Friday, February 8, 2013

The Black Forest


Of late, my kitchen has been shadowed o'er by a strange and deepening darkness . . .  of chocolate, that is.  My sunny French décor has taken on a Grimm-like “Black Forest” air as I arm myself with whisk and spoons wooden for this journey into dark, darker, and darkest chocolate met by strange, weirder, and most unusual "sugars." 

Bold and brave, I hunt for the elusive chocolate treasures fit for the health-minded dessert-er.  The fudgiest ice cream and the darkest brownies have been found along this pilgrim’s path.  Truffles lurk around every corner -- and though they improve greatly with age (developing a dark figgy-cherry-red rose-brandy quality of taste and aroma), I am hard-pressed to find a ripening truffle ANYWHERE on the premises!  Alas, the truffle gnomes have made off with every last one!  (Good thing I only made a small batch.)  As I poke and prod all thoughts chocolate, peanut-butter-cup truffles, black-forest truffles, and looming spectres of devil-dark truffles (hint: chili-pepper) swirl in the mists of my wandering mind . . .

. . . but those will have to wait for another day because today I set aside the chocolate, jumped countries, and whipped up a batch of Danish bread-and-butter pickled eggs (made with coconut crystals and cider vinegar – yep, I did it!).  My sister arrives in just under two weeks and she LOVES pickled eggs.  They will be pronounced “Ready” just as she steps off the plane.  

“Note,” I bellow to my pickled-egg-loving family, “No one must disturb this crock of eggs until February 21st.”  

(Of course, I may be caught sneaking a taste now and again in the interest of Culinary Arts and Sciences.)

; )


2 comments:

Becky said...

Book moles and truffle gnomes!? Perhaps some no kill traps are in order. ;)

farmlady said...

This started with such a sinister air that I was expecting some tragic event... "truffles lurk"... oh my.
I do understand, so well, the call of the "devil dark truffle".
Maybe your sister's visit will break the spell. Pickled eggs tend to do this. They're good and they just might cut the truffle takeover... but I doubt it.