Chocolate Diets and Chocolate Pills
March 21, 2014
The idea of a chocolate diet seems to have new company. A new study will determine if collecting the nutrients in dark chocolate, minus the fat and sugar, and putting them in a pill, will do any good.
The key part of this study is the ‘flavanol’ that’s abundant in cacao beans. Several studies have shown how it can be beneficial for arterial health, insulin, blood pressure, as well as cholesterol.
The concepts of chocolate diets and chocolate pills may be rather new, but the health benefits of cocoa have been studied and established for quite a while. The flavonoids in cocoa are renowned antioxidants that help keep stroke and heart attacks at bay.
Gooey Chocolate Skillet Cake Ice Cream Sundae
March 19, 2014
The best way to enjoy dessert is to enjoy it with your family. No argument there. There’s something superbly fun and simple about pulling out a large dish of dessert and laying it on the table, putting it right in the middle, and saying out loud ‘dig in’. There is sheer joy that comes with such an experience, bite by messy, delectable bite. Family memories at its best. Well, in this case, gooey chocolate memories.
P. S. using a cast iron skillet to bake cake is just something else. I love the rustic result.
Chocolate-Chip Biscotti
March 12, 2014
The Italians are kind of liberal with the word biscotti, considering they call any type of cookie biscotti. Meanwhile, in North America, the term biscotti refers to cookies that are long, dry, hard, and twice-baked with a curved top and flat bottom designed for dunking into coffee or even wine. The term ‘biscotti’ is derived from 'bis' meaning twice in Italian and 'cotto', meaning baked or cooked.
Biscotti can supposedly be traced back to Columbus's time, specifically to an Italian baker who is said to have served these treats with Tuscan wines. As Biscotti became massively popular almost all the provinces developed their own flavored version. Since their shelf life was quite long, they were an ideal food for sailors, soldiers, and fisherman.
Enough with the information overload, here's the recipe!
Chocolate-Flavored Fried Chicken!?
February 28, 2014
It seems as though the prediction that we will experience bizarre food mash-ups in 2014 is coming true.
The word is on the street about a new ChocoChicken restaurant from Umami Burger founder Adam Fleischman. You read right, ChocoChicken!
Yes, that’s right, ChocoChicken, as in chocolate and chicken.
Fleischman emphasized right then and there, though, that it’s not gonna be chicken with a mole sauce, or chicken dipped in chocolate. It’s chicken taken to a whole new level. The batter has chocolate infused into it. The world has yet to experience this novelty!
Chocolate-Champagne Trifle with Passion Fruit Curd
February 26, 2014
Passion fruit, chocolate and champagne. Hearing even just one of those ingredients would instantly make you think of anything romantic. They’re just dreamy in their own right.
This recipe may entail a lot of work, considering you have to prepare the cake, the passion fruit curd, and the champagne cream separately. But they’re actually a breeze to make, and they will combine to be the most decadent and glamorous dessert.
You can find passion fruit puree in your favorite supermarket. For the most part, they're in the aisle with other Hispanic ingredients.
Eat Chocolate, Live Beyond 100?
February 21, 2014
Edna Sandys, 105, recently celebrated her birthday at the Elizabeth Scott Community assisted living and nursing home in the Springfield Township of Ohio. She says her history is already a little hazy, but she feels great.
Mrs. Sandys claims that eating chocolate and drinking hot chocolate have a lot to do with her long and healthy life!
Son, Tom Sandys, along with his wife, Kathleen, said Mrs. Sandys loves healthy living. She has always been healthy, according to them. Being sickly is not her game. Tom Sandys can even imagine his mother living for five years more.
Chocolate Almond Pound Cake
February 19, 2014
You should know that this cake is, as a matter of fact, weighty. Deeply sorry I had to use such word play. In any case, the cake was named for the ratio of ingredients it is made of: 1 pound butter, 1 pound eggs, 1 pound flour, 1 pound sugar. But we won’t stick with those measurements!
Long story short, despite the original pound cake's sparse number of ingredients, it is packed with flavor. Pound cake is described as a dense cake with a compact, buttery crumb. The butter and eggs are to be thanked for its richness.
Bourbon Balls
February 12, 2014
I love hot chocolate, and any chocolate drink, for that matter. I can't stress it enough. Not gonna lie, I also have this intense love of alcohol drinks. Among the top of my list: bourbon drinks. I love bourbon with citrus, bourbon with ginger, bourbon with...well, just about anything.
According to Wikipedia, bourbon whiskey is a type of American whiskey – a barrel-aged distilled spirit made primarily from corn. The name derives from the French Bourbon dynasty, although it is disputed whether its namesake Kentucky county or New Orleans street is the source of the whiskey's name.
Turn it into a dessert, and I'm a happy camper!
Brush Your Teeth With Chocolate!
February 7, 2014
Crest Be is introducing some new and groundbreaking toothpaste flavors like lime spearmint zest, vanilla mint spark, and mint chocolate trek.
Fret not, your dentist will not disapprove. The executives of Procter & Gamble are quick to point out that Be has the "foundational benefits needed for oral health including cavity protection, cleaning, fresh breath and whitening."
They are expected to hit the shelves first week of February in the U.S., then in Canada shortly thereafter