Philippians 4:8
8 Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable— if anything is excellent or praiseworthy— think about such things. 9 Whatever you have learned or received or heard from me, or seen in me— put it into practice. And the God of peace will be with you.
Studded with dark cherries and toasted almonds, this creamy frozen dessert is a cinch to make. If you are entertaining, make it ahead of time and garnish last. #choclatefriendsofTenaciousM you’ll enjoy this dream treat!
Ingredients
1/3 cup amaretto
2 1/2 cups chilled Chocolate Crème Anglaise
1 1/2 cups whipping cream
1 cup finely chopped bittersweet or semisweet chocolate
3/4 cup raw slivered almonds, toasted (see Notes)
3/4 cup coarsely chopped sweet dark cherries (fresh or frozen)
Semisweet chocolate shavings (see Notes)
Preparation
1. Whisk amaretto into crème anglaise. In a cold bowl with an electric mixer on high speed, beat whipping cream until medium peaks form (they should hold their shape, but not be stiff). Gently fold in about a third of crème anglaise mixture until no white streaks remain. Fold in remaining crème anglaise until blended.
2. Line a 9- by 5-in. loaf pan (holds 8 cups) with plastic wrap, leaving overhang on all sides. Gently fold chopped chocolate, almonds, and cherries into crème anglaise mixture. Spoon into pan and cover with overhanging plastic wrap. Freeze until firm, at least 7 1/2 hours and up to 1 week.
3. To serve, invert dessert over a platter and remove pan and plastic wrap. Let stand 15 minutes at room temperature to soften. Smooth top and sides with a warm knife if needed. Garnish with shaved chocolate.
Note:
To toast almonds, spread on a baking sheet and bake at 350° until golden, about 10 minutes. To make shaved chocolate, run a vegetable peeler along an 8-oz. block of slightly chilled semisweet chocolate.
The Supremes were the most commercially successful of Motown’s acts. They toured the world, becoming almost as popular as they were in the U.S. By 1965, they were international stars. You can watch a fun video of The Supremes (trying to avoid traffic) singing “Where Did Our Love Go?” in the streets of Paris (circa 1965) here.
By 1967, Berry Gordy renamed the group “Diana Ross & The Supremes” and in 1968, they went on a record-breaking European tour and taped a television special for France’s M6 that was solely for French audiences. Highlights included a rocking medley of their hits that opened the show. (There’s even a part of the interview when the girls tell the host their ages – only 23 years old at the time – and Ross responds to the host in French.)
Wikipedia/Youtube
I absolutely love me some Lupita Nyong’o (Actress, “12 Years a Slave”)! Her ascent to the top of the sartorial sphere has been an amazing transition to watch. Check out her latest spread for the February issue of Vogue Italia, shot by Tony Munro. In it Nyong’o sizzles in some of Spring 2014′s hottest looks. And in case you’re not on the Lupi-train yet, maybe this fun and edgy editorial for Vogue Italia Magazine would convince you.
Showing her excited yet edgy side, Lupita has been featured in the issues’ February 2014 fashion editorial styled by Patti Wilson. If for some bizarre and very unlikely reason acting doesn’t pan out for Lupita, modeling is so her forté.
Rachel Roy is a bad girl!! She marked on the 10th anniversary of her label, giving us more tailored styles and less of her usual relaxed pieces. Roy said, “I designed what I wanted and needed and what I thought would work.” I’m loving the way she mixed materials, with graphic prints and presented it with exquisite charm. So many amazing looks. Enjoy the collection!
Credit: Style Pantry
Delicious little chocolate volcano cakes ready to erupt with praline lava. Better served warm. Enjoy them this weekend with espresso!
Prep: 15 mins
Cook Time: 15 mins
Ingredients
1/2-3/4 cup pecans
2 tablespoons canola oil or plain yogurt
1/2 cup caramel ice cream topping
1/2 cup whipping cream
1 (20 ounce) package double chocolate brownie mix
3/4 cup water
3 eggs
6-12 pecans (for decoration)
Instructions
Preheat oven to 400. Toast chopped pecans in heavy skillet over MED-HI heat until lightly toasted.
Remove and toast pecan halves. Remove and set aside. Lightly grease and flour six 10-oz custard cups or 12 regular-sized cup muffin pan. Place custard cups in a shallow baking pan and set pan aside.
Prepare Brownie Mix as indicated for cake-like brownies.
Divide batter evenly into prepared cups. (Bake any leftover batter as regular brownies.) Bake 10 minutes only.
