How cute is this bunny finger-puppet perched atop a cherry candy cane?
So cute that you just want to keep it for yourself, no matter what age you are, right?
Well, good thing these new Easter treats from See’s Candies come six bunnies to a package ($19.20). That way, you can share, but keep one, too.
We came for the pizza. We stayed for the soft-serve.
After all, when no less an authority on Italian cuisine than Mario Batali declares in a national food magazine that the Margherita pie at Pizzeria Picco in Larkspur is the best in the country, well, one must high-tail it over there to try it pronto.
My hubby and I finally did (hey, it is a hike from the South Bay).
A cyclist, my hubby got a kick out of how so many of the pies are named after bikes, including the “Specialized” (Hobbs’ pepperoni, house-made sausage, tomato, mozzerella, and basil), and the “Seven” (oyster mushrooms, mozzarella, parmesan, pecorino, and oregano). Since his nickname is Meat Boy, he opted for the “Cannondale” (house-made sausage, roasted peppers, spring onion, mozzarella, and basil; $13.50). I, of course, went for the Margherita (tomato, basil, house-made mozzarella, parmesan, and De Padova extra virgin olive oil; $10.95).
Since the pizzeria itself is teeny-tiny and it was a beautiful, warm evening in Marin County, we sat outside at a wrought-iron table. The Pizzeria is adjacent to the larger Picco Restaurant, which has a more expansive menu. Both were started by long-time Bay Area Chef Bruce Hill.
Chocolate in vodka.
Chocolate in cake.
Chocolate in custard tarts.
Chocolate in fanciful bonbons.
Chocolate, chocolate, everywhere.
That was the scene at last Saturday’s San Francisco International Chocolate Salon at Herbst Pavillion, where 30,000-square-feet of space was devoted to all things chocolate. Yours truly was lucky enough to be a judge for the chocolate competition. I think chocolate is still coursing through my veins from all that nibbling.
Hundreds of chocoholics made the rounds to taste samples at more than 50 booths. Here were some of my favorites:
* Van Gogh Dutch Chocolate Vodka: Think the taste of chocolate milk, but in the form of clear vodka. This is one smooth operator, even when tasted straight. It goes down easy, with no serious burn. A truly elegant and polished spirit. A 750ml bottle is about $30.
* William Dean Chocolates: Bold colors (green, fuchsia, azure, bright orange) and unique shapes make these truffles extremely eye-catching. The Largo, Fla. chocolates are all made by hand. The PB&J is a masterpiece: milk chocolate and peanut butter with the crunch of peanut brittle, and a sweet, complex jelly made from three different fruits. A nine-piece box of assorted chocolates is $18.
* Marti Chocolatt: Filipino-American Tonet Tibay studied the art of chocolate making at Ecole Lenotre in Paris. These exquisite creations explode on your tongue with the assertive flavors of pandan, ginger, rose-raspberry, and even goat cheese. The durian is creamy, bold and complex. Made in Los Angeles, these are chocolates that grab your senses. A box of six bonbons is $13.50.
San Francisco’s only bean-to-confection chocolate factory is at it again with new goodies.
This time, TCHO has unveiled a Hot and Cold Drinking Chocolate. Its the latest from the company founded by a former space shuttle technologist, Timothy Childs; and overseen by CEO Louis Rossetto, former co-founder of Wired magazine.
A 300-gram tin of the dark chocolate crumbles is $10.50. Put a few teaspoons into a mug, pour hot water over, and stir. Or mix with warm milk. Add brewed coffee or not. You can enjoy the drinking chocolate cold in water or milk, as well. You also can make a simple chocolate sauce from it to drizzle over your favorite ice cream.
The drinking chocolate is a precise blend of three of TCHO’s chocolates: “Chocolatey” from cacao beans from Ghana, “Citrus” from beans from Madagascar, and “Nutty” with beans from Peru.
I’ll use my patented scale of 1 to 10 lip-smackers, with 1 being the “Bleh, save your money” far end of the spectrum; 5 being the “I’m not sure I’d buy it, but if it was just there, I might nibble some” middle-of-the-road response; and 10 being the “My gawd, I could die now and never be happier, because this is the best thing I’ve ever put in my mouth” supreme ranking.
Whenever I bake, my husband’s co-workers are usually the lucky recipients of the goodies.
I load him up with the fresh, sweet treats to take to the office. And when he comes home in the evening, I await to hear what verdict has been rendered upon them.
Usually, they get the thumb’s up. But for one co-worker, there has always been a qualifier associated with them.
Ramin will happily nosh on one of my muffins or cupcakes. Then, he’ll tell my husband, “This is good. But when is your wife going to make that pound cake again?”
Apparently, this happens with regularity.
It doesn’t matter if it’s chocolate-chunk cookies or cinnamon-sugar dusted banana bread that I’ve made that week. Ramin will enjoy it, but deep down, he’s longing for the ricotta pound cake.
Since I can’t stand to see a grown-man in pound cake-pain (definitely not a pretty sight), I made him his beloved pound cake two weeks ago.