Chunky One Food

CHUNKY MONKEY BANANA TART

Steps:

• For the tart crust: Pulse the walnuts and sugar in a food processor until they are finely ground, about 6 pulses. Add the cold butter and pulse until the walnuts and sugar come together with the butter, but the mixture is not homogenous. Add the flour and salt and pulse again until the butter is the size of small peas. Turn the dough out onto a work surface and knead until it just comes together. Form into a disk, wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate until firm, 30 minutes to 1 hour.
• Lightly flour the dough and roll it between 2 pieces of parchment or plastic wrap to about 1/4 inch thick. Press into the bottom and up the sides of a 9-inch tart pan with a removable bottom, patching any holes. Use a fork to gently prick the crust, ensuring that steam can escape while it bakes. Freeze until hard, 6 to 8 hours.
• Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Bake the tart crust until pale golden, 15 to 20 minutes. Cool completely on a wire rack.
• For the pastry cream: While the tart crust dough is chilling, bring the milk, vanilla bean paste and salt to just under a boil in a medium pot over medium heat. Meanwhile, whisk the sugar, cornstarch and egg yolks in a medium bowl until smooth and combined. Whisking constantly, ladle half the hot milk into the egg yolk mixture, one ladle at a time. Continue until all the hot milk has been whisked in and the egg mixture is now warm.
• Return the milk and egg yolks to the pot and cook over medium-low heat, whisking, until thickened to a pudding consistency, 3 to 5 minutes. Immediately strain through a chinois or fine-mesh sieve into a large airtight container. Stir the butter cubes into the pastry cream until melted and combined. Cover with plastic wrap, pressing it directly onto the surface of the pastry cream, and refrigerate until chilled through, about 2 hours.
• For the assembly: Spread the fudge sauce over the cooled tart shell and top with an even layer of thinly sliced bananas (using about half). Add a layer of pastry cream (about 1 cup) and smooth into an even layer; reserve the remaining cream for another use (see Cook's Note). Top with the remaining sliced bananas, shingling them slightly and arranging them in a concentric circle. Sprinkle the sugar over the bananas and brulee with a kitchen blow torch until golden brown. Garnish with some chopped walnuts.

CHUNKY BEEF CHILI

Steps:

• Heat a Dutch oven (or a heavy 5-quart pot with a tight-fitting lid) over high heat until a drop of water sizzles upon contact. In three batches, cook sirloin until no longer pink; remove each batch with a slotted spoon. Set aside.
• Add sausage, breaking it up into small pieces; add onion and jalapenos. Season with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring frequently, until sausage and onion are browned, about 5 minutes.
• Return sirloin to pot. Stir in chili powder, cumin, oregano, tomatoes (with juice), cornmeal, cinnamon, bay leaves, and 2 cups water. Bring to a boil; reduce to a simmer. Cover; cook until sirloin easily breaks apart with a spoon, about 2 hours.
• Stir in beans; cook until heated through, about 5 minutes. Discard cinnamon and bay leaves. Serve.

CHUNKY CHOCOLATE FRUIT-AND-NUT BARK

Steps:

• Set a heatproof bowl over a saucepan of simmering water, making sure the bowl doesn't touch the water. Roughly chop chocolate and place in the bowl to melt, stirring frequently, keeping the heat very low. Chop toasted nuts; using scissors, cut dried fruit into small pieces. Finely chop candied ginger and/or orange peel. Place fruit and nuts into a large mixing bowl.
• Once chocolate is melted and smooth, take it off the heat and stir fruit and nuts into the chocolate. Gently stir to combine so the fruit and nuts are all combined with the chocolate. Line a pan with parchment paper that's been sprayed with a little oil. Sprinkle cocoa powder over parchment and then add the chocolate mixture. Spread it out in an even layer. Dust with more cocoa powder and place another piece of parchment paper on top. Let it cool down and set in the refrigerator, 1 hour.
• When chocolate is set, run a knife around the edge to remove from the pan. Break or cut into pieces to make chunky chocolates.

CHUNKY MONKEY CUPCAKES

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) and line a 12-cup muffin tin with liners.
• Whisk flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt together in a bowl.
• Mash bananas with milk and vanilla extract until smooth.
• Mix butter and sugar together with a spatula until creamy. Whisk in eggs, 1 at a time, then whisk in the banana mixture. Add walnuts, chocolate, and the flour mixture. Mix batter with a spatula until no dry spots remain.
• Fill muffin cups to the top with batter, then distribute excess batter as needed. Tap pan against the counter to expel any air bubbles.
• Bake in the preheated oven until tops are lightly browned, about 25 minutes. Let cupcakes cool to room temperature, at least 20 minutes.
• Pour hot cream over chocolate chips in a bowl. Let sit for a few minutes, then whisk, increasing speed gradually, until color is uniform. Spread ganache over the cooled cupcakes and garnish with banana chips. Refrigerate to firm up the frosting, if desired.