Go*Do Chocolate: Milk Chocolate Hazelnut

As I like to examine different brands and types of chocolates, I was in luck when I discovered that my package of U.K.-chocolate goodies from Lee wasn’t limited to the Thorntons tonka and fudge bars. Also included was a 34% cocoa milk chocolate bar with hazelnuts from Go*Do Chocolate, an Italian-based firm which produces exclusively organic chocolate.

Given the inclusion of hazelnuts, I was not surprised to find a nutty aroma, which was accented by hints of cream and caramel, which is quite common for milk chocolates.

The chocolate itself is soft with a thick, creamy melt. The creaminess is evident in the flavor as well, and caramel notes also come through in the flavor. The hazelnuts are well-chopped, well-distributed, and well-roasted, resulting in perfectly crisp bits of hazelnut in every bite. The flavors and textures of the hazelnuts and chocolates blend to create a bar that I enjoyed immensely.

What’s your take on all0organic chocolatiers?

Oatmeal Raisin Walnut Chocolate Chip Cookies: National Raisin Day

I can never have enough Chocolate Chip Cookie recipes, and this recipe adapted from Engrossed in 2006 on Food.com is awesome!  Make Oatmeal Raisin Walnut Chocolate Chip Cookies to celebrate National Raisin Day.  Be sure and scroll down to see the California Raisins dancing to I Heard it on the Grapevine!

OATMEAL RAISIN WALNUT CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIES

Ingredients
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 cup butter, softened
1/2 cup light brown sugar, firmly packed
1 cup granulated sugar
1 large egg
1 1/2 teaspoons Madagascar vanilla extract
1 cup ground walnuts (can grind in blender)
1 cup old fashioned oats
1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips or chocolate broken into bits
1 cup raisins

Directions
1. In a small bowl mix flour, baking soda and cinnamon.
2. In a large mixing bowl beat butter and sugars until light and fluffy. Beat in egg and vanilla.
3. At a low speed, beat in flour mixture until blended.
4. Fold in ground walnuts, oats, chocolate chips (or pieces) and raisins.
5. Cover with plastic wrap and chill for 1 hour.
6. Preheat oven to 350.
7. Grease 2 baking sheets.
8. Shape dough into 1-inch balls. Place balls 2 inches apart on prepared baking sheets. Flatten each cookie slightly
9. Bake cookies until lightly browned around the edges, 10 to 12 minutes.
10. Transfer to flattened brown paper bags or wire racks to cool.

Dough also freezes well. Freeze dough balls on a cookie sheet and then put them in a ziploc bag in the freezer until ready to bake!

Two More Chocolate Biscuit Cake Recipes

I know McVittie's is making the Royal Wedding Chocolate Biscuit Cake, but I couldn't find that top secret recipe. I did post a link to a great recipe for Chocolate Biscuit Cake from The Daily Spud, and I do think it probably comes quite close, especially since it uses golden syrup.  Walkers has a fabulous recipe that I posted yesterday from the Millstone Cafe in Connecticut.

Well, in case you plan to serve all the wedding guests (the Queen's not, but that's another story), here are two more recipes for Chocolate Biscuit Cake. The first recipe is from Butlers Chocolates in the UK. You have the option of using either white or milk chocolate. For the wedding, use milk chocolate (or maybe even something darker?). Since it's an English wedding, I didn't change the measurements. You can find a converter on the Internet. This recipe is a cinch and delicious. A hob is a stove...but you knew that!  The second recipe is from Betty Crocker. A bit more complicated, but definitely satisfying.

CHOCOLATE BISCUIT CAKE III: Butler's Chocolates

Ingredients:
100g Butter
400g Butlers Milk Chocolate / 400g Butlers White Chocolate  (or your favorite brand)
1 can of condensed milk
150g/250g rich tea or digestive biscuits

