Showing posts with label Valentine's Day. Show all posts

Sunday, February 2, 2025

Around the Kitchen Table: LOVE IS IN THE AIR...FOR FOOD + 3-BOOK #GIVEAWAY

KORINA MOSS: With Valentine's Day approaching, it's natural to think of gifts or flowers or romantic getaways. But the first thing that comes to my mind, of course, is food. For many of us, love and food are intertwined. Making a dish for someone is a personal way to to show our friends and loved ones we care about them. We don't need a special occasion like Valentine's Day, but it's a good excuse. As my Cheese Shop Mystery series protagonist Willa Bauer says, "Cheese is my love language."

Throwback photo: My son making Valentine's Day heart cookies for his teachers and classmates.

So my question to discuss Around The Kitchen Table is: What's a special dish or dessert that you've made for (or received from) someone special that stands out in your memory?

🧁 💘 🍪

LESLIE BUDEWITZ: When I think of Valentine's Day treats, the first image that pops into mind, every time, is the red heart-shaped box of Russell Stover's Chocolates that my mother always put out for my brother and me on our breakfast plates on Valentine's Day. After we ate, we were allowed one piece of chocolate before rushing off to school, often with sugar cookies or cupcakes to share. Knowing that she'd thought of us, knowing that the box was waiting when we got home, was pure delight. She was not an expressive woman, but that simple gesture said a lot.

But I have to tell you this story. When Guilty as Cinnamon, my second Spice Shop mystery came out, an elderly reader very much wanted to try the Orange Cinnamon Creme Brulee from the book, but was daunted by the idea of using a torch to crystallize the sugar on top. So she asked the woman who runs the café in her small Montana town to make it for her. The woman liked it so much that she added it to her dessert selection for her annual Valentine’s Day dinner that year.

Now that’s the way to an author’s heart.

💕💕💕

MADDIE DAY: I love that story, Leslie! My first post here at the Kitchen five years ago was for Mocha Kahlua Valentine's Cookies.

And last year in February I presented Chocolate Peanut Butter Cookies - yum! The tall man with the sweet tooth who I live with was the happy beneficiary of both. This year I'm eyeing up a flourless chocolate cake recipe to make for him. Stay tuned for that.

💘💗💖

LIBBY KLEIN: You know I love my holiday baking! And it wouldn't be Valentine's Day in my house without these Linzer Heart Cookies. I love the marriage of raspberry and vanilla. And those gorgeous little windows of red peeking through. Plus I get to pull out my heart shaped cookie cutters. Another favorite of mine is Pierre Hermes Raspberry Rose macarons - a hot pink shell with rose infused white chocolate ganache and a raspberry compote. I'd show you a photo, but we ate them before I could get my camera ready. Instead, here are the gorgeous Linzer cookies.

💞💗💘

LUCY BURDETTE: In my household, if I'm baking something for my hub for V-day, it pretty much has to be chocolate! Here's my very favorite, popular with everyone, Valentine's edition chocolate cake. But do come back on Thursday because I made a chocolate cake with pomegranate glaze that is also to die for!

💘💗💖

MAYA CORRIGAN: Chocolate fondue springs to mind when I think about Valentine’s Day. When I was growing up, I remember stores featuring fondue-for-two kits in the weeks leading up to the holiday. The kits included a small heat-proof bowl, which sat atop a stand that held a tea candle. Just add chocolate for a romantic tête-à-tête with your sweetie. Check out a recipe for the first chocolate fondue and the story of its origin.

💐💘💐

LESLIE KARST: Robin and I celebrate February 12th, rather than the 14th, each year, as that is our half-anniversary (and if we want to go out to dinner, restaurants are far less crowded!).

