Hi everyone! I’m Rachel Danae from the blog Not Rachael Ray. I write about easy and delicious recipes.  I have a daughter and a slightly picky but extremely appreciative husband to feed every day. Oh, and I don’t really have anything against the superstar chef, in case you were wondering. I’m just not her. And you probably won’t catch me saying “yum-o.” EVOO? Maybe.

I was so excited when Justin asked me to guest post because every time I get a package in the mail from Marx Foods, it feels like Christmas. I’m kinda in love with this company of his. On this specific occasion, I was provided with fennel pollen, dried chilies, coconut sugar, granulated candy cap mushrooms, and vanilla beans. I was given the challenge of creating a chocolate recipe with one or more of these quality ingredients.

First, I bought chocolate.

Then I panicked a little.

I needed to do some research.  I wanted to know as much as possible about each of the ingredients I had available for my use. Luckily for me, Marx Foods has some great resources on their website providing information about their products.

Next, I put aside the coconut sugar and vanilla beans. I knew I was going to make a dessert and I wanted a real challenge. These were too “obvious” of dessert ingredients.

Then I started cooking. Pudding. I’ve never made homemade pudding. I found a great recipe on Smitten Kitchen that involved no tempering of eggs. And she gave it rave reviews. I thought, I can do this! I knew I wanted to make three types, so I divided the recipe in thirds because I didn’t want 18 servings of pudding. However, the recipes printed here for 6 servings of pudding, so if you decide to make all three, you may want to adjust the recipes accordingly.

So, without further ado, I present you with:
● White Chocolate, Lemon and Fennel Pollen Pudding
● Milk Chocolate Candy Cap Mushroom Pudding
● Dark Chocolate Pudding Infused with Puya Chilies

If you’re skeptical, give these a try anyway. The flavors are all there but they work really well and give each pudding a special little twist. Candy cap mushrooms have a great maple flavor, and fennel pollen has a nice black licorice type flavor. If you’re still skeptical, the puddings can each be made without these special ingredients, but you’ll be missing out. Take my word on it! I think these would be great served in shot glasses on a small plate. My servings are a little bigger because I didn’t have 3 matching shot glasses. And because I’m a piggy.

White Chocolate, Lemon and Fennel Pollen Pudding
adapted from Smitten Kitchen

1/4 cup cornstarch
1/2 cup sugar
1/8 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoons lemon zest
3 cups whole milk (I didn’t have whole so I used half skim and half heavy cream)
6 ounces white chocolate coarsely chopped
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 tsp fennel pollen, plus extra for garnishing

1. In the top of a double boiler (I use a heatproof glass bowl over a large saucepan with a small amount of water in it), combine cornstarch, sugar and salt. Whisk in the milk slowly and use a rubber spatula to scrape the bottom and sides of the bowl. Add the lemon zest. Heat over simmering water, stirring occasionally and using a whisk if lumps form. (After I scraped down the sides, I usually used a whisk to take care of the lumps that would appear after scraping the bowl). Once the mixture starts to thicken and coat the back of the spoon (15-20 minutes), add in the white chocolate and continue to stir for 3-4 minutes until smooth and thick.

2. Remove from the heat and stir in the vanilla and fennel pollen.

3. Strain through a fine mesh strainer into serving bowls (or into a large measuring cup so you can pour more neatly). Note: I wanted the flavor of the fennel pollen and lemon to be infused and for the pudding to still be smooth. If you’d prefer a stronger flavor, stir in the lemon zest and the fennel pollen after straining the pudding.

4. Place plastic wrap on the top of the pudding if you do not want “skin.” Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes and top with extra fennel pollen before serving.

Milk Chocolate Candy Cap Mushroom Pudding
adapted from Smitten Kitchen

1/4 cup cornstarch
1/2 cup sugar
1/8 teaspoon salt
2 tsp finely ground (I used a coffee/spice grinder) candy cap mushrooms plus extra for garnishing
3 cups whole milk (I didn’t have whole so I used half skim and half heavy cream)
6 ounces milk chocolate coarsely chopped
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1. In the top of a double boiler (I use a heatproof glass bowl over a large saucepan with a small amount of water in it), combine cornstarch, sugar, salt and ground candy cap mushrooms. Whisk in the milk slowly and use a rubber spatula to scrape the bottom and sides of the bowl. Heat over simmering water, stirring occasionally and using a whisk if lumps form. (After I scraped down the sides, I usually used a whisk to take care of the lumps that would appear after scraping the bowl). Once the mixture starts to thicken and coat the back of the spoon (15-20 minutes), add in the milk chocolate and continue to stir for 3-4 minutes until smooth and thick.

