2,650,342 tons of cocoa were shipped around the world in 2009/10, according to the latest data from the International Cocoa Organisation.  So when I came across the Guardian's beautiful map of the world's chocolate and where it comes from I wanted to be sure to share it.

Continue...

Many of you may have had a chance to hear me interviewed by Ms. Halli Casser-Jayne on Blog talk radio, but for those of you that missed it, you can listen to it below.  I was among a panel of five guests including: University of Washington professor and author Dr. Kristy Leissle; dietitian and wellness coach Mary Barbour; author of The Chocolate Thief and Parisian chocolate aficionado Laura Florand; psychotherapist and self-help author Esther Kane; and Dr. Keristy Leissle aka Dr. Chocolate, world-renowned chocolate expert with a PhD in chocolate.  Some of the hot topics we discussed were history of chocolate, romance and chocolate, sex and chocolate, books and chocolate, artisan chocolate, and health and well-being and chocolate.  This was a great show and I highly recommend all lovers of chocolate to sit back with a mug of hot chocolate and have a listen to a wonderful show all about chocolate! 

Continue...

As I’m sure you’ve noticed, I haven’t been blogging much lately. However, I found the most amazing Valentine’s Day cupcake decorating idea from Buttercream Blondie that I needed to share… Love Monsters!  How cute is that.  Best of all, these adorable little Valentine’s Day monsters are a great and nearly free way to celebrate the holiday in a fun and festive way.  All you have to do is start off with a cupcake.  You can use any of your personal favorite flavors or even buy a batch from the store.  The most important part is how we will decorate them.  

Because this is Valentine’s Day, let’s use a red, pink and white theme.  Start out with a batch of colored buttercream. Using a piping bag fitted with a #133 tip, squeeze some fuzzy “hair” all over the cupcakes. Now for the most important part, making the Love Monster’s eyes!  Its easier than you think.  Just take some fondant (available at cake decorating, hobby, or craft stores) and roll out a thin piece of fondant and cut out the eyes using a heart shaped cookie cutter.  Imagination is the limit when it comes to decorating the eyes. You can use edible glitter, sprinkles, cut out smaller bits of fondant to create googly eyes or even make eyelashes.  Just play around until you find the combinations you like the best.  Once the fondant is dry just insert some toothpicks into the bottom end so that the eyes stand up when inserted into the cupcake.

 What you'll need

• Cupcakes
• Buttercream
• Pink and red food coloring
• Pastry bag
• Tip #133
• Fondant for eyes
• Heart shaped cookie cutter
• Toothpicks
• Assorted candy such as candy corn, heart shaped sprinkles, conversation hearts, & eye candy
• Red & silver disco dust

Continue...

Gingerbread Men Cookies

There is nothing quite like the spicy sweet scent of gingerbread cookies in the air to instanly make me think of the holidays. Maybe it has to do with my memories of growing up and helping my mom make batches of cookies. I remember standing on the chair next to her, barely able to see over the top of the mixing bowl, anxiously awaiting my chance to stir the deliciousness that was waiting in that big yellow bowl. Maybe it has something to do with the fact that my go to candle scent of the season is gingerbread. Either way, when this time of year comes around I always find myself craving gingerbread cookies, gingerbread men to be specific. Which is why I wanted to share a delicious recipe from the Food Network's very own, Aida Mollenkamp.

I really like her take on the classic recipe. This one uses dark molasses which I personally love. It has an intense unique flavor that you can only describe as molasses. Because of this I recommend using a lighter variety if making with/for children as I've found that molasses has an acquired taste that most kids just haven't had a chance to develop.

INGREDIENTS – Gingerbread Men

3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting the work surface
1 1/2 teaspoons ground ginger
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon fine salt
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon ground clove
1 cup granulated sugar
8 tablespoons unsalted butter (1 stick), at room temperature
3/4 cup dark molasses
1 large egg, at room temperature

Ingredients – Royal Icing

4 cups powdered sugar (1 [1-pound] box)
2 large egg whites, lightly beaten
5 teaspoons freshly squeezed lemon juice(for thinner frosting use a little more lemon)

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Combine the flour, ginger, cinnamon, nutmeg, salt, baking soda, and clove in a large bowl. Whisk to aerate and break up any lumps; set aside.

2. Combine the sugar, butter, and molasses in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment and beat on medium speed until fluffy and light, about 2 minutes.

3. Scrape down the sides of the mixing bowl, add the egg, and mix until incorporated. Add the dry ingredients and mix on low speed until moist throughout, about 2 minutes. Turn the dough onto a dry, clean surface, divide it in half and form it into flat disks, cover in plastic wrap, and refrigerate until firm, at least 1 hour or up to 3 days.

4. Heat the oven to 350°F and arrange a rack in the middle. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside. Place half of the dough on a lightly floured work surface and roll it out to 1/4-inch thickness.

5. Cut the dough into 3-inch round cookies and transfer to the prepared baking sheet. Gather the remaining dough into a ball and place in the refrigerator for at least 15 minutes before rerolling.

