Chocolate Almonds Food

CHOCOLATE COVERED ALMONDS

Steps:

• Heat oven to 350 degrees. Toast almonds for 15 minutes on a baking sheet. Line two baking pans with parchment paper; set aside.
• In a medium saucepan, combine granulated sugar, 1/4 cup water, toasted almonds, and cinnamon. Cook, stirring constantly, until sugar becomes golden and granular and almonds are completely coated and separated. Pour nuts onto prepared pans. Chill in freezer, about 15 minutes.
• Meanwhile, place chocolate in a medium bowl; place bowl over simmering water until melted. Transfer half the chilled almonds to a large bowl, and pour half the melted chocolate over nuts. Stir until nuts are thoroughly coated. Transfer nuts onto prepared baking pan. Using two forks, separate nuts so none stick together. Return almonds to refrigerator until chocolate has set, about 20 minutes. Repeat with remaining almonds.
• Place cocoa powder and confectioners' sugar into two separate bowls. Toss half the nuts in cocoa and half in sugar, and gently tap off any excess powder. Store separately in airtight containers for up to 1 month.

CHOCOLATE COVERED ALMONDS

Steps:

• Place the granulated sugar and water in a large copper pot or 4-quart heavy-bottomed saucepan over medium-high heat and bring the mixture to a boil. Add the almonds and stir to coat them evenly in the sugar syrup. Your goal is to cook the almonds until the sugar crystallizes and caramelizes.
• When water is added to the sugar, the sugar crystals are dissolved. As it boils, the syrup becomes thicker as the water evaporates and big soap-like bubbles begin to form. Soon, all the moisture evaporates and the mixture becomes sandy. The sandiness is the sugar recrystallizing. It only takes the reformation of one sugar crystal to recrystallize the others. Keep stirring! Next, you see the sugar closest to the heat change from sandy to a clear liquid. The melted sugar clings to the almonds. When the sugar changes from clear to golden brown, the nuts are caramelized. Once this happens, pay close attention; the time it takes to pass from caramelized to burned is only a matter of seconds, especially when making smaller batches. You know the nuts are finished when most of the sandy sugar is gone.
• The first few times you make these, I suggest you try the following: When the sugar closest to the heat changes from sandy to liquid, remove the pan from the burner and continue to stir. The residual heat in the sugar and nuts will continue to cook the mixture while you stir it. Lower the heat to medium-low and continue to stir the nuts while moving the saucepan on and off the heat at 10-second intervals. This will give you more control as it cooks. When the nuts begin to caramelize, remove them from the heat and finish stirring.
• Use a wooden spoon to spread the caramelized nuts onto a parchment paper-covered baking sheet. Do not touch the nuts as they are extremely hot. Let the nuts cool completely. If your freezer will accommodate the baking sheet, you can place the nuts in the freezer for about 30 minutes to speed up the cooling process. When completely cooled, break apart any nut clusters that may have formed. At this stage, you can choose to serve the nuts as they are.
• Place the caramelized nuts in the coating pan attached to the stand mixer. Spin at low speed. Use a ladle to add the chocolate to the spinning nuts. Add 1 ladle at a time until the nuts are coated to the desired thickness. If a thicker coat is desired, use more chocolate. If a thinner coat is desired, decrease the amount of chocolate. Finish by adding cocoa powder to the coating pan. Remove and serve.

CHOCOLATE ALMOND BARK

Steps:

• Butter a baking sheet or use a silicone baking mat (preferred).
• Bring about 1 inch of water to a simmer in a medium saucepan with a bowl fitted to sit just above the simmering water. Add the chocolate. When the chocolate is melted, remove the bowl from the heat and stir in the almonds. Spread on the baking sheet in a thin uniform layer. Let set for 5 minutes, then sprinkle with the salt. Chill in the refrigerator until firm, at least 2 hours.
• Break the bark into 1- to 2-inch pieces. Store in a cool, dry place, stacked between layers of foil or parchment in an airtight container. The bark will keep, tightly sealed in your pantry, for up to a week.

