By Jamie G. Dougherty

Chocolate is the best boyfriend I’ve ever had.  Seriously!  He protects me from heart disease, high blood pressure and with his natural mood enhancing chocolately goodness, in just one bite he takes me from drab to fab! He never says no to me, is always there for me and somehow knows exactly when I need love and attention.

Every girl deserves to have a deeply satisfying relationship with her chocolate.  The problem is that many of us keep our sweetie hidden from view, only enjoying him quickly and covertly so as to avoid someone seeing him and asking for nibble.  To miss chocolate’s slow, sensuous nature is to deprive ourselves of the relationship of lifetime.  No one will commit to you, listen to you and know exactly what to say the way chocolate will.  In fact, my chocolate man and I just hit year 20 and we are still going strong!

Here are four simple steps to creating a lasting and loving relationship with your chocolate:

1. See – Look your chocolate over and notice his beautiful shape and how he is melted into form.
2. Smell – Does he smell like coffee, Tahitian vanilla, or nutmeg?  Notice his unique scent and let it fill your senses.
3. Chew – Take one square of your chocolate and chew it very carefully in your mouth, making sure not to swallow.  This allows for him to melt evenly over your tongue
4. Melt – Let the chocolate sit on your tongue and melt across your palate.  The longer you let the rich goodness stay the more chances he has to touch each of your taste buds.

I know, right?  When you eat chocolate like that, actual men seem to pale in comparison. (Just kidding, we love our real men!)  Now are your ready to commit to this relationship fully and completely?  Grab yourself a dark chocolate bar, find a luxurious couch, lean back and go slow.  It just doesn’t get much better than that!

In the comments below tell me what your relationship with chocolate is like and how he makes you feel.  Much love and enjoy!

Jamie G. Dougherty, founder of JamieLiving.com, empowers busy women to create bodies that are as rockin’ as their careers!  Jamie believes that though kale and brown rice are good foods to put on your plate, until we truly learn HOW to eat rather than just WHAT to eat we will continue to be carb-craving, super-frazzled, stress-out ladies. If you ever feel hungry, stuck and unsatisfied with your food be sure to visit Jamie’s website to get her FREE 5-Step Guide to Fabulous.  Seriously ladies, get ready for Jamie to rock your world!

Halloween is here! The official kick-off to the season of feeling guilty for over-indulging in sugary sweets! Well, what if you could cancel out that guilt by indulging in sweets that are practicing fair trade, and simultaneously helping endangered species or protecting the environment? While you are out shopping for Halloween candy, think about giving back. Make the world a better place one trick-or-treater at a time… and by letting that chocolate melt slowly in your mouth. There are a handful of forward-thinking candy companies not only crafting delicious treats, but helping craft a better planet. Here are 5 charitable options for your sweet tooth:

sweetriot

All natural, antioxidant-rich, no dairy and gluten ingredients, kosher, pure cacao snacks made with fair trade ingredients. This celebrity favorite focuses its social responsibility in 3 key areas: their product, their people and their partnerships.

Angell

Their motto is “eat no evil” and that’s what they do with Fair Trade all organic products. They are members of 1% For the Planet, which means they donate 1% of gross sales (not profits) to local environmental organizations.

Endangered Species Chocolate

With playful names like “Bug Bites” these chocolates sweeten the deal by donating 10% of  their net profits to organizations that support species and habitat conservation efforts.

Fearless Chocolate

FEARLESS is a delicious good-for-you gourmet organic chocolate bar that uses certified organic,  100% Kosher, dairy-free, gluten-free, soy-free products. They donate 1% of their annual profits to change-making individuals and organizations suggested by their customers.

Surf Sweets

These organically-sweetened gummy candies and jelly beans are free of artificial colors and sweeteners. With a name like Surf Sweets, it makes sense that they’ve focused their efforts on protecting the ocean and are involved with The Ocean Project.

Ham: Hey, Smalls, you wanna s’more?
Smalls: Some more of what?
Ham: No, do you wanna s’more?
Smalls: I haven’t had anything yet, so how can I have some more of nothing?
Ham: You’re killing me Smalls!

Today is National S’mores Day and there is no better way to celebrate the occasion than with lots of S’mores recipes and quotes from The Sandlot.

A BRIEF HISTORY

The first S’mores Recipe was published in the Girl Scouts handbook in 1927.

SANDLOT METHOD

Courtesy of Ham Porter aka The Great Hambino:
1. These are s’more’s stuff! Alrite now pay attention
2. First you take the graham, you stick the chocolate on the graham
3. Then you roast the ‘mallow
4. When the ‘mallows flaming… you stick it on the chocolate
5. Then cover with the other end
6. Then you scarf. Kind of messy, but good!

TRADITIONAL METHOD

1. Break graham crackers in half, creating two squares
2. Break chocolate bar in fours
3. Center two pieces of chocolate on one of graham cracker square
4. Put one marshmallow on a stick and roast over open fire
5. Top each graham cracker/chocolate stack with a roasted marshmallow
6. Make a sandwhich by placing the other grahm cracker square on top of the marshmallow
7. Enjoy!

MICROWAVE METHOD

1. On top of a graham cracker half, stack two pieces of chocolate and one marshmellow
2. Place on paper towel
3. Microwave at medium in 10 second intervals until marshmallow puffs
4. Top each with another graham cracker half; press gently
5. Let stand 1 minute to soften chocolate

GRILL METHOD

1. Create a Smore sandwhich (grahm cracker half, chocolate, marshmellow, grahm cracker half)
2. Wrap S’more sandwhich in aluminum foil
3. Place on a medium-hot grill and cook 1 to 2 minutes on each side
4. When you’re done you’ll have S’mores that are grilled to perfection, yum!

Now tell us: How do you make and eat S’mores?

Save the planet! It’s the only one with chocolate.

It’s also the only one where you can design your own chocolate bar. Check out chocri, which uses only organic, fair trade chocolate from Belgium, and let your imagination run wild. Whether you’re a beautiful bride looking for a personalized gift to give everyone at the wedding or a spa director looking to create a unique dark chocolate masterpiece for your relaxation room… this site is a sweet resource.

From the ministry of obscure and unnecessary holidays, happy National Chocolate Mint Day!

To reflect upon the day, here are the three best pairings of chocolate and mint, in no particular order. Enjoy one of these (or all three!) today, in solemn observance.

1. Peppermint patties. Classic does not mean boring in this fine interpretation of flavors. Light mint cream enrobed in dark chocolate is always tasty and never cloying in the way that other candy bars can be.
2. Chocolate mint plants. Yes, you read that right–there is a variety of the mint plant that has been cultivated to taste exactly like a Thin Mint cookie. You can use it anywhere you might use regular mint: in tea, desserts, as a garnish for soups, and more. Or you can gobble it by the handful if you’re a sad weirdo.
3. Chocolate mint spa treatments. Indulge in a topical application of chocolatey mint goodness. Try the chocolate mint manicure and pedicure at Deva Spa in New York, or the Chocolate Mint Decadence Wrap at Naya Fresh in LA.