This sounds very strange but it was a winner. I was reading a recent Bon Appetit magazine article about Modern Mexico and I was prepared for a lot of silliness but instead it was a really smart article by Nils Bernstein.
One of the dishes was a salad made with a vinaigrette with instant coffee. At first, like you, I thought, why bother? Then I tried it. It was very good. Then I thought, if coffee is good, wouldn't chocolate be better? Guess what? It was.
The original recipe called for sherry vinegar and while that's nice, in fact, very nice, I decided to try it with our pineapple vinegar. Friends, I don't have to do anything clever for a good long time. This was great and it's time for a victory lap and a long rest on my laurels.
Pineapple Vinegar Vinaigrette with Stoneground Chocolate
If it tastes overtly like pineapples or chocolate, you've used too much. It's a new taste and lovely. You can experiment with different vinegars but don't mess with the chocolate. Artisan chocolate from Mexico is the only way to go.
3 tablespoons Rancho Gordo Pineapple Vinegar
1 teaspoon honey
3 tablespoons Rancho Gordo Stoneground Mexican Chocolate, finely grated
salt and pepper
1/3 cup olive oil
Whisk together the vinegar, honey, chocolate, salt and pepper until the chocolate is incorporated. Slowly whisk in the olive oil until the dressing has emulsified. Serve room temperature over salad greens.