But if I’m cooking at home for our romantic dinner, I’ll often turn to a quickly seared steak or pork chop with an à la minute sauce (i.e., one quickly made by deglazing the pan with yummy ingredients such as wine, butter, and/or a jam of some sort). They go great with roast or baked potatoes (on which you can drizzle more of that delicious sauce) and a simple green salad or veg. Oh, and don’t forget a luscious red wine to go with the meal! (And now as I write this, I’m thinking this year I’ll return to one of my favorites, Seared Pork with Apricot Brandy Glaze. Is it February yet?)

🍓 💘 🍓

PEG COCHRAN: Speaking of big red hearts filled with candy...my husband always buys me one of those for Valentine's Day. But one year he really surprised me. I opened the heart and inside was a Kindle! He'd removed enough of the pieces of candy to fit it into the box. (And he ate those pieces!) I'd been eyeing Kindles since my daughter liked hers so much and he remembered!

I also remember the year we were quarantined due to Covid and couldn't go out for Valentine's Day. We usually went out to lunch to avoid the dinner crowds. Since we couldn't go anywhere, we set up a table in front of the fireplace for a romantic dinner à deux. I don't remember what we ate but it was fun and memorable. If I was going to make a Valentine's Day dessert, this strawberry tart would be lovely.

💕 🍒 💕

MOLLY MACRAE: As much as I’m a fan of chocolate (we’re talking maniac-level fandom), when I think of making a special Valentine’s Day treat my mind turns to cherry pie. I’ve made heart-shaped cookies, and a heart-shaped cake, and I’ve painted tiny red icing hearts on little sugar cookie people, but there’s something about a pie made with beautiful red sour cherries. Here’s one I made a few years ago. I haven’t made one for Mystery Lovers’ Kitchen (yet), but here’s a recipe from Leslie Budewitz as found in Butter Off Dead. Mmm, cherry pie. Happy St. Valentine’s Day!

💕 🍒 💕

☕ CLEO COYLE: If you or your honey is on a low-sugar, low-carb, or keto diet, here’s an incredibly easy Valentine’s dessert that won’t rock the boat. This COZY WINTER CUSTARD WITH VANILLA AND NUTMEG is a creamy, delicious low-carb, high-protein treat. It’s a lovely and satisfying comfort food that I've been eating ever since my mother made it for me as a child. I've baked it countless times since, and recently shared my easy recipe here in the Kitchen with tips I've learned to help make sure your custard turns out beautifully with a smooth top and silky, creamy texture. Whether or not you’re celebrating Valentine’s Day, I hope it brings you cozy comfort this February.

Click here or on the photo above
for Ceo's recipe (with a free PDF).

☕ 💘 ☕

GIVEAWAY!

Comment on our post to win these three (3) great mysteries! Include your email address so we may contact the winner.

✨ Giveaway Prize Package ✨

FONDUE OR DIE by Korina Moss

A CLUE IN THE CRUMBS
by Lucy Burdette

DEADLY CRUSH by Maddie Day

📚

Comments open through

Wednesday, February 5

Wednesday, February 7, 2024

Gluten-Free Linzer Hearts #Recipe by @LibbyKlein #Valentine's Day

Libby Klein And now one of my very favorite Valentine's Day Recipes. Raspberry Linzer Hearts. Linzer cookies are a twist on the Linzer torte - a recipe from Linz Austria (Where I have been!) A cake made from almonds or hazelnuts, jam, and spices. Nutmeg is one of my favorite spices so it's my go-to with this recipe. While you can use other jams or even Nutella, I love the raspberry. Something about raspberry just says fancy dessert to me. And those red windows are beautiful. Especially for Valentine's Day. Let me know in the comments what flavor jam you would use.

Gluten-Free Linzer Hearts

Makes 10 large and 5 bonus minis

INGREDIENTS:

2 cups gluten-free flour blend with xanthan gum
1 cup almond meal
1 teaspoon kosher salt
½ teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
1 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
¾ cup granulated white sugar
1 vanilla bean, scraped or 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
1 large egg
powdered sugar, for dusting
Raspberry jam, for filling

DIRECTIONS:

Combine the flour, almond meal, salt, nutmeg, and xanthan gum (if necessary) in a medium mixing bowl. Whisk until combined. Set aside.

