Elery doesn't eat sweets, can you believe that? So I think I'll make him some Sriracha glazed chicken wings, I have a recipe I've been keeping to do that with.

I'll make something yummy for the Princess and Bruvver, though, and I'm buying them Biggby travel mugs for Valentine's Day gifts. Biggby Coffee is a local chain of coffee shops and if you buy their travel mug the kids can get a hot chocolate refill for 99 cents, as many times as they want. They love Biggby's, so I take them there sometimes for hot chocolate and a pastry/cookie treat.

Annie

When my kids were in college, I made these LIttle Chocolate CHerry Cakes from Gourmet and mailed them to them for Valentine's Day. They don't sound like the best thing to mail, but they made it all the way to Chicago.

Here is a link that might be useful: Little Chocolate Cherry Cakes

I will be making the same dessert I made for the first meal I cooked for DH when we were dating.

CHOCOLATE MOUSSE FOR 1 OR 2

1/3 cup semisweet chocolate pieces or 2 (1oz. each) squares semisweet chocolate
1 Tbs. water
1 tsp. instant coffee
1 egg
1 Tbs. sugar
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
1/3 cup heavy cream

Place chocolate, water, and coffee in small heavy saucepan; stir over very low heat until melted; set aside. In blender whirl egg, sugar and vanilla about 45 seconds or until frothy. Add cream; blend 10 seconds. Add chocolate mixture; blend until smooth. Pour into 2 small dessert cups or wineglasses. Chill until set. Serve topped with whipped cream, if desired. Note: recipe can be doubled.

A little futsy to make, but truly delicious.

CHOCOLATE GATEAU

Cake:
1 and one half Cups Semi Sweet Chocolate Chips
1/4 Cup Cold Strong Coffee
1 Pound Butter
4 Egg Yolks
5 Egg Whites
3/4 Cup Sugar
2/3 Cup Corn Starch

Melt the first three ingredients in the top of a double boiler until smooth, set aside and allow to cool completely. Beat the Egg Yolks and sugar until creamy. Add the cooled Chocolate mixture and the Corn Starch. Set Aside. Beat the Egg Whites until very stiff (1/8 teaspoon of Cream of Tartar helps). Fold Egg Whites into Chocolate mixture. Be sure to fold only until evenly mixed. Place all into well greased and floured 8" round pans. Bake at 350 degrees for 25 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Do not over bake. Cool and place on plate.

Frosting:
1 Cup Semi Sweet Chocolate Chips
5 Teaspoons Butter

Melt all in the top of a double boiler. You may need to add a few more chips to get the frosting to look right. The Chocolate and Butter should be well blended, with no butter floating on the sides of the Chocolate. Frost the top only of the cake when the cake is completely cooled, and the frosting is still warm.

Steve

Robin, it is possible that just looking at that brownie may have caused one, or more, of my heart valves to malfunction.

In any event, I would never celebrate Valentine's Day without chocolate. Last weekend, my kitchen looked like Willy Wonka's chocolate factory. I made brownies bites, with my hot fudge sauce, and a type of flourless chocolate cake. I'm currently working on truffles.

In regards to "cooking," there won't be any. At least not in the kitchen. But we will celebrate V-Day at one of our favorite restaurants.

Hope you guys have a sweet day.

Sol

Oh Sol, you made me blush. "there won't be any [cooking in the kitchen]... But we will celebrate at one of our favorite restaurants..." Cook on!

Love love love chocolate and cherries. And mousse. Two of my all time favorites.

Acutally, all this begs the question, "What chocolate do you use?" Having lived on the west coast, I'm partial to Ghirardelli. But there surely must be other that is good??? Especially any you get online (so I can too!).

Rob, I'm just waiting until I get home so I can see that picture!

Chocolate? I use Hershey's, LOL, because that's what I get here. I made a dark chocolate pie with some Guittard's that I bought in Grand Rapids and no one liked it except the Princess and me, everyone else said it was too rich. That's OK, it just left more for us.

I've gotten Scharfen Berger at least once too, but my chocolate of choice is Trader joe's Pound Plus, I like the dark chocolate, I think it's 72%.

Annie

Are truffles fairly easy to make?
Would like to do something off the cuff this Valentine's Day to impress.

We don't have Trader Joe's down here. :-(

botanical_drifter

BD, I think they are very easy to make. Here is the recipe I've used a bunch of times for the past decade or two, I don't even remember where I got it. I don't always dip them in the chocolate coating, sometimes I just roll the chilled truffles in chopped nuts or chocolate sprinkles or crushed peppermint candy or powdered sugar or cocoa powder or whatever suits me at the moment.

