Chocolate Week

This Valentine's Day, end your meal with a tantalizing chocolate recipe that's ready in less time than it takes to defrost frozen cheesecake. My favorite no-stress, no-fuss recipe is this velvety gianduja mousse made from nothing more than crème fraîche, whipped cream, and that oldie but goodie, Nutella.

With a standing mixer, the recipe takes less than 10 minutes of active prep, and if you're really not up to the task, you can substitute already-whipped cream and be done with it in seconds. The best part? It's creamy, rich but not too cloying, and full of chocolate hazelnut flavor. No one will ever guess that part of the chocolate indulgence comes from a can. Want the recipe? Then keep reading.

I'm definitely a fan of Valentine's Day, but mostly because I like the excuse to eat chocolate. Besides tasting good, dark chocolate is full of heart-healthy flavonoids (equal to many fruits), can soothe a cough, increase blood flow, and lower blood pressure.

Spread the love even more this holiday by buying my picks for chocolate that's organic, Fair Trade, or health-inspired, and don't forget to throw in a cute card — your sweetie will love you even more for it!

• Vosges chocolatier Katrina Markoff fuses her premium chocolates with things like curry, wasabi, and ginger, but we especially like Vosges because of its yoga and chocolate weekend workshops. Make vegan and gluten-free friends happy with the Vosges vegan truffle collection ($25) — with ingredients like agave nectar, organic coconut milk, pomegranate, and acai, this collection is sure to be a hit with health conscious friends.
• The handmade Drunken Figs ($35) from Cocoavino are made with red wine and dark chocolate — talk about antioxidant overload! Chocolate from Cocoavino is organic and Fair Trade certified, made with wind power, and sold in eco-friendly packaging.
• Forget Nestlé Crunch; Dark Quinoa Chocolate bars ($5) from Alter Eco give you that same crunch except with a tiny burst of protein. Alter Eco sources all of its ingredients from Fair Trade farms and also helps fund community development programs.

To see what other chocolate made the cut, read more

Yet another reason to savor chocolate this Valentine's Day: it does a body good — maybe even better than fruit. Or so says a new study. According to scientists, the findings show chocolate has antioxidants, polyphenols, and flavanols equal to (and in some cases greater than) fruit.

The study, conducted by the Hershey Center for Health and Nutrition and published in Chemistry Central Journal, compared cocoa powders to acaí, blueberry, cranberry, and pomegranate powders.

Do you find the results hard to believe? Does this sound too good to be true?

Although I don't Tivo it, whenever I come across the Food Network's series The Best Thing I've Ever Ate, I can't help but tune in. I love hearing about the preferred dishes of celebrity chefs and learning how the restaurants prepare them.

Since we're all about chocolate this week, I want to know what's the best chocolate dessert you've ever had? Was it an amazing brownie? A scrumptious molten cake? An unbelievable gelato? Please share your most memorable chocolate experiences with us below!

Chocolate and coffee have always been a match made in heaven, and that's the case with this recipe for cupped cakes. Before the invention of muffin tins, cakes were often cooked in small oven-safe coffee cups, hence the name went from being cupped cake to what it's called now, the cupcake.

The original recipe calls for chicory coffee, but after searching high and low, I couldn't find any, so I substituted a strong brewed coffee. This eggless cake is an easy souffle with a lava-like center; it's sure to thrill the chocoholics in your life. While the cake cooks, there's plenty of time to light candles and sit down to a romantic dinner. Get ready to dip your spoon into this gooey cupped cake — just keep reading for the recipe.