But sometimes, compromises aren’t allowed, like when making the absolute to-die-for, perfect dessert–and picking the right chocolate makes all the difference.

That’s why Scharffen Berger chocolate is challenging dessert perfectionists everywhere in their new contest, asking them to step up to the plate and elevate their favorite classic dessert with a new twist and Scharffen Berger’s special blend chocolates. Grandma’s whoopie pies, the classic chocolate chip cookie–contestants will have to pull out all the stops to put a new twist on favorite chocolaty desserts, and say “no” to shortcuts with the unparalleled quality of Scharffen Berger bars, chunks, or cocoa.

The prizes are just as sweet: The Grand Prize winner, picked in March, will receive $10,000, a gift package of chocolate, and three signed cookbooks from the contest’s celebrity chef judges. Elizabeth Faulkner of Citizen Cake and The Next Iron Chef, founder John Scharffenberger, cookbook author Alice Medrich, food blogger Matt Armendariz, and our very own Babette Pepaj will be judging the sweet stuff, so make it shine!

Need some inspiration to get the creative juices (or chocolate syrup) flowing? Check out these classic chocolate recipes, and start brainstorming how you can make them fresh and new with your twist and Scharffen Berger chocolate.

Chocolate Pudding

Co-Founder John’s mom made this a household favorite, turning something as casual as pudding into a refined, delicious dessert.

Chocolate Ganache

Chocolate Ganache is a must-have in the arsenal of any pastry chef, and can be made with any water-based liquid to suit your dessert needs, from cream to soy milk.

John’s Classic Drinking Chocolate

A delicious dessert doesn’t have to be complex. High-quality ingredients, like 99% Cacao Unsweetened Chocolate, can turn hot chocolate into an indulgent, delicious dessert.

Rich Mocha Tofu Mousse

Talk about a twist! Tofu can add a great silky texture to mousse, which can be a decadent dessert on its own, or dressed up in a number of creative ways.

That Chocolate Cake

Everyone needs a great chocolate cake in their recipe box, and this one is hard to beat. Are you up to the challenge?

John’s Favorite Brownie

Brownies are another chocolate must-have, easily customized and spruced up with anything you can think of adding. Get started with this classic base recipe.

Want to submit your own recipe for the Elevate a Classic Dessert with Scharffen Berger Chocolate contest? Visit www.ScharffenBerger.com

Also, visit the Scharffen Berger Chocolate Maker page on Facebook or follow @ScharffenBerger on Twitter. You won’t find a tastier twitter account!

Visit Scharffen Berger on BakeSpace and check out their cookbook “Classic Chocolate Recipes” in the new Cookbook Cafe!

1. Set the timer

Grab the meat, throw it in the bag, and leave it alone–it seems easy enough, but you have to remember that different meats and veggies are texturally different. What will make red meat sing will quickly overpower fish or even poultry.

Here’s a handy reference:

• Fish and Seafood :  15 min to 1 hour
• Poultry: ½ hour to 3 hours
• Vegetables: ½ hour
• Red meat: Overnight

2. Be safe

That’s raw meat you’re sloshing around in there. That means, never, ever reuse a marinade for separate dishes, and marinate in the fridge, not the counter. You can brush on leftover marinade while cooking for an extra burst of flavor, but stop well before pull-out time so anything harmful you’re brushing on has time to cook off.  Really, really want to use it as a sauce or an extra boost? Boil the leftover marinade for a good three to five minutes to kill off any bad bugs.

3. Stay away from metal

Your big stainless steel bowl may seem perfect for marinating tomorrow’s steaks, but steer clear: marinades are all about chemical reactions. Most marinades include some acidic ingredient, and when left alone, it can react with the metal. Not only does this make your meat taste funky, but can be bad for you. Stick with the handy gallon Zip-Loc bag, or a ceramic or glass container covered in plastic wrap.

Sponsored Post: Visit Sabra at www.sabra.com, on Twitter at www.twitter.com/sabra and on Facebook at www.facebook.com/sabra.

