Pumpkin Is 10x More Flavorful When Paired With This Chocolate

Pumpkin is delicious when pureed and baked into a pie, turned into rich pasta sauce, or transformed into moist breads. However, pairing it with chocolate is a simple way to elevate its taste further and lend it some characterful complexity. It's dark chocolate in particular that gives pumpkin 10 times more flavor by balancing its earthy sweetness.

The difference between dark chocolate and semi-sweet chocolate is that the former has a stronger taste that can occasionally veer into the bitter. This is because dark chocolate has a higher cacao content and is made using less butter and fat than semi-sweet, milk, or white chocolate. The higher the cocoa percentage in dark chocolate, the more bitter it tastes; however, it's this quality that makes it such an incredible pairing with pumpkin. Pumpkin has an earthy character and natural sweetness to it when it's cooked (plus, its soft, dense, and rich flesh lends it a cozy sensory vibe). Dark chocolate cuts through some of this sweetness with its bitter personality, providing both a welcome contrast in texture and a balancing lift in flavor. As many pumpkin recipes tend to include warming spices, such as cinnamon and ginger, the dark chocolate also amplifies their existing aroma with its own rich flavor profile. As a general rule of thumb, a dark chocolate that's around 70% cacao is a great bet because it can be used for both snacking and baking. In contrast, dark chocolate with, say, a 90% cacao rating is very sharp and bitter.

As dark chocolate sets more firmly than semi-sweet chocolate, it's incredible for making rich ganaches. For instance, you could elevate a classic pumpkin pie recipe by pouring a dark chocolate mousse on top or adding shavings of chocolate into the pastry crust. Alternatively, for an easier trick, you could simply combine some melted dark chocolate into a portion of your pumpkin pie filling before swirling it through the rest to create a stunning two-tone dessert. As dark chocolate has more of an intense and concentrated flavor than milk chocolate, you'll be able to use less to achieve a rich, chocolatey taste.

You can add dark chocolate to pumpkin recipes that go beyond the traditional pie too, such as drizzling it over pumpkin cheesecake or using it to sandwich pumpkin cookies together. In this recipe for pumpkin French toast, Hawaiian rolls are coated in pumpkin puree and brown sugar before they're baked; add a sprinkling of dark chocolate chips on top and you'll create a balanced contrast against the natural earthy sweetness of the pumpkin. Looking for a savory pumpkin recipe that features dark chocolate? You could do as the Mexicans do and make a mole sauce with dark chocolate and chilies that can be swirled into an autumnal pumpkin soup.