Hot Peppercorn Chocolate Popsicle: Endorphins on a Stick
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| Bitter, Sweet, Spicy meets Soft, Smooth and Crunchy |
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| raw cacao , coconut and dates in the center with a kick of cayenne |
The Experience:
Here is the perfect treat for everyone who loves raw cacao and all its goodness. It is served on a popsicle stick and is so beautiful you don't want to eat it. But then you do and you are in chocolate heaven.
For the brave, put the whole thing in your mouth and pull the popsicle stick away. Do it without hesitation... you will get the full taste and sensory experience. Do not call your mother in Sointula to ask for permission.
You immediately taste the crystalline sweetness of the beet. It melts as soon as it hits your mouth. Count to three and it gives way to the soft chewy mix of the melting chocolate center. As the chocolate melts, the juice of the goji berries is released and this lingering tart juice is subtle and gentle. The cayenne soon decides to come out and play. The roguish heat has been lingering in the background and you are not sure whether to trust it or not. Your pulse quickens and you are tempted to start chewing the crunchy peppercorn. Should you play it safe and just spit them out? It taunts you to go ahead and do it. You call your friend Alex, The Accountant, and he advises to not do it. So, you do it and there is an explosion. This one, it makes your eyes water with its intensity, but wait.... all the minerals from the dates and cacao cool down this fire and you are left with the lingering joy of the endorphin release.
Happiness ensues all around and life is good. The colors are brighter and the smile on your face is not from medication or boots at 50% off. You are left musing what the hell just happened.
Life is too short. Enjoy the chocolate.
They say that the benefits of endorphin release, from a good laugh or a good healthy dose of peppers, can last up to twelve hours. Twelve hours from a five second jolt of heat. Not a bad return. Imagine if you ate this chocolate treat while watching Rusell Peters. (early Russell, not the recent stuff)
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| 12 hours of benefits from endorphin release. |
RECIPE:
Center:
Popsicle sticks or whittle a hickory stick if you are a purist
10 Dates, not the Adam Sandler movie. I prefer naturally sun-dried sulfite free dates from Iran
8 tbsp of raw cacao powder. look for fair trade please
3 tbsp of coconut oil
Himalayan Pink Salt , a pinch ( I always use Salt of Life Himalayan Pink Salt)
3 tbsp Goji Berries
1/4 tsp Cayenne Pepper
Put a marble or stone slab in the oven at 200 degrees and use this as a surface. Mash the dates after removing the pits and then mix in coconut oil and roll on the heated slab until it is melted. Add the cacao and using the choku-zuki punch, roll it over and over until the cacao is smooth and firm. Roll it like dough until the slab is cold, as this makes a perfect stretchy chocolate. Make sure everything is bone dry, The chocolate should shine at this point and hold its shape when pressed.
Form balls with your hands and with popsicle stick, impale it like a Hun.
Chocolate Coating:
In a double boiler, melt together:
8 tbsp of cacao powder
4 tbsp of cocoa butter
4 tbsp of coconut oil
dash of salt
dash of chivalry
Take off heat and stir continously until chivalry is dead. The chocolate sauce should be thick and homogenous.
Dip popsicles. three times, letting them harden between coats. On the last coat, dip into a tray of the garnish.
Garnish:
Beet crystals, the best thing on earth that is not a Rudy blog
Pink Peppercorns
Roll the tops of the popsicle in the beet crystals , coating them generously and then sprinkle the pepercorn on the exposed areas. You have to work quickly before the chocolate sets. Immediately throw in the freezer to flash cool and harden.