cook 30 to 40 desserts on open fire. I’m now so lucky to be part of this welcoming, supportive group of people, and to count so many of these talented folks across the country as friends.
My love of BBQ really crystallized at the Alisal Ranch up in the Santa Ynez Valley. I participated in my BBQ Bootcamp in 2018, by cooking desserts on the Big Green Egg (my grill of choice). I soon became much more involved, and the following year started to MC the bootcamp and curate the chefs that came to cook beside me.
I’m so excited and proud of the upcoming bootcamp celebrating BBQ and wine, which we’re calling From the Vine. It’s three nights and four days of glorious culinary debauchery from March 5th to 8th. The lineup is incredible: We have Govind Armstrong, the respected chef who I guess was once in People Magazine’s sexiest people issue; he’ll be making seafood. We have pastry chef Shannon Swindle of Mother Wolf — Evan Funke’s impossibly glam Italian restaurant in Hollywood. He’ll be making pizza-esque things, including a sweet pie, on live fire. Helen Johannessen, my favorite sommelier in Los Angeles and the icon behind the eponymous Helen’s Wines at Jon & Vinny’s, will also be there. (I was the guest on this week’s episode of Wine Face, Helen’s podcast. Give it a listen to get a taste of what’s to come.)
And join us to see it all happen live! I’ve even got a discount hookup for you: Email reservations@alisal.com for 15% off your booking. See you at the Alisal.