Dinner tonight was a little random and out of the ordinary – but fun! And something we don’t do often enough. Nick and I went to a new restaurant, Bull & Bones, for snacks and a few pool games with some of my coworkers. I had 2 smoked wings (SO good! They’re not fried at all!) and a few nachos. Once we started playing pool, I wasn’t really hungry anymore. No pictures – sorry! My coworkers don’t know about the blog yet, and I didn’t want to explain it tonight.
In place of a dinner post, I wanted to review this awesome chocolate shop in Blacksburg, VA called The Chocolate Spike. They are local to Blacksburg, but you can order from them and they are definitely worth it!
Last week, I tried their Lavender/Berry Truffle, which is described as “bittersweet chocolate, lavender flowers, (berries), and lavender oil dipped in white chocolate with lavender flowers or berries”.
This was some of the best chocolate I have ever had. The mix of lavender and dark chocolate was amazing; it was really rich, but the flavors were so well balanced! I had never had any dessert with lavender in it before, so this was a real treat.
Earlier this week, I tried another truffle. This time I had the Cranberry Raspberry, “dark chocolate with cranberries and raspberries dipped in dark chocolate” and it was just as good!
Both of the truffles were beautiful, but this one also had some pink-gold dust on top and was shimmery! How could you not want to eat that? :)
This one was really good, too. It was a nice balance of dark chocolate (can you tell I’m a fan of the dark stuff?) and sweet/tart with the cranberry and raspberry flavors in the truffle filling.
The ganache filling was so creamy and decadent – I did manage to stop eating it…just long enough to snap a picture!
If you’re ever in Blacksburg or just need some good chocolates, check out The Chocolate Spike. As you can see from their website, there are plenty of other flavors I still need to try. I’m pretty impressed so far, so I’m sure everything else is wonderful.
I’ve been reading Fit From Within by Victoria Moran, and I came across a quote that goes perfectly with this post. I had never thought about it this way before, but it makes sense after eating these truffles!
Surprisingly perhaps, even one lovely piece of pricey chocolate can be quality food…If you’re going to eat chocolate, have the kind you’d take home to meet your parents. You’re not likely to find it in a vending machine.
Yes, they were more expensive than a butterfinger, but worth it! One truffle may be a lot less in quantity than a 3 Musketeer, but the quality is so much better. This was seriously the best chocolate I’ve ever eaten, worth the money, and felt like more of an indulgence than a normal candy bar. Plus, one is so rich that you’re really satisfied after just one.
Enough about chocolates – The Office is on! I hope you’re watching :) Nite!
Today’s lunch was awesome! I had been waiting for this all day :) It made the morning go by so much faster at work, too.
I made two mini sandwiches with some homemade Parmesan Herb Focaccia, sliced tomato, basil, and light laughing cow cheese wedges. They were so delicious, but they really made me wish it was summer already and not 30 degrees outside!
Along side my minis, I had some leftover kale, “fries”, and extra sliced tomato. Too bad there’s not enough bread left for a repeat tomorrow!
For a snack before BodyPump, I had a Fage 0% topped with an Orange Cranberry Gnu Bar. I wasn’t sure how I would like the bar crumbled on top of the yogurt, but I loved it! The textures were great together, and the flavor of the bar went really well with the tangy yogurt.
On to the recipe review!
The recipe is actually for the focaccia bread I used for my sandwiches. I bought the newest Eating Well magazine last week and found this amazing looking recipe. After getting some advice from Jenna, I decided to use the first official weekend with no college football to bake! What else was I going to do with my time with no games to watch? :)
In case you don’t have the magazine, they do have the recipe online for the Parmesan Herb Focaccia.
I did have a few modifications, but not on purpose. When I went to mix the dough, I found out that I only had about 2/3 cup of regular flour, so I just made up the rest with whole wheat flour. I was afraid it wouldn’t turn out with that much whole wheat flour, but it turned out great! I also used dried rosemary and dried oregano instead of fresh since I couldn’t find any!
I give this recipe an A – It is so tasty and easy to make! It does take a long time to rise, but the amount of time you’re actually doing something (mixing, etc) is only about 30-40 minutes.
While not technically dessert, it sure did taste like it! So, following the advice of my Pampaw, I had one of my favorite oat concoctions ever.
Pumpkin Banana Oatmeal with Trail Mix
I made this with:
1/2 cup old fashioned oatmeal
1/2 sliced banana (Tiff, just pretend you didn’t see this) :)
a little over a cup of water
pinch of salt
Cook in microwave. Then heat up about 1/3 – 1/2 cup pumpkin and stir in with some cinnamon. Topped with some Trader Joe’s trail mix. SO good. The chocolate gets all melty – this is definitely one of the best ways to start the day!
See you later for a recap of lunch and recipe review!
