My kitchen doesn't groan with an overabundance of condiments, oils or spices. My enthusiasm for spreads, on the other hand, cannot be contained.
Nutella, obviously. Crunchy and smooth peanut butter, of course. Almond butter and sunflower butter, too. Biscoff. Caramel. Tahini. If you can put it on bread, it's likely in my pantry.
When I (droolingly, obsessively) began flipping through Deb Perelman's eagerly awaited "Smitten Kitchen Keepers," I knew she'd saved the best for last as soon as I turned to the final recipe in the book: a simple, silky chocolate olive oil spread.
Like Perleman, I have a "devotion to butter, cream and triple cream dairy products." I, too, can be persuaded by the intoxicating ways in which chocolate and olive oil somehow seem made for each other.
While I'm usually cool to just melt chocolate into heavy cream for all my frosting, filling and chocolate spread purposes, I was intrigued by Perelman's recipe, which adds confectioners' sugar and cocoa to dark chocolate and olive oil, then encourages you to throw in a kick of salt at the end.
Five ingredients. Five minutes of work. Voilà — the most delicious stuff in the world. Are you sold yet?
Though Perelman (very generously) suggests that this spread would make "a wonderful hostess gift," I have a very hard time imagining myself actually giving any away. I'd much rather spend the winter retrieving servings from a cleverly hidden corner of the kitchen. From there, I can sneak it into my oatmeal and spread it across my toast, keeping the rest of my family none the wiser.
You can make this with any cocoa you like, but I've used black cocoa in my version for the deepest, most intense and Oreo-like experience imaginable. Combined with mini pretzels, I can attest that the end result is better than anything else you would snack on today.
You could share this chocolate olive oil spread with someone you love, but I won't judge you if you keep it all to yourself.
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Inspired by Deb Perelman's "Smitten Kitchen Keepers: New Classics for Your Forever Files"
Darkest Chocolate Olive Oil Spread
Ingredients
- 4 ounces dark chocolate chips or roughly chopped dark chocolate (See Cook's Notes)
- 1/2 cup fruity olive oil
- 1/2 cup confectioners' sugar
- 1/4 black cocoa or regular unsweetened cocoa
- Flaky salt
Directions
- In a medium saucepan over medium heat, melt the chocolate and olive oil, stirring until combined.
- Stir in the cocoa and confectioners' sugar until smooth. Cool to room temperature.
- Store at room temperature for up to a week, or keep in the fridge and bring to room temperature before using. Enjoy with a hint of flaky salt on bread, French toast, pretzels and more.
Cook's Notes
When making this recipe, I reach for Ghirardelli 60%.
Can you mix things up and make this recipe with milk chocolate? Of course!
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