Savoury Chocolate Appetizer Ideas

[hmclean]

My gourmet group has decided that the next theme will be chocolate (in all its forms). I am not coming up with many ideas for a non-sweet appetizer. I was wondering if any of you foodies out there have any ideas??? Thanks!

[lollya]

Hmm, chocolates with chilies....

[ElissaInPlaya]

little sopes with mole, or just tortilla chips with mole and crumbled crema.

[katecm]

Washington Post has a great Michel Richard recipe for chocolate-covered grapes. They're awesome, and the texture is amazing.

Chocolate Grapes
The Washington Post, October 18, 2006
Cuisine: American
Course: Dessert, Snack
Features: Fast
Summary:

You can make (and eat) these in minutes.

Makes 3 cups

Ingredients:
1 pound stemmed and chilled seedless grapes
4 ounces 60 percent semisweet chocolate, melted, at body temperature
1 to 2 tablespoon unsweetened cocoa powder
Directions:

Wash and dry the grapes well; place in a large bowl. Line a large baking sheet with a silicone mat or parchment paper.

Add the melted chocolate to the grapes, 1 tablespoon at a time, carefully scraping down the sides of the bowl and stirring through the center of the grapes so that they are evenly coated.

As the chocolate begins to set (which will be almost immediately), place the cocoa powder in a small strainer and sift the powder, little by little, over the surface of the grapes. Gently toss or stir the grapes as you continue to sift until all of the grapes are well coated and separated. Spread the grapes on the baking sheet, cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate until the chocolate has completely set, or up to 1 day.

[mirage]

I made these the other day for a group of friends - everyone loved them! They were a lot of fun and delicious. Thank you.

[Megiac]

Felidia in NY used to make raviolis that had unsweetened cocoa in the pasta dough and were filled with pumpkin or butternut squash. I think they were just dressed in a simple butter sauce. Delicious.

[Emme]

Chicken skewers or bites w/ mole dipping sauce.

[Miss Needle]

I once had a great chocolate dish at a tapas restaurant. It was crusty bread topped with melted dark chocolate with a slice of chorizo on top. There may have been saffron as well -- I don't remember. But it was delicious!

[Tom Steele]

Here's a recipe I devised after I had that tapa at Tia Pol:

Chorizo-Chocolate Tapas

(Inspired by Tia-Pol tapas bar)

1 Spanish chorizo
1 baguette
Bittersweet chocolate spread
Saffron (optional)

Slice the chorizo crosswise into 1/8-inch discs. Slice the baguette into 1/4-inch thick slices. Spread the bread with bittersweet chocolate and place 1-2 chorizo slices on the chocolate. Finish with one thread of optional saffron.

Makes plenty for 4

[Miss Needle]

Tia Pol! Thank you! I just couldn't remember which restaurant I had that dish in. About the bittersweet chocolate spread, do you use melted bittersweet chocolate, or is it a product like Nutella? Do you also brown the chorizo first?

Many thanks.

[Tom Steele]

I might toast the baguette slices, but I wouldn't bother browning the chorizo--it can make it too chewy. Note that Spanish chorizo is cooked, and Palacio is the only Spanish chorizo that the FDA will allow to be sold in the U.S. I wouldn't use Nutella--it's way too sweet. You could melt chopped bittersweet chocolate with a little butter and spread a bit of that on the toasted baguette slices, then top it with chorizo slice(s).

[Candy]

The Scharffenberger book has an appetizer, Goat Cheese with Nibs.

Crrush the cocoa nibs with a rolling pin and mix into plain goat cheese. They say to use 1/2-1 tsp. of nibs to each ounce of cheese. Refrigerate at least an hour or even better over night. They say if you want to add a little sweetness add 1/2 tsp honey, sugar or ginger preserves to each ounce of cheese.

After refrigerating you can put it into a pretty bowl and dust the top with cocoa powder or roll it in to balls in individual servings like a goat cheese truffle and dust with cocoa powder. To serve as a spread an interesting crusty bread would be good.

[puppymomma]

What about little tacos or something with a mole poblano sauce?

It can be complicated to make, but if you are open to new experiences, it's great!

There was a recent thread (what to make when you have lots of free time) that had a great mole recipe posted I believe.

Meryl
http://theoccasionalcook.blogspot.com/

[rachaels]

I love chocolate mixed with rosemary. The buttery/herbiness of the rosemary balances a really good dark chocolate. I made chocolate rosemary brownies and they turned out good. What about a chocolate rosemary fondue with vegetables? Like zucchini?