Match made in heaven

Named for the Roman goddess of marriage, June has traditionally been the most popular month for weddings, a time when prospective brides and grooms might hear swirling in their heads the lyrics to a popular Frank Sinatra tune:"Love and marriage, love and marriage,

Go together like a horse and carriage.

This I tell ya, brother, you can't have one without the other."

The same thing can be said, of course, for spaghetti and meatballs--or bacon and eggs. Some marriages do seem to be made in heaven, and this is no less true from a culinary perspective than a matrimonial one. Sometimes seeming opposites attract, yet, surprisingly, complement each other--like Phil and Claire Dunphy on the sitcom Modern Family.

In the food world this phenomenon has become something of an obsession with the so-called molecular gastronomists. Thus, Heston Blumenthal paired white chocolate with caviar at his British restaurant, The Fat Duck, and launched a culinary movement in search of other unusual combinations that somehow work.

A pot of chocolate cream flavored with rosemary, though an unlikely combination, turns out to be a marriage made in heaven. (TOM HARTE)

In the spirit of the month, and mindful of G.K. Chesterton's observation that he knew of many happy marriages, but never a compatible one, I herewith offer, with the help of Niki Segnit's "Flavor Thesaurus," some counterintuitive mates for my favorite ingredient: chocolate. Pairing it with almonds made Milton Hershey a millionaire. Combining it with milk propelled the Nestle Company into a global empire. The following betrothals can be just as blissful.

Chocolate & Avocado: Avocado provides not just flavor, but texture. It makes a velvety chocolate mousse, as in Giada De Laurentiis' Chocolate Avocado Mousse on the Food Network website. You might also try the Chocolate Avocado Smoothie from Eating Well magazine.

Chocolate & Cauliflower: We can thank Chef Blumenthal for this one too. He came up with the idea of offering cauliflower risotto with a chocolate jelly. The somewhat daunting recipe is in his cookbook. Simpler approaches include Roasted Cauliflower Dusted with Cocoa at the Voges Haut Chocolate website, and Chocolate Cake with Cauliflower at the Chocolate-Covered Katie dessert blog.

Chocolate & Goat Cheese: You might never consider pairing chocolate with cheese, but if you think about it, cheese really isn't that far removed from milk or cream, ingredients we happily combine with chocolate. So why shouldn't cheese work almost as well? You might try Brownies with Raspberry Goat Cheese Swirl available at the Guardian Newspaper website, or the Goat Cheese Truffles on the Epicurious website, or the Goat Cheese Fudge at About.com. Or you can do what many fine restaurants are doing: put chocolate on the cheeseboard at the end of the meal.

Chocolate & Anise, Nutmeg, or Cardamom: Cinnamon, of course, is a natural partner for chocolate. It's what makes Mexican chocolate Mexican, after all. These other spices can produce happy nuptials, too. Cardamom can actually make ordinary chocolate taste better than it is and nutmeg has a similar effect on milk chocolate. You might try Giada De Laurentiis' Chocolate Chip and Anise Biscotti at the Food Network website, or the Hot Chocolate with Cardamom from the Pete's Chocolate website, or the Milk Chocolate and Nutmeg Tart at the Food52 website.

The unlikely combination of chocolate and rosemary in these rich chocolate and cream pots turns out to be a flavor marriage made in heaven. (TOM HARTE)

Chocolate & Rosemary: combining chocolate with cinnamon, mint, or coffee seems pretty straightforward, but flavoring it with rosemary might seem like a stretch--until you taste it.

Chocolate and Rosemary Cream

This rich concoction, invented by Chef David Wilson of the Peat Inn near St. Andrews in Fife, Scotland, is, indeed, a marriage made in heaven. The recipe is adapted from the version published in The Independent, London's morning newspaper.

1 cup sugar

1 cup dry white wine

1 and 1/2 tablespoons lemon juice

2 cups cream

1 sprig fresh rosemary (or 1 teaspoon dried)

6 ounces bittersweet chocolate, grated

* Heat sugar, wine and lemon juice over medium heat until sugar is dissolved.

* Stir in cream and cook over low heat, stirring constantly, until mixture thickens. Add rosemary and chocolate and stir until chocolate is melted.

* Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer gently until thick, about 20 minutes.

* Strain through a sieve into six individual ramekins, cover and chill until set. Serve garnished with toasted almonds and rosemary sprigs, if desired.

Tom Harte's book, "Stirring Words," is available at local bookstores. A Harte Appetite airs Fridays 8:49 a.m. on KRCU, 90.9 FM. Contact Tom at semissourian.com or at the Southeast Missourian, P.O. Box 699, Cape Girardeau, Mo., 63702-0699.