Marinated Chicken Kebabs

Print Recipe

• Cooking Time: 5
• Servings: 2
• Preparation Time: 5
• 1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breasts, chopped into chunks
• (about 1 inch in size)
• 2 tablespoons Sabra® Roasted Garlic or Onion Greek Style Veggie Dip, divided
• 1/8th teaspoon turmeric
• 1 red bell pepper, chopped into chunks (about 1 inch in size)
• 1 small yellow onion, chopped into chunks (about 1 inch in size)
• Salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

1. STIR chicken, ½ container Sabra® Roasted Garlic or Onion Greek Style Veggie Dip and turmeric together in a small mixing bowl. Refrigerate for at least ½ hour allowing the veggie dip to tenderize and flavor the chicken.
2. PREHEAT broiler or grill.
3. ASSEMBLE kebabs, alternating pepper, onion and chicken on the skewers.
4. GRILL on charcoal grill outside or under the broiler indoors. Cook 10-15 minutes or until juice runs clear from the chicken.
5. BRUSH remaining yogurt dip over hot kebabs.
6. SERVE warm with a salad (try our cucumber avocado salad recipe), rice and warm pita bread for a Mediterranean style dinner.

Grilled veggies are also incredibly versatile, from playing side dish to your favorite carnivorous mainstays, or serving as the centerpiece in a great, light summer sandwich like the Grilled Veggie Hummus Wrap below. But before you get grilling, here are three tips to remember.

1. Pick veggies like your steaks: hearty

The grill doesn’t do delicate very well, so stick to fresh veggies that have some proverbial meat to them. Zucchini, summer squash, red peppers, and corn are all great picks, as they hold up well under heat and can be chopped into thick pieces or left whole. It’s important that your veggies are cut to the same size so they cook evenly, too.  Need to go smaller? Don’t forget the skewer!

2. Season, but keep it simple

Grilling brings out the best fresh, natural flavors of just-picked vegetables, so keep your seasoning simple. Often, a little olive oil and salt and pepper are all you need! Marinades are another easy option, too, but be wary of how easily porous vegetables like zucchini will soak up that flavor.

3. Keep an eye out

Many vegetables don’t take long to cook up, so make sure you keep an eye on them. Remember: vegetables, like meat, will continue to cook even after you take them off of the heat, so aim for a little more undone than over. No one likes a mushy veggie!

Sponsored Post: Visit Sabra at www.sabra.com, on Twitter at www.twitter.com/sabra and on Facebook at www.facebook.com/sabra.

Grilled Veggie Hummus Wraps

Print Recipe

• Cooking Time: 10
• Servings: 2
• Preparation Time: 10
• 1 medium zucchini, cut in half lengthwise.
• 1 medium yellow squash, cut in half lengthwise
• 1 medium red bell pepper
• 1 medium green bell pepper
• Salt and black pepper
• Olive oil
• 1/2 cup shredded fresh spinach leaves
• 2 8-inch herbed or spinach flavored wraps
• 2 tbsp. Sabra Roasted Garlic Hummus

1. Drizzle squash and peppers with olive oil and season with salt and pepper.
2. Grill, turning frequently until outer skins of peppers are charred and squash is almost cooked through. Remove from grill and allow to cool.
3. Spread each wrap with 2 heaping tbsp. of Sabra Roasted Garlic Hummus. Sprinkle evenly with chopped spinach leaves.
4. Peel roasted peppers and remove stem and seeds. Slice into thin strips and set aside. Slice squash thinly on the diagonal.Divide grilled vegetables in half and arrange over Sabra Hummus and spinach in center of wraps.
5. Roll one end in and tuck both sides while rolling. Squeeze as you roll to keep shape. Secure with toothpicks and slice in half on the diagonal.

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Did you go see Harry Potter this weekend? The world of Harry Potter, from Hogwarts to Hogsmeade to the Burrow, is not only full of magic, but tasty and often whimsical treats. And while Fizzing Whizbees might not be an option in the theater concession stand, you can make some Potter-inspired treats at home for your next party or movie night.