Method:
1. Melt your butter and preferred type of chocolate in a bowl over a saucepan of near boiling water. Turn on the hob and melt it slowly because if it melts too quickly it will curdle and you will have to start again!
2. While the two ingredients are melting break up the biscuits either by hand OR with a rolling pin in a bag, put the broken biscuits in a bowl and leave to the side.
3. Open the can of condensed milk.
4. Remove the melted chocolate and butter from the hob when there are no lumps left in the mixture and the ingredients are a shiny, rich, brown/cream colour.
5. Gradually add the condensed milk to the chocolate mixture.
The ingredients will look as if you have done something wrong as they will combine and then separate. DON’T WORRY, this is normal. KEEP adding the condensed milk until there is none remaining in the can. Eventually the mixture will get thicker and smoother than before
6. Gradually add the biscuits to the mixture, as much or as little as you want.
7. Line a squared baking tray with tinfoil. Add the chocolate biscuit mixture.
8. Refrigerate for 4-6 hours.
9. Cut up into squares

CHOCOLATE BISCUIT CAKE IV: Betty Crocker

Cake
1 pkg (8.8 oz) McVitie's® chocolate digestives tea biscuits or rich tea biscuits
1 1/3 cups dark chocolate chips (8 oz)
2/3 cup whipping cream
2 tablespoons butter

Frosting
2/3 cup dark chocolate chips (4 oz)
1/3 cup whipping cream
1 tablespoon butter

Directions
1. Line a 6- or 8-inch round cake pan with foil. Spray with nonstick cooking spray. Break each of the biscuits into 1-inch pieces; set aside.
2. In medium bowl, place 1 1/3 cup chocolate chips; set aside. In 1-quart saucepan, heat 2/3 cup whipping cream and 2 tablespoons butter over medium heat, stirring until butter is melted and mixture comes to a boil. Pour cream mixture over chocolate and stir smooth.
3. Add biscuit pieces to chocolate mixture, gently fold until all pieces are coated. Spoon into the prepared cake pan. Gently press mixture into pan. Refrigerate cake for 3 hours or until firm.
4. Remove cake from cake pan and turn upside down onto a serving plate. Remove foil. In small bowl place remaining 2/3 cup chocolate chips. In 1-quart saucepan, heat remaining 1/3 cup whipping cream and 1 tablespoon butter over medium heat, stirring until butter is melted and mixture comes to a boil. Pour cream mixture over chocolate and stir smooth. Pour the melted chocolate over the cake; frost top and sides using a butter knife or offset spatula. If desired, decorate with melted milk chocolate.

Thorntons Milk Chocolate with Fudge: Memories of the Shore

Since postage across the Atlantic isn’t exactly cheap, Lee and I exchanged several bars in our respective mailings this month. In addition to the semi-illicit Throntons tonka bar, I was sent a full-legal bar of Thorntons milk chocolate with fudge.

The base of the bar is a 35% cocoa milk chocolate of Papua New Guinea origin, and the wrapper, like that for the tonka bar, gives me strict instructions: love me, unwrap me, eat me.

Gotcha. I always listen to my chocolate. Especially when the aroma reminds me of fudge shops at the beach in Delaware, with a subtle dairy chocolate scent accompanied by vanilla and honey.

Like the milk chocolate tonka bar, this bar is soft, and includes bits of soft, fudgy honey that melt slower than the chocolate; if you are impatient like me, you can bite into them. The honey-vanilla taste of the fudge is dominant, and is complimented by some hints of maple syrup. This bar is quite, quite sweet, just like fudge from the beach.

Such nostalgia. I wish I could say I had some of this left. Alas. Summer and trips to the beach can’t be that far away.

What chocolate bars evoke nostalgia for you?

Walkers Chocolate Biscuit Cake fit for a Future King

The Millstone Café in Kent, CT invites you to celebrate the Royal Wedding in style. Starting on Friday, April 29th, the day of the wedding and while supplies last, guests can enjoy a slice of the Chocolate Biscuit Cake, inspired by  Prince William's choice and made with Walkers Butter Digestive Biscuits.  This cake is made with chocolate, cream, butter and wonderful  Walkers biscuits, creating an irresistible, rich and delicacy.

As I posted before, Prince William chose the cake for his wedding to Kate Middleton since it has been one of his favorites since childhood. Guests at the Buckingham Palace reception will be able to choose between the Chocolate Biscuit Cake and a classic fruitcake, the couple's official selection.

Millstone co-owners Carol Hawran and John Cummins said "We've heard from some of our customers that they will be getting up pretty early to watch the wedding on TV and so we thought that by offering our own version of the groom's cake, we could extend the romance and delight of the occasion by having some of this delicious treat on our menu."

