Monthly Flavors for April – No Tricks or Foolery Here!

April has arrived, and spring has sprung! Citrus season is almost over, and the summer fruit are just starting to be ready (closer to the end of the month). You will find the end of blood oranges and kumquats with the beginning of stone fruit and berries at your local farmer’s market.

Two fun April holidays celebrated this month are Passover and Easter! Passover is the Jewish holiday celebrating the exodus from Egypt, and Easter is the Christian holiday celebrating the return of Jesus. Because I am Jewish, I have always celebrated Passover, and loved the ceremony and the food and the ritual of it. At 10 years old, I started “celebrating” Easter when my childhood best friend would invite my family to their Easter brunch. I loved the colors, the fun, and the food (of course I am mostly about food)! I tried to do both justice in the flavors for them.

This Month's Flavors

Devour

Lime and Cardamom Jelly with Lemongrass Dark Chocolate Ganache

These flavors are a wonderful mix of bright, earthy, and floral. The cardamom brings a light herbaceous note with floral overtone to the bright zing of lime. The lemongrass is citrus-y but sweet, cut by the bitterness of dark chocolate. So, definitely one to savor!

Fluff

Crème de Menthe Marshmallow

Marshmallow is synonymous with Easter here in the US. Peeps Chicks are ubiquitous on grocery shelves, and many dessert buffets are adorned with marshmallow bunnies and chicks. I decided to make these a bit more grown up and add booze! And I find mint to be a wonderful addition to Easter dishes, so it makes perfect sense to me.

Gold

Banana Caramel with Toasted Hazelnuts

Banana is such a divisive flavor. Unsurprisingly, I quite dislike the fake flavor but really like the actual fruit. This caramel is made with fresh bananas, and chopped toasted hazelnuts are folded in at the end. The result is definitely banana flavored without being fake or overpowering, with bursts of nutty crunch that pair beautifully.

Pesach

Coconut and Caramelized Honey White Chocolate Ganache

For Passover, Jews cannot have any risen bread or products from grain that ferments or rises in water. What particular grains is actually quite contentious according to Jewish scholars! Because of this, we get a little more creative about flour replacements or recipes that avoid grains at all. Coconut macaroons are hugely popular for Passover, because they are made with only coconut, sugar, and egg white. This means that coconut is inextricably linked to Passover in my mind. I wanted to mellow out the coconut, and the caramelized honey does a wonderful job at bringing in darker, almost bitter notes into the ganache.

Restore

Grapefruit Reduction and Pimm’s Caramelized White Chocolate Ganache

Springtime means a return of the refreshing, light cocktail sipped while enjoying the sun and light breeze. Pimm’s is a British gin-based liquor that screams “light and refreshing cocktail!” Often enjoyed at horse races, the Pimm’s cup is Pimm’s with lemon juice and ginger ale. I thought grapefruit would be a lovely tie to the end of citrus season, and it is so wanted here! The grapefruit reduction is somewhere between a syrup and runny jelly, so it coats your mouth with its sweet tartness, and the Pimm’s ganache brings notes of a fruit cocktail, darkened with Angostura bitters, and at ending with chocolate sweetness. Cheerio!

Tang

Pistachio and Ginger Ruby Chocolate Ganache

Ruby chocolate is known for its berry notes with a tart and sour profile. Pairing with pistachio and ginger, you get an evolution of sweetness from the chocolate, nutty earthiness from the pistachios, spicy brightness from the ginger, and back to red fruit tartness from the chocolate again. It is quite wonderful, worth savoring!

This Month's Gallery

Cookie Flavors

#1 Orange Oatmeal Currant Cookies

I am a huge oatmeal cookie fan. I love the texture, I love the flavor of brown sugar with oats, love how crispy yet soft they can be. These cookies are lightly orange flavored with zest (the oranges are from my tree, very organic!) and the pops of bright currant are so lovely with the deep brown sugar flavor.

#2 Coffee Cardamom Walnut Financier

Traditionally baked in little bars, financiers try to look like a cake version of a gold bar. Not only are these flowers not the traditional shape, but these are also darker than gold thanks to the coffee and walnuts. However, they are so decadent and rich, they still belong in any vault! They are buttery, nutty, and pretty damn addictive!

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