I became a knitting fanatic. I attended a knitter’s convention (I hate conventions). I carried my knitting everywhere. This prompted friends to ask how they could learn how to knit. When the number of friends who wanted to learn how to knit hit eight I knew I needed to organize a class. We met at my flat on Nob Hill for three Sundays during the winter of 2004. I found a charming and patient fellow to teach us. It was a grand way to spend a cold winter’s afternoon. Eight new knitters were born.
During this time, I began to notice something else about knitting. I was addicted. This quiet, meditative hobby was filling me with a feeling of well-being. A feeling that was reminiscent of what I experienced while eating a piece of really good chocolate. Peace. Balance. Bliss. Was there a knitting-chocolate connection? This was a research project I could really throw myself into. And I did. I developed a Chocolate and Knitting Tour of San Francisco. This lead to my stint at a neighborhood-knitting store on Sunday afternoons conducting chocolate tasting classes. I called it ‘Chocolate Sundays’. Is it any surprise that every knitter in my classes kept a stash of chocolate in their knitting bags? Probably not. The big surprise to me was that these knitters were only interested in the very best chocolate available. No $1.00 candy bars for this group. They were pulling bars of $8.00, single variety, 75 percent cacao chocolate bars out of their bags. Chocolate that they confessed to be hiding from spouses and children. I was watching a chocolate renaissance before my very eyes. A renaissance that I wanted to be part of. That’s when I named my future. And I called it chocolate.
Back to the Knitters of Nob Hill. I developed this cookie for us. It is a great cookie. I have actually witnessed a TV host swoon on live television as he bit into one. I am a chef and when I develop new recipes for clients I focus on not only great flavor but also interesting texture and finish. The little grains of salt on top of this cookie will get stuck in your molars and slowly melt after the initial hit of chocolate slips past your tongue, an amazing sensation. While the following recipe will work with any fleur de sel (fine grain sea salt), I recommend Maldon Sea Salt, from Maldon, Essex, England. This particular sea salt's soft, flaky, pyramid shaped crystals add just the right amount of texture to the top.