Be sure and check out www.walkersus.com for recipes. This recipe from Hawran was posted there. So if you can't make it to Connecticut this weekend...or to the wedding... give this recipe a try. 

Chocolate Biscuit Cake
The Millstone Cafe - Kent, CT

For the Cake: 2 5.3 oz. boxes of Walkers Butter Digestive Biscuits 1 cup Heavy Cream 2 tbsp. Honey 4 tbsp. Butter, unsalted 8 oz. Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chips 8 oz. Bittersweet Chocolate 65%, chips or chopped 1 tsp. vanilla extract 1/2 cup dried tart cherries, whole For the Ganache Glaze: 2 tbsp. Butter, unsalted 1/4 Heavy Cream 1 cup Bittersweet Chocolate 65%, chips or chopped

For the Cake:

1. Prepare an 8" springform pan, butter the inside lightly.
2. Break up the biscuits into 1/2" chunks, not fine crumbs. Place in a bowl, set aside.
3. Place the cream, honey, butter, and all the chocolate pieces into a bowl, over simmering water.
4. Stir until combined and all the chocolate is melted.
5. Add the vanilla, cherries, stir and pour the chocolate mixture over the biscuit chunks. Stir well to coat.
6. Pour into the pan, tapping lightly on the counter to remove any air bubbles.
7. Chill for 3 hours.
8. Unmold, invert and place on a rack, with a cookie pan underneath; remove bottom.

Prepare the ganache:
1. In a small saucepan over medium heat, combine the butter and cream. When the mixture reaches a boil, remove it from the heat and pour over the chocolate bits, stirring until completely melted and smooth.
2. Pour the glaze evenly over the cake, allowing it to drip down and completely cover the top and sides.
3. Allow it to firm up, transfer it to serving plate. Chill for 20 minutes or until firm. Cut with sharp knife that has been dipped in hot water.
4. Serve with whipped cream if desired.
5. Refrigerate any leftovers.

Photo: The Millstone Cafe on Walkers site

http://www.butlerschocolates.com/pages/Chocolate-Recipes/Chocolate-Biscuit-Cake.htm

Thorntons Milk Chocolate Tonka Bar: Illicit Packages from the U.K.

When I sent Lee from Chocolate Reviews a few American chocolate bars to review, including the Potomac Chocolate 82% Cocoa Upala bar and the Vosges Naga bar, he kindly sent me some chocolates from the U.K. in return.

Royal Mail. For reals. Inside was one very special bar, one that would be hard to get in the U.S. A Thorntons bar containing illicit tonka bean, just like the Artisan du Chocolat bar that I reviewed earlier this month.

The packaging notes that this milk chocolate-based bar, produced with Venezuelan chocolate with a 38% cocoa content, was an Academy of Chocolate Silver Award winner in 2009. And the interior packaging is even more informative: it instructed me to unwrap it and eat it.

After noting a hint of a spicy aroma, I followed the instructions precisely.

When doing so, I found a soft chocolate with a buttery melt that is a bit rapid, but not excessively slow. The tonka flavor is evident but subtle, and adds just a bit of a cinnamon-like kick while allowing the dairy and caramel flavors from the milk chocolate to come through. The well-balanced flavor and pleasing texture make the fact that this bar won a silver award from the Academy of Chocolate in 2009 easy to believe.

Have you ever been sent chocolate from overseas?

French Chocolate Hazelnut Toast: Cynthia St-Pierre

My Chocolate and Mystery Worlds collide again in this wonderful and simple recipe for French Chocolate Hazelnut Toast. Just the reorganizing of the words makes this memorable! The post is written by Cynthia St. Pierre in the words of her sleuth Becki Green. Thank you both!

Cynthia St-Pierre is an Associate Writer Member of Crime Writers of Canada. For nebulous reasons, Cynthia threw out all her Arches 100% cotton rag watercolor paper, all chalk pastels, all sable brushes… to explore mystery writing. In the meantime, working for an advertising agency and a multi-level marketing company, she wrote promotional, packaging and communications materials. She penned articles for periodicals Financial Times of Canada and MacBiz Canada, and a chapter of How to Successfully Do Business in Canada. In the category "Not Completely Off Her Rocker" she boasts a York Regional Police Citizens Awareness Program certificate, and second prize in the Bloody Words VIII Bony Pete Short Story Contest. Cynthia St-Pierre and Melodie Campbell are co-authors of the (as yet unpublished) novel Where There’s a Will. Becki Green, one of the characters in that novel, blogs at Vegetarian Detective.
 
