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Society Bakery in Dallas, Perhaps the Sweetest Ever!

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Monday, May 14th, 2012

YeeHaw! Society Bakery in Dallas nearly earns 5 cherries for the concepts alone! First off: Bread Pudding Woopie Pies. Holy Smokes- GENIUS! These creative Whoopies have a distinct cinnamon presence and a sassy secret ingredient in the cream cheese frosting that makes them super delish!

Secondly: the name “Society” doesn’t stand for “high society,” but rather, this incredible bakery gives back to society, donating to over 100 different charities, schools, and non-profit organizations a year! Wow-wee! Now what could be sweeter than that?

If you’re in the Dallas area, you Must check out Society Bakery!

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Kentucky Derby Desserts

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Monday, May 7th, 2012

This past weekend I was fortunate enough to attend the Kentucky Derby with veteran Derby goers. Our hosts could not have been more hospitable or gracious, so a HUGE thank you to the Lavin Family!!!! Naturally, the weekend was filled with it’s share of desserts.. and fabulous hats! So without further ado…Derby Pie!!!

Derby Pie can only be sold in Louisville, Kentucky- crazy! This Chocolate and Walnut tart tasted much like a less nutty pecan pie with a few chocolate chips and an extra flakey crust.

A few of us are ready for brunch on Derby day!

Fondant Horses greet us at the buffet line..

Bourbon Banana Bread Pudding (sorry for the sideways pic, I can’t flip it back for some reason!)

My little plate of Derby day delights. Loved the frosting, fruit tart, and chocolate pastry!

Sweet mint brownies to cap off the end of the day!

Shoot- I can’t seem to switch my long images straight on (they’re going sideways!) and I have to go to bed, but I’ll try again tomorrow night to show you the fabulous hats I saw!

Sweet dreams!

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Chocolate Zuccotto Cake from Maggiano’s Little Italy

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Sunday, April 29th, 2012

This weekend I ate enough desserts to sustain me for two weeks worth of posts! Yowza- it was a Serious sugar-showdown. Let’s start with this Chocolate Zuccotto Cake from Maggiano’s. If you’re wondering what the heck a Zuccotto is, it’s basically a chilled cake with alcohol (traditionally brandy), mousse or ice cream layers, and is made into the shape of Florence’s famous dome, the “duomo”.

I couldn’t wait to slice into this impressive mound of a dessert!

Just look at those heavenly layers- so much cake to consume!

This Zuccotto had a rich chocolate flavor deepened by the distinctly licorice liquor, Sambuca. I enjoyed the fun and playful consistencies of the cake and mousse, but the thick and slightly rubbery chocolate encapsulating the cake didn’t harmonize with the soft and bouncy layers inside. If you’re a chocolate fanatic though, you’ll surely love this dessert.

For more info on Maggiano’s Little Italy, click here.

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Simplethings Pies, Trader Joe’s Chocolate, Ice Cream, Dessert Wine & Champagne

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Thursday, April 26th, 2012

Oh what a night! My fabulous friend Mia is always the hostess with the most-est! The other night she & her guy had Tyler and me over for a home cooked meal. I knew that the evening would end Happily Ever After when I saw these delicious pies by Simplethings on the console next to a bottle of Veuve Cliquot (pie review here).

But first, I took down a bowl of these addictive, Trader Joe’s Salted Dark Chocolate Almonds, perhaps one of my favorite items at TJ’s. Once I start, I can’t stop eating them! Naturally, this was before dinner was served (roasted chicken, succulent salmon, and amazing sides, btw).

Then Mia whipped out some homemade ice cream that she made with the best Vanilla Bean Paste and a touch of heaven.

I had the “genius” idea to make a Dessert Wine Float by adding ice cream to my flute of sweet wine.

And by “genius,” I mean I was was very ill the next day….(eeeg)

But ultimately it was a great night and well worth it!

And Mia got the Golden Cherry for her fabulous cooking!

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Crazy Coachella Fashion… but Dessert First ;)

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Monday, April 16th, 2012

This past weekend was the Coachella rock festival in the Palm Springs area that my guy and I attend every year with friends. While my diet for the weekend consists of Heineken and Spicy Pie Pizza (BEST pizza ever), I do manage to find some desserts to sweeten it up.

The most refreshing treat I had was this amazing Snow Cone by Hulu Girls Shave Ice at the GUESS Pool Party. Like real Hawaiian shaved ice, the Snow Cone has feathery flakes of snow that melt on your tongue (versus crunchy balls of ice).

Here I am enjoying my cone with hot friends, Nicole Taylor and Claudia Schiffer.

Since the flavors were made with real fruit juices and no corn syrup, they didn’t leave an artificial aftertaste, which was great.

But it did leave my tongue blue!

I also swooned over this dessert platter at the Hugo Boss pool party.

The Chocolate Peanut Butter Torte was UH-maaaaaazing.

Finally, I met my match the Neon Carnival, The Cookie Monster!

If anyone is wondering “How does she eat all that junk and stay thin” this answer this year is: I don’t. Señor Scale told me that I put on 7 pounds this weekend. Is that possible?! In one weekend!? Ugh- ok, back to ORGANIC veggies and lean meat this week (Bleh! and I worked so hard to get bikini ready….grumble grumble grumble)

To see more pictures of Crazy Coachella Fashion, click after the break to continue.

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Mini Chocolate Creme Eggs by Lindt and “Cadbury” (er, Kraft)

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Wednesday, April 4th, 2012

First off, I must give a very enthusiastic 5-cherries to Lindt Lindor Truffles’ White Chocolate Eggs. They could not be more creamy, dreamy, melty delicious. White chocolate can be incredibly difficult to pull off, but Lindt does a supreme job here. Like the larger Lindt truffle balls, these little eggs have liquid goodness inside, but their smaller, egg shaped proportions make for a more delicious experience.

