Delice Chocolatier is based out of Arlington, Texas. This was interesting to me because it is close to where I live. I received the chocolate the day after I got the message that it was being shipped.

The odd thing is that even though the chocolate arrived the next day, and didn’t travel far…and even though it was wrapped in insulating material and with ice packs it was hot. It surprised me because we aren’t having a hot summer and other companies that have sent me cold items have done so successfully. Opening the chocolate I found that it was beautiful, …read more

So, today is none other than National Cheesecake Day! In celebration I wanted to post yet another cheesecake.
I love doing cheesecakes. Even though people think they are really hard, and impressive–they are a cinch. Just a few tricks and tips will guarantee your success. Once you have the basic formula down you can change flavors and crust and topping to your heart’s content.

This brownie cheesecake was actually an accident. I was trying out a new chocolate cake recipe for Matt’s birthday party (7/24)  and the texture of the cake was not what I wanted..too dense to be cake, too dry …read more

I figure that the woman who invented blondies was a mom of many kids.  There she was, last few days of the month, children clamoring for something sweet and no chocolate to be had. What could she do? This brave woman had a choice.

She could throw her really cute red and white polka dot apron over her head and cry
She could create magic

I think she decided to create magic and threw ingredients together to make Blondies. You know why? These are the most versatile of bar cookies. I mean you can toss almost anything in there… well, within reason..I mean …read more

Archer Farms is a Target brand that I really like alot .  Recently I found that Target was carrying several different types of Belgian chocolate cups in the baking aisle and I wanted to give them a try.
I mean, how can you go wrong with edible kitchenware?

They are small, and bite sized and make great containers for almost any sort of sweet that you can think of.  Personally I am envisioning a lemon mousse next, maybe a ginger cheesecake filling..and the list goes on and on.
I made a puff pastry tart the other day and I filled it with a …read more

The April 2009 challenge is hosted by Jenny from Jenny Bakes. She has chosen Abbey’s Infamous Cheesecake as the challenge.
I love doing Daring Bakers.  It forces me to challenge myself in ways I would not normally challenge myself.  It forces me to think outside of the box, and it allows me to be part of a group that includes the premier pastry chefs, bakers, and bloggers in the world.   I don’t know how you imagine my life to be, maybe blithely moving from mixer to oven to computer and back again, but that ain’t it!  Anyway, Daring Bakers gives me …read more

The March 2009 challenge is hosted by Mary of Beans and Caviar, Melinda of Melbourne Larder and Enza of Io Da Grande. They have chosen Lasagne of Emilia-Romagna from The Splendid Table by Lynne Rossetto Kasper as the challenge.

O.k..with that said.. I only check the Daring Kitchen about once a month.  Sometimes I get there twice but not too often.  So when the date got changed from the 29 to the 27 I didn’t know.  You can bet I totally freaked on Friday when I saw daring lasagnes popping up all over the internet.
I was reassured that for this month …read more

I made it just in underthe wire once again.  I finished this cake during a birthday party for Shiloh last night!
First of all the required verbage:
The February 2009 challenge is hosted by Wendy of WMPE’s blog and Dharm of Dad ~ Baker & Chef.
We have chosen a Chocolate Valentino cake by Chef Wan; a Vanilla Ice Cream recipe from Dharm and a Vanilla Ice Cream recipe from Wendy as the challenge.

This is a moist, dense, chewy dark chocolate brownie with a smoky-spicy-sweet raspberry swirl.  I would say it is a great combination but it is more than that. It is just so good.
The chipotle makes these have a little “bite ya back” in the after taste and the smoke flavor adds an interesting layer of flavor.  It sort of deepens the chocolate and gives it an extra layer and depth of flavor.

I have wanted to make this every since I saw it in the November/December issue of Food Network Magazine.  I loved the idea of it totally.
The thing is that when I copied their cake recipe it was not what I wanted.  It did not roll well, it broke and it was a weird texture. Didn’t like the chocolate flavor, or lack thereof, either.
Sorry, Food Network.
But other than that it was awesome.

This month’s challenge is brought to us by the adventurous Hilda from Saffron and Blueberry and Marion from Il en Faut Peu Pour Etre Heureux.
They have chosen a French Yule Log by Flore from Florilege Gourmand.
Florilège Gourmand is all in French and the hosts this month, Hilda of Saffron and Blueberry and Marion of Il en Faut Peu Pour Etre Heureux, created 12 pages of recipe for us to experiment with.
YAY.
Needless to say I will not be copying it off here.