Posts Tagged "dessert"

It’s Chocolate Day!

Dear Kid,

Yippee!! It’s Chocolate Day!

As if we needed an excuse, but IT’S CHOCOLATE DAY!

And we don’t really need to be creative, but it’s Chocolate Day so why not?

World's Best Street. DearKidLoveMom.comChocolate milk and chocolate cereal with a chocolate éclair for breakfast.

Triple chocolate brownies for a mid-morning snack.

Chocolate fondue and chocolate chip cookies for lunch.

Chocolate covered strawberries, chocolate soda, and chocolate covered pretzels for snack.

Chocolate peanut butter pie, chocolate covered bacon, and a chocolate milkshake for dinner.

Chocolate mousse cake and hot chocolate for bedtime snack.

And s’mores if you wake up in the middle of the night, because why not?

See how easy this is?

And, YUM!

Happy Chocolate Day, my sweetie. (I have to go snarf some chocolate.)

Love, Mom

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Keeping an Open Mind About Dessert

Dear Kid,

As you know, I am a huge believer in keeping an open mind. I am also a huge believer in desserts. Combining the two (having an open mind about dessert options) is a sort of nirvana-like experience for me.

Since I forgot to take a photo of the key lime tarts (with blueberry compote) and the Buckeye dessert thing, I turned to My Friend the Internet. Where I found lots of pictures of exactly what dessert didn't look like. Fortunately, you have a wonderful imagination. For the record: YUM! DearKidLoveMom.comLast night I took Pi and her future roomie out for dessert. That’s not quite right. It was Pi and it was her future roomie and it most assuredly was dessert, but we didn’t really go out. Except sort of.

We’re in Columbus for the DECA competition (Pi and future roomie are competing; I am—wait for it—one of the judges). I told the girls I would take them out for dessert because I couldn’t get to Columbus in time for dinner.

Note to burglars: The vicious attack puppy is still home. The responsible and fully-armed teenager watching him is there too. The police have been notified to keep an eye on the house but not to arrest the puppy or the teen. The neighbors are staking out the place in rotating shifts. The cricket has been trained to dial 911 at the merest indication that all is not as it should be. Did I mention the trip-wire?

The girls had various meetings about their various events, and (while we were waiting for Pi) Future Roomie and I braced Doug the Bartender and inquired about dessert options.

Doug the B was quite helpful about the (few) alternatives in the area and casually mentioned that the hotel served dessert. He even had a menu. Future Roomie and I pounced. By the time Pi reappeared, we’d decided to order a Buckeye desserty thing, a key lime tart (with blueberry compote), and a cup of coffee all of which we then took back to my room to share.

Except for the coffee which I didn’t share.

It would have been smart of me to take a photo before we dove in, but I forgot. As usual.

But back to the open mind.

Based on our personal preferences and the description on the menu, all three of us were pretty sure we were going to like the Buckeye confection better than the tarts (a serving of tart is actually two tarts).

The Buckeye thing was okay.

The key lime tarts (with blueberry compote) were outstanding.

Fortunately, the dress I brought to wear for tomorrow’s competition is very forgiving. Otherwise, I’d be ordering a corset.

Love, Mom

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Happy National Chocolate Day!

Dear Kid,

It’s NATIONAL CHOCOLATE DAY!!!!

And yes, National Chocolate Day is worth caps and all those exclamation points.

 

World's Best Street. DearKidLoveMom.com

As we have previously discussed, chocolate is (without a doubt) one of the most important major food groups. Especially if it is dark chocolate. And in front of me. And I don’t have to arm wrestle anyone for it.

Chocolate (as I might have mentioned once or twice) is good for you. Pure cocoa actually helps prevent tooth decay. Turns out that some of the chemicals in cocoa fight mouth bacteria—sort of an oral light saber battle. One wonders why there isn’t chocolate toothpaste… (Looking at you, Colgate and Crest.)

There’s been a lot of research on chocolate (I conduct research every day, testing to see if it will eliminate the need to color my hair). While research has not (yet) proven that chocolate can compete with Clairol, researchers (not me) have shown that chocolate helps skin! German scientists have shown that flavonoids in chocolate “absorb UV light, which helps protect and increase blood flow to the skin, ultimately improving its appearance.” Hershey’s can add a whole new product line of acne-fighting candy.

One chocolate chip can give a person enough energy to walk 150 feet.

