Crispy Witches' Hats
- 1/4 cup heavy cream
- 9 ounces semisweet chocolate, chopped
- 1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons pecan pieces
- 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 4 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into pieces
- 1/4 cup packed dark brown sugar
- 1/4 cup light corn syrup
- 1/4 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- In a small saucepan, bring the cream to a boil.
- Off the heat, stir in 4 ounces of the chocolate and let stand for 1 minute, then whisk until smooth.
- Transfer to a bowl and let the ganache cool.
- In a food processor, combine the pecans with the flour and salt and pulse until finely ground.
- In a medium saucepan, combine the butter, brown sugar and corn syrup and bring to a boil, stirring.
- Remove from the heat and add the vanilla and ground pecan mixture.
- Transfer the batter to a bowl and refrigerate until firm, about 2 hours.
- Preheat the oven to 350.
- Scoop 48 level teaspoons of the batter and roll each into a ball.
- Place 8 balls on a large ungreased cookie sheet, 4 inches apart.
- Keep the rest of the balls refrigerated.
- Bake the cookies for 9 minutes, or until they stop bubbling.
- Set the baking sheet on a wire rack and let the cookies cool for 3 minutes.
- Working very quickly, form 4 of the cookies into cones: Carefully lift 1 cookie at a time with a spatula and roll it, bumpy side out, into a cone shape.
- Press the seam to close, transfer to a wire rack and let cool.
- Transfer the remaining 4 flat cookies to the rack.
- Repeat with the remaining balls, forming half into cones and transferring the remaining flat cookies to a wire rack to cool.
- Between batches, run the underside of the baking sheet under cool water and wipe it dry.
- Line 2 baking sheets with wax paper.
- In a small saucepan, melt the remaining 5 ounces of chocolate.
- Using a small pastry brush, brush the chocolate all over the bumpy surface of the cones and the flat cookies and transfer them to the prepared sheets; warm the chocolate if it becomes too thick.
- Refrigerate the cookies just until the chocolate is set.
- Fill a pastry bag fitted with a 1/8-inch plain tip with the chocolate ganache.
- Pipe a ring of ganache on a flat cookie, about the size of the rim of a cone.
- Carefully place the cone on the ganache, holding it in place just until set.
- Repeat to make the remaining hats.
- Refrigerate just until chilled.
- Run a thin knife under the cookies to release them from the wax paper, transfer to a platter and serve.
heavy cream, chocolate, pecan pieces, allpurpose, salt, unsalted butter, brown sugar, light corn syrup, vanilla
Taken from www.foodandwine.com/recipes/crispy-witches-hats (may not work)