BECKI GREEN:

One can’t go around solving mysteries ALL the time. And Beautiful Things, the interior design shop I run with half-sister Anne, only boasts so many clients in Black Currant Bay, population 8,000, give or take a herd of moose. So I took up an on-line investigation – www.vegetariandetective.blogspot.com. There I’m On the Case of Good Food. Best thing about the whole veggie scene is it includes CHOCOLATE! Case in point – this variation of my French Vanilla Toast. Tastes like a buttery chocolate croissant.

French Chocolate Hazelnut Toast

2 eggs
1/4 tsp vanilla
salt
2 slices whole-wheat bread
2 generous tbsps chocolate hazelnut spread (Nutella is good)
1 tsp butter
icing sugar

In a large bowl, whisk together the eggs, vanilla and salt to taste. Spread the Nutella between the slices of bread. Dip both sides of the sandwich in the egg mixture and let soak just a little. Fry in the butter until golden brown on both sides. Slide onto a cutting board and cut in half before plating and dusting with icing sugar. Serves 1.

April 2011 Daring Bakers Challenge: Edible Bowls and Why I Hate Idaho Falls

It’s April 27! Do you know what that means?

It means that I shouldn’t have seen this on my rental car yesterday.

Snow? Seriously? &*%^&$ you, Idaho Falls.

Obnoxious weather experiences associated with business travel aside, April 27 means that it’s time for blog posts describing completed Daring Bakers Challenges. And so I bring you my take on the April 2011 Daring Bakers’ challenge, which was hosted by Evelyne of the blog Cheap Ethnic Eatz. Evelyne chose to challenge everyone to make a maple mousse in an edible container. Prizes are being awarded to the most creative edible container and filling, so vote on your favorite from April 27th to May 27th at http://thedaringkitchen.com!

In undertaking this challenge, I made a major change by quartering the recipe. I didn’t have an opportunity to disposition the product at a party or other gathering, so I decided that the best approach would be to make a very small batch. First up, I made four cute little edible nutty chocolate bowls.

Edible Nutty Chocolate Bowls
3/4 cups blanched almonds
1 egg white, beaten, at room temp
1 tablespoon sugar
2 ounces very finely chopped chocolate

Grind almonds and sugar in a food processor until coarsely ground. Remove from food processor, add finely ground chocolate. Take extra care to ensure that the texture of the almond-sugar mixture and the chopped chocolate is just so.

Add in egg white, mix until uniform. Line four muffin pan cavities with aluminum foil and spread press a quarter of the mixture along the bottom and sides of each lined cavity.

And then, if your aunt and uncle love you and got you a compact convection oven for Christmas, use this tiny but powerful little thing to bake the edible bowls.

If your aunt and uncle don’t love you, just use a normal oven to bake at 350° F for 15 minutes. Allow bowls to fully cool and then unmold.

Beautiful, isn’t it? They’re so tiny and could really be filled with anything to make a cute little dessert for two. Like for a date or something.

Do people cook for each other for dates? I wouldn’t know. But what do I know? I know that I filled these little guys with maple mousse and that it wasn’t half bad in the end.

Maple Mousse

1/4 cup pure maple syrup
1 large egg yolks
1 scant teaspoon unflavored gelatin
1/3 cup whipping cream

As a former synchronized swimmer and current synchronized swimming coach and national judge, I was delighted to see this ingredient.

Why? Because it’s what synchronized swimmers use to keep their hair in place during routine competition.

For real. But that little package of knox got used to make mousse instead. Here’s how.

Whisk an egg yolk while bringing maple syrup to a boil. Pour a bit of the hot syrup into the yolk while whisking, then add mixture to remaining syrup and whisk until well mixed. Measure 1 tablespoon of cream in a small dish and sprinkle with gelatin. Let rest five minutes, then microwave for 5-second intervals until gelatin has completely dissolved. Whisk mixture into maple syrup mixture and set aside. Whisk occasionally for 30 minutes, until the mixture has the consistency of an unbeaten egg white.