2. Remove from the heat and stir in the vanilla.

3. Strain through a fine mesh strainer into serving bowls (or into a large measuring cup so you can pour more neatly).
Place plastic wrap on the top of the pudding if you do not want “skin.” Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes and top with extra ground candy cap mushrooms before serving.

Dark Chocolate Pudding Infused with Puya Chilies
adapted from Smitten Kitchen

1/4 cup cornstarch
1/2 cup sugar
1/8 teaspoon salt
1 whole puya chile, reconstituted and coarsely chopped
3 cups whole milk (I didn’t have whole so I used half skim and half heavy cream)
6 ounces dark chocolate (mine was 60%) coarsely chopped
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
cayenne powder for garnishing

1. In the top of a double boiler (I use a heatproof glass bowl over a large saucepan with a small amount of water in it), combine cornstarch, sugar and salt. Whisk in the milk slowly and use a rubber spatula to scrape the bottom and sides of the bowl. Add in chopped puya chile. Heat over simmering water, stirring occasionally and using a whisk if lumps form. (After I scraped down the sides, I usually used a whisk to take care of the lumps that would appear after scraping the bowl). Once the mixture starts to thicken and coat the back of the spoon (15-20 minutes), add in the dark chocolate and continue to stir for 3-4 minutes until smooth and thick.

2. Remove from the heat and stir in the vanilla.

3. Strain through a fine mesh strainer into serving bowls (or into a large measuring cup so you can pour more neatly).

4. Place plastic wrap on the top of the pudding if you do not want “skin.” Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes and garnish with cayenne pepper before serving. (Or you could grind your own chile powder from extra puya chilies but I took a short cut.)

Verdict: Yum, Yum, and Yum.

Husband’s take: Only tried the dark chocolate variety–which I didn’t tell him included chile peppers (shh!), but he loved it. The flavor is muted and just subtly adds a complexity and deepness to the pudding.  Note: Later, I told my (non-adventurous when it comes to food) husband what each of the puddings had in them. His exact words? “Eww!” Then, the next thing that came out of his mouth, “It was so good, I could eat it every day.” Let me know if you can figure that one out.

Changes I would make: None!

Difficulty: Lots of stirring and standing over a double boiler to make three types, but other than that, very easy!

Ingredients: (Makes Roughly 3/4 Cup)
4 Dried Ancho Chilies
3 cloves of Garlic
2 tbsp Fresh Cilantro
2 tsp Salt
2 tbsp Lime Juice
2 tbsp Oil (we used safflower)

Directions:
1. Reconstitute the ancho chilies (how to reconstitute dried chilies), then destem and deseed them.

2. Combine the chilies, garlic, cilantro, salt, lime juice and oil in a blender or food processor.  Blend to combine.

3. Rub the paste on the meat.

4. Optional, but ideal: Rest the meat in your refrigerator for several hours prior to cooking it to allow the flavors to start working on the meat.

5. Grill, broil, roast or cook the meat however you otherwise would.

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1. Pour boiling water over dried chilies in a bowl (enough to cover). Press down with spoon to make them submerge.

2.  Soak your chilies for 15 minutes.

3. Discard water when done (do not use in recipes like you would water from reconstituting dried mushrooms). Some peppers plump up more than others when ready, so do not be alarmed if your chilies still have slightly papery skin.

4.  Deseed peppers by removing tops and slitting down sides (you can leave the seeds in if you would like, but your chilies will be significantly hotter).

This method can be used to reconstitute our ghost chili peppers, habanero chili peppers, pequin peppers, de arbol chili peppers, tepin chili peppers, aji amarillo chili peppers, aji panca chili peppers, chipotle chili peppers, or thai chili peppers.

