Today I was in the mood for chocolate. Since I still have a lot of the chocolate my boyfriend gave me for Christmas I decided to have some of that. I chose to have a Mister Booja Booja Organic, Dairy Free Champagne Truffle from the Chocolate Trading Company.

Before tasting my truffle I cleared my mouth with some cool filtered water.

These chocolate truffles are made with dark chocolate (cocoa solids 56%, cane sugar, soy lecithin, vanilla), coconut oil, corn syrup, and organic French champagne (9%).

Here are my impressions on these truffles.

Upon opening the box I smelled rich dark chocolate. Visually each truffle is lightly dusted in coco powder. Upon tasting a truffle I tasted pure luxurious dark chocolate. The texture is silky smooth. As the chocolate gradually melted in my mouth I tasted the pure champagne. The champagne was a distinct yet not overpowering flavor. It was the perfect amount of champagne to tantalize the taste buds.

The experience of sampling a Booja Booja Champagne Truffle was that of pure ecstasy.

Its was like taking a trip to a world of sensuality. It’s melt in your mouth joy.

I would recommend these truffles to all truffle lovers! If you are a lover of chocolate with a hint of alcohol of any kind you will likely love these amazing truffles.

To learn more about these truffles check out this website www.BoojaBooja.com

Indulge your senses in a little taste of heaven.

Lately I have been in the spring cleaning mood. I had been thinking about cleaning out one of the cupboards (the cookie/cracker treat cupboard) for quite awhile. There were a few small Halloween size boxes of Smarties from Halloween and a few Hershey’s Kisses that had been in the cupboard for a least a year. Since no one in our house likes to waste anything unless it is moldy or otherwise compromised, I decided to search for a recipe to turn the Smarties, and Kisses into some cookies.

I found a recipe on this website www.cooksrecipes.com/cookie/super_smarties_cookies_recipe.html.

I modified the recipe only slightly. I added some rum extract for extra flavor, I also used more vanilla extract then the recipe indicated. With the smarties I cut each one in half (since I don’t like big chunks and I had very few smarties), I also used Hershey’s chocolate kisses. I cut the kisses into small pieces. I used a total of 1 cup of smarties combine with kisses.

The cookies turned out very well. The are soft, and a little bit chewy from the oatmeal (in a good way). They also have a small amount of crunch from the smarties. The combined textures make a very delightful cookie.

Here is my modified recipe:

Kiss Smartie Cookies

1 ½ cups all purpose flour

1 tsp baking soda

1 tsp salt

1 cup olive oil margarine

¾ white granulated sugar

½ cup lightly packed brown sugar

2 tsp vanilla extract

1 tsp rum extract

3 large eggs

2 cups rolled oats

Smarties (desired amount)

Kisses (desired amount)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. In a large bowl combine the margerine, vanilla and rum extracts, and eggs. Beat well. Add the sugars and beat well. Add the flour, salt and baking soda. Beat until smooth. Now prepare the smarties and kisses (cut to desired size). Add the oats and the smarties/kisses mixture. Blend. Drop by teaspoonfuls onto prepared cookie sheets. Bake for 12-13 minutes in your preheated oven. Enjoy.

This recipe makes about 50 medium sized cookies.

Tonight I was in the baking mood. However I didn’t have much energy or ambition, so I decided to defrost some cookie dough. I made my favorite cookie dough; English Bay Double Chocolate Chip Cookie dough into wonderful cookies.

I baked these cookies for 14 minutes. They turned out soft, but slightly crunchy on the bottom. I prefer my cookies very soft. The container says to bake them for 10-15 minutes. Consequently I think next time I will bake them for 12 minutes.

Despite the cookies not being ultra soft, they were still an exquisite treat for the taste buds.

I had my cookie with a small glass of skim milk.

I would recommend this cookie dough to all chocolate lovers! It is a must try.

Before I started this tasting, I cleared my mouth with pure filtered water. It was cool, but not cold. I sampled this chocolate after dinner, which is not considered prime chocolate tasting time, but I was in the mood, so that is why I chose this time.

This chocolate is made of pure coco butter and real vanilla. Below are some images of the package.

This is how the little chocolate information booklet describes this cappuccino delight: cappuccino; a successful and delicate compliment of finely roasted coffee beans combined with the buttery sweetness of this fine milk chocolate, provide a wonderful creamy cappuccino experience for you to savor.

Here are my impressions. The aroma that this chocolate had was that of milk chocolate with a hint of coffee. Visually the chocolate appeared to be a medium brown color, and was also smooth and glossy on top. There were small imprecations noted on the back side of the chocolate. This likely means the chocolatier didn’t put as much care into the back side as the front.

Taste Impressions

Initial

When I first put the chocolate in my mouth I let it melt for a very short time. The chocolate tasted lavish with a hint of creamy cappuccino flavor. The cappuccino flavor was very low key, kind of like a background taste to the extraordinary creamy smooth milk chocolate flavor.

Middle

As I began to chew the chocolate I noted that the outside layer of chocolate was medium to thin in thickness. The inside cappuccino chocolate mixture was immensely creamy (which I loved). The chocolate tasted pure. It was a tiny bit sweeter then the 64% Single Origin Madagascar Superior Dark Chocolate that I sampled in my first review http://lisaopolis.wordpress.com/2008/12/31/my-first-chocolate-review/ .

Long

The chocolate left a bit of a sweet/coffee after taste. It was pretty mellow though, and not unpleasant.