Some of the food from Harry Potter is obviously magical and out of reach for us Muggle cooks. Chocolate frogs and refilling plates are out of our league, but many of the exotic-sounding food from Harry Potter are simply traditional British and UK fare, and totally manageable.

I’ve rounded up a set of three recipes and some resources for magical munchies for your family to try: Butterbeer, Treacle Tart and Shepherd’s pie. I also recommend The Unofficial Harry Potter Cookbook by Dinah Bucholz, which has hundreds of recipes all linking back to the specific page numbers in the Harry Potter series, as well as a hearty helping of historical food facts.

Butterbeer

Butterbeer is a staple in the Harry Potter series, the gang’s go-to when out and about in Hogsmeade. This recipe from WizardWorldPark is slightly labor-intensive, but a quick three-ingredient version can be found on Mugglenet. Also, a quick Google will yield lots of fun adult versions for the older wizarding fans.

Servings: 4
1 cup light or dark brown sugar
2 tablespoons water
6 tablespoon butter
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon cider vinegar
3/4 cup heavy cream, divided
1/2 teaspoon rum extract
Four 12-ounce bottles cream soda

In a small saucepan over medium, combine the brown sugar and water. Bring to a gentle boil and cook, stirring often, until the mixture reads 240 F on a candy thermometer.

Stir in the butter, salt, vinegar and 1/4 heavy cream. Set aside to cool to room temperature.

Once the mixture has cooled, stir in the rum extract.

In a medium bowl, combine 2 tablespoons of the brown sugar mixture and the remaining 1/2 cup of heavy cream. Use an electric mixer to beat until just thickened, but not completely whipped, about 2 to 3 minutes.

To serve, divide the brown sugar mixture between 4 tall glasses (about 1/4 cup for each glass). Add 1/4 cup of cream soda to each glass, then stir to combine. Fill each glass nearly to the top with additional cream soda, then spoon the whipped topping over each.

Treacle Tarts

Treacle tarts also show up regularly across the series, as a standard dessert at Hogwarts to something served up in Hagrid’s cabin. While standard in the UK, American readers may not be familiar with treacle. It’s a sugary syrup and can vary in grade from light golden to black, which is closest to molasses. Corn syrup and molasses, respectively, can often be substituted in the US if treacle is hard to come by.

Not So Humble Pie has a beautiful version she attempted with the help of an English friend. Pastry and tart fans have to give it a try!

yields one 9″ tart, serves 6-8

Crust:
150g all purpose flour
113g cold unsalted butter, cubed
pinch salt
5-6 tablespoons ice cold water

Filling:
235g golden syrup*
215g fresh white breadcrumbs*
zest of a large lemon
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1 tsp ground ginger

Egg Wash:
1 large egg
1 teaspoon of water

*Note on the ingredients: Fresh breadcrumbs are not the same as those dry powdery breadcrumbs in a can. To make fresh breadcrumbs, use any slightly stale white bread you can find. Remove the crusts, toss into a food processor and pulse until light and fluffy. If your bread is too fresh, it may not work well in your machine, becoming dense and gummy. To turn fresh bread into crumbs, place the bread in a warm oven until slightly crusty, before processing.

If you lack a food processor, grate chunks of slightly stale bread with a box grater.

Golden Syrup is widely available, however in many parts of the United States it can be difficult to find. Many large grocery chains do carry small tins of Lyle’s Golden Syrup either with the pancake syrups or on the baking aisle. You can also order it online from Amazon’s Grocery & Gourmet Food.

In the bowl of your food processor, combine the flour, cubed butter and salt. Pulse until the bits of butter are a tad smaller than peas. Pulse in the water, adding a little at a time. Use just enough water to bind the dough.

Gather up the crumbs and form a ball, then wrap in plastic. Allow the dough to rest in the refrigerator for 15 minutes.

Meanwhile, pre-heat your oven to 375°F. Add the golden syrup to a medium sauce pan and place over medium-low heat. Swirl the syrup until it is warm and fluid. Add the remaining ingredients and mix to combine. Set aside and work on the crust.

