At 6:00 this morning, I found myself lying in bed (awakened by a wee person, of course) thinking about chocolate. What else am I gonna think about at 6:00 a.m.? Naturally, my thoughts wandered to this whole South Beach Diet business and other ways to incorporate my favorite treat into the bleak carbless landscape of the first two weeks. Suddenly, it hit me like a ton of cacao beans: I have sugar free dark chocolate! Not just any sugar free dark chocolate, though - DCD sugar free dark chocolate, which I have actually tasted and found quite satisfactory. Normally, mind you, I would probably not purchase such a thing, but I got it for free (one of the perks of my job - I get free stuff!) a few months ago and have reserved it for limited sampling at parties.
If not for the toddler I was attempting to get back to sleep, my excitement would have catapulted me out of bed at that very moment to check the calorie & carb count of said discs of promised heaven. As it happened, though, I had to wait. I waited through my sad little breakfast of reheated spinach quiche cups, feeding the babies, and all the other routine morning stuff. At last I had a moment to dig the box out of the pantry (where I keep my sample stash) and check the specs. Calories: 170 in 7 pieces. This equates to a little less than 25 per piece. Since Phase 1 of the South Beach Diet allows 75 calories worth of "sugar free" treats daily, I could feasibly have three per day! WooooHoooo!
Now, since I haven't tried one of these in a while, I felt it necessary to taste a bit at that moment (no, 9:15 a.m. is NOT too early for chocolate of any kind) because 1) I needed to make sure my joy wasn't misguided and 2) I desperately needed some chocolate!
I broke a disc in half, then in half again, and put the little 1/4 pie-shaped piece in my mouth. I let it start to dissolve on my tongue, and instantly began to melt along with it. Heaven! Absolute Heaven! Having gone for a whole THREE DAYS without sweetened chocolate, I cannot imagine any more delightful experience than this one. I know I heard choirs of angels singing (of course, that may have been some alphabet song on Sesame Street) as I stood in the kitchen savoring this moment and feeling as though all will be well.
Ya know what's cool, though? I don't need three of these a day. One quarter of one satisfied me quite well. Thus is the beauty of DCD dark chocolate - when you savor "the good stuff," you don't need as much. This will become my foundation for incorporating chocolate into a healthy lifestyle - and I just might make it through these two weeks.
Thursday, August 13, 2009
Tuesday, August 11, 2009
A New Little Treat!
OK, so two days after returning from this fantastic chocolate conference experience, I started on the South Beach Diet. (Right now you're saying, "Are you daft, woman?" And I would have to answer, "Quite possibly.") Now, if you're not familiar with the South Beach Diet, Phase 1 (the first two weeks) requires that you delete all sugars and starches from your diet. Of course, to me, this translates to "NO CHOCOLATE." I'll admit, I have a hard time going without bread and rice and pasta, but I'd trade all of those for my daily dose of cacao.
Obviously, I'll have to get creative.
My first attempt: I sprinkled some Cocoa Framboise Dusting Powder into a little bit of what was supposed to be plain nonfat yogurt and turned out to be sweetened with Splenda. I did this rather on the spur of the moment, because I had really intended to have UNsweetened plain yogurt mixed with dill as a veggie dip. Anyway, the result was not stellar, because I despise artificial sweeteners and swear I could still taste the Splenda an hour later.
Attempt #2: I had some coffee leftover from this morning, kind of hanging out cold in the pot. I poured about 3/4 of a cup into a glass and mixed in about 1/2 teaspoon of Aztec Spice Dusting Powder. I stirred vigorously, added ice, and filled the glass the rest of the way with skim milk. OK, so maybe my expectations weren't all that high due to the absence of sugar - or maybe I was desperate - or both, but I was delighted with this little creation! I think the cinnamon really brings out the chocolate flavor and makes it seem sweet even when it isn't. Now, if a person weren't opposed to the little yellow and blue packets as much as I am, perhaps this beverage would become even more enjoyable. This experience has taught me that chocolate need not be sweet to wield its powers of peacefulness.
I think I'll call it Aztec Desperation. I'm sure culinary history (and carbless dieters everywhere) will thank me for this contribution!
Obviously, I'll have to get creative.
