Can Men Seduce Women With Their Cooking Skills?

Image: “Mostly Martha”

O.k..catchy title, huh? I was relaxing this evening after a long day at the VA with Marc…(o.k..it wasn’t so bad, he had alot of long tests and stuff and I read almost a whole book for FUN…) and I was relaxing and surfing..and I came across this article from Men’s Health. No, I don;t usually read Men’s Health but I was intrigued. The premise was that a man could seduce a woman with a fancy meal. I believe that baby spinach salad with goat cheese and toasted pistachios was mentioned.

Maybe I am too old…Maybe I have been married too long…the idea of a guy presenting me with that salad would not seduce me…it would make me crack up. The scene in Mostly Martha where the sous chef is feeding her soup and she is blindfolded trying to guess ingredients….and then he licks the spoon and kisses her? Hot. Baby spinach salad with pistachios? Not.

Doing the dishes is hot. Putting the toilet seat down is hot. Trust me on this.

Chocolate is always hot. Always. Not like a Hershey bar though…Godiva is good…

Believe it or not the recipe that follows is so simple that novice cooks can easily make it but it looks complicated. I would have had a picture of it….IF I had remembered to take it before everyone devoured it.

Guys..this dessert is hot. It is European. It is pastry. It is filled with chocolate. It doesn’t leave green strings between your teeth…..

A pithivier is a french pastry created in Pithiviers, France. It is commonly made from puff pastry and an almond filling, often with chocolate grated over the filling. I made it a bit different and was really happy with the results. Not traditional, but awesome good. If you don’t like pecans then please, by all means use almonds. Homemade puff pastry is better but frozen works just fine.

The pecans and brown sugar give it a praline taste. There is no way around this…it is impressive, easy and really, really good.

Pithivier

1 box frozen puff pastry sheets (2 sheets to a box), thawed as directed.

1/2 c brown sugar

1/3 c unsalted butter

1 tsp vanilla

1 egg

2 Tbs flour

3/4 c finely chopped pecans

3 ozs chopped bittersweet chocolate

Roll first puff pastry sheet out and cut into a 9″ circle. Do not roll it too thin. And once it is rolled you can’t mash it up and start over.

Beat sugar, flour, and butter in mixer until creamy. Add egg and vanilla and mix well. Stir in nuts.

Spread mixture on pastry circle, sprinkle with chocolate and chill ( the pastry, not you) for 15 minutes.

Meanwhile roll the other puff pastry sheet out and cut into a slightly larger circle. Make vent holes with a knife in a decorative manner.

Beat one egg with 1 tablespoon water and brush it around the edges of the first pastry. Lay the second pastry over top and press edges to seal. Crimp edges by rolling upwards and pinching to seal even more. Brush top with egg/water mixture. Bake at 400F for 25 minutes.

Remove from oven. Let cool a few minutes.

Make glaze.

Bring 1/4 c cream to a boil. Remove from heat and melt 1/2 c chopped bittersweet chocolate in the cream, stirring until smooth. Drizzle the chocolate over the top of the pithivier. The easiest way to do this is to dip a fork in the chocolate and move it back and forth over the surface letting the chocolate drizzle until you like how it looks.

About 8 servings.