He gazed into her dark eyes, transfixed by her mesmerizing stare, melting into pools of infinite desire. “What do you want from me?” he asked, his voice a husky murmer. “Chocolate, chocolate!” she gasped, collapsing into the sheets, burrowing her head into pillows of eiderdown and ticking, now stained with hot, wet tears…
♥♥♥
Don’t get struck by Cupid’s Bow…Here are some Valentine’s Day recipes, from main course to dessert, that will sweeten your spirit.
Love is expansive, and chocolate is dark; serving chocolate-strawberries, will surely melt a heart.
Yep. It’s that time of year again, when my cornball soul can pen a silly verse without apology, when I can send construction paper hearts glued to paper doilies the old-fashioned way — snail mail — and serve my family chocolate at every meal, for every course, if I so desire.
Flourless Chocolate Tortes, Bacon & Chocolate Truffles and luscious Chocolate Mousse are past Valentine’s Day favorites. The following recipe, however, is one I can gobble with abandon, for the chocolate is merely the accessory for a plump, juicy strawberry.
So if you’re looking for a special treat that’s easy to make and appreciated by all, look no further than Chocolate-Dipped Strawberries.
This is also the time of year when many grocers stock those humongous, long-stemmed babies, so perfect for dipping; I purchased my beauties from Hiller’s.
People are under the assumption that they are difficult to make, which puzzles me. I’ve seen blogs with pages devoted to tempering the chocolate just so that the chocolate adheres to the berry just right. Granted, you must monitor the chocolate as it melts so you don’t overdo it; but that requires minimum effort. I simply purchase baker’s chocolate, break it into pieces, microwave — checking — until creamy, then dip. There’s a bit more finesse than that, particularly if you decide to decorate them, but not much.
Kate believes everything should be dipped in chocolate.
Which brings me to the next step: the accoutrements. You could forget them altogether, a strawberry dipped in one coat of chocolate is poetry unadorned. Or you could go hog wild, decorating them with assorted chopped nuts, colorful sprinkles, even caramel. Strawberries dipped in white chocolate and dressed with small candy red hearts are favorites of my kids.
For ease, I drizzled melted white chocolate over mine in the following recipe, then made a design with the prongs of a fork. You’ll have more control over your design if you put the chocolate in a squirt bottle, or trim one bottom tip of a plastic bag and use as a make-shift pastry bag.
Happy Valentine’s Day; Love and Cyber Kisses to you all!
I’m visiting a friend – Kathy Barker – in Steamboat Springs, Colorado, who I met at the water fountain when I was 12 years old. She was from New Orleans, the “new” girl at my Alabama junior high school, and scouting about the hall for friends. She overheard me yammering in a knot of girls discussing my upcoming sleep-over. When I parted the pack for a sip of water, she made her move and asked me if she could be included. Impressed with her social chutzpa, I agreed; we’ve been friends ever since.
Steamboat Springs is a laid-back cowboy-ski town.
Her adopted city Steamboat is a laid back cowboy-ski town notorious for some of its more emboldened citizenry riding their horses into Safeway to buy a bag of Doritos, for instance, or trotting their mares into a bar for local brew.
At last year’s Winter Olympics, four Steamboat boys brought home gold and silver medals and the town has produced more Olympians than any other north American city. It’s a town to be proud of, no doubt, and Kathy is proud of her girlfriends, as well. She wanted to introduce me to some of them and thought a cooking party would be an amusing ice-breaker.
(left to right) Cami, Molly, Kathy, Linda, Toni, Linda, Pat, Darlinda
It’s February, we’re snuggled in towering peaks of fairyland bliss, so we decided to heat up the evening with a Thai-inspired menu of Tempura Fried Oysters with Asian Dipping Sauce, Cellophane Noodle and Peanut Salad Wraps and Spicy Thai Shrimp & Eggplant with Steamed Rice.
There were nine of us and we divided the group into three women each per recipe. Kathy and I did a bit of prep work prior to their arrival – chopping herbs and hot peppers, washing lettuce cups, and the like – leaving the cooking to the teams. Each recipe serves 8-10, but are easily divisible to serve a smaller group.
Food writer by trade, curious cook by design. The past 30 years have witnessed a raucous race from my professional to home kitchen - persnickety customers, petulant children and piles of dirty dishes lie in my wake. A scary ride, indeed, but I survived. And the dinnerFeeds - well - they are my story. Welcome to my site! More about Peggy and this site...
Taste buds prickle; wanderlust triggered. An Argentine barbecue (asado) enticed me to Patagonia. A friend gave me a vial of ground sumac berries--4 months later I was waking at dawn to the "Call To Prayer" in Turkey. Porcini to Tuscany, and so on. Read more about my chronicles of trips and favorite associated recipes. Browse my travel recipes...
Here are ideas gleaned from others that speak to me; where I highlight projects that bring friends, neighborhoods, and communities together. For me, complimentary food makes the project and event more fun. Browse my projects and related recipes...