Add the butter and sugar to the bowl of a stand mixer and beat on medium-high speed for 2 minutes until the mixture is light and fluffy. Add the vanilla, egg, and lemon zest and beat on low until combined.

Add the dry ingredients to the mixer and beat on low speed for 1 minute or so until combined, pausing to scrape down the sides of the bowl at any point if needed.

Roll the dough between two sheets of parchment until you have about a ¼ inch thick rectangleish shape. You’re cutting out hearts so it isn’t crucial to have the dough any a particular shape to begin with. But it is very important to have an even thickness. Use rolling pin guards if you have them.

Chill the dough and refrigerate at least one hour until it is stiff. You can chill it overnight if you want to.

Preheat the oven to 350°F Pull off the top sheet of parchment, and cut out your shapes. If you are making hearts like mine, you’ll need two sizes of cutters. A larger heart for the top and bottom, and a smaller heart to cut out the window of the tops. I save all my smaller window cutouts and make sandwich cookies.

Using a spatula, move all of the cutouts to a cookie sheet lined with fresh parchment paper.

Bake the cookies for 11-13 minutes, or until the cookies are lightly golden around the edges. Different sizes/shapes of cookies may require different amounts of cooking time, so I recommend keeping a close eye on the cookies during the final minutes or baking to be sure that they do not overcook.

Remove the baking sheet from the oven and let the cookies cool on the baking sheet (unless they are overcooked in which case you’ll want to carefully remove them to a wire rack to cool completely to room temperature.)

Fill the cookies with jam, then make them into sandwiches. Either sandwiching the large hearts with the cut-out window top, or the smaller hearts together like you see in the photo.

Then using a fine mesh strainer, dust the cookies with powdered sugar. I like to place them on a pretty plate and give them a final dusting of powdered sugar before serving. You can dust right on the jam center. The jam will absorb the powdered sugar and leave that beautiful red center. The large cutouts are so beautiful and festive, but my favorites are the minis. Just the perfect size for a little snack.

Gluten-free baker Poppy McAllister and her aunt Ginny are looking forward to a quiet, homey Christmas at their B&B in Cape May, but unfortunately, death isn’t taking a holiday this year . . .

Ever since Thanksgiving, Poppy and her pals have been left with an unsolved mystery of the romantic kind. But at least this mystery isn’t the kind that involves murder. That all changes when the body of a fish supplier is discovered in the kitchen of her ex’s restaurant—and he’s frozen, not fresh.

For once, it’s not Poppy who tripped over the corpse, yet she can’t escape being drawn in since the victim has a note taped to him reading Get Poppy. Figures—an engagement ring isn't labeled, but the dead guy is addressed to her. Now, while Aunt Ginny plans a tree-trimming party and pressures Poppy to decode a mysterious old diary, the amateur sleuth is asked to “unofficially” go undercover at the restaurant to help the police. Until then, the only crime Poppy had been dealing with was Figaro’s repeated thefts of bird ornaments from the tree; now it looks like it’s going to be a murder-y Christmas after all . . .

Libby Klein grew up in Cape May, NJ where she attended high school in the '80s. Her

classes revolved mostly around the Culinary sciences and Drama, with one brilliant semester in Poly-Sci that may have been an accident. She loves to drink coffee, bake gluten-free goodies, collect fluffy cats, and translate sarcasm for people who are too serious. She writes from her Northern Virginia office where she serves a very naughty black smoke Persian named Sir Figaro Newton. You can keep up with her shenanigans by signing up for her Mischief and Mayhem Newsletter on her website. www.LibbyKleinBooks.com/Newsletter/

Sunday, February 4, 2024

Around the Kitchen Table: A Trifecta of Foodie Celebrations! #Giveaway

LESLIE BUDEWITZ: February can be a bit of a challenge. For us northerners, it’s cold and dark, and far too early to be thinking about the joys of spring or starting seedlings. I’ve long thought that’s part of the appeal of Valentine’s Day with its hearts and flowers and chocolates.

