The Culinary Institute of America

Caramelized Almond & Almond Butter Bonbons

These caramelized almond and almond butter bonbons are a luxurious blend of crunchy caramelized almonds and silky almond butter encased in a milk chocolate shell. Robert Jorin was a baking and pastry instructor at the Culinary Institute of America's California campus for more than 25 years. These chocolates are inspired by a confection called nusstorte that are popular in chef’s home town of Davos in Eastern Switzerland. He was the third generation to work in his family bakery there, and the chocolates are a nostalgic and classic flavor of the Swiss Alps.
Find the recipe at: https://www.ciaprochef.com/almondbutter/bonbons

Mexican Chocolate and Almond Butter Toffee

This Mexican-inspired almond toffee has a crunch and a bite! Made with almond butter, cinnamon, and chili pepper-infused caramel coated with extra dark chocolate, this tasty treat features the flavors of a Mexican hot chocolate. Robert Jorin was a baking and pastry instructor at the Culinary Institute of America's California campus for more than 25 years, and shows us how to make this fun twist on a toffee.
Find the recipe at: https://www.ciaprochef.com/almondbutter/toffee

Smoked Almond Butter & Peach Bourbon Chocolates

These smoked almond butter and peach bourbon chocolates blend smoky almond butter with the bright sweetness of ripe peaches and the oaky warmth of bourbon, all encased in dark chocolate. Anissa Dann is the chef and owner of Wicked Good Plants, a vegan baking and pastry company based out of Napa, CA, and she loves coming up with ideas that are both familiar and unexpected for her customers. In these confections, she took the nostalgic flavors of peanut butter and jelly, and gave them an unexpected and elevated twist.
Find the recipe at: https://www.ciaprochef.com/almondbutter/peachchocolates/

Vegan Double Decker Fudge

This plant-based version of double decker fudge has a layer of rich chocolate fudge on the bottom and almond butter fudge on top. Anissa Dann is the chef/owner of Wicked Good Plants, a vegan baking and pastry company based out of Napa, CA. This recipe brings back some favorite memories of her childhood in Maine, where she used to enjoy the fudge sold at a local apple orchard near her home. Her vegan version of this childhood favorite still has the silky mouthfeel and decadence of a traditional fudge.
Find the recipe at: https://www.ciaprochef.com/almondbutter/fudge

Vegan Alfajores de Maicena Cookies

Alfajores de Maicena are deliciously light and melt-in-the-mouth Argentine cookie sandwiches filled with dulce de leche. Anissa Dann is the chef and owner of Wicked Good Plants, a vegan baking and pastry company based out of Napa, CA, and shows us how she makes a vegan version of this beloved Argentinian cookie. In her California-style cookie, she replaces the dulce de leche filling with a decadent almond butter and date caramel.
Find the recipe at: https://www.ciaprochef.com/almondbutter/alfajores

Introduction: Almond Butter and Chocolate Master Class

Welcome to the Almond Butter and Chocolate Master Class Series, a collaboration between the Almond Board of California, and the Culinary Institute of America. In this series, Robert Jorin, retired baking and pastry instructor from the Culinary Institute of America, and Anissa Dann, the vegan chef/owner of Wicked Good Plants, show us how they create chocolate confections using almond butter.
You will learn the inspiration and technique behind the confections they developed, including Caramelized Almond and Almond Butter Bonbons, Mexican Almond Roca infused with chili oil, Double Decker Fudge, Smoked Almond and Bourbon Peach Chocolates, and Almond Butter and Chocolate Alfajores de Maicena.
Learn more and find recipes at: https://www.ciaprochef.com/almondbutter

Vegan Charcuterie Board

Charcuterie boards are a visually stunning and versatile shared appetizer that have recently grown in popularity. They have also evolved far beyond meat and cheese boards. This beautiful vegetarian “charcuterie” board includes pastrami-cured portobello mushrooms, smoked peppered beets, smoked celeriac and wild mushroom terrine, pickled vegetables, tomato chutney, and more. You don’t need to make an entirely vegan board like this one, but adding just some of these plant-based elements to a traditional charcuterie board makes it much more plant-forward and unique for your guests.
Get the Vegan Charcuterie Board recipe here!

Loaded Smashed Potatoes

 
Get the Loaded Smashed Potatoes recipe here!