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Tuesday, November 30, 2010

Chocolate Stuffed Prunes

My grandmother, Nana, who was Ida Hertz, wasn't a cozy lady.  But she did send us a tin of hamantaschen each year, and they were terrific.  I also have a strong memory of her sending my dad a box of chocolate stuffed prunes for Purim.  I saw her just a few times a year, and never really spent any time with her, so I have no idea what this was about, nor did I ever have chocolate stuffed prunes at any other time.  Why did I recall this 50 years later?  Food memories are like that.  That's why I'm doing this blog!

2 bags of prune, as moist as you can find
4 oz bittersweet baking chocolate bar, or any chocolate you fancy

I experimented.  They are easy, and delicious.

With a knife or kitchen scissors, half the prunes (one bag) lengthwise.  Flatten them out and lay them on a cookie sheet.  Take a bar of bittersweet baking chocolate, or any kind of chocolate you like, and break it into pieces placing a chunk on each prune.  Put it in a slow oven, about 300 degrees, for just five minutes.  Snip up the prunes from the other bag while the chocolate is melting.  Take out the baking tin of prunes and place another prune on top of the chocolate, to make a prune chocolate sandwich!

Set the cookie tin the the refridge so the chocolate hardens.

Goal in the future is for them to be a little more regular and pretty.

PS From Laurie Hertz - who grew up in St. Paul and saw Nana every week.
Sorry.  Not to be overly critical but you've got it wrong.  The coolest part of the prunes (I remember chocolate covered prunes) was that she put them in those little white candy wrappers and then in an old (Fanny Farmer?) candy box.  She must've have saved every candy box she ever received.  And every candy wrapper.  I don't think you could just go out and buy them in those days. I think they might have had a piece of cherry on each one.  

Update in 2023: I baked Zeke Hausmann a batch of almondhornchen (I posted the recipe) and I had a lot of leftover melted chocolate so I dipped prunes. Neil liked those the best!