Friday, January 29, 2010

The World of Chocolate is bigger than a kiss...


I love this expression and wondered what you thought about it...The World of Chocolate is bigger than a kiss...is it about Valentines Day or is it just about feeling good?

Visiting Fairchild Gardens Chocolate Festival


The adventures this past two weeks is about chocolate and some new faces. Fairchild Gardens brings people out who don't usually notice that they have a tropical garden in their backyard.
Ecuadorian Chocolate, L'atelier du chocolate, crepes express, Oliver Kita...it was a delicious day.
So when I came back to PA, my list of things to do is to reach out to so many of the Chocolatiers and welcome them to be part of the Bucks County Chocolate Show! Stay tuned to who gets added to the list.
In the meantime, baking for Valentines Day has begun and the flourless torte, European chocolate chunk cookies will fill the kitchen so that you can get your Party to Go. Visit Stockton Market in Stockton, NJ to visit me Valentines Day weekend.

Thursday, January 14, 2010

Flying high with The World of Chocolate

It's been so much fun this week. The Candy and Gourmet Show on Sunday, baking and visiting Sand Castle Winery for a pairing recommendation. Also,

I've been testing ways to use red cocoa that Laurie gave me (Laurie's Chocolates) and began with vegan chocolate cupcakes. The recipe was from Desserts that Heal from Heather MacLean Walters, were light and moist. A total surprise~in a good way. I didn't have time to do frosting and felt they needed something...I confess I took a shortcut and I stuffed a truffle into their center so they had a heart. Does this mean I failed?
The pumpkin bread was great just the way it was-well I did change the whole recipe by incorporating tapioca flour, reduced the sugar and used almond milk. Then to dazzle the experience, I used the red cocoa to dust the bottom of the pan and it was a light and flavorful. Doubling the batch to keep the ratio's worked perfectly this time around and I think I'm in love with tapioca flour. It's so much smoother than rice flour and seems to be a equal substitute for pastry or regular flour. Have you tried it yet? I'd love to hear if you found the same results with your recipes.

Thursday, January 7, 2010

Comforting with Chocolate


Whether it's chocolate decadence, crispy milk chocolate truffles or a recipe from Desserts That Heal, chocolate has the ability to comfort in a way that people think of chicken soup. It's something that reaches the soul quickly and with a passion that starts at your toes.

So as I've reached out to share chocolate with close friends that are now in mourning for their sister, tonight, I'll be baking a new recipe for the memory of Janie. Heather MacLean Walters Desserts That Heal with give me the inspiration in her recipe for Dark Mocha Cake. It seems to conjure up energy, rich thought and filling something inside with a cake that goes to places you need it to.
So let's see if my cake ends up looking like this...stay tuned and I'll post the recipe
tonight.

Sunday, January 3, 2010

Wishing you a Happy New Year~Cheer!



The recipe came out great and was easy to make. It paired beautifully with the champagne that was garnished with pomengranite (sp), the dry bubbly and sweet dusted cookie. I especially liked the richness that the almond flour adds to the recipe without weighing it down.
As a treat, I only made part of the batter for New Years and then had some more, fresh the next day. They were soft in the center and light. What a nice afternoon pick me up. One thing I would suggest though is experimenting with the chile powder you use. I didn't have the right chile, yet even with what I added it gave a little warmth and depth to the cookie.

I hope you enjoy it as much as we did. My friend actually said it's one of the best I've made-easy and elegant-that's the way I like it.