Roll out 2/3rds of the dough and drape it over your tart pan. Roll out the remaining third of the dough into a rectangular sheet and then cut ribbons from it with either a knife or a fluted ravioli cutter.

Fill the tart with the breadcrumbs mixture and smooth.

Drape the strips over the tart to form a lattice (for a handy how-to click here)

Shepherd’s Pie

Some variation of meat pie turns up frequently in Harry Potter, especially during mealtime at Hogwarts, and often in Ron’s hands. Molly Weasley also serves up a chicken and ham pie with boiled potatoes at the Burrow. While steak and kidney pie might be tricky with non-adventurous eaters, but Shepherd’s Pie is an easy kid-pleaser.

Lana at Never Enough Thyme has a great cast-iron skillet version, adapted from Simply Recipes’ easy shepherd’s pie.

Ingredients:
2 lbs. potatoes
6 tblsp. butter, divided
1 onion, chopped
1 ¼ lbs. ground beef
1 cup fresh or frozen corn kernels
1 cup fresh or frozen green peas
1 tsp. Worcestershire sauce
½ tsp. thyme
Salt and pepper to taste
½ cup beef broth
¼ cup milk or half-and-half (optional)
1 cup grated sharp cheddar cheese

Instructions:
Peel the potatoes and cut them into chunks. Boil in salted water until tender (about 20 minutes).

While the potatoes are cooking, melt 2 tblsp. butter in a large frying pan or cast iron skillet. Over medium high heat, saute the onions in the butter until tender and beginning to take on a little brown color. Remove the onions to a plate and hold until later.

Add the ground beef to the pan and cook until no pink color remains. Drain the excess fat and return the ground beef to the pan.

Add the onions back to the pan along with the corn, peas, Worcestershire sauce, thyme, salt and pepper. Stir together and add the beef broth. Reduce the heat and cook, uncovered, for about 10 minutes adding more beef broth if necessary to keep the mixture just moist.

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.

While the beef mixture is simmering, drain the potatoes and mash with the remaining 4 tblsp. butter, salt and pepper. Add the milk or half-and-half if desired.

Place the beef mixture in a baking dish or leave it in the cast iron skillet if you used one.
Spread the mashed potatoes on top.

Place the skillet or baking dish in the preheated oven and cook for 15-20 minutes.

Remove from the oven and distribute the grated cheese over the mashed potatoes.

Return the pan to the oven and cook for an additional 10 minutes or until the cheese is melted and beginning to bubble.

Some other great blogs and resources:

The Harry Potter Lexicon
Yum Sugar’s recipe roundup
Website for the Unofficial Harry Potter Cookbook
One blogger’s menu and decor for her own Harry Potter Party
Mugglenet is always a great go-to for all things Harry Potter
Want to know more about English cooking? Try here.

Follow the conversation: #HarryPotter

Photo Credit: MyCookingHut.com

Instead of settling for salads and Cap’n Crunch for dinner, take that challenge and try something bold: Vietnamese inspired cold plates.

Summer (or spring) rolls are a Vietnamese classic, delicate transparent rice paper wrappers tucked around fresh, chilled fillings. Unlike their fried counterparts, they’re a delicious and dainty appetizer or a light (and healthy) summer entrée.

White on Rice Couple recommends a more hearty man-pleasing version with grilled pork with a hoisin-peanut dip.  My Cooking Hut (photo) wraps basil around her adorable tiger prawn version, paired with a garlic-chili dipping sauce.

However, don’t fret if you don’t have everything on hand. Spring rolls are the perfect opportunity to get creative! Go light with julienne veggies fresh from the farmer’s market, or utilize last night’s leftovers. Set out a spread and let everyone customize their own.

Seek out your local Asian market or international section of high-end grocery stores for hard-to-find ingredients. Struggling with assembly? Chow has a great how-to video.

If you’re feeling a little more adventurous, try out bun: Vietnamese vermicelli-style cold noodles. It’s a refreshing change of pace from boiling hot spaghetti or the summer-staple pasta salad. The dish isn’t entirely cold: the noodles are room temperature and toppings like pork or beef are hot, while herb and vegetable garnishes provide the cool.

