Indulge in "Dark Milk"...

I had the immense pleasure of touring Scharffen Berger chocolate factory at their location in Berkeley, CA and tasting samples of their finest chocolate products. I must say: the highlight of my visit was having a piece of "Dark Milk" melt in my mouth.

The 68% Dark Milk is a "blend of dark chocolate, milk chocolate, and finely ground cacao that offers a unique experience: the fruity, complex flavors of cacao united with the rich, caramel flavors of milk chocolate."

Just imagine biting into crunchy nibs (cocoa granules), softening your palate with a smooth milky texture while still enjoying extra- rich and deep flavors of chocolate. If you're a serious dark chocolate lover like me, i promise you'll love Dark Milk. It's a marriage made in heaven...

Manufacturer Fact: "the first ‘bean-to-bar' chocolate manufacturer established in the United States in the past 50 years." For a complete list of products, click here.

Nutrition Fact: Dark chocolate contains more antioxidants than milk or white chocolate as well as 65 percent or higher cocoa content. The latter 2 cannot make any health claims.
Dark chocolate is heart-healthy, helps lower blood pressure, acts as an anti-depressant as well as a stimulant.

Chickpeas with yogurt

Also called "Fatte": A famous Lebanese casserole

Ingredients:

2 cups of dry chickpeas (you can also use 1 can of cooked chickpeas instead)
2 cups of plain yogurt
1 tbsp of lemon juice or white vinegar
1 to 2 cloves of garlic (crushed)
2 pita loaves (toasted)
1/2 tsp of baking soda
1tbsp of cumin
salt (as desired)
2 tbsp pine nuts or more (optional)
1/4 cup of vegetable oil

Method:

1) Soak the chickpeas in warm water the night before.

2) In pot add about 2 L of water, beans and baking powder, cook until the beans are soft add salt to taste.

3) In a bowl mix the yogurt ,lemon juice or vinegar , and crushed garlic with a little bit of salt. Leave it at room T. (If the mix is too thick, add a little water to thin it out.)

4) Break the pita bread in small pieces, toss with some oil and spread them on a baking sheet. Toast in oven for 10-15 min at 375 F or until crispy golden brown.

5) Layer in a 9" by 9" baking dish (I use glass Pyrex) hot garbanzo beans with 3 tbsps of the broth in which they were boiled. Season with cumin. Then add toasted pita chips and cover with the yogurt mix.

5) In a small pan heat the oil. Add the pine nuts and fry until golden brown then pour oil and nuts on top of the casserole.

Enjoy eating this dish while it's hot.

Nutrition Tip: For a low fat version of this dish, you can substitute low-fat yogurt and 1 tbsp of sour cream for the whole-fat yogurt. If you opt not to fry the pine nuts, just toast them in a non oily pan.

Hello World!