The Passionate Pursuit of Delight

Tag: chocolate

Elegant (but Easy) Dark Chocolate Bites

Festive Dark Chocolate Bites

I am in love with these homemade dark chocolate bites. Don’t they look practically gourmet? Many of my friends and families received a bag of these beauties as part of their holiday gifts last year.

Best of all, you can make a batch of these in less time than it takes to watch an episode of Gilmore Girls. I know this because I did and you can too. They are that easy!

Festive Dark Chocolate BitesAnother great thing about these elegant dark chocolate bites is that you can customize them to match your tastes. The ingredients that you add to the chocolate can be intentional and match a theme for the season or use whatever ingredients you happen to have in your pantry.

I made these last year for the holidays and used pepitas which are roasted pumpkin seeds and dried cranberries for their green and red colors. I added candied ginger because of its warm spiciness, coconut chips and hemp seeds for crunch and visual interest. They turned out pretty, right?

Festive Dark Chocolate BitesBut you could swap out pepitas for pistachios or almonds. Or, you can use dried blueberries or apricots instead of cranberries, or any other flavor or color combinations that you fancy.

The process for making these candies couldn’t be easier. This is a perfect project for beginning candy-makers. You melt the chocolate in the microwave, spoon the melted chocolate onto a parchment lined baking sheet, and then add the topics. Chill in fridge until the chocolate hardens. Seriously, that is all it takes to make these elegant and easy chocolate candies.

Festive Dark Chocolate BitesI like to package these chocolates in small cellophane bags and tie them up with pretty ribbon or string. Add a festive tag and you have beautiful and tasty holiday treats ready to give (or eat)!

Festive Dark Chocolate Bites

5 Zucchini Recipes You Gotta Try

zuni cafe zucchini pickle

When was the last time you sneaked an overgrown zucchini onto a neighbor’s porch?  Once a neighbor left an enormous zucchini wrapped in a baby blanket on my porch.  I never figured out who did it but it made me laugh. I haven’t done a stealth zucchini drop on a neighbor for a long time though mainly because I have a million zucchini recipes.

souble chocolate zucchini bread

One thing you should know about me, I am a recipe hoarder.  I admit it. I have an accordion file folder filled with recipes, many Pinterest boards filled with tempting recipes, and I subscribe to several food magazines. Despite the volume of recipes I already have stashed I cannot resist looking for new ones too. Here are a few that I found this summer that I had to try.

  1. Zuni Café Zucchini Pickles – These are incredibly easy to make. I love to make quick refrigerator pickles with zucchini during summer. They are incredibly crisp and flavorful. Use a mandoline slicer if you have one, it makes the prep on this a snap.
  2. Marinated Zucchini Salad – Isn’t this pretty? A friend of mine made this salad to accompany eggplant parmesan. It was perfect.
  3. Zucchini Parmesan Crisps – Baked not fried yet crispy and delicious. Even my non-zucchini eating vegetarian son will gobble these up. I sub panko for the breadcrumbs for extra crunch.
  4. Zucchini Boats– The filling is so flavorful! Such good color and crunch from the veggies and warmth from the cinnamon.  Plus, the rice and lentils ensure that the dish is hearty. Great for a light summer meal especially with a glass of rose.
  5. Double Chocolate Zucchini Bread – Chocolate + zucchini. It’s practically health food, right? This recipe calls for 2 cups of zucchini which should put a dent in supply. I subbed the butter with applesauce to cut down the fat. Perfect with a cup of coffee or tea.

Let me know if you have any favorite zucchini recipes. I have four squash plants in my garden….

5 Awesome Zucchini Recipes

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