My first attempt: I sprinkled some Cocoa Framboise Dusting Powder into a little bit of what was supposed to be plain nonfat yogurt and turned out to be sweetened with Splenda. I did this rather on the spur of the moment, because I had really intended to have UNsweetened plain yogurt mixed with dill as a veggie dip. Anyway, the result was not stellar, because I despise artificial sweeteners and swear I could still taste the Splenda an hour later.
Attempt #2: I had some coffee leftover from this morning, kind of hanging out cold in the pot. I poured about 3/4 of a cup into a glass and mixed in about 1/2 teaspoon of Aztec Spice Dusting Powder. I stirred vigorously, added ice, and filled the glass the rest of the way with skim milk. OK, so maybe my expectations weren't all that high due to the absence of sugar - or maybe I was desperate - or both, but I was delighted with this little creation! I think the cinnamon really brings out the chocolate flavor and makes it seem sweet even when it isn't. Now, if a person weren't opposed to the little yellow and blue packets as much as I am, perhaps this beverage would become even more enjoyable. This experience has taught me that chocolate need not be sweet to wield its powers of peacefulness.
I think I'll call it Aztec Desperation. I'm sure culinary history (and carbless dieters everywhere) will thank me for this contribution!
Sunday, August 9, 2009
Chocolate Overload? Can it be?
Just last night, I returned from our National Conference in New Jersey. All I can say is...WOW. I ate more chocolate in one three day period than I ever have, but most importantly, I met scores of amazing women who love chocolate as much as I do and who share my passion for channeling that love into making the world a better place. I cannot tell you what joy I experienced in rediscovering the value of working with a company that supports women in the way that DCD does. OK, yes, this is a corporate entity with private shareholders and they care about profit margins and dollars - can't fault 'em for that - but the entire focus of this weekend's conference fell more in the realm of "make your dreams come true." Most of the speakers concentrated on what this business has done for them personally, i.e., skill development, newfound friendships, renewed self confidence, etc. I honestly believe that I work with a company that cares about PEOPLE, not just the almighty dollar. I'll share more about that later, but I'm dying to tell you about the CHOCOLATE, so it will have to wait!
The people on the R & D team at DCD have made me one happy Chocolatier this weekend by announcing that they have added my favorite combination of ingredients to our product line: Double Chocolate Caramel Nut Clusters! To me, chocolate + caramel + pecans = "The Holy Trinity." (Anyone from the Home Office who might read this is thinking at this point, "Good thing we didn't consult her for the name of the product"...can you imagine? Might as well call them "Sweet Irreverence Bits" or something equally distasteful...but I digress.) Needless to say, HOORAH. And guess what else? I tasted these personally, and they ROCK. They totally could have called them something with "holy" in the moniker.
One of the biggest surprises: Merlot Fudge Sauce. Now, I have heard for a long time that red wine goes well with chocolate, but had NO IDEA, really, until I tasted this. I can't adequately describe it, except to say that I've never had better fudge sauce. It has a complexity of flavors that defies logic and makes you feel as though all is well with the world!
I've come to the conclusion that I can't possibly fit everything about our new product line into one post, so I'll have to save some for later. I read recently in The Road Less Traveled that delayed gratification is a good thing, so I'll just consider this an exercise in self development!
Peace, love, and chocolate.
The people on the R & D team at DCD have made me one happy Chocolatier this weekend by announcing that they have added my favorite combination of ingredients to our product line: Double Chocolate Caramel Nut Clusters! To me, chocolate + caramel + pecans = "The Holy Trinity." (Anyone from the Home Office who might read this is thinking at this point, "Good thing we didn't consult her for the name of the product"...can you imagine? Might as well call them "Sweet Irreverence Bits" or something equally distasteful...but I digress.) Needless to say, HOORAH. And guess what else? I tasted these personally, and they ROCK. They totally could have called them something with "holy" in the moniker.
One of the biggest surprises: Merlot Fudge Sauce. Now, I have heard for a long time that red wine goes well with chocolate, but had NO IDEA, really, until I tasted this. I can't adequately describe it, except to say that I've never had better fudge sauce. It has a complexity of flavors that defies logic and makes you feel as though all is well with the world!
I've come to the conclusion that I can't possibly fit everything about our new product line into one post, so I'll have to save some for later. I read recently in The Road Less Traveled that delayed gratification is a good thing, so I'll just consider this an exercise in self development!
Peace, love, and chocolate.
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