Dragonfruit Nebula Bars: Recipe

Recipe below. But first: In the far reaches of the galaxy, the Dragonfruit Nebulae lie. Amid rocky crags, the gilded dragons guard their gemstone horde. Sparks of citrus and pepper dance in dark caverns. Once you taste their seductive wiles, you may find yourself unable to resist returning, again and again.

Heh. If I were going to work with dragonfruit, I knew I wanted to do a diamondscale bar (along with a scattering of gemstones), and gild it — I love how the combo of dragonfruit powder and edible gold came out. Gorgeous.

But what about the taste? Dragonfruit itself has a surprisingly delicate flavor, and while the concentrated powder is lovely to the tongue, once you mix that powder with white chocolate, it fades to just a hint of fruitiness. It needed something more.

A dragon-themed bar had to have some kind of heat, and while I do cayenne chocolates, cayenne would overpower the dragonfruit here. White pepper is perfect, a subtle heat that lingers on the tongue. And the citric acid doesn’t dissolve into the melted chocolate — instead, it dances on the tongue, little pinpricks of tang amidst the sea of fruity sweetness.

My test for a sweet, deciding whether it deserves a name, is whether it’s sufficiently ‘more-ish’. Do I find myself coming back to my island counter, breaking off another little bit to pop in my mouth again and again? This one definitely qualifies. 

*****

Dragonfruit Nebulae Chocolate
(makes two bars)

2 c. white chocolate, melted (1/2 power in microwave, 3-4 minutes, stirring once or twice)
2 t. dragonfruit powder
1/2 t. white pepper
1/2 t. citric acid
additional dragonfruit powder and edible gold dust for decoration, optional

1. Combine ingredients, stirring. Pour into mold and let set for a few hours, until firm.

2. Unmold, and if desired, gild with dragonfruit powder and edible gold dust. Eat and enjoy!

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