This year, we’ve got a trifecta of foodie celebrations coming up: the Lunar New Year, year of the wood dragon, starts a bit later than usual, on Saturday, February 10. Mardi Gras, aka Fat Tuesday and Shrove Tuesday, is early—February 13. And Valentine’s Day is right on schedule, Wednesday, February 14.

I loved researching and testing Lunar New Year recipes when I was writing Between a Wok and a Dead Place, like these Longevity Noodles. Many LNY foods are symbolic: long noodles symbolize hopes for a long life, while spring rolls, with their distinctive shape and color, are said to resemble gold bars.

As for Mardi Gras, King Cake is, well, king. Anything with a Louisiana flair is fair game, as long as you wear beads.

Valentine’s Day food is all about chocolate, especially if it’s heart-shaped. My late mother always put a small heart-shaped box of Russell Stover Chocolates at our places at the table on V-Day mornings, and even let us sneak a piece after breakfast. I love these Cherry Port Brownies, cut in heart shapes, and this Glazed Chocolate Bundt Cake, and you might, too.

But my favorite Valentine’s Day recipe story is the year a reader very much wanted to try the Orange Cinnamon Creme Brulee in Guilty as Cinnamon, but was daunted by the idea of using a torch to scorch the sugar on top. So she asked the woman who runs the café in her small town to make it for her. The woman liked it so much that she added it to her dessert selection for her annual Valentine’s Day dinner that year.

Now that’s the way to an author’s heart.

Readers, which upcoming food lovers' holidays will you be celebrating? You know you have our permission to celebrate them all, right? What will you be making -- or buying?

💕🌷 💕

LIBBY KLEIN: When I think Valentine's Day, I think Pink! All things strawberry, cherry, rose. And of course, you can't think about the day of heart-shaped candies without your mind going to chocolate. Decadent brunches with chocolate cherry french toast. Luxurious Afternoon Tea with scones laden with strawberry jam. Delicate rose and white chocolate macarons. Silky chocolate mousse. I want to get baking right now! One of my favorite Valentine's recipes is for this strawberry cream cake. I can't wait to hear what you'll all be baking.

💕🌷 💕

LESLIE KARST: The Lunar New Year is a big deal here in Hilo, with a parade and firecrackers, and lots of great Asian food to try all over town. As Leslie B. notes, long noodles signify longevity, so may I suggest this delicious recipe for Ginger Chicken Chow Fun.

And to celebrate Mardi Gras, how about the celebrated Bananas Foster, first created at the famous Brennan's restaurant in New Orleans as a way to promote this fruit being imported into the Port of New Orleans. Here's my easy take on this classic dessert: Crispy Fried Banana Sundae.

And finally, what better way to celebrate Valentine's Day than a romantic date-night-at-home meal? This recipe for Pork with Apricot-Brandy Glaze is simple and quick to prepare, and sure to warm your loved one's heart!

💕🌷 💕

LUCY BURDETTE: Oooooh, for Valentine's Day, I really want Libby's strawberry cream cake with the pink frosting! But alas, my Valentine is really a chocolate guy, so I'm more likely to make my classic chocolate cake studded with candy hearts.

Poor Hayley Snow from my food critic series was desperate to catch her man, so she tried to do it with this glorious raspberry cake. Sometimes if it isn't the right guy, even a magnificent cake won't do the trick...

💕🌷 💕

MADDIE DAY: I'm already drooling from just these mentions by my fellow bloggers! So many chances to make delicious holiday-themed food.

My first post as an official member here were these Mocha-Kahlua Valentine's cookies.

A year ago I presented a yummy recipe in honor of the Lunar New Year and the year of the Rabbit - more long noodles for you.

I don't think I've ever made a Mardi-Gras specific meal, but I just checked some recipes. I love grits - so does Robbie Jordan in my Country Store Mysteries - and I think I foresee some yummy shrimp and grits in my near future, or maybe a gumbo! Watch this space...

