Almond

This cake always reminds me of my trips to Brittany, an exceptionally beautiful region in western France that borders the Atlantic Ocean. The often-blustery weather is the only thing that stands in the way of Brittany becoming a major tourist destination. Aside from the chilly climate, the region is famous for its hand-harvested sea salt and salted butter caramel, both of which I would travel to the ends of the earth for. And no matter where you go in the region, you’ll find buckwheat being served in various guises, from griddled galettes to kig ha farz, a local curiosity made by poaching a pasty buckwheat batter in the sleeve of a linen shirt until it’s firm. Then it’s rolled on the counter until it breaks into tiny bits, like buckwheat couscous. They say it’s something that you need to be Breton to enjoy, so I must have some Breton in me since I loved it since the first time I tried it. I’m happy to have this cake in my repertoire because I enjoy the hearty taste of buckwheat in my desserts, too.

I’m not a fan of fancy, complicated desserts, but I am a fan of anything delicious—especially when it involves caramelized nuts, chocolate ganache, and Cognac-flavored crème fraîche, as this cake does. True, this recipe requires a few steps to gather the components, but slicing layers of nutty meringue and spreading layers of crackly praline cream never feels like work to me. Like all good things, marjolaine is worth the effort. To make things easy, instead of laborious buttercream, I make a simple crème fraîche–based icing, which adds a distinctive tangy flavor and isn’t so rich. You can make the praline and the meringue days in advance, and the marjolaine should be assembled at least a day before it is served to give the flavors a chance to marry, so you can stage out the preparation. It’s really not difficult to assemble once you’ve gotten the components organized. And I guarantee, when you proudly glide a slick layer of chocolate ganache over the top and then take that first bite, you’ll be congratulating yourself on a job well done.

Whenever I use canteloupe to make paletas de melón or agua de melón, I like to save the seeds to make this drink. It’s quite tasty, and something about it makes me feel energetic.

This recipe was first published in the New York Times as part of an article on different kinds of shaved ice. The paper’s Diner’s Journal blog asked readers to suggest different flavors, and I had to pick one and come up with a recipe. I chose horchata, a milky beverage often made with rice, because I thought it would go perfectly with the luscious, juicy strawberries that filled the market stands at that time. It’s worth seeking out Mexican cinnamon, as its flavor makes all the difference in this raspado. If you want a stickier, sweeter syrup, add another can of sweetened condensed milk.

In Mexico, chocolate is mainly used to prepare hot chocolate, so when you hear people say “Mexican chocolate,” or chocolate de mesa, they usually mean chocolate made for this purpose. It’s grainy because it’s basically toasted ground cocoa mixed with sugar, cinnamon, and sometimes vanilla, almonds, or both. I really love the fragrance of Mexican cinnamon, so I like to infuse some in the liquid for this ice pop to add more flavor. I decided to add little bits of chocolate and almonds to these paletas to give another layer of flavor and crunchiness. Who doesn’t love that?

This ice cream is fabulous drizzled with hot fudge sauce—a decidedly sophisticated treat for adults.

This is a delectably creamy vegan pie with a deep, rich chocolate almond flavor. I love it topped with soy whipped cream. This dessert will satisfy the most discerning chocoholic—guaranteed.

This refreshing apple pie is made with enzyme-rich raw apples and contains no fat. Completely fat-free, dairy-free, egg-free, sugar-free, and wheat-free—it’s totally guilt-free.

I love all things lemon. The barley and oat flours used in this recipe create a nutty crust that complements the tart, soufflélike topping—perfect with a cup of green tea.

For variety, substitute prunes for the apricots in these fat-free (and guilt-free) bars. Sweet and chewy, they make a nice lunch box treat.

These irresistible cookies are so versatile. For something special, fill them with peanut butter and juice-sweetened jam to make a cookie sandwich. Dip half the sandwich in chocolate ganache and place on waxed paper–lined baking sheets to firm up the chocolate. There’s only one word for this—outrageous.