According to some Eeyore-ish scientists who probably haven’t had their daily chocolate fix, it is possible to die if you eat too much chocolate. Well duh. Turns out that if you power snarf 22 pounds of chocolate, you’ll ingest enough theobromine to end up on a slab. Stick with a daily ration of 21 pounds and you won’t die. But by the time you do kick off they’ll need an extra-reinforced table. Maybe a little less is sufficient.

Dark chocolate is especially beneficial. Dark chocolate boosts memory, attention span, ability to tolerate boring meetings, reaction time, problem-solving skills, vision, blood pressure, shopping endurance, mood, platelet function, and ability to write blogs.

I’d tell you more, but I need to go stock up on my daily allotment.

Love, Mom

 

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Apple Pie and Coffee. And Yum.

Dear Kid,

Once upon a time, there was no such thing as apple pie. That was because no one had ever eaten an apple. Then Eve took a bite and said, “Well, now I know what to do with all that pastry.” See? It really was the tree of knowledge.

Ever since then, people have been baking apple pies of various and sundry varieties.

Mrs. Joe Neanderthal was not a huge fan of pies. When one of her children started whining for an apple pie, she put an apple on his head, smashed it down, and said, “Pie-shmy.” Incidentally, that was how apple sauce was invented.

Other people love apple pie, no matter what shape it’s in. Round pie, square pie, McDonald’s (a pie shape unto itself), apple pie is as American as, well, apple pie.

In a highly scientific survey, I have determined that the most popular apple pie (according to Most Americans) is the one in front of them. Followed closely by the one behind them.

The only thing the different kinds of apple pie have in common is “apples.” Other than that, they are as different as can be.

Some apple pies have two crusts. Some have one. Some have one and a half (a lattice). Some don’t really have a crust at all, more of a crumble top (I like those best). Some have cinnamon (we don’t speak of the ones that don’t). Some have raisins (YUM!). Some are fried. Some are made right in the apple (which seems like cheating to me).

Some have bourbon (Yum!), some have caramel (Yum!). Some are deep dish, some are more tart-like, some are in a traditional pie plate.

Some are served with whipped cream, some are served with ice cream, some are served with cheddar cheese, some are served with coffee (yay!).

According to my research, there are only two possible problems with apple pie. 1. It almost never has chocolate in it. 2. It might not be served.

All in all, apple pie is a pretty good way to eat your fruit.

Love, Mom

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New Orleans, Bananas Foster, the Crime Commission, and Harry Chapin

Dear Kid,

“Mom,” I hear you say, “You wrote a delicious sounding blog about Bananas Foster yesterday. Whence came the name for this dessert?”

You are so polite when I get to make up your part of the conversation in my head.

Since I almost never turn down a request that I’ve made up, I turned to My Friend The Internet for some history on Bananas Foster.

It turns out that bananas weren’t as ubiquitous (go look it up) in the 1950s as they are today, and in those days New Orleans was one of (if not the) major ports through which bananas entered the US of A. Own Brennan, owner of the Amazing Brennan’s Restaurant which you can hear people all over the Food Network “ooh” and “ahh” about, decided to promote this exotic fruit.

Coincidentally, at about the same time Holiday Magazine (which I have never heard of but MFTI has) asked Owen for a new and inspiring recipe to include in an article they were writing about the Restaurant.

So Owen turned to his Chef (although I’m not sure if they capitalized Chef in those days the way we seem to now) Paul Blange for a banana inspired dessert. If then were now, Paul probably would have created something with bacon in the shape of a banana. But then was then, so Paul created Bananas Foster.

Bananas Foster at Brennan's New Orlean's RestaurantThe original recipe from Brennan’s is remarkably close to Alton’s but without the allspice and nutmeg (freshly grated or not) and with cinnamon (I am so smart!) and served over vanilla ice cream. It is often made tableside so you can watch the flambé part flambé. Extra points if your tablecloth catches on fire.

Bananas Foster was named for Richard Foster who was a FOO (Friend of Owen’s). Richard was chairman of the New Orleans Crime Commission and “a local civic and business leader.” I’m guessing it never hurts to name a dessert after your local chairman of the Crime Commission.

These days, Brennan’s is still serving Banana’s Foster and they flambé (such a great word) 35,000 pounds of bananas each year (which is 5,000 more than crashed in Allentown, PA for those of you keeping track of such things).

Thanks for asking such a good question.

Love, Mom

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