Whip the remaining cream; fold a quarter of the whipped cream into the syrup mixture, then fold into remaining whipped cream. Refrigerate at least one hour.

I had plans to pipe the mousse into the edible bowls to make it look pretty. But after 2 hours in the refrigerator, my mousse looked like this.

Nix the piping. Just fill the bowls.

And that’s a wrap.

Would you make tiny edible dessert bowls to dress up the ending to a dinner for two? Or would you be like me and spend your Saturday night cleaning and doing laundry instead?

Ways to Use Leftover Easter Chocolate

I was in Walgreen's yesterday and noticed racks of Leftover Chocolate Bunnies and other Chocolate Easter Candy. Lots of chocolate...and Peeps. Everything 50% off. Do you have a lot of leftover chocolate at home?  Maybe not the ears of the bunny, but body parts and decimated eggs? Put them to tasty use!

Leftover chocolate goes great on ice cream or added to brownies, but I really hadn't thought of the full extent of possibilities. Chelsea Dillon-Miller at the EncinitasPatch did, and she has 10 Recipes for Leftover Easter Chocolate READ THE ENTIRE ARTICLE HERE. Here's my take on her chocolate-y article--a few changes and additions. Feel free to add your own leftover chocolate ideas!

Ice Cream: Have some left over chocolate flavored with caramel or nuts? Chop it up and sprinkle on ice cream. Add berries and whipped cream for a great sundae.

Milk Shake: Use any chopped chocolate with two scoops of ice cream and some milk. Blend!

S'Mores: Well they're a natural with Peeps, especially the chocolate covered ones.. but in a pinch add some chocolate bunny and a peep, toast over the fire and sandwich between two graham crackers and you're good to go!

Trail Mix: Well, duh... chop up the chocolate and add some dried fruit and nuts. I think a chopped up chocolate coconut egg would be great to add, too! Put in a small baggie and go for a hike!

Chocolate Covered Strawberries. Instead of dipping (unless you have a lot of chocolate), drizzle some melted chocolate over fresh strawberries.

Chocolate Fondue: see my fondue recipes. The bunny has never tasted so good... Retro treat with Retro Chocolate.

Hot Chocolate: Melt some chocolate and then heat with milk until it's just right. Add some whipped cream!

Brownies: I always add some extra chopped chocolate to my brownies, so why not some chocolate eggs? Chop and fold into the batter. 

Pancakes: Bake up a batch of pancakes and drop some chocolate in (do it toward the end or the chocolate will scorch) or melt some chocolate and use in place of syrup.

Cookies: Do I really need to tell you how to do this? Chop and Drop in your favorite batter!

Cupcakes: Any way you'd use other chocolate-- or use an apple corer and fill the centers.

Rice Krispies Treats: Melt the chocolate then stir in Rice Krispies. Spread on a tray. Put in Refrigerator. Cut.

Any other ideas for left-over Easter Chocolate?

Potomac Chocolate: Upala 70% Cocoa Nib Bar

After finally writing up my review of my beloved Potomac Chocolate 82% Cocoa Upala Bar, I was feeling like a pretty subpar chocolate blogger. I’ve consumed at least a dozen of those bars since they became available for sale at Biagio earlier this year. I have this bar on my packing list for business trips – in fact, one bar is sitting in my Idaho Falls hotel room right now. Yet it took me until yesterday to write about it? Inexcusable.

Then I remembered the Potomac Chocolate 70% Cocoa Upala Nib Bar. Yet another unreviewed bar from a most outstanding bean-to-bar chocolate maker just a few miles from where I live.

Unreviewed no more, for today, I bring you an analysis of the Potomac Chocolate 70% Cocoa Upala Nib Bar.

Before I start, it’s worth noting that I’m generally not drawn to bars with cocoa nibs in them, as the nibs are often boulder-sized, leaving bitter, dry chunks of nibs after the chocolate melts away. But in the name of research, I checked out this bar.

Fortunately, the nibs were quite nicely ground, and the bar is generally uniform in composition. No big chunks of nibs or nib-less bits of chocolate. Just everything together.