TRUFFLES

2 packages (12 ounces each) semisweet chocolate chips
1 package (8 ounces) cream cheese, softened
3 tablespoons instant coffee granules
2 teaspoons water
1 pound dark chocolate candy coating, coarsely chopped
White candy coating, optional

In a microwave-safe bowl, melt chocolate chips; stir until smooth. Add the cream cheese, coffee and water, mix until well blended. Chill until firm enough to shape. Shape into 1-in. balls and place on waxed paper-lined baking
sheet. Chill for 1-2 hours or until firm.

In a microwave, melt chocolate coating; stir until smooth. Dip balls in chocolate; allow excess to drip off. Place on waxed paper; let stand until set. Melt white coating and drizzle over truffles if desired.

Yield: about 5-1/2 dozen.

I know there's a recipe for Oreo Truffles too, the girls loved those. I think it came from Sue (cookingrvc), but I'm not sure, this one came right off the Kraft Foods website!

Oreo Truffles

1 pkg. (8 oz.) PHILADELPHIA Cream Cheese, softened
1 pkg. (1 lb. 2 oz.) OREO Cookies, finely crushed (about 4-1/4 cups), divided
2 pkg. (8 squares each) BAKER'S Semi-Sweet Chocolate, melted

MIX cream cheese and 3 cups cookie crumbs until well blended. SHAPE into 48 (1-inch) balls. Dip in melted chocolate; place on waxed paper-covered baking sheet. Sprinkle with remaining cookie crumbs.

REFRIGERATE 1 hour or until firm. Store in tightly covered container in refrigerator.

I've been thinking, actually, that I haven't made Ann T's graham chewies in quite a long time and I really like those a lot...

Annie

Last year I made Lady's kisses for my husband!

Here is a link that might be useful: Lady's Kisses-Baci di dama

Rob, I meant we might grill out on the patio instead, since temperatures will be rising this weekend. What type of "cooking" were you referring to?...:)

To answer your question, I prefer to use Lindt chocolate, for the taste, and because it's readily available. Valrhona was also a favorite, but I can no longer find it around here. I also have a modest arsenal of TJ's chocolate.
Have an indulgently-sweet weekend, pal.

Botanical drifter, truffles are easy to make. From the basic, chocolate/cream/butter truffles to peanut butter truffles, to truffles laced with Cognac, or other liqueurs; they're all are decadent enough to satisfy the cravings of any chocolate connoisseur, but require little effort.

Btw, the Oreo Truffles were originally posted by Sue (cookingrvc) many years ago. And they are also pretty wonderful. You might want to consider those too.

Sol

Sol, I thought those were posted by Sue, but heck, I can't remember carp, so I had to say "I think they were posted by Sue", LOL.

Hey, I was right, for a change, and my girls love them, unlike the cake balls that even the kids wouldn't eat. I have no idea what I did wrong, but they were absolutely nasty and we ended up throwing them out. Imagine, throwing out cake!

rob, those brownies look delicious. I peeked last night!

Annie

I'm with Elery. I don't eat sweets and I hate chocolate. The smell gives me a headache. My sister Catherine is the same way.

AB, how do you get through the day?

You ain't old. You just seemed unsure of the recipe's origin, so I confirmed it, because my mind is still as razor-sharp as my tongue.

Btw, I remember cake balls (they were all the rage, in the 80s. Another fun concept from that era, along with shoulder pads and big hair). The cake balls I know about were shaped from cake crumbs and buttercream, and then, dipped in melted chocolate.

I've never made them because the idea of mushing cake crumbs and icing never appealed to me. Well, except for the chocolate dipping part. I could stop, drop and roll in melted chocolate, and someday I will.

In any case, if it didn't get the monkey princess' approval, then I know I haven't missed much, and can finally sleep through the night.

Hug your little cherubs for me.

Sol

Annie, Thanks for the recipes. :-)

botanical_drifter

BD, you are welcome, definitely make the truffles, they are easy, they're rich, they're chocolate. How could it be bad. Just don't eat the stuff with a spoon before it gets made into individual balls. Trust me, just don't. Or have ingredients on hand for a second batch. (grin)

Sol, I don't think you missed anything at all. they were crumbled up cake mixed with frosting and they were kind of mushy and soft and....well....just icky. You know how I am about texture. I have a secretary that makes them and she and a couple of the staff love them, I havne't had the nerve to even try hers, I'm afraid they'll be like mine and I won't be able to spit it out right in front of her, I might have to actually swallow the stuff and try not to gag.

Annie

I make truffles that are very popular among family and friends by mixing chocolate cake crumbs with just enough brandy to make the mixture moldable. Then I roll it into balls and freeze them before dipping them in melted dark or white chocolate (I guess you could use milk chocolate but I don't care for it).