💕🌷 💕

Molly MacRae: Thanks for the Longevity Noodles recipes, Maddie and Leslie B. Now I know what we'll be making for the Lunar New Year.

For Shrove Tuesday or Pancake Day, it'll be pancakes. Here's a delicious recipe for gingerbread pancakes. But why not throw in Mardi Gras, too? I had no idea Bananas Foster was invented in New Orleans. Thanks, Leslie K!

Here's my sister Jenny's recipe for it (one from the collection of recipes she and her husband gave me and my husband as a wedding present 45 years ago). I love the part where the banana mixture bursts into flames as you stir it. Talk about excitement in fine dining.

And for Valentine's day, cherry pie!

💕🌷 💕

PEG COCHRAN/MARGARET LOUDON: These all sound so delicious, I want one of each! When my sister lived in Baton Rouge, she sent me a King Cake so one year I decided to try to make my own for Mardi Gras. It was great fun and I went wild with the sprinkles! You can find it here complete with a voodoo doll!

💕🌷 💕

MAYA CORRIGAN: It's not Valentine's Day without chocolate, right? Boxes of bonbons and flowers are the most popular gifts, but for a romantic date, chocolate fondue can't be beat. Around Valentine's Day stores feature mini fondue pots for Valentine’s Day tête-à-têtes. All you really need, though, is a microwave. I shared an easy chocolate fondue recipe when my third book, FINAL FONDUE, came out and I was a guest on MLK. My grandsons love making that recipe and eating fondue all year round.

💕☕ 💕

CLEO COYLE: February is giving us great reasons to eat with joy. On a personal note, I blew out way too many birthday cake candles this past Groundhog Day. And this coming February 13, I’ll be in the Mardi Gras feasting mood. Like Molly, Fat Tuesday (aka Shrove Tuesday) has always been Pancake Day for me. I’ve shared a few pancake recipes here in the Kitchen, including one of my favorites from more than ten years ago (a 2010 blog post, OMG does time fly). It’s my version of the famous Dutch Baby pancake. The classic recipe uses a cast iron pan, but I prefer to make mine in a cake pan hence my "Cake Pan" Dutch Baby title. I also shared my Chocolate Dutch Baby version, just in time to make for your baby’s breakfast on Valentine’s Day. 💓 So here you go, click the link here for a downloadable PDF of the recipe, and whatever you're celebrating, may you eat with plenty of joy!

Click here (or on images) for Cleo's

"Cake Pan" & Chocolate Dutch Baby recipes...

💕🌷 💕

B O O K
G I V E A W A Y!

Readers, which upcoming food lovers' holidays will you be celebrating? You know you have our permission to celebrate them all, right? What will you be making -- or buying?

Murder is a Piece of Cake by Valerie Burns

Between a Wok and a Dead Place by Leslie Budewitz

Deep Fried Death (audio book) by Maddie Day

Final Fondue by Maya Corrigan

Leave a comment with your email address for a chance to win. US mailing addresses only.

Mr. Kitten, who lives with Leslie B and Mr. Right, will choose the winner Wednesday, February 7.

💕🌷 💕

Wednesday, January 31, 2024

Dark Chocolate Pots of Creme #Recipe and #CoverReveal by @LibbyKlein #Valentine's Day

Libby Klein Valentine's Day means Chocolate! Believed by many to be an aphrodisiac, chocolate has long been considered the language of love. Anything made in miniature always seems fancy. These pots of crème are the perfect dessert to end a romantic Valentine's meal. Individual servings for two (or six) make the affair seem even more intimate. Pots of Crème are a cross between a baked pudding and a Crème Brûlée. You could probably carmelize some sugar on top of these and convince your guests they are chocolate Crème Brûlée if you really wanted to. Shown here with Earl Grey Madeleines, you could leave those off, sprinkle a little powdered sugar or a dollop of fresh whipped cream on top, and maybe add a raspberry right before serving.