Overall Impression

I loved this cappuccino chocolate from the Chocolate Trading Company. The experience of this chocolate was ecstasy. I highly recommend this chocolate for all people who love cappuccino chocolates. This one is a winner.

Rating

On a scale of 1-10 (10 being the best chocolate imaginable) I would give this one a score of 8/10.

As mentioned previously I received a variety of different chocolates from my boyfriend, for Christmas. These chocolates were from the Chocolate Trading Company (which be bought online since we don’t live in the UK.).

Today’s review is of 64% Single Origin Madagascar Superior Dark Chocolate.

Before I started this tasting, I cleared my mouth with pure filtered water. It was cool, but not cold. I sampled this chocolate between breakfast and lunch.

This chocolate is made with pure coco butter and real vanilla. It contains no preservatives, artificial flavors or vegetable fats.

The ingredients in this chocolate are as follows: dark chocolate, 64% cocoa min. Cocoa beans, sugar, cocoa butter, natural vanilla, emulsifier, Soya lecithin.

This chocolate is made in France.

For this review I sampled three pieces of chocolate.

Here are my impressions from my tasting.

Initial Impression: This chocolate has an earthy aroma. It has a very dark brown, slightly shiny appearance. It also may have a scant amount of coco butter bloom. This I learned is a white, powdery-looking coating on chocolate. It occurs when the chocolate is improperly stored. I learned this from a book I recently bought called: Discover Chocolate; The Ultimate Guide to Buying, Tasting, and Enjoying Fine Chocolate by Clay Gordon. The chocolate has a crisp snap to it. This is characteristic of a high quality chocolate.

Taste Impressions

Initial

When I first put a piece of chocolate in my mouth, I let it melt for a few seconds. The initial flavors I tasted were; earthy, and wood flavors.

Middle

As I let the chocolate melt in my mouth the earthy, wood flavors were intensified. As I started to chew the chocolate I noted that it was slightly crunchy but then super smooth. It tasted very pure, and not too sweet.

Long

The chocolate left a pleasant short after taste in my mouth, and no long term after taste.

My over all rating of this chocolate would be an 8/10 ( 10 being the highest possible score). It is was exqusite chocolate experience.

There was tons of snow on the ground, and it was sunny. However despite the sun, it lightly snowed on and off though out the day.

I had a quite Christmas at home with my parents (and dog). My brother and sister-in law stopped by for a short visit in the afternoon. They dropped off gifts for us. This is what they gave me. It is stylish.

Since it was a beautiful day and the roads were good, I decided to do some picture taking. I went to one of my favorite parks: Piper’s Lagoon, and took a few photos. There was very little snow there compared to where I live.

Here are a few photos I took.

For Christmas I received a few very lovely gifts. The first one is my favorite. My boyfriend gave me a huge selection of chocolate from The Chocolate Trading Company. Here is a link to their website if you are interested: http://www.chocolatetradingco.com/mainpage.asp?

I am head over heals in love with this chocolate. I have yet to try some of the varieties but from what I have tried, the Booja-Booja organic truffles are my favorite by far. Each time I eat one of these I am taken to another place. It is pure delight. It is a sensual experience like none other. This is one chocolate that is a must try for all chocoholics.

Below are some picture of my chocolates. Stayed turned for more up close profiles of each chocolate variety.

Today I made my one of my ultimate favorite varieties of muffin: Peanut Butter and Banana Muffins. This is one of my favorite recipes because it combines three of my favorite ingredients: banana, chocolate, and peanut butter, into a lovely muffin. The original recipe comes from Company’s Coming: Mostly Muffins, by Jean Pare (Page 21). Here is the recipe (with my modifications).

 Peanut Butter and Banana Muffins

1 cup all purpose white flour

1 cup whole wheat flour

1/3 cup Lightly packed brown sugar

1 tbsp baking powder

½ tsp salt

1 large egg

3 medium ripe-overripe bananas (pealed)

2/3 cup peanut butter (I used smooth)

2/3 cup skim milk

2 tsp vanilla extract

2 tbsp Olive oil

½ cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Combine the flours, baking powder, and salt in a large bowl. Add the chocolate chips and stir well. Add all the remaining ingredients into a blender and blend until smooth. Add the blender mixture to the bowl and stir until completely combined. Spoon batter into prep reared muffin tins. Bake for 15-20 minutes, until lightly golden, and a toothpick comes out clean. Enjoy.

Last night I worked a night shift. It seems quite often when I work nights I always feel like baking in the evening before work. So that is what I did last evening. I made some muffins. The original recipe is in Company’s Coming Mostly Muffins by Jean Pare (page 15). However my recipe bears little resemblance.

Chocolate Chip Blueberry Muffins

Makes 12 Large medium sized muffins

1 cup whole wheat flour

1 ½ cups all purpose white flour

½ cup granulated sugar

1 tbsp baking powder

½ tsp salt

2 eggs

¼ cup margarine melted

1 ½ cups skim milk

About 1 cup frozen or fresh blueberries

½ semi-sweet chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350 degrees C.

In a large bowl combine the flour, sugar, baking powder and salt. Mix well. Add blueberries and chocolate ship and mix well. Combine the egg, milk, and margarine in a smaller bowl. Mix well. Add liquid mixture to dry mixture. Mix until a muffin batter forms. Place in prepared muffin tins. Bake until muffins are slightly golden on top and a tooth pick comes out clean. Enjoy.