Caramelized Banana Tart with Hazelnut Cream

It's Persian New Year! I was at my local Persian grocery store today and I noticed an abundance of whole hazelnuts being sold. They looked beautiful, so I bought a large bag of nuts, which were eaten fairly quickly by all the family. I turned the remaining nuts into a fine mill and made frangipane tarts in the evening.

To make the dessert look ultra fancy without being too complicated, I topped the hazelnut cream with bruléed bananas. Caramelizing the bananas brought out additional flavors that really complemented the hazelnut cream and the flaky puff pastry.

My cousin's husband Hoss from Ohio is Persian, so we called him to send him our best wishes. But unfortunately, he changed his number and didn't tell us. The person who picked up was utterly confused. So Hoss, if you're reading this, "Happy Nowruz"!

Blueberry Almond Tart Recipe

I love blueberries. I usually serve them fresh with yogurt but this time, I made a change and baked them in a delicious almond cream tart. I filled puff pastry dough with homemade buttery almond cream and topped it with fresh blueberries.

When blueberries are baked, they release a beautiful deep blue color onto the almond cream. I didn't want the puff pastry to turn soggy, so instead of using regular tart molds, I placed them into brioche molds that could hold more cream as the cavity is much deeper. The tarts were not overly sweet; I really wanted the blueberries to shine in this wonderful French dessert. 

Flourless Chile Chocolate Cake Recipe

Please welcome Lynda from Taste Food Blog. Lynda is a Paris Cordon Bleu graduate. After her culinary journey all over Europe (France, Switzerland, Great Britain and Denmark), she came back to the US 17 years later with a Danish husband and two children.

I recently started following her blog. The photographs are stunning and I love her approach to classic French dishes, many of which I grew up eating. Today she's sharing her chile chocolate flourless cake, especially for Valentine's Day. Enjoy!

This month, I have the pleasure of guest-posting on Jackie's wonderful blog, Pham Fatale. When I discovered Pham Fatale, it immediately resonated with me. It shares a similar love for feeding friends and family, while influenced by an international family and life. Jackie's Vietnamese parents, Parisian upbringing and vegetarian, sweet-loving husband create a kaleidoscope of good eats which keep me coming back for more. And with Valentine's Day fast approaching, I can't think of a more perfect way to share a little blog (and chocolate) love with her readers than with this recipe.

Flourless chile-chocolate cake promises to add a little spice to your Valentine's Day. Laced with chipotle, cayenne and cinnamon, this dense fudgy cake has a naughty kick of smoke and heat cloaked in chocolate that's both surprising and exciting. Now that's a Valentine's cake.

Clementine Chocolate Lava Cake Recipe

My garden is filled with ripe citrus fruits right now, so I gathered two full baskets of clementines. Even though the rain hasn't been all that great this season, the fruit is incredibly sweet. We're lucky! I usually peel fruit right after dinner, leave them at the dining table and let everyone help themselves right away. But this time, before peeling the clementines, I gathered the zest to make my husband Lulu's favorite: chocolate lava cake. It might look complicated, but fear not, it's just a matter of timing. Like love!

If you're planning to surprise your sweetheart for Valentine's Day this year, a decadent chocolate dessert should be at the top of your list. First, it's delicious, and second, I love the idea of Googling aphrodisiacs in preparation for Valentine's Day!