Browse More:
Ghost Chile Recipes
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Culinary Techniques for Other Ingredients

 

One easy way to do it is to simply put a few of your favorite chilies into a bottle of oil and wait a couple weeks, but a quicker way to make chili oil is like this:

Chili Oil

Ingredients
2 cups olive oil (or vegetable oil if you prefer)
Several of your favorite dried peppers (whole or crushed)

We used dried de arbol peppers because of their balanced heat and classic shape.  If you wanted to turn up the heat and change the look of the finished bottles, you could use the smaller, more berry shaped dried pequin peppers or (for even more heat) dried tepin peppers.

Directions

1) Combine the oil and peppers in a heavy saucepan.

2) Cook over low heat about 5-8 minutes (oil should reach 150 degrees).

3) Remove from heat. Cool to room temperature, about 2 hours.

4) Transfer the oil and peppers to a bottle. Seal the lid. Refrigerate for up to ten days.

For more info on how to make chili products, please read Rehydrating Dried Chilies, How to Make Chile Pastes, and Make Your Own Chile Powder.  To help decide which chilies to buy, read our dried chile heat scale.

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2) Dry toast them on a medium heat until fragrant (about 7-8 minutes.) Keep watch over them, if you overdo it, the flavor will be acrid. (We find that toasting chilies on a skillet works best, but you can toast them in a oven too.)

3) Grind the toasted pepper in a spice or coffee grinder.

4) When you need to clean out the grinder, grind up some white rice and wipe it clean with a dry cloth.

Any bulk dried chilies can be used to make chili powder at home.  Dried chipotle chilies, and dried habanero peppers work well.  Dried aji panca peppers can be used instead for a more mild and fruity chili powder, and ground thai chilies work well in Asian-influenced dishes.

If you’re planning on using a lot of chili powder and don’t want to go through this process, browse our bulk chili powders, each made from just one variety of chili for pure flavors.

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The Scoville Scale:
The Scoville heat scale (developed in 1912) is the oldest and most commonly referenced method of measuring pepper heat. The testing method is actually pretty simple: a panel of five or more judges is subjected to a taste test featuring the paste form of each pepper that has been diluted with sugar syrup. The degree of dilution required for the judges not to detect any capsaicin in the mixture determines each pepper’s rating on the scale. Despite its inherent subjectivity, this scale is still a useful way of ranking peppers relative to other peppers.

Chile Heat Scale:

	Pepper	Flavor Profile	Scoville Heat Level
	Bell Pepper		0
	Nora Chilies	(earthy, little or no heat)	0-1,000
	Shishito Peppers	(grassy, citrusy, very mild)	50-200
	Pepperoncini		100-500
	Aji Panca Chilies	(mild and fruity, poblano-esque)	500-1,500
	Red Anaheim Chilies	(sweet, fresh form of New Mexico Chilies)	500-1,500
	Poblano		500-2,500
	Mulato Chilies	(chocolate/licorice-like flavor)	500-2,500
	Organic New Mexico Chilies	(dried red Anaheim peppers)	500-2,500
	New Mexico Chilies	(dried red Anaheim peppers)	750-1,250
	Organic Aji Panca Chilies	(mild and fruity, poblano-esque)	1,000-1,500
	Green Anaheim Chilies	(immature fresh New Mexico Chilies)	1,000-1,500
	Ancho Chilies	(dried poblanos)	1,000-1,500
	Pasilla Negro Chilies	(good in moles)	1,000-2,000
	Guajillo Chilies	(mild flavor, some heat)	2,500-5,000
	Jalapeño Chilies	(some heat, grassy-earthy flavor)	2,500-8,000
	Red Fresno Chilies	(fresh chilies, good in sauces & soups)	2,500-10,000
	Puya Chilies	(similar flavor to Guajillo, more spice)	5,000-8,000
	Organic Chipotle Chilies	(smoked, dried Jalapeño)	5,000-10,000
	Yellow Caribe Chilies	(fresh chilies, great baked or in soups)	5,000-15,000
	Aji Amarillo Chilies	(essential in Peruvian food)	5,000-25,000
	Chipotle Chilies	(smoked, dried Jalapeño)	7,000-25,000
	Cascabel Chilies	(round, with seeds that rattle)	8,000-12,000
	Smoked Serrano Chilies	(savory, not fruity heat)	8,000-22,000
	De Arbol Chilies	(similar to cayenne)	15,000-30,000
	Japones Chilies	(medium-strength asian chile)	15,000-36,000
	Organic Aji Amarillo Chilies	(essential in Peruvian food)	40,000-50,000
	Pequin Chilies	(spicy, hint of citrus, sweetness)	40,000-50,000
	Aji Limo Rojo Chilies	(organic, slightly sweet, crisp)	50,000-60,000
	Tepin Chilies	(powerful but brief heat)	50,000-70,000
	Fresh Thai Chilies	(available red or green)	~50,000-100,000
	Dried Thai Chilies	(used in Thai, Chinese cooking)	50,000-100,000
	Aji Cereza Chilies	(organic, milder substitute for Habaneros)	70,000-80,000
	Habanero Chilies	(very hot, fruity/floral flavor)	100,000-200,000
	Organic Habanero Chilies	(very hot, fruity/floral flavor)	100,000-300,000
	Scotch Bonnet Chilies	(similar heat to Habanero, different flavor)	150,000-325,000
	Ghost Chilies	(hottest)	300,000-400,000

