Preparation / Directions:
Cut a piece of parchment paper wide enough to match the length of a standard loaf pan. Use the paper to line the bottom and long sides of the pan (the ends do not have to be covered).
Bring the cream to a boil. Remove from the heat and stir in the chocolate until it is completely melted. Add the amaretto, vanilla, and butter. Stir until smooth.
Place about 1/3 of mixture in a separate bowl and add the toasted almonds. Spread this mixture in the bottom of the loaf pan. Chill until firm, about 30 minutes. Pour in the remaining chocolate mixture (if it has hardened, melt it gently over hot water) and chill overnight.
Color about 3 1/2 ounces of the almond paste with a few drops of yellow food coloring. Form it into a long cylinder about 1 inch in diameter and chill. Cut into circles approximately 1/8 inch thick.
Color the remaining almond paste with green food coloring to the desired shade. Roll out the green almond paste to about 1/8 inch thickness, using powdered sugar on the board to keep it from sticking. Use a cookie cutter to cut the cactus shapes, one for each serving.
To serve, unmold the pate and cut it into serving pieces about 1/2 inch thick. Place the pate on a serving plate. Place a cactus on each slice as if growing out of sand (the almond layer). Place the yellow moon (or sun) above it and slightly to the left.
VARIATIONS: Use amaretto creme anglaise or raspberry sauce on the plate before placing the pate on it.
Notes: This dessert is basically a huge truffle. Although the decoration is a cactus scene, it can be made to fit any season, with a Christmas tree, a Valentine heart, or other cookie-cutter shapes in place of the saguaro cactus. The decoration is put onto the pate slice after it is cut.
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