6. Bake the cookies until the edges are brown but the centers are still soft, about 8 to 10 minutes. Remove from the oven, let cool slightly on the baking sheet (about 2 minutes), then remove to a wire rack to cool completely. Repeat with the remaining dough.

Instructions – Royal Icing

1. Combine ingredients in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment. Whisk on medium speed, stopping to scrape down the bowl, until glossy and stiff, about 5 minutes.

2. Fill a piping bag or a resealable plastic bag with one corner snipped off and use to decorate cookies. (If not using immediately, place a piece of waxed paper on the surface, cover in plastic wrap, and refrigerate until ready to use. Stir before using.)

Continue...

People often assume that going vegan means that you have to sacrifice taste.  That's not always the case. It just means that you have to make more conscious decisions.  Fortunately, there is a variety of tasty options in the market for vegans with a sweet tooth and this recipe for vegan chocolate brownies does an amazing job of satisfying both your need for vegan chocolate sweets and your life decision. This recipe for vegan brownies is guaranteed to deliver moist and gooey treats. It takes very simple ingredients that won’t get you searching the supermarket aisles for hours. Additionally, you can add chunks of high quality vegan chocolate bars, like Sulpice, to add a sophisticated flair to this classic dessert.

Vegan Chocolate Brownies 

Ingredients:

2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour

½ cup raw sugar (raw sugar ensure the batch is vegan)

3-4 tbsp maple syrup (for a sweeter batch)

3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder

1 teaspoon baking powder

1 teaspoon salt

1 cup water or for a creamier batch, 1 cup soy milk

1/2 cup vegetable oil

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

2 shots of espresso

Instructions:

1.      Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).

2.      Stir together the flour, sugar, cocoa powder, baking powder, and salt in a large bowl. Pour in water or soy milk, vegetable oil, vanilla extract, and espresso. Mix until blended.

3.      Spread evenly in a 9x13 baking pan.

4.      Bake for 15-20 minutes for ultra gooey brownies and 25-30 minutes for more crumbly ones or until the top is no longer shiny. Let cool for 10 minutes before cutting.

Continue...

When many people make the decision to lead a vegan lifestyle, they worry about losing some of their favorite treats. For some, this means chocolate. However, did you know that there are many types of vegan chocolate available on the market?

Chocolate, at its purest form, is certainly vegan, as cocoa is taken from the beans of the cacao plant. However, from when a bean is picked through when it is processed into a final chocolate product there may be ingredients added, such as milk or milk fat that make the product non-vegan.

One way to guarantee that you have vegan chocolate is to look at the ingredient list. Vegan chocolate is generally high in quality, and short on ingredients. High quality chocolate will include cocoa, sugar, cocoa butter, lecithin, and vanilla. Limiting the ingredients serves to make the product vegan, and focus and feature the rich chocolate flavor.

Chocolate is something that vegans can enjoy whenever they please, as long as they make sure to check the ingredient list. Oh, and by the way, Sulpice Chocolat has a variety of vegan chocolate.

Continue...

Have you ever tried to plan a themed cocktail party, but got stumped on the drinks?  Goodness knows that has happened to me before.  Fortunately, for those of us that don't have a mixologist as a next door neighbor, Stoli has come to the rescue with their new flavor - Chocolat Razberi.  The combination of ripe raspberries and lush milk chocolate accented by warm vanilla-cocoa creates a flavor sensation reminiscent of luxuriously decadent truffles and inspired cockatils like the Stoli Chocolat Raz Cake (recipe below), which tastes as amazing as actual cake. 

Stoli Chocolat Raz Cake Martini:

Continue...

Chocolate and salt is a match made in taste bud heaven.  When prepared properly, it creates a multi-faceted flavor of the two opposing, yet complimentary flavors. 

The human tongue can detect 5 basic tastes: salty, sweet, bitter, sour, and umami (popularly called savoriness).   Adding salt to a dish causes salty receptors on the taste buds to react, but adding salt to a dish also counteracts bitterness by prohibiting bitter taste buds to pick up on all the bitter flavors.

Salt’s ability to counteract bitterness makes it especially popular for use in chocolate.  Cocoa beans, the beans from which chocolate is made, are naturally bitter.  The name chocolate is believed to have derived from the Aztec word xocolātl, meaning “bitter water.”  When the drink was brought to Spain the Spanish would counteract the bitterness of the cocoa beans with milk and sugar, the same thing that is done in modern chocolate processing.      

Sea salt is the most common salt addition to chocolate.  Sea salt if harvested by allowing sea water to evaporate until only the salt crystals remain.  Sea salt is less dense than table salt, and sea salt crystals are also larger than refined table salt.
 

Pink Himalayan sea salt is mined from ancient sea beds at the base of the Himalayas.  The salt is rich in iron oxide, giving it a pinkish hue.  The sea beds are located in remote locations that are not tarnished by pollutants.  Pink Himalayan sea salt is widely believed as the purest salt in the world.     

When combined with chocolate, high quality sea salt, like Pink Himalayan sea salt, compliments the natural sweetness of milk chocolate and counterbalances the bitterness of dark chocolate.  Each bite packs a small, salty punch that creates a complex flavor in an already delightful treat.    

Continue...