What is Capsaicin?

Capsaicin is the naturally occurring molecule in chili peppers (likely evolved to deter mammals from eating them) that causes a burning sensation when it comes into contact with any tissue. Recent biological studies have demonstrated that it also actually activates heat receptors in the human mouth (just as menthol activates cold receptors).

Too Hot?

One of the easiest ways to tone down a chile pepper is by removing the seeds and inner ribs. This will significantly decrease the total capsaicin level of the pepper.

Organic Dried Chile Options:
In addition to our Organic Aji Limo Rojo Chilies and Organic Aji Cereza Chilies, we now offer an organic choice for some other varieties: Organic Aji Panca Chilies, Organic Ancho Chilies, Organic Chipotle Chilies, Organic Habanero Chilies, Organic New Mexico Chilies, and Organic Aji Amarillo Chilies.

Still Can’t Decide? Try one of our dried chile pepper samplers!

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This is a recipe for a basic vinegar-based hot sauce (similar to the various spicy sauces found on restaurant tables across America), but with a twist: it’s made with the world’s hottest chile.  Ghost peppers are so hot that only a few are needed for this sauce.  To give it a more robust chili flavor (and color) without further amping up the heat, we’ve added several Aji Panca Chilies.

Of course, this same technique can be used with all of our bulk dried peppers, making a great base for home experimentation (use our dried pepper heat scale as a guide).

Ingredients:
2 cups distilled vinegar
2 tsp salt
2 dried ghost peppers
10 dried aji panca chilies or dried organic aji panca chilies

Directions:

1. Put on gloves, and keep them on while handling ghost chilies.
2. Reconstitute the dried peppers.
3. Remove the stems and seeds from the chilies.
4. Using a food processor or blender, puree the chilies with the vinegar and salt.
5. For Milder (but still hot) Sauce: Immediately strain the sauce through a fine mesh strainer.
6. For Stronger Sauce: Leave the solids in the sauce for up to two weeks, then strain.  The longer you wait before straining, the hotter the sauce will become.

Makes a little over two cups of sauce, which will keep in a bottle or jar in the fridge for quite awhile.

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Pasilla Hot Chocolate with Vanilla Bean Whipped Cream

Any variety of bulk dried chilies (consult our chile heat scale for help deciding) can be used to make this hot chocolate (although you’ll likely want to change the amounts to fit the chile heat you’re looking for).  Here we’ve used mild pasilla chilies for a fruity chile hot chocolate with very little heat.  Our real vanilla sugar is made with lots of ground vanilla beans, it makes truly tremendous whipped cream, which we’ve used to top this hot chocolate.  Don’t neglect the light dusting of chili powder before serving.  Though it may appear purely cosmetic, it provides a burst of chile flavor up front which is then subdued by the cream.

