Spring is here- Citrus and pink pepper :)

Hello folks!

Well, the sun is shining, the trees are blooming, the stores are selling chocolate eggs. I think it's safe to say that it's officially SPRING!!

And mine has started great! With a wonderful boyfriend (who buys me lots of chocolate ;) ), with amazing friends, a busy, but fun workload, and making plans for my trip to Europe.

But  the best part of all was a fine chocolate tasting class I went to last night with a friend. I learned about where the common cacao tree varieties grow (sound smart by saying, "forastero!" when you read "ivory coast") and I learned even more about very high quality brands. It was a blast!! Plus I got to try some AMAZING chocolate. I'm not going to go into that here, because there would be way too much to cover, but I will be talking about this bar I bought afterwards:

There it is, laying on a philosophy book and study notes: Medecasse Citrus and Pink Pepper. 

Madecasse has a company story as charming as its chocolate bars: 2 peace corps alumni who served on the island of Madagascar, wanted to make a bigger impact, and so started this fair trade project. Its one of only around 250 bean-to-bar companies in the whole world and its chocolate is GOOD. 

It's a thick bar, light brown. The chocolate itself tastes earthy. You can smell the pepper before you bite into it, but the taste is not as strong. I have no idea what the combava fruit is, that it says it contains, but it tastes unique, intriguing...the fruit taste is so light that is requires concentration to catch it. 

Subtle, evolving, unique.

Big fan.

My boyfriend loved it too, saying it interested  him much more for its subtlety than the other bars we tried.

Also, this company has FOUR TIMES the amount of fair trade impact as a regular fair trade brand. 

So feast on, my chocolate-loving friends! It's for a good cause :)

Love,

Sondra

p.s. I looked up "combava fruit." Apparently it is closely related to lime. 

Potato chips?!? Chocolate?!? Together?! hmmm.....

Well today is an overcast Utah-winter Monday, Martin Luther King Day, and what am I doing to celebrate???

Studying of course! And thinking about what a cool guy Martin Luther King is, cause let’s be honest, he was a stud.

Here’s some food for thought, a quote from Martin Luther: “True compassion is more than flinging a coin to a beggar. It comes to see that an edifice which produces beggars needs restructuring.”

THINK ABOUT IT.

Anyways, in honor of the civil rights movement, I will be eating this interesting bar:

Smell:

dark and salty, nothing too unique

Taste: 

crunchy, not an immediate taste of potato chips. Then zing! Here comes the pepper kicking in, then the potato, the potato subsides, and the pepper lingers...

Last stage of flavor development: it tastes like these:

which you know, I think are delicious, buuut not in chocolate. As you may have realized, I'm all about experimentation, and am a huge fan of the bacon chocolate combo, chili chocolate combo, and a ton of others, but this one left me feeling kinda nauseous....you can definitely taste the potato chip flavor, and although there is no greasy texture, I almost feel I can taste the potato grease itself. 

Moral of the story: If you are pregnant and having a strange hankering for potato chips covered in chocolate, it seems you are not the only one, because you will have a handful of options. Like these, which I have not yet tried: 

So don't rule out the idea! Maybe there is a time and a place for the marriage of fried potato chips and chocolate. 

But for this chocolate lover, it's not here, and not today.

But hey! It's Martin Luther King Day!! Let's party!! 

Love, Sondra

Ginger! Almonds! Chocolate!

There is nothing like some good dark chocolate on a cold January morning-

Running out the door for another full day at the university, and then, BAM! I remember there is a little treasure in my bag:

This little lady:

Well, I have great parents and this year for Christmas my mom bought me a giant one of these:

and this:

Since I believe in really savoring my chocolate, these should last for a long time.

Back to that cold winter morning….

It’s cold, I'm tired, thinking about all the homework I still have left to do, and there it is, this smooth dark chocolate wonder, to put a little gleam of joy in my eyes and sweetness in my belly.

This particular gem is quite lovely for a few reasons.

1. It’s very dark.

2. The ginger. Though its not like whoop yo butt strong, it is the first flavor you’ll taste. I’ll have to admit my very first reaction was: it tastes like chinese food. If that doesn’t sound appealing, wait for the next wave of flavors

3. It quickly mellows out to a smooth dark flavor, and since it's a pretty good chocolate composition, it makes for a fine backdrop to the almond ginger taste.

4. The almond is honestly almost imperceptible but you do get a crunch every now and then which will at least convince you its there.

It's honestly not my favorite, but it does have a refreshing uniqueness and warmth about it.

When to eat this bar:

* when you are cold (ginger warms the body- just ask the natural healing art of ayurveda!)

*when you are going through a breakup (thats me! another “good” excuse for not blogging for awhile...I was too busy with having a boyfriend!)

*when you are feeling a lil asian.

*when you are awake. because chocolate is best enjoyed in a fully conscious state.

Well, on to my wonderful scholastic life of philosophy, the Middle East, women’s issues, and so many other interesting topics.

Happy eating, living, loving!!

(and yes, that is silly string and chocolate)

<3 Sondra

Bacon Chocolate Truffles, Vegan Pistachio Truffles, and adventures with friends!

Well first of all, it’s been awhile…

But school is crazy! And work! And life!

Yup.

I barely have time to sleep, much less blog about chocolate. (NOT of course, to undermine the importance of chocolate. I continue eating it faithfully whenever I can J )

But last weekend, I got a welcome respite from the craziness and had some chocolate eating and making adventures with a dear chocolate-loving friend, Marybeth.

We started out with a trip to the art museum where, after a wonderful tour, we bought exotic chocolate at the store. Marybeth bought a Theo Coconut Curry Milk Chocolate bar. Call it strange, but it is DELICIOUS! The curry surprises, even when expected, and there is a lot of coconut, but it is an intriguing and then addicting taste that you have to experience for yourself.

