Unfortunately, for North Americans unlike the French, Belgians and Italians, to name a few, chocolate carries a certain amount of stigma; it’s a guilty pleasure, conjuring up an ‘I’m so bad’ feeling. Well, since this is the case, I guess I’m one bad girl.
I recently attended an event where one of the exhibitors was the Sweet Spot Chocolate Shop. When faced with the aforementioned gastronomic drug, I often go all out – this occasion was no exception. I purchased two sweet treats; a milk chocolate peanut butter patty and a dark chocolate s’more. Sidebar, is it a coincidence that a s’more has more in its name? Very strategic, don’t you think? Personally, I think the Sweet Spot’s name is fairly strategic as well……………
Moving on. The s’more had a thick shell that responded with resistance to my teeth. I love the sound it made; a deep thud as I bit through the chocolate, a whoosh of marshmallow, and a dull crunch as I made it to the graham cracker layer. Though I had my first bite with the intention of saving half for later, the idea was quickly abandoned as I poured myself a tall glass of ice-cold milk. The dark chocolate was intense, with a thickness that coated my tongue and the top of my mouth. Then, it all becomes a blur…
A couple of days later, I succumbed to the call of the peanut butter patty which had taken up residence in my refrigerator. Outta sight, outta mind, right? Not particularly in this case. I love peanut butter. When I raised it to my lips and inhaled, my heart started beating faster as I smelled the sweet aroma of this timeless marriage of flavor. The creamy entanglement of silky-smooth PB and achingly sweet milk chocolate was brief as it quickly disappeared from my hand and slid, slowly down my throat, arousing a sigh on the way down.
Now, I’m pretty particular about my chocolate- Cadbury and Nestle simply won’t do. What some women spend on shoes, I’m willing to dole out for a mere few moments of pleasure. There’s nothing quite like a good chocolate fix- unless it’s a beef tenderloin served rare…but that’s another post in itself!