And also... The very first appearance of my Christmas-themed mystery on the blog, Silent Nights Are Murder coming September 2024, is shown below! It's one of my favorite covers - look at little Figaro with a red bird Christmas ornament in his mouth. He is so naughty!

Dark Chocolate Pots de Crème

Earl Grey Madeleine Optional

Yield 6

Ingredients:

1 ½ cups heavy cream
½ cup whole milk
4 ounces dark chocolate, finely chopped
4 egg yolks
3 tablespoons sugar
⅛ teaspoon sea salt

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 300 degrees. In a heavy saucepan, bring cream and milk to a boil. Remove from heat; whisk in chopped chocolate until smooth.
2.   In a large bowl, whisk together the yolks, sugar and salt. Temper the yolks with a little of the hot chocolate. Then, whisking constantly, slowly pour the rest of the hot chocolate into yolks. Strain through a very fine mesh sieve into a large measuring cup or a pitcher or your blender so its easy to pour.
3.   Divide mixture among 2- to 4-ounce espresso cups or small ramekins. I used ramekins and it made 6.
4. Put a large roasting pan on the pulled-out rack in the center of the preheated oven. Set filled cups in the roasting pan while It’s in the oven. Add very hot tap water to pan, halfway up the sides of cups. Cover pan with foil; use a fork to prick holes in foil. Very gently put the rack into the oven so you don’t splash water into your chocolate pots.
5.    Bake until edges are lightly set (lifting foil to check) but center – about the size of a quarter or less - is still jiggly. It will set as it cools — 30 to 35 minutes. If the chocolate is still very runny in a wide area bigger than a quarter, you will need to bake it longer. Transfer cups to a wire rack to cool completely. Refrigerate at least 3 hours before serving with whipped cream or a sprinkle of powdered sugar.

Gluten-free baker Poppy McAllister and her aunt Ginny are looking forward to a quiet, homey Christmas at their B&B in Cape May, but unfortunately, death isn’t taking a holiday this year . . .

Tuesday, February 14, 2023

My Guilt-Free #Chocolate Bliss for Valentine’s Day from author @CleoCoyle #ValentinesDay

With Valentine's Day upon us, I thought this recipe might just hit the spot. Why? Served with coffee, tea, espresso, or cocoa, these elegant treats have very few calories (fulfilling my guilt-free claim) yet they bring amazing flavor to your palate, and all three ingredients used in this recipe have long been considered to be a friend of Cupid...

🍩 CHOCOLATE, of course, is the classic Valentine’s Day consumable. The Aztecs were probably the first to make the connection between amorous feelings and the cocoa bean. The emperor Montezuma was said to have fueled his romantic trysts by ingesting large amounts of the bean.

🌹 CINNAMON is a delightful, fragrant, and stimulating spice. The Romans believed cinnamon was an aphrodisiac. Cleopatra famously used it to arouse her many lovers.

☕ COFFEE AND TEA contain caffeine, which is considered a perk in the department of stimulating amorous desires. And here's a bit of historic trivia for coffee lovers. When coffee was first introduced to the Turkish culture, husbands were expected to keep their wives well supplied. If the husband could not provide daily coffee for his wife, this was considered a legitimate cause for her to divorce him. Alternatively, a wife's ability to make coffee was one of the ways a husband decided whether she was a good match for marriage.

So what is this dessert that combines

chocolate + cinnamon + coffee (espresso or tea)?

I'll tell you...

CHOCOLATE-DIPPED CINNAMON STICKS

Cleo Coyle writes two
bestselling mystery

series with her husband.
To learn more, click here.

☕ A Note from Cleo

I came up with this idea years ago when I finished baking a batch of chocolate chip cookies and had extra chips. I saw the cinnamon sticks on my shelf and decided to chocolate-coat them for a sensuous dessert experience--with very few calories!

