I have officially reached a point where there can be chocolate in the house and I am not constantly thinking about devouring it. Shocking, especially to me. That's what a week of hard core chocolate eating does to you.On the weekend I co-hosted a baby shaker for one of my new nephews. It wasn't about cutesy games or pastel-coordinated favours. It was about friends and family getting together to officially celebrate the arrival of the latest member of Team A. Rather than resort to hummus and spinach dip we decided on a chocolate theme for the food. Who doesn't love a party with lots of chocolate?
We had cookies, chocolate covered cream puffs, a large platter of fresh fruit to make us feel somewhat virtuous, and some memorable tasty treats. This was my chance to try a chocolate blackout cake. I need special occasions to bake cakes and this was one I was dying to try. It was a hit at the party, with not even one extra crumb leftover. Surprisingly I was rather disappointed myself. Moist cake covered in chocolate pudding covered in cake crumbs - it should have been spectacular. It was sweet, creamy, and almost fudgy, but it didn't knock my socks off. I was, however, in the minority with this opinion.
Another hit with The Monster was the chocolate tasting bar. I chunked up some dark and milk chocolate from Bernard Callebaut, Choklat, and Kerstin's Chocolate for a side by side tasting. There was nothing official or even blind about it. It was striking to taste the differences.
Bernard Callebaut was smooth and tasted exactly like you would expect the chocolate to taste. Choklat's contribution was also smooth, but distinctively fruity. I went with their Brazillian 48% Milk and Ocumare 70 % Dark. They really are unlike anything you've tried - sweet but far from cloying, smooth but not terribly creamy, and fruity without tasting juicy. Finally, we had two offerings from Kerstin's Chocolate in Edmonton, the Venezuela Dark Milk Chocolate and the Ecuador 72 % Extra Dark. It is impossible to say what was the crowd favourite, but their was none of the Choklat Milk left. Of course, that may have been due to the proximity to the edge of the kitchen island and The Monster's sneaky fingers.
Truly, though, my favourite thing about the food was this chili chocolate sauce. I didn't even make it, my talented mother-in-law did. When the other co-host and I decided on the chocolate thing we tasked my mother-in-law (and grandma of the star of the show) with bringing something savoury. We knew she would be up for the challenge, and boy did she step up! At the party she served the sauce with some chicken skewers. On Monday I spooned some warm sauce over grilled pork chops. And then I cooked some black beans and made a dip by pureeing the sauce and the beans together. It needed a touch more chopped cilantro at that point, but it was still fragrant and yummy on some rye bread at Julie's house the other day.
Chili Chocolate Sauce
1 tablespoon kosher salt
1/8 teaspoon freshly cracked black pepper
1 tablespoon granulated garlic powder
1/8 teaspoon dried oregano
1/8 teaspoon dried basil
1/8 teaspoon dried thyme
pinch crushed red pepper flakes
1 poblano chili - grilled, peeled, seeded, and diced
1/2 onion, diced
2 ounces red wine
1/4 cup chopped milk chocolate
2 tablespoons chili powder
3 medium tomatoes, chopped
2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro
1. Combine the salt through red pepper flakes into a seasoning mix.
2. Over medium-high heat saute the poblano, onions, and a pinch of the seasoning mix.
3. Add the red wine and chocolate and stir until combined. Add the chili powder and remaining seasoning mix. Stir until thickened. Add the chopped tomatoes and stir. Continue to cook for another 5 minutes.
4. Remove from heat, puree, and stir in cilantro.
PS Who am I kidding? I'm digging out some of the leftover chocolate right now.
At the end of the day I teased my dad that although this was for my girls, that it really was a dream come true for me - 25 years late. I grew up in the days where you were sent out to play with instructions to come back when it was dark. My friends and I would go to the park behind our elementary school where there were woods and a small clearing. We called it Smurf Village. It was our fantasy to have my dad build a playhouse in the clearing. We could then go out there every day and have lunch and commune with the Smurfs. Truly, I would have settled for a playhouse in my backyard. Now I have it. And my dad made it a bit taller than the plans so I will fit in there nicely. Hmm, maybe I will put a comfy chair in there for me instead of a little table and toys for the girls...
The playhouse was christened last night. What a better way to wrap up the busy day with a campfire in the backyard and s'mores. The porch was a perfect venue to sneak marshmallows straight from the bag and snuggle up to Dido for chocolate. Our nephew, not surprisingly, was happy to fill up on Taber cob and s'mores. But hey, he had a busy day supervising, er, I mean, pounding nails.