The chocolate itself, like the Potomac Chocolate 70% Cocoa Upala bar, carries a strong coffee flavor with a cherry undertone, and the nibby bar doesn’t appear to be any more bitter than the plain 70% Upala bar. The bar is just a bit dry, which may be due to the inclusion of the nibs, but the texture of the bar is generally smooth without any grit. While I haven’t included this bar in my go-to stock of Potomac Chocolate bars – the plain 70% and 82% have that market firmly cornered – I enjoyed this bar and would recommended it to anybody looking for a bar with nibs.

Of course, if I were a better chocolate blogger, I’d have given that recommendation some three months ago.

Do you like bars with cocoa nibs in them?

Vegan Weed Brownies Recipe

This is a basic vegan brownie recipe to which I added some raw fresh grinded weed, so practically any vegan brownie recipe is good as long as you add the right quantity of weed to it and follow some basic instructions
You need to know that due to the fact that they gave no fat, vegan weed brownies must be cooked a little longer in order to get solid.

You will need:

- 2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
- 2 cups white sugar
- 3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 cup water
- 1 cup vegetable oil
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 5-10 grams of weed buds (this recipe should make arround 16 brownies)

Preparation:

   1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
   2. In a large bowl, stir together the flour, sugar, cocoa powder, baking powder salt and the fine grinded weed. Pour in water, vegetable oil and vanilla; mix until well blended. Spread evenly in a 9x13 inch baking pan.
   3. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes in the preheated oven, until the top is no longer shiny. Let cool for at least 10 minutes before cutting into squares.

Enjoy ! But be careful, the high is not instantaneous, you'll need at least half an hour before feeling the effects, so don't rush in eating the whole plate :)

Potomac Chocolate: Upala 82% Cocoa Bar

After talking up the Potomac Chocolate Upala 82% cocoa bar, which is made right here in the DC area, to everybody and their mother (and father) since it was released, it’s probably obvious to those of you who follow me on twitter that I’m a fan. Enough of a fan that I shipped some to Lee over in the U.K. as part of our chocolate exchange; I was delighted to see from his review that he adored this newly-released bar.

And then I realized that I still hadn’t reviewed it myself.

Have I mentioned how smart and organized I am?

Anyway, back to this delightful bar. The flavor is incredibly intense, with a dominant coffee taste and a very subtle fruity flavor that I couldn’t pin down more accurately. Even without being able to identify it, I can tell that there is just enough sugar added to this bar to give the flavor a fairly universal appeal.

Though this is about the limit of the intensity I can handle from a chocolate, I am consistently drawn back to this bar because of what I believe is its best quality: the texture, which is not remotely dry. It is instead smooth and dense, with a slow melt that allows you to enjoy the flavor and buttery feel of the texture for ages. My assessment is that the texture of this bar is slightly superior to that of Potomac Chocolate’s 70% Cocoa Upala bar, but I still give the flavor edge to the 70% cocoa version.

Buy both. Obviously.

It may or may not be worth noting that I enjoy this bar enough that it’s on my standard packing list for business trips.

I hope that Ben, the one-man operation behind Potomac Chocolate, can keep up with that demand. I travel a lot.

Is chocolate on your packing list when you travel?

White Chocolate Walnut Zucchini Bread

April 25 is National Zucchini Bread Day, not to be confused with National Zucchini Day which falls on August 8, the time of year when zucchini seem to multiply and grow overnight and take over the vegetable garden. You can find zucchinis in the market now, although depending on where you live it might put the cabash on being a locavore.

This is the third time National Zucchini Bread Day has rolled around since I started blogging here at DyingforChocolate.com. In 2009 I posted recipes for Geeky Double Chocolate Zucchini Bread (fabulous!) and Amy's Chocolate Chip Zucchini Bread(very good), as well as some zucchini lore and links to other Chocolate Zucchini Bread recipes. Last year I posted my go-to recipe for Chocolate Chunk Zucchini Bread that I adapted from an old Sunset Magazine.

This year I thought I might step outside the box and post a recipe for White Chocolate Walnut Zucchini bread. O.K. white chocolate isn't really chocolate, but you can use white chocolate chips in place of broken up chocolate or chocolate chips in last year's recipe, or try this recipe adapted from Danette Randall in last summer's Boulder Weekly. Walnuts always add a nice crunch to zucchini breads. And, if you're planning to make one loaf, why not two and share the wealth? As if the first loaf won't be eaten fresh out of the oven.

