Chocolate Obsession

After scouring the Internet for some of the most insane chocolate creations, here are the ten most outrageous chocolates:

1. Mo’s Bacon Bar by Vosges Haut Chocolat:
   

   Mo's Bacon Bar

2. Bubble Chocolate
   

   Aerated Chocolate

3. Chocolate Cheeseburger by Creative Chocolates of Vermont:
   

   Chocolate Cheeseburger

4. Ginger Wasabi and Indian Curry Truffles by Vosges Haut Chocolat:
   

   Exotic Truffle Collection. I actually had the chance to try each of these and they were to die for. Wasabi was my favorite.

5. Chocolate Billboard:
   

   Germ-infested Chocolate Billboard

6. Chocolate Toothpaste:
   

   Chocolate toothpaste actually isn't horrible for you. Click the image to view the Tulane study about cocoa powder.

7. Sauerkraut & Chocolate Cake:
   

   German Chocolate Sauerkraut Cake

8. La Madeline au Truffe by Knipschildt:
   

   The $250 dollar chocolate truffle

9. Golden Opulence Sundae by Serendipity:
   

   The $25,000 chocolate sundae

10. Chocolate Fashion Show:
    

    And yes, an entire fashion show in chocolate

Army Spouse wins Food Network’s Ultimate Recipe Showdown

Lisa Roman will be awarded $25,000 and her award-winning recipe, called Babycakes, will be featured in T.G.I Fridays nationwide.

“FORT SHAFTER, Hawaii — After a nationwide recipe showdown Lisa Roman, wife of Capt. Joe Roman, who is a strategic plans officer, 94th Army Air and Missile Defense Command, was chosen as the winner of the ultimate dessert recipe during Food Network’s Ultimate Recipe Showdown Feb. 8.

She will be awarded $25,000 and her award-winning recipe, called Babycakes, will be featured in T.G.I Fridays nationwide.” Read the rest at WWW.ARMY.MIL.

Holiday Gift Ideas

With the holidays approaching, I’m sure you’ve been thinking about what to get your family and friends. Usually I’ll brainstorm on my drive to and from work only to forget what I thought about once I reach paper and pen. Thanks to blogging, I can use this as a way to track cool gift ideas I’ve come across:

• MoMA cutting board (it folds into three to make it easy to put chopped food into a pot)

MoMA Cutting Board

• Bean bag cell phone chair (cute way to keep your phone near by on your desk at work)

Bean Bag Cell Phone Chair

• Mobi designer sandwich bags by Todd Oldham (kind of extreme in my opinion)

Mobi Designer Sandwich Bag

• Fingerfood party plate (clever way to carry a glass of wine and appetizer in one hand)

FINGERFOOD Party Plate

• Thumb Thing (ideal for reading with one hand)

Thumb Thing

• BIG Sound Speakers for your iPod (I love miniature and gigantic versions of the real thing)

BIG Sound Speakers

• Wacky Websites desk calendar

Wacky Websites Desk Calendar

Looking back at that list, it resonates with my “gifts should be practical” philosophy. Now, if you’re like me where you’re looking for low-budget gift ideas, here are some homemade food ideas I’ve come up with:

• Cookie swap with coworkers
• Pretzel wafers with melted hershey kisses topped with an M&M (great sweet & salty combination)
• Mini tinfoil bread pans filled with homemade sweets
• Pretzel nuggets w/ dry ranch dressing pack

September 19th, 2008: Happy Birthday!

Today is my birthday and I am super excited to spend it with family and friends. Last night I spent it with my parents and Marcus. We had dinner at one of the Great American Restaurants, which was delish! However, we all saved room for a treat waiting at home. Back in June, I had tried this almond amaretto cake on a boat cruise and absolutely loved it! I contacted the baker and after months of talking, she got me hooked up with my own birthday cake. We shared it last night and OH IT WAS SO GOOD! I brought in the other half for my coworkers today for after lunch. I have a feeling they will rave about it too 😉 Usually I make each coworker a sweet treat on their special day, but I have kind of slacked on that. Hey, I was busy celebrating, I couldn’t bake last night… I get a get-out-of-jail-free card, right? 🙂

By the way, if you are interested in finding out more about where I got the cake from, go to All Sweet Things to see their selection of cakes and cupcakes. They do weddings!