Valentine’s Day recipes that are a chocolate lover’s dream

Chocolate-chip cookie sandwiches with orange ganache. Photo / Amelle Habib

Kirsten Tibballs’ Chocolate All Day cookbook is a chocoholic’s fantasy – fall in love this Valentine’s Day with one, or all, of these decadent sweet treats

Chocolate-chip cookie sandwiches with orange ganache. Photo / Armelle Habib

Chocolate-chip cookie sandwiches with orange ganache

Makes 30

Make way for your new obsession. I’m talking chewy cookies with a lusciously smooth, melt-in-the-mouth filling with hints of crunch. A little bit fancy, and a whole lot of fun, these choc-chip cornflake cookies get a flavour boost thanks to a swirl of orange-infused chocolate ganache. They are a tantalising eating experience and an instant crowd pleaser.

Orange ganache

• 195ml thickened cream
• 1 orange, zest only
• ½ tsp vanilla bean paste
• 430g good-quality milk chocolate

Cookies

• 100g raw sugar
• 165g soft brown sugar
• 1 tsp sea salt
• 115g unsalted butter, softened
• 50g whole egg
• 1 tsp vanilla bean paste
• 155g plain flour
• ½ tsp baking soda
• 110g good-quality milk chocolate, roughly chopped
• 110g good-quality dark chocolate, roughly chopped
• 90g cornflakes, crushed

Method

1. To make the orange ganache, heat the cream, orange zest and vanilla in a saucepan over medium heat and bring to the boil.
2. Place the milk chocolate in a bowl.
3. Once the cream is boiling, strain it over the chocolate. Whisk until the chocolate is completely melted and incorporated into the cream. Cover with plastic wrap touching the surface of the ganache.
4. Leave to cool at room temperature for 2-3 hours before transferring to a piping bag or snaplock bag.
5. For the cookies, preheat the oven to 170°C fan-forced. Line a baking tray with baking paper.
6. Place the raw sugar, brown sugar, salt and butter in the bowl of a stand mixer with a paddle attachment and beat on medium speed until smooth.
7. Add the egg and vanilla and mix to combine.
8. Sift in the flour and baking soda and mix until incorporated.
9. Remove the bowl from the mixer, add the chocolate and crushed cornflakes and stir them through. Place the cookie dough in the fridge for 1 hour.
10. Roll teaspoonfuls of the dough into balls. Place them on the baking tray approximately 4cm apart and gently press down on them to flatten slightly. Bake for 10 minutes or until golden brown.
11. Remove from the oven and leave to cool at room temperature. Repeat with the remaining cookie dough.
12. To assemble, cut the tip off the prepared piping bag of orange-infused ganache. Pipe the ganache on to every second cookie and sandwich them together with the plain cookies.
13. Store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 2 weeks. The cookie dough can be prepared in advance and stored in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days. Allow the dough to come back to room temperature before baking.

For best results:

If your room temperature is warm, place the ganache in the fridge to firm it up to piping consistency.

Fix it:

If the ganache looks grainy after you add the cream to the chocolate, add a tiny bit more cream and continue whisking.

Peanut cookie cups with chocolate caramel filling. Photo / Armelle Habib

Peanut cookie cups with chocolate caramel filling

Makes 12

Just when you thought a chocolate and peanut flavour combo couldn’t get any better. Here, a biscuity peanut butter base acts as a little bowl for lush honeyed caramel, with chocolate whisked through in the final step because, well ... chocolate. Believe me, you will fall in love with these wickedly irresistible caramel cups.

Peanut cookie cups

• 85g unsalted butter
• 65g soft brown sugar
• 65g caster sugar
• 95g crunchy peanut butter
• 30g whole egg
• 125g plain flour, plus extra for dusting
• Pinch baking powder
• Pinch sea salt
• 75g good-quality milk chocolate, chopped

Caramel filling

• 250ml thickened cream
• 1 tsp vanilla bean paste
• Pinch sea salt
• 185g caster sugar
• 65g liquid glucose
• 35ml water
• 150g unsalted butter
• 25g honey
• ½ tsp baking soda
• 75g good-quality milk chocolate

Method

1. To make the peanut cookie cups, preheat the oven to 170°C fan-forced. Grease a 12-hole muffin tin.
2. Using a stand mixer with a paddle attachment, beat the butter and sugars on medium speed until well combined and completely smooth.
3. Add the peanut butter followed by the egg and mix to combine.
4. Add the flour, baking powder and salt, then mix until almost completely incorporated.
5. Lastly, add the chopped milk chocolate and mix until the ingredients just come together as a dough.
6. On a lightly floured work surface, divide the dough into 12 even portions. Place the pieces of dough into the holes in the tin, pressing them into the base and sides to form a cup.
7. Line each cup with scrunched then flattened baking paper, and fill with uncooked rice. Bake for 8 minutes. (This is called blind baking.) Remove the paper and rice and bake for a further 10 minutes.
8. Leave to cool slightly. When the cookie cups are firm enough to handle but still warm, remove from the tin and leave to cool completely at room temperature on a wire rack. Clean and dry the muffin tin.
9. When the cookie cups have cooled completely, return them to the clean tin.
10. For the caramel filling, heat the cream, vanilla and salt in a saucepan over medium heat until almost boiling.
11. Heat the sugar, glucose and water in a large saucepan over medium heat until the temperature reaches 145°C. Reduce the heat to low, immediately add the butter and honey and whisk by hand to incorporate.
12. One-third at a time, pour the hot cream mixture over the caramel and whisk to combine.
13. Carefully add the baking soda, then increase the heat and bring to 118°C while whisking continuously.
14. Once the caramel reaches temperature, remove from the heat and immediately add the chocolate. Whisk until the chocolate is completely melted and incorporated.
15. Pour the caramel into the prepared peanut cookie cups and leave to set at room temperature for 1 hour. Store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 4 weeks.

Next level: This recipe can also make one spectacular large tart. Press the cookie dough into a fluted tart tin, then follow the recipe. Serve slices with fresh cream or ice cream. The peanut cookie cup mixture can be used to make beautiful cookies.

Oozy chocolate sourdough toastie. Photo / Armelle Habib

Oozy chocolate sourdough toastie

Serves 4

This is no ordinary toastie – more like a sinful chocolate snack. It’s an amped-up version of French toast, layered with slivers of banana and dotted with melting chocolate chips, and is best devoured hot and fresh. The molten, magnificent mess that’s created between two sweetened slices of bread is unbelievable. This is bound to be bookmarked as a favourite.

• 75ml full-cream milk
• 120ml sweetened condensed milk
• 100g whole eggs
• Pinch of sea salt
• Pinch of ground cinnamon
• 2 tsp unsalted butter
• 1 tsp grapeseed oil
• 8 slices day-old sourdough bread, crusts removed
• 2 bananas, thinly sliced lengthways
• 80g good-quality milk chocolate chips

Method

1. Put the milk, condensed milk, eggs, salt and cinnamon in a bowl and whisk to combine. Transfer the mixture to a shallow dish.
2. Heat the butter and oil in a frying pan over medium heat.
3. Dip each slice of bread in the condensed milk mixture, then place in the frying pan and cook both sides until golden brown. Remove from the heat.
4. Arrange the banana in an even layer over four of the bread slices, sprinkle with chocolate chips, then sandwich together with the remaining bread. The toasties are best made fresh and served immediately.

For best results: Don’t use bread with large air pockets. Have all the elements ready to go before you start frying the bread.

Next level: I love replacing the banana with fresh or sautéed pineapple.

Edited extract from Chocolate All Day by Kirsten Tibballs, photography by Armelle Habib. Murdoch Books RRP $55