Setting the Mood (Chocolate Raspberry Trifles)

Now that January is drawing to its close, the last big holiday of the winter approaches: Valentine's Day. I think a singular day of romance is rather silly, as if people need a reminder once a year to be good to their partners. There's also much to be made of the rampant commercialization of the practice and for those who happen to be single, it's simply annoying. It will most definitely always have one saving grace, though, and that's as an excuse for chocolate.

Best excuse, ever.

The Morning After (Chocolate Sandwiches)

On weekend mornings, I tend to be grumpily awoken by passionate, plaintive meowing for breakfast. Cats being fed, I trudge back to bedroom and try to get some more sleep. Early Morning James has one objective: more sleeping; and he will go to great lengths to ensure it. Of course, on some mornings you want to do something special and, at those times, it's nice to have a meal that can be easily prepared and quickly returned to the bedroom, too.

Morning pick-me-up

Messing with a Classic (Chocolate Hazelnut Banana Bread)

Banana bread, it holds a mysterious power. Dense, moist, impossibly fragrant... I am hard-pressed to encounter one and not want to eat the whole thing. I had intended for today's post to be a variation on my mother's Blue Ribbon Banana Bread, I know I have the recipe somewhere. Unfortunately, fortune did not smile upon my quest and a quick Google search demonstrates that everyone and their mother has a recipe for Blue Ribbon Banana Bread. Which is the "true" version? The world may never know.

Blue ribbon added for effect