CHOCOLATE DRIZZLED ALMONDS

Steps:

• Spread whole almonds in a single layer in shallow pan. Place in cold oven, roast at 350F for 12 to 20 minutes, stirring occasionally, until fragrant.
• Place roasted almonds on foil, parchment paper or a serving platter.
• Melt chocolate in a small bowl in microwave for one minute at medium high power. Stir well. Microwave in additional 10-20 second intervals stirring until smooth.
• Pour melted chocolate into a baggie. Cut a small hole in a corner of the bag. Drizzle chocolate over the almonds in a decorative pattern.
• Place in the fridge to harden.
• ** Try drizzling your almonds with bittersweet, milk or white chocolate -- or a combination of all three!

CHOCOLATE ALMOND BREAKFAST DONUTS

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Generously spray or brush a nonstick donut pan with cooking spray; set aside until needed.
• Place eggs, vegetable oil, and maple syrup into a mixing bowl and whisk thoroughly until the mixture is emulsified, light, and a little bit foamy, 3 to 4 minutes. Add almond flour, baking powder, salt, and cocoa powder; mix everything together thoroughly with a spatula until all the almond flour is incorporated and you've achieved a very thick batter.
• Transfer batter into a pastry bag, or a plastic zip-top bag with one of the corners cut off. Pipe the batter evenly into the prepared donut pan.
• Dip a finger in water and smooth the tops of the batter to even out. Tap the pan on a work surface a few times to settle the batter even more.
• Bake in the center of the preheated oven until a wooden skewer inserted into a donut comes out clean, 9 to 10 minutes. Let cool in the pan for 10 minutes before inverting onto a wire cooling rack. Cool completely before serving.

CHOCOLATE AND CINNAMON SUGAR ALMONDS

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Place almonds in a single layer on a rimmed baking sheet and toast until fragrant, about 10 minutes, shaking the pan halfway through. Line a rimmed baking sheets with parchment paper and place a cooling rack on top; set aside.
• In a medium saucepan, combine the sugar, water, toasted almonds, and cinnamon. Cook over medium-high heat, stirring constantly, until sugar becomes golden, then starts to crystallize, and almonds are completely coated, about 8 minutes. (As the sugar cooks it seems really dry and you think it can't be right, keep stirring) Pour the almond mixture onto the parchment-lined baking sheet. Transfer to the freezer or refrigerator to chill for 15 minutes - or just let cool.
• Place the chocolate in a heatproof bowl and set over a pan of simmering water. Stir until melted. Add the chilled almond mixture, stirring until nuts are thoroughly coated. Spoon onto cooling rack-lined baking sheet. Separate almonds with a fork. Place baking sheets in refrigerator until chocolate is set, 3 to 4 minutes.
• Place cocoa powder in a large bowl and add the almond mixture. Toss to coat, shaking off excess cocoa powder. Store in an airtight container for up to 1 month.

DARK CHOCOLATE ALMOND ROCKS

Steps:

• Spread almonds in a large skillet; toast over medium heat until starting to brown, 3 to 5 minutes. Pour almonds into a bowl.
• Melt chocolate in top of a double boiler over simmering water, stirring frequently and scraping down the sides to avoid scorching, about 5 minutes. Remove from heat; pour in almonds and stir until evenly coated.
• Drop spoonfuls of chocolate-almond mixture onto a plate lined with waxed paper.
• Chill until set, about 10 minutes.

CHOCOLATE ALMONDS

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Place almonds in a single layer on a rimmed baking sheet and toast until fragrant, about 10 minutes, shaking the pan halfway through. Line three rimmed baking sheets with parchment paper. Top two of the baking sheets with cooling racks; set aside.
• In a medium saucepan, combine the sugar, water, toasted almonds, and cinnamon. Cook over medium-high heat, stirring constantly, until sugar becomes golden, then starts to crystallize, and almonds are completely coated, about 8 minutes. Pour the almond mixture onto the parchment-lined baking sheet. Transfer to the freezer or refrigerator to chill for 15 minutes.
• Place the chocolate in a heatproof bowl and set over a pan of simmering water. Stir until melted. Add the chilled almond mixture, stirring until nuts are thoroughly coated. Divide between the two cooling rack-lined baking sheets. Separate almonds with a fork. Place baking sheets in refrigerator until chocolate is set, 3 to 4 minutes.
• Place cocoa powder in a large bowl and add the almond mixture. Toss to coat, shaking off excess cocoa powder. Store in an airtight container for up to 1 month.