Simply stir a chocolate-coated cinnamon stick into your cup of hot coffee (espresso, tea or cocoa). Stir only enough to re-warm the chocolate. Place the stick into your mouth and enjoy the flavors of warm chocolate and cinnamon, which combine with the coffee to create a lovely after-dinner sensation.

As for the recipe itself, this is more of a "process with tips" than a recipe. But I wanted you to know all the tricks needed for foolproof results (Belive me, there are far too many ways to muck up the melting of chocolate and the dipping of things in it...so I hope all the directions help.)

Happy Valentine's Day, everyone!

~ Cleo 💗

☕ Cleo Coyle's

Chocolate-Dipped Cinnamon Sticks

Ingredients:

12 cinnamon sticks (the longer the better)
1/2 cup white, milk, or dark chocolate chips (or about 4 ounces of block chocolate, chopped)

Step 1 – Prepare drying area: When the chocolate-covered sticks are wet, they’ll drip melted chocolate (obviously). So you'll need to prep a safe area for the sticks to dry. Here are two methods: (A) egg carton and (B) wax paper...

A. Egg carton method – Remove the top from an egg carton. Place it on a large dish. Using a knife, make a small incision in the carton top. To make sure the incision is large enough, insert one end of your cinnamon stick into the carton. Repeat for all 12 sticks.

See my photo below. I suggest you use the carton top only, which is sturdier. The egg carton bottom is tricky and although you see me using it in the photo, the sticks tend to move around more on the carton bottoms.

Note: The top of the egg carton actually provides more

stability than the bottom. So I suggest you use the

entire top of the carton and forget about the bottom.

B. Wax paper method – Place wax paper over a large, flat dish. The only drawback with this method is appearance. Your chocolate-covered cinnamon sticks will still taste delicious but there will be a funny sort of flat side to your stick. If you want prettier sticks, use my method A (the egg carton). NOTE: If you have no wax paper, do no use paper towels or a naked dish! The chocolate will adhere to these surfaces and your sticks will be ruined. Parchment paper and aluminum foil are better alternatives.

The top stick was made with my egg carton method.

The bottom was made using the wax paper method.

Both of these treats will taste great. The egg carton method

simply looks nicer for presentation. Note also that

cinnamon sticks come in different lengths. For this recipe,

the longer sticks are easier to work with.

Step 2 – Melt Chocolate: Place ½ cup chocolate chips (or about 4 ounces of block chocolate, chopped) into a microwave safe bowl (glass or ceramic is best). I use my Pyrex measuring cup. Chocolate burns easily, especially white and milk chocolates, which have more milk solids, so you really need to be careful when you melt chocoalte in a microwave. And here's what I mean...

Heat it for about 20 seconds. Remove the bowl and stir (make sure the spoon is dry because moisture will make the chocolate seize up). The chocolate won’t be completely melted yet, but you need to stir it to prevent burning. Now microwave it for another 10 seconds. Remove and stir again. Continue this process until the chocolate is completely melted.

Step 3 – Dip sticks (I know, sounds funny, doesn't it?): Okay, one at a time, dip one end of each cinnamon stick into the melted chocolate. Allow excess chocolate to drip off the stick, back into the bowl. Spin the stick around slowly until the drips stop completely. Now place the clean end of the stick (the end you’re holding) into the prepared egg carton.

Step 4 – Wait: The chocolate must dry and harden. Give it about an hour before touching. To speed up this process, carefully move the dish (on which you’ve placed either the egg carton or wax paper) into the refrigerator for about thirty minutes.

TO SERVE: Once the chocolate hardens, you're ready to use. Lightly stir the chocolate-covered stick into your cup of hot coffee (espresso, tea or cocoa). Stir only enough to re-warm the chocolate. The flavors of warm chocolate and cinnamon combine with the coffee to create a lovely after-dinner sensation with very few calories. A perfectly blissful ending to a romantic meal.

TO STORE: Once the chocolate is completely hardened, simply place sticks in a plastic baggie and store in your refrigerator.