On chocolate

I regularly (every couple months) splurge on some good dark bittersweet chocolate from Wegmans or Target. I'd love to splurge on Godiva or Chaudun, but we deal.

Last week, I opened the Lindt Black Currant bar (pictured). Delectably sweet from the fruit and crunchy from the almonds, but still maintaining the dark, bittersweet flavor.

Tonight, I opened the Ghirardelli Expresso Escape. They got the coffee blended so smooth into the chocolate...

But yeah, I pay $3 a pop for some of these, but they last for about four servings (2 for me and 2 for my hubby) and they satiate me much quicker than a Snickers. And I love exploring flavors... Another favorite is the vegan dark chocolate with candied dried ginger... but I can't remember the name.

For me, buying the splurge items is cost effective because when I don't get the flavor I am after, I eat other things trying to find it. So, one square of quality bittersweet chocolate versus...

Well, I'll be honest. I resisted opening the chocolate, and first I ate two slices of lunchmeat ham that my mother-in-law brought for lunch. When salt didn't do it, I ate the last croissant (also from my mother-in-law). Then I finally relented and opened the chocolate.

Which is better for my budget and my waistline?

Had I opened the chocolate in the first place...

Trail Matzo

Gayle suggested slathering my leftover matzo with butter, adding chocolate and walnuts and baking it in the oven for a Girl Scout style trail snack.

I made a sauce of 3.5 ounces intense dark chocolate, 3 ounces bittersweet chocolate, one stick butter, and one cup peanut butter. I added about 3 tablespoons dried strawberries and about half a cup candied ginger, torn into chunks.

I put the matzo on cookie sheets and added the chocolate, then I added walnuts and baked at 350 for five minutes.

I should have sprinkled the strawberries and ginger on top with the walnuts instead of in the sauce. I didn't use enough. If I did it in the sauce thinking it would allow the ginger to blend into the chocolate. We'll see.

It worked well, but next time, I'm going to spread the chocolate and the goodies more evenly.

Holy Moly Peanut Butter

I haven't written in this blog since Friday?!? And the meal was one my husband made?

Yeah, we went out to eat, had dinner with my mom and ate leftovers so that seems right but Wow.

I'm having trouble getting my daughter to eat breakfast these days. So, today, I'm going to take some pumpkin waffles out of the freezer and concoct a peanut butter chocolate sauce for them.
Decadent. But I have to do something...

The original waffle recipe is:
http://angelfoodcooking.blogspot.com/2009/12/pumpkin-waffles.html
or you can visit the PPK online.

As for the sauce, I'll let you know later when I concoct it.

Let's see...
Decadent Peanut Butter Breakfast sauce
In a saucepan on low, melt:

• one tablespoon butter
• about two tablespoons leftover peanut butter and honey leftover from last week's sandwiches
• 1.5 tablespoons peanut butter
• 1 ounce Ghiradelli dark chocolate, 60 percent
  

Serve on waffles with sliced banana

Okay, so in the spirit of not wasting, I poured the

leftover sauce into a bowl, let it firm to an icing like consistency and have been spreading it on Oreos. Delicious.

Chocolate

I found this recipe close to ten years ago in an issue of Bon Appetit. It's for iced hot chocolate, though it works just fine without the "iced." I made this for a rainy, chilly Father's Day treat. I made a half batch, because we had limited amounts of milk.

This is one of those recipes that needs to remain gourmet to retain its yumminess. And it's not cheap, but it certainly can dress up any occassion. Food can be mix and match like fashion, a blend of high-low style. Serve a cheap or plain cookie with fancy drink. Heck, this recipe is so delicious I would settle for a slice of bread.

My ingredients:
3.5 ounces Lindt Swiss bittersweet chocolate (about $3)
1/6 cup organic sugar (I bought it a long time ago with a coupon and save it for special recipes)
1.5 cups farm fresh milk (I recommend Klein farm for those in the Lehigh Valley. Store-bought milk is NOT the same)
1/6 cup water

For garnish:
Whipped cream (I used light)
rainbow sprinkles
two m&m's for each glass

The recipe as originally printed:
Iced Hot Chocolate
This iced chocolate is served at Ladurée. For best flavor, use a good quality imported bittersweet chocolate.

4 servings*

3 3/4 cups whole milk
1/3 cup water
6 ounces imported bittersweet, not unsweetened, chocolate, very finely chopped

12 ice cubes

Bring three cups milk, 1/3 cup water, and sugar to summer in heavy large saucepan, stirring to dissolve sugar. Remove from heat. Add chocolate and whisk until melted and smooth. Refrigerate about four hours until well chilled.

Mix 3/4 cups milk into chocolate mixture. Working in batches, blend chocolate mixture in blender until frothy. Put three ice cubes in bottom of each glass and divide liquid evenly.

*My ingredients, the 'halved' recipe, as listed on top yielded the three servings in the photo.

Notes: I have never used a whisk on this. Or the blender. I serve hot or cold. And the chocolate usually leaves the milk looking mottled, as opposed to one consistent color.