After another day of adventures, we made vegan pistachio truffles and chocolate chipotle bacon truffles.

So for you hippie-vegan-whole-foods type of people, I got you hooked up right here:

Link to the recipe: http://chocolatecoveredkatie.com/2013/12/27/pistachio-chocolate-truffles/?utm_source=explorer

Pictures of our version:

And for you chocolate AND meat lovers, why not have both? These turned out surprisingly good, though next time I think I’ll go with a little less chipotle chili powder and dark chocolate instead of “semi-sweet.”

Link to the recipe: http://www.sheknows.com/food-and-recipes/articles/1028455/bacon-chipotle-chocolate-truffles-recipe

Picture of our version:

My only apology is that the pictures are not clearer L My camera hasn’t been working so we had to use my friend’s iphone.

Until next time, remember to savor life as much as you savor chocolate! Every tiny moment and little joy makes your life a tapestry of happiness. Don’t miss out by wanting more than you have.

Love,

Sondra

Almond Chocolate Truffles- SUCCESS!

Dear chocolate-loving world,

Today was a beautiful gray-cloudy day, a miracle for Arizona, where I've been for the last few weeks. Yesterday I made truffles and they came out DE-licious. Wish you were here to try them ;)

But anywho, then I got artistic and took some photos of these lovely little guys to motivate your own truffle-making adventures or at least a trip to your local chocolate shop :P

chocolate truffles + arizona dirt. Seemed fitting because of the truffle's namesake, a black mushroom found covered in dirt in the ground.

  

P.S. I am currently OBSESSED with the band Passenger. Talk about inspired lyrics, I could listen to them all day....oh wait, I have been listening to them all day...marry me, Mike Rosenberg?


Anyways, eat chocolate and be happy!!

-Sondra

We should run through the forest
We should swim in the streams
We should laugh, we should cry,
We should love, we should dream
We should stare at the stars and not just the screens
You should hear what I'm saying and know what it means 
-Passenger, "Scare Away The Dark"

How To Truly Savor Chocolate Mousse

More than a chocolatier, I am a writer.  

Life and all its pleasures interests me.

                    I love tastes like deep dark chocolate, smells like luxury perfume, and skies full of               night stars. I love art, music, literature. I love all things beautiful and all things that                       excite the senses.

But I understand as well that true pleasure comes from true abstinence. Pleasure is only truly known by the ascetic who learns to delay it.

That is the premise of this poem. Enjoy the poem. Enjoy the mousse. 

FAST

Hold back from your stomach until it is a hollow canoo.

It will echo and crave-

starve it still.

Deprive it until taste buds want

and body weakens.

Then make a chocolate mousse.

Add butter,

eggs,

chocolate,

cream.

Then find one ray

just as the sun is taking all its rays back to the belly of the earth-

find one ray and sit in it.

There you must eat this wonder,

bite by bite,

and marvel at the glory of food,

the glory of your mouth

and tongue

and the glory of that single ray of sun. 

Basic Chocolate Mousse

Serves 8

Ingredients: 1 cup chopped bittersweet chocolate
1 stick unsalted butter
4 egg yolks
5 egg whites
3 tablespoons granulated sugar
1/2 cup chilled heavy cream
Chopped nuts, to serve
Fresh berries, to serve
Freshly whipped cream, to serve

Directions: 1. Melt chocolate and butter in a double boiler over low heat, stirring until no lumps remain. Remove from heat, transfer to a large bowl and allow to cool slightly. Whisk in egg yolks one at a time until well combined. Set aside.

2. In a second large bowl, beat egg whites until soft peaks form. Slowly beat in the sugar and continue to beat until stiff peaks form. Fold the egg whites into the chocolate mixture and set aside to further cool.

3. In a medium bowl, whip cream until soft peaks form. Once chocolate mixture is cool, fold in whipped cream until no white streaks remain. Spoon mousse into serving bowls and chill. Serve with a garnish of chopped nuts, fresh berries or a dollop of whipped cream.

Good & Delish dark and twisted lemon and black pepper chocolate

Hey world!!!

Okay, first of all, let me explain my almost 2 year hiatus:

I was in Argentina, serving a mission for my church. As missionaries we didn't have access to technology so keeping a blog was impossible...and even more tragically, I almost had just as little access to good chocolate!

Well that year and a half was quite the life-changing experience and too much to outline here, so let's skip the travelogue and get straight to the homecoming chocolate!

Thanks be to God, I have a wonderful mother who knows (and shares) my love for dark chocolate. I was lucky enough to find quite the assortment when I got home and the subject of this review was one of those blessed selections :) :)

As soon as I tried it, it became one of my favorites, and it took me WEEKS to finish. (I have a strange habit of zealously guarding my best chocolate and savoring it slowly over the course of days and in extreme cases weeks, afraid of its imminent departure).

So this bar was savored every morning before my daily writing time. It always started out my day with a melt, crackle, and zing. 

Picture this:

freshly upturned soil. an earthy chocolate backdrop.

(mmm 57% dark chocolate)

the zing of crunchy lemon

the sting of cracked pepper (burns the throat)

mellows, leaving behind a smooth lemon landscape (like sun on the dirt)

just as you start settling in the flavor-

wait! the pepper strikes back!

a sharp kick to the throat.

a violent end to a sweet beginning.

complex, intriguing, EXCITING as an exotic boyfriend.

I <3 it.

Miss it already...:(

Buy it. Eat it.

Savor it.

"You've got one tiny moment in time to shine to shine to burn away the darkness."
-Matisyahu