But Boo- the Mini Creme Eggs were complete rubbish. When I was a kid, having a Creme Egg in your lunch-box was the equivalent to being King of the World! I loved them more than life itself. Alas, the shells on these minis don’t even taste like real chocolate and the inside is just thick, pasty, sweet blah-ness. Boo. I can blame old age or Kraft, now that they took over dear old British Cadbury.

I blame Kraft.

How many Yummies can you spot above!?

Answer: 12- remember, the Creme Eggs were total rubbish.

What’s your favorite Easter treat?!?

XOOX

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THE BEST CHOCOLATE EVER EVER EVER!

By Dessert Darling · Comments (1)

Friday, March 30th, 2012

Let’s jump back aboard the TOURific Escapes “Chocolate Indulgence Tour” for our next stop to John Kelly Chocolates near Runyon Canyon. Woohooo! John Kelly Chocolates was in fact, the first dessert to Ever win a Golden Cherry at Dessert Darling. Returning to the little shop & factory reminded me why. HOT DAMN this chocolate is good- more like, AMAZING!!!!!!!!!!!! No one doesn’t like John Kelly Chocolates (even you crazy non-chocolate people swoon).

These mini chocolate bars just melt in your mouth with their rich, fudgey centers wrapped in a layer of the galaxy’s best chocolate. The Vanilla Walnut was my favorite since the filling reminded me of freshly made cookie dough. However, their most popular flavor, the Chocolate French Sea Salt, also got me hot and bothered. Woowee! THE BEST You guys!!!!!!!!

Check out the chocolate conveyor belt in the video above- YES! We got to experience this on the Chocolate Indulgence Tour- SO. FREAKING. FUN! Look at me, I’m a spaz all over again just writing about it.

I’m just happy I’ll die knowing I have had the best chocolate on Earth. If you live in LA, you must frequent the shop itself for the freshest samples. Otherwise, you can buy them online at their store here.

For more info on John Kelly Chocolates, click here.

For more info on TOURific Escapes, click here (DO it- click click click!).

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Thinny Thursday: Eat Chocolate- Stay Thin with Hail Merry Macaroons

By Dessert Darling · Comments (3)

Thursday, March 29th, 2012

Well Glory Hallelujah! Yet another scientific study that touts the merits of Chocolate! This study essentially states that those who eat chocolate on a regular basis are thinner than those who don’t, even though they do not eat fewer calories or exercise more. WOW! So THAT’s how I do it! Seriously, I eat chocolate every morning after breakfast since I’m not a coffee drinker.

In honor of this outstanding Thinny Thursday news, I’m sharing with you these raw, vegan, gluten-free Hail Merry Chocolate Macaroons to feed your fix in an even healthier way. Made without refined sugar, these delicious treats still boast dark cocoa for all your chocolate needs. They’re Sooooo delicious I ate the whole bag in one sitting. Oops.

For more information on Hail Merry, click here! (I found my bag in Whole Foods).

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Macaron from Jin Patisserie in Venice

By Dessert Darling · Comments (2)

Tuesday, March 27th, 2012

One of the things that excited Lynn and me most on the TOURific Escapes Chocolate Indulgence Tour was that between chocolatier stops, we’d get special treats on the tour bus. For some reason this made us giddier than 5 years olds on Christmas morning.

The first such treat was this Mint Chocolate Macaron by Jin Patisserie in Venice.

The buttercream was the most airy and lightly whipped filling I’ve ever experienced in a Macaron. This satin consistency only slightly threw off the balance for a perfect mac. Otherwise, it was a refined delicacy that you could tell had much love and care baked into it. I’d like to try the other flavors as they look like works of art on the Jin Patisserie website.

For more info on Jin Patisserie, click here.

For more info on the TOURific Escape Chocolate Indulgence Tour, click here.

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Organic Rice Divine Carrot Cake Frozen Dessert- YUM

By Dessert Darling · Comments (1)

Monday, March 19th, 2012

Love Ice Cream but avoiding dairy? Love Carrot Cake? Are you Vegan or Gluten Free? Well this glorious pint of Organic Rice Divine, Carrot Cake is just the treat for you then. I discovered this Good Karma treat in the frozen aisle of Whole Foods and it sat in my freezer for days before I finally caved in and tried it. The extremely flavorful and sweet dessert totally surprised and delighted me. Not only did the “ice cream” part sing of carrot cake, but also it contained actual chunks of carrot cake bites in there for fun texture. YUM. While dairy substitutes are never quite as creamy as the real deal, Rice Divine is still fantastic, thus earning itself a solid 4 cherries!

ps: I bet their Chocolate Peanut Butter Fudge is amazing too!

For more info on Good Karma Foods, click here.

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Archive for Other Cities

Society Bakery in Dallas, Perhaps the Sweetest Ever!

Kentucky Derby Desserts

Chocolate Zuccotto Cake from Maggiano’s Little Italy

Simplethings Pies, Trader Joe’s Chocolate, Ice Cream, Dessert Wine & Champagne

Crazy Coachella Fashion… but Dessert First ;)

Mini Chocolate Creme Eggs by Lindt and “Cadbury” (er, Kraft)

THE BEST CHOCOLATE EVER EVER EVER!

Thinny Thursday: Eat Chocolate- Stay Thin with Hail Merry Macaroons

Macaron from Jin Patisserie in Venice

Organic Rice Divine Carrot Cake Frozen Dessert- YUM

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