Fresh figs are one of my favorite fruits, bringing back memories of my 2011 road trip through Turkey. But the short season has me yearning for them long before they return to the market. When pastry chef Mandy Groom suggested using fig leaves in a recipe for the latest Tony's Chocolonely collaboration, I was intrigued to taste the results.
The Not Just Dessert series harnesses the creativity of top pastry chefs in Portland and beyond to create unique desserts using Tony's Chocolonely's slave-free chocolate. For the June collaboration, I called upon my friends at Olympia Provisions, best known for their artisan charcuterie. While salami, sausages, and pickles might be the first thing to come to mind when you think of OP, their two restaurants in Northwest and Southeast Portland boast incredible dessert menus.
Starting with the inspiration of the fig leaves from the tree in her front yard, Mandy toasted the leaves over an open flame for a smoky flavor to complement the chocolate. She opted to use chocolate chips in the ice cream, rather than make chocolate ice cream for an added textural component. Choux pastry profiteroles create an elevated ice cream sandwich and a honey-dark chocolate sauce adds the perfect finishing touch.
Stop by Olympia Provisions NW or SE during the month of June to get a taste of the dessert, or recreate your own using the recipe at the end of the post. Enjoy!
Toasted Fig Leaf and Tony’s Chocolonely Milk Chocolate Chip Ice Cream
Recipe by Mandy Groom, makes 3 cups
¾ cups whole milk
1 2/3 cups heavy cream
½ cup sugar
¼ tsp salt
2 medium sized fig leaves, washed, dried and toasted, in a pan or over a fire
5 egg yolks
2 oz. Tony's Chocolonely milk chocolate, grated with vegetable peeler
Heat milk, cream, sugar and salt in a stainless steel pan until just about to simmer. Turn off heat. Add toasted fig leaves to cream mixture and let steep for about 20 minutes. Using tongs, take out fig leaves from cream mixture. Temper cream mixture with yolks. Return to the stove and cook until an anglaise is reached. Strain and chill. Process in ice cream freezer. When frozen to desired
consistency, add grated milk chocolate and stir to combine.
Tony’s Chocolonely Honey-Dark Chocolate Sauce
Recipe by Mandy Groom, makes 1 cup
3 oz. Tony’s Chocolonely 70% dark chocolate, chopped finely and set aside in a bowl
1 oz. unsalted butter
3 Tbsp honey
¼ cup heavy cream
¼ cup water
¼ tsp salt
In a stainless saucepan, heat butter, honey, cream, water and milk until hot. Carefully pour over chopped chocolate. Let sit for five minutes, then stir to combine. Serve warm.
Choux Paste
Recipe by Mandy Groom, makes 8 medium cream puffs or 24 small cream puffs
4 eggs, room temperature
½ cup water
½ cup whole milk
½ tsp salt
¾ tsp sugar
4 oz. unsalted butter
1 cup all-purpose flour
In a stainless steel saucepan, bring water, milk, salt, sugar and butter to a boil. Take off of heat and add flour. Mix with wooden spoon. Cook out flour for a few minutes, stirring constantly. Put dough in mixer with paddle attachment and stir for about a minute. Add eggs, one at a time and beat dough until smooth. Using a small ice cream scoop, scoop dough and place on cookie sheet lined with parchment paper. Bake at 400 degrees for 12 minutes, then reduce oven heat to 325 degrees and cook for about 12-15 more minutes, or until puffs are golden and crispy on the outside.
Cut open and fill with a generous scoop of ice cream and drizzle with chocolate sauce. Enjoy!
This post was created in partnership with Tony's Chocolonely.