Meanwhile prepare Praline Sauce.
In a heavy saucepan over LOW-heat caramel ice cream topping. Stir in whipping cream. Cook about 1-3 minutes stirring constantly. Add chopped pecans and blend.
Remove brownies from oven. Using a small knife, puncture top of each partially-baked cake and gently enlarge to make a dime-sized hole. Slowly spoon about 1/2-1 tablespoon Praline Sauce into center of each cake.
Return cakes to oven.
Bake 5-8 minutes more or until cakes feel firm at edges. Cool in baking pan on a wire rack for 5 minutes. Using a small thin knife, loosen edges from sides of cup and slip cake out upright onto individual dessert plates. Stir toasted pecan halves into the remaining Praline Sauce. If necessary, stir add 1/2-1 tablespoons hot water to remaining sauce to thin.
Split cakes partially open; spoon warm Praline Sauce on top. Top with sweetened whipped cream and pecan halves. Serve immediately.
Hello all! I had to reach in my bag for something decadent today. #chocolatefriendsofTenaciousM keep it real! A cross between a fudge pie and pecan pie, this is all the more visually stunning if you arrange the pecans from the center in a spiral pattern. I really enjoy entertaining as an art form. The extra details are always key!
Yield: Makes 8 servings
Total: 1 Hour, 20 Minutes
Ingredients
Chocolate Filling
1 1/2 cups sugar
3/4 cup butter, melted
1/3 cup all-purpose flour
1/3 cup 100% cacao unsweetened cocoa
1 tablespoon light corn syrup
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
3 large eggs
1 cup toasted chopped pecans
1 (9-inch) unbaked deep-dish piecrust shell
Salted Caramel Topping
3/4 cup sugar
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
1/3 cup heavy cream
4 tablespoons butter
1/4 teaspoon table salt
2 cups toasted pecan halves
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
Preparation
1. Prepare Filling: Preheat oven to 350°. Stir together first 6 ingredients in a large bowl. Add eggs, stirring until well blended. Fold in chopped pecans. Pour mixture into pie shell.
2. Bake at 350° for 35 minutes. (Filling will be loose but will set as it cools.) Remove from oven to a wire rack.
3. Prepare Topping: Bring 3/4 cup sugar, 1 Tbsp. lemon juice, and 1/4 cup water to a boil in a medium saucepan over high heat. (Do not stir.) Boil, swirling occasionally after sugar begins to change color, 8 minutes or until dark amber. (Do not walk away from the pan, as the sugar could burn quickly once it begins to change color.) Remove from heat; add cream and 4 Tbsp. butter. Stir constantly until bubbling stops and butter is incorporated (about 1 minute). Stir in table salt.
4. Arrange pecan halves on pie. Top with warm caramel. Cool 15 minutes; sprinkle with sea salt.
Happy Thursday! For those of you who have never heard the Chi-Lites, enjoy! For those of you who have, here’s to reminiscing…
In the late 1950s, the Chanteurs (Record, Robert Squirrel Lester, and Clarence Johnson) teamed up with Marshall Thompson and Creadel “Red” Jones of the Desideros to form the Hi-lites. Wishing to add a tribute to their home town of Chicago, they changed their name to “Marshall and the Chi-Lites” in 1964. Johnson left later that year, and their name was subsequently shortened to The Chi-Lites.
Record was the group’s primary songwriter, though he frequently collaborated with others, such as Barbara Acklin. Their major hits came in 1971 and 1972, “Have You Seen Her” and “Oh Girl”, the latter a #1 single on the Billboard Hot 100 on 27 May 1972. Other transatlantic chart hits followed, although the output became more fragmented as the group’s personnel came and went. Bass singer Jones left in 1973, and was replaced in quick succession by Stanley Anderson, Willie Kensey, and then Doc Roberson. Shortly thereafter, Eugene Record left, and David Scott and Danny Johnson entered. More personnel changes ensued, when Johnson was replaced by Vandy Hampton in 1977. The Chi-lites cut some tracks for the Inphasion label in 1979, that appeared on an obscure album for the Excello label. Credit: Wikipedia
Pair wine with chocolate for a match made in heaven, and red wine and chocolate are a great pair. With all those deep, dark chocolate flavors right in a glass of Cabernet Sauvignon, this wine seems like a natural match for an intensely-flavored, dark chocolate dessert.