You can never have too many Zucchini Bread recipes!

White Chocolate Walnut Zucchini Bread

Ingredients
1 1/2 cups flour
1/2 tsp. salt
2 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. nutmeg
1 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. baking powder
2 eggs
1 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup canola oil
2 tsp. Madagascar vanilla
2 cups shredded zucchini (2 medium-large)
1 cup white chocolate chips or white chocolate broken into smallish chunks
1 cup roughly chopped walnuts

Directions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Grease a 9-by-5-inch loaf pan. Sift together flour, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, baking soda and baking powder in small bowl. Set aside.
In large bowl, beat eggs until light. Add in brown sugar, oil and vanilla and mix well. Fold in zucchini, white chocolate and walnuts.
Stir dry ingredients into wet ingredients and mix until well-combined. Pour into prepared pan.
Bake for 45 to 50 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool.

Easter Bunny: Whitman's Sampler Vintage Ads

Biagio Sample Day: Complete with 100% Cocoa Pralus

Yesterday, I got together with a long-time friend who recently returned from the UK, and two of her friends who had brought her cat from California.

Why do you care? Because our get-together took place at Biagio’s monthly sample day!

There were, as usual, about a dozen chocolates for us to sample. After enjoying some Theo caramels, I was delighted to see another Theo creation, their chai tea milk chocolate bar.

The bar had a very strong chai flavor, and my friend noted that it reminded her of Mexican hot chocolate. The chocolate itself seemed a bit grainy, and I don’t think this bar represents Theo’s best work.

Another interesting flavored bar, this one by New Tree, was provided for our inspection: the 73% cocoa dark chocolate bar with pink peppercorns.

I’ve enjoyed pepper-enhanced chocolates before, especially when salt is included as it is in Taza’s Salt and Pepper disc, but found that the pepper here is a bit overpowering and drowns out the chocolate.

Another flavored bar was available for tasting – the Artisan Du Chocolat Darljeeling.

Remember Artisan? The folks who make the semi-illicit Tonka bar? Well, unlike that Tonka bar, the Darljeeling bar is legal. It also happens to be quite enjoyable, just like the Tonka bar. There is a distinct tea flavor with hints of spice to accent this smooth bar with a slow melt.

And then there was the bar for the true hardcore chocolate fiends: The Pralus 100% cocoa bar, which is sourced from Madagascar.

As in: no added sugar. Just cocoa. It was intense. Despite a weak aroma, the taste is very bitter and a bit sour, with smoky notes. We all agreed that there seemed to be a taste similar to that of the charred edges of a fine steak.

Most of the time, Biagio’s sample days inspire to me examine several new chocolates in the comfort of my own kitchen; this time, I zeroed in on the Artisan Darljeeling.

As you can see, I also happened to add in a few other new chocolates, including a pretzel milk chocolate bar from Philadelphia-based Eclat, as well as a bar by Amedei - this chocolatier has been highly recommended by Candice, and who am I to argue.

And some standby chocolates found their way into my bag.

How does that always happen? The world may never know.

Have you ever tried 100% cocoa chocolate?

Chocolate Orange Hot Cross Buns: Easter

The other day I mentioned saving holiday recipes from the newspaper, blogs and articles on line. A few years ago Jo Pratt posted this Easter Recipe on the Mailonline. It's a great recipe for Chocolate Orange Hot Cross Buns. If you want to make hot cross buns and add chocolate without making a chocolate bun, you can make regular hot cross buns and add chocolate chips instead of raisins. But give this one a try. This recipe for Chocolate Orange Hot Cross Buns, a yeast bread, is great. Once again I've converted the measurements from the U.K. to the U.S. They're not totally exact, but very close. If you want to check out the original recipe with UK measurements, go HERE. Makes 12 buns.