I’ve been making these irresistible cookies since opening my first Sprouts Café in Trumbull, Connecticut, years ago. I now make them with agave nectar and sprouted spelt flour, and they’re better than ever.

Carob chips are a nice change from chocolate in these yummy cookies.

I first made this delicious, super-crunchy granola while consulting for Edge of the Woods, a great natural foods market, bakery, and vegetarian café in New Haven, Connecticut. At the time, I was developing lots of agave nectar desserts and goodies for diabetics and clients concerned with sugar when it occurred to me that there were no good-tasting, sugar-free granolas available. Hence the birth of Orange Pecan Granola, a staple in our household! Great on its own as a snack, or sprinkle it over yogurt, fresh fruit, or even frozen yogurt for dessert.

One day my coauthor, Mat, was reminiscing to his mom, Clair, about an ice cream store he worked at while in college. “I told her that I got so sick of ice cream that for two years after I quit I couldn’t go near it.” At which point Clair mentioned that as a girl she worked for years at the chocolate counter at Gimbel’s, one of New York’s famous retailers. Gimbel’s let you eat as much chocolate as you liked on the job, so long as you didn’t take any home. “I asked Mom if she ever got sick of chocolate. She just looked at me like I was nuts and said, ‘Why would I?’” Which brings us to these little morsels. For chocolate aficionados, nothing provides a better fix than a truffle. My friend Wendy, an incredible chocolatier, designed these confections from a scrumptious mélange of chocolate, dates, orange zest, and ground nuts, all rolled in coconut. I could tell you that the reason to eat these is because they’re high in protein and phytochemicals, but how ‘bout we just call that a nice side benefit of yum! Since you’re going to indulge in a chocolate dessert, be sure to make it the best by using high-quality chocolate.

Sometimes I think that if we could get cars to run off almonds, you wouldn’t need more than a handful to go from San Francisco to L.A. Yeah, they have that much energy—twenty nuts are more than enough to get most people I know through a hunger rush—and they’re nutrient dense, so the body can put every calorie to work. It’s really easy to prep up a whole bunch of these; all it takes is a little olive oil, some seasoning, and a few minutes in the oven and they’re ready to rock. I often tell my clients to leave little bowls of these around the house so they’re constantly tempted to grab a healthy nibble.

The whole idea of Anytime Bars is right in the name; you never know when hunger is going to strike, and you want to be ready to take advantage of those moments to nourish yourself. A lot of my clients take these portable packets of pleasure to chemo sessions. It may seem odd that people want to eat during treatment, but many do, and these bars are a delicious, healthy alternative to the bowls of sweets so often found around infusion centers. The great thing about this recipe is that you can change the ingredients to fit your taste preferences. You can even split the batter and make half with currant and cranberries and the other half with walnuts or whatever you’d like. These bars come together very quickly with the food processor, but if you don’t have one, you can certainly chop the fruit and nuts by hand.

This salad was inspired by one of those gorgeous, colorful Bollywood flicks that offer a feast of singing, dancing, and romance. I love Indian food, as it was my first real introduction to all things curry. Only much later did I learn that turmeric, a typical spice in curries that gives them a yellow tint, has tremendous antitumor and anti-inflammatory properties. And to think, I loved it just for its taste! Here, I was hankering for a swirl of flavors with an Indian feel. The chicken makes a great starting point because it’s full of protein and amenable to all sorts of accessorizing. In this case, the mango and raisins play delightfully off the curry spices.

Who could guess that this heavenly confection is made with a mere three ingredients? The result: a rich smooth cupcake with a wonderfully crispy top, quick and easy enough to make for a weeknight dessert. Enjoy these cupcakes plain, or for a super sugar high, top with White Chocolate Frosting (page 94).

Chocolate and almonds are a match made in heaven’s kitchen. This cupcake has both healthy dark chocolate and antioxidant-rich almonds (a superfood) in a fudgy base for a little hit of healthy deliciousness in every bite. Try these with Chocolate Ganache (page 92).