But are the two perfect together? Maybe not, according to Sara Schneider, Sunset wine editor. “Along with those sweet-seeming chocolate flavors and dark berries and plums, good (young) Cabernet Sauvignon has a backbone of tannin that can suddenly taste harsh and astringent when you put it with chocolate, especially if the chocolate is quite sweet. Merlot, on the other hand, tends to have softer, rounder tannins under its cocoa and mocha layers; it’s often a more seamless partner for chocolate. Consider Zinfandel too. It’s a variety that often goes way beyond “hints of chocolate” to practically being chocolate coated–and it rarely has the tannin level of Cab and Merlot (Bordeaux varieties).”
Remember these tips when pairing:
• The chocolate shouldn’t be sweeter than the wine.
• The darker the chocolate, the more likely it will be to taste good with red wine (partly because chocolate with a higher percentage of cacao has less sugar).
• The darker chocolates, with deep-roasted flavors, pair well with wines with dark, toasty flavors themselves.
• Port-style and sweet late-harvest reds tend to be the best matches for chocolate desserts.
An Ideal Couple
Here are some favorite chocolate desserts with suggestions for the perfect wine partner.
• The flavors of Warm Chocolate Souffle Cakes with Raspberry Sauce explode when paired with a late-harvest Sauvignon Blanc or a late-harvest Chenin Blanc.
• A sweet sparkling roséadds extra sparkle to Chocolate Fudge Cheesecake.
• A tawny Port or an orange Muscat are the perfect match for Bourbon Pecan Tart with Chocolate Drizzle.
• Give Chocolate-Chip Shortcakes with Berries and Dark Chocolate Sauce a try with a late-harvest Zinfandel.
Taste the Magic
Indulge in a chocolate bar that tells you exactly which wine to drink with it, a wine-flavored chocolate sauce, or an actual dine-in chocolate and wine experience.
• Try a new line of quality chocolate introduced at the San Diego Fancy Food Show in January 2008. Brix: Chocolate For Wine Lovers are milk and dark chocolate bricks specially designed to complement the various varietals of wine. Click here to watch Dr. Nick Proia, owner of Brix, as he shares the inspiring and entertaining story of Brix’s creation as well as how to identify a quality chocolate.
• Get saucy with two wine-flavored chocolate sauces from Caramoomel, Wine Lovers Dark Chocolate Sauce with Merlot and Wine Lovers White Chocolate Sauce with Riesling. Both are smooth, silky, and perfect for a drizzle on ice cream, cake, or fresh fruit.
Celebrating Black History Month…
Muhammad Ali is a role model for me. He reminds me that confidence is often misconstrued as arrogance. He has a courage of purpose that is unforgiving. I realize that there are times when others want me to “dim my light” to make them comfortable with me. And like Muhammad Ali, I believe that to do so makes me a phony of the worst kind… a phony to myself.
“I am an expression of the divine, just like a peach is, just like a fish is. I have a right to be this way…I can’t apologize for that, nor can I change it, nor do I want to… We will never have to be other than who we are in order to be successful…We realize that we are as ourselves unlimited and our experiences valid. It is for the rest of the world to recognize this, if they choose.” -Alice Walker, The Color Purple
Muhammad Ali (born Cassius Marcellus Clay, Jr.; January 17, 1942) is an American former professional boxer, generally considered among the greatest heavyweights in the sport’s history. A controversial and polarizing figure during his early career, Ali is today widely regarded for not only the skills he displayed in the ring but also the values he exemplified outside of it: religious freedom, racial justice and the triumph of principle over expedience. He is one of the most recognized sports figures of the past 100 years, crowned “Sportsman of the Century” by Sports Illustrated and “Sports Personality of the Century” by the BBC.
Born Cassius Clay, at the age of 22 he won the world heavyweight championship in 1964 from Sonny Liston in a stunning upset. Shortly after that bout, Ali joined the Nation of Islam and changed his name. He subsequently converted to Sunni Islam in 1975.
In 1967, three years after winning the heavyweight title, Ali refused to be conscripted into the U.S. military, citing his religious beliefs and opposition to the Vietnam War. He was eventually arrested and found guilty on draft evasion charges and stripped of his boxing title. He did not fight again for nearly four years—losing a time of peak performance in an athlete’s career. Ali’s appeal worked its way up to the U.S. Supreme Court, where in 1971 his conviction was overturned. Ali’s actions as a conscientious objector to the war made him an icon for the larger counterculture generation. Ali remains the only three-time lineal World Heavyweight Champion; he won the title in 1964, 1974, and 1978.
Egos & Buffaloes 