CHOCOLATE ORANGE HOT CROSS BUNS

Ingredients
1/2 cup milk
4 tbsp superfine sugar (castor sugar)
5 tbsp sweet butter
3 1/2 cups white flour
4 tsp. dark cocoa powder
1tsp mixed spice  (combo of allspice, cinnamon, clove, coriander, ginger and nutmeg)
1tsp salt
2 1/2 tbsp chopped mixed peel (candied citrus peel)*
Finely grated zest of 1 orange
1 3/4 fast action dried yeast
1/2 cup or 4 ounces dark chocolate, broken into pieces, or chocolate chips
1 egg, beaten
Flour for dusting

For the crosses and glaze
1/4 cup white flour
1tbsp sunflower oil
 2-3 tbsp water
2 tbsp orange juice
2 tbsp caster sugar

METHOD
Place the milk in a saucepan over a low heat. Just before it boils, remove from the heat and stir in the sugar and butter, until they have dissolved. Add 1/4 cold water and leave to cool down until you can comfortably hold your finger in it for a few seconds.

Sift together the flour, cocoa, mixed spice (if you're using it) and salt into a large bowl and stir in the mixed peel, orange zest and yeast. Make a well in the center and pour in the warm milk mixture and beaten egg. Mix together until you have a sticky dough. Add the chocolate chips or broken chocolate, and knead on a floured surface for 8-10 minutes until it's smooth and elastic.

Place the dough in a large, lightly oiled bowl, cover with a damp tea towel and leave to rise in a warm place for about 1 hour, or until doubled in volume. Punch the dough and knead for a couple of minutes. Divide into 12 pieces and shape into buns.

Place on greased baking sheets, leaving enough space between each for rising. Cover with the tea towel and leave to rise again until doubled in size – about 30 minutes. Preheat the oven to 400 F.

For the glaze, mix the flour and oil with 2-3tbsp water until smooth.

Lightly cut a cross in the center of each of the buns with a knife to mark out your crosses. Using a piping bag (or use a plastic bag with a corner snipped off), pipe on the crosses. Cook the buns for 15-18 minutes until they are golden and sound hollow when tapped underneath.

Place the orange juice and sugar in a small pan, and gently heat until the sugar dissolves. As soon as the buns are out of the oven, brush with the glaze and leave to cool slightly on a wire rack before serving warm.

Photo: Mailonline

Pimp My Easter Basket: The Grand Round Up

Holidays can sneak up on you, can’t they? Including Easter, which is tomorrow. No doubt you’ve seen many Easter-themed recipes popping up, including my Roadkill Easter Bunny Bar Cookies.

But why did I do those? Aside from the perverse enjoyment? Oh yeah. For the PIMP MY EASTER BASKET CHALLENGE.

I wasn’t alone in this challenge. A bunch of folks took delight in taking their favorite Easter treats and making them over-the top. Such as my fellow Washingtonian, Rebecca, who incorporated the challenge into her whoopie pie adventures with: Peeps Whoopie Pies

The ever-creative Lauren, who tells me that she bought four pounds of butter on Friday: Ooey Gooey Filled Chocolate Chip Cookies with a Crunch

My guess is that Katrina has seen Bake it in a Cake based on her first submission: Easter Egg Hunt Cookies

And we know that Katrina is a rockstar because she turned in two challenges: Cereal Treat Easter Eggs

Another rockstar from this challenge? Abeer with cookies designed to go on top of cupcakes: Easter Chick Cookie Toppers

And did I hear more cookies? Decorated cookies? Yes, from Kita: Chickadee Icebox Cookies

Taking decorating and artistry up a notch was Lora, who made something psychedelic looking: Tie-Dyed Bunny and Butterfly Marshmallows

And from Alice (who doesn’t have a blog but took this idea and ran with it): Easter Basket Cake.

(1)I make a white cake with white frosting. Love the white chocolate cake in the Better Homes and Gardens cookbook.

(2)Fashion "Easter Grass" from flaked coconut and food coloring of your choice for the top of the cake.

(3)Put candies in your Easter grass. Eat the extras.

(4)For bonus Easter basket appeal fashion a basket handle and bow with whatever you have lying around as shown here.

Now, from one of my humble co-hosts, Mary: Surprise Easter Brownies

My other humble co-host made ice cream. Check out what Jessica did to make it Easter Basket Pimptastic: Malted milk Ice Cream with Robin Eggs

And because she is an overachiever, Jessica also made: Deviled Cadbury Eggs

Wow. So much fun, and I’m impressed with how talented, artistic, and creative all these folks are.

If you were going to replicate one of these feats, which would it be?