1 bourbon vanilla bean or Tahitian vanilla bean
Homemade chili powder ground from 2 large dried Pasilla Negro chilies
4 cups whole milk
10 ounces good semi-sweet/bittersweet chocolate
1 pint heavy whipping cream
1/2 cup+ vanilla sugar

1. Scrape seeds from the interior of the vanilla bean and put them and the pod in the milk in a saucepan. 
2. Add most of the pasilla chili powder, holding some back for a garnish.
3. Scald the milk (cook it over medium heat, stirring occasionally, just until steam begins to rise).  Remove the vanilla bean pod.
4.  Turn the heat to low, and add the chocolate, stirring frequently until the chocolate is completely melted.
5. Whip the cream. Once it has begun to thicken, add vanilla sugar to taste (you’ll probably want at least a half cup).  Continue whipping until you get firm peaks.
6.  Whisk hot chocolate until frothy, pour into mugs.  Just prior to serving, top each with a dollop of the vanilla bean cream and dust lightly with your reserved chili powder.

Makes 4 servings with extra whipped cream.

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Sour up front with a brief fiery finish, this sorbet is refreshing and potent enough to be served as a small, light summer dessert or a palate opening amuse bouche. 

While we used dried tepin chilies for this because of their unique ability to be very spicy for a few seconds and then subside (unlike other chilies that tend to smolder), this recipe can be adapted to use any of our dried peppers.

Chile Lime Sorbet Recipe
Makes about 1 pint.

Ingredients: 
7 tbsp lime juice
Zest of 2 limes
1 tsp homemade chili powder from dried tepin chile peppers
1 ½ cups granulated sugar
1 2/3 cup water
~ 1/3 cup basic simple syrup
~ 1/3 cup additional water

Measuring Device: 1 large raw egg or Baume meter

Directions: 

1. Thoroughly wash the limes, and using a grater remove their zest while trying to avoid the white inner pith (which is bitter).
2. Squeeze the zested limes (and however many more you need).
3. Combine the lime zest, lime juice, chili powder, sugar and water in a saucepan and simmer until all sugar has dissolved. 
4. Wash your raw egg or Baume meter, then gently float it in the sorbet base.  If using an egg, you want the portion of egg visible above the surface to be a dime to a nickel’s width in diameter.  If using a Baume meter, adjust until it reads 20. Use the simple syrup to raise the measuring device and water to make it sink.   
5. Chill the base thoroughly in the fridge.
6. Churn in your ice cream machine following the manufacturer’s directions.
7. When the sorbet is finished churning, move it to your freezer to harden.
8. Serve garnished with lime zest, either fresh or candied.

Variations:
1. Try substituting lemon juice for some or all of the lime juice.
2. Try using a different chile for the heat.  Tepins are nice because their heat is brief, but those looking for a milder but more prolonged smolder might consider Organic New Mexico Chilies.  Organic Chipotle Chilies will bring a little more heat than the New Mexicos, but with some smokiness as well.  Finally, for those who don’t want much heat at all, but would like some extra richness and fruitiness, try using Organic Aji Panca Chilies.

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(serves 4-5)

These kabobs have a nice beefy flavor that fades in and out with the heat of the marinade.  Have your guests drizzle on more aioli if they wish to tone down the spice.

Ingredients:
2.3lbs (1 pack) thawed bison kabobs
 ½ cup fresh cilantro
½ cup fresh parsley
Chilies (we used 1 dried habanero pepper and 1 dried aji pepper)
~1 cup peanut oil
1 tbs fresh ginger
½ cup white wine vinegar

And: Blood Orange Aioli

Cooking Process:

1.  Reconstitute the dried peppers.

2. Peel the ginger using a spoon (safer) or the back of your knife blade. Slice thinly.

3.Puree (in a food processor or blender) cilantro, parsley, chilies, ginger, and white wine vinegar. Drizzle in peanut oil.

4.  Pour over skewers in shallow dish. Cover and marinate for at least an hour in the fridge.

5. Cook the skewers on a cleaned and oiled grill. Bison cooks a little faster than beef as it is lean.

6. Serve with the aoli on the side garnished with blood oranges cut into supremes.

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