Archive: Chocolate
Chat Doggie Bag
There were lots of leftovers from yesterday's installment of What's Cooking; here are a few assorted questions I pulled from the chat platter to add to the holiday conversation: Saratoga Springs, N.Y.: I need to plan an appetizer-only buffet for Christmas Eve. How does one put together a selection of appealing appetizers? Dear Saratoga Springs, without knowing the size of your party or any possible dietary issues, I will offer general rather than specific thoughts. A couple of considerations:...
By kimodo | December 7, 2005; 11:25 AM ET | Comments: (5)
Knock Your Choc-Socks Off
As much as I love chocolate year 'round, I love it most at this time of year. Maybe it's that seratonin boost that I so desperately need at the height of December darkness to keep me from becoming a grinch. There's also something psychologically soothing about the stuff, akin to the protection and warmth of a blanket when the weather outside is frightful. Chocolate has a mysterious way of bringing people together, too. Remember how in the movie version of "Chocolat," Vianne (played by Juliette Binoche), with her elixir of hot chocolate, lures the townspeople out of their shuttered homes and bad marriages and opens their eyes to the simple joys of life. Of course, Vianne is like a sorceress, which scares the beejeezus out of the mayor and his wannabe girlfriend, Madame Clairmont, but there's no doubt that chocolate possesses powers of its own. It's supposed to snow tonight,...
By kimodo | December 5, 2005; 11:40 AM ET | Comments: (3)