Slurping down tepid noodles takes some getting used to, but with bold sauces and fun flavors, bun is worth a go. Mai Pham at Fine Cooking writes a poignant article about her childhood experience with bun and the cardinal rules of making it, from the right noodles to the crispest lettuce and herbs.  Passionate Eater, on the other hand, shows how simple it is to whip up a quick bun lunch.

So here’s our challenge for this week: get out of the culinary comfort zone of coleslaw and salads and try Vietnamese for a fresh, cool summer meal. Post your creations on our Facebook page!

Photo Credit: MyCookingHut.com

Fern Richardson knows her stuff. She’s a certified Master Gardener and a serious green thumb, blogging about gardening tips, tricks and methods at her blog. But Fern doesn’t have sprawling acreage or even a front yard—she does all her gardening on a 50-square-foot condo balcony in Orange County, California.

Fern and Life on the Balcony prove that space (and a “black thumb”) are no excuse to not grow at least some of  your own food. We interviewed Fern for her top tips on getting started (and not giving up!).

Life on the Balcony is a fantastic niche blog. How did it come about?

FERN: For the longest time, I was waiting until I had a big job and could buy my own big house with a glorious garden. But that sort of never happened! I had an epiphany: it’s really stupid to put off something I really, really enjoy—gardening—just because I don’t have the exact situation I thought I would. So I decided to make the most of out of my patio!

I decided to take gardening more seriously, and was looking around for websites for people like me, who don’t have a real yard. I realized there weren’t any, so I thought, “OK, I’ll share what I’ve learned.”

What are some challenges unique to container garden that other gardeners don’t have to worry about?

In the summer, especially for us in the southwest and other really hot areas, if the pots aren’t big enough, you’re watering twice a day sometimes. The best way around that is to, one, use good quality soil, and two, use bigger pots. Smaller pots dry out really quickly. Also, you’re limited on what you can grow in containers. If you have your heart set on some huge old-fashioned rose, it’s just not happening, no matter the size of the container.  Some challenges are specific to certain kinds of balconies: if you’re way up in a high rise it can be windy, or the next building over can shade you out.

You have a great 10 Questions to Ask Yourself post on Life On The Balcony for readers looking to get started. For food specifically, though, what are some things to look for right away?

If you’re growing fruit trees, it absolutely has to be dwarf root stock, not even semi-dwarf [see Fern’s post about growing apple trees in a pot!]. That’s not hard to find these days, because even people in regular backyards want shorter trees because it makes the fruit closer to ground-level and easier to harvest. As far as vegetables go, there are a lot of compact varieties of vegetables. There are a ton of tomato varieties where the whole plan will spill over the side of the pot for only 18”, maximum. Spacemaster cucumbers are small and won’t take up your whole space with a huge vine.

For a lot of vegetables, you can just grow the regular kind, but in a bigger, deeper pot. Deep is more important than wide, though: with a 24 to 30” deep pot, tomatoes and broccoli will do really well, as they can extend their roots further.

What are the biggest excuses you hear from would-be gardeners?

A lot of people think that they are “black thumbs” and that they kill plants! I say that there’s no such thing as a black thumb—you just haven’t killed enough plants to be a green thumb yet! When some people have bad experiences, they think something is innately wrong with them, and that they can’t grow plants. It’s just a lot of learning by doing, getting out there, trying, and if something goes wrong, doing a simple Google search to what the deal is. Or go down to the garden center and ask them!

In urban areas, it’s sometimes tough to find good resources or mom-and-pop garden centers. Do you have any suggestions on where to find help?

Almost ever area has an independent garden center. I’m not a Home Depot and Lowes hater by any means, but those guys in there just don’t have 20 to 30 years of horticulture background. At an indepdent garden center, they have a degree, have been doing it forever, and really do pride themselves on being resources to the community. They won’t just sell you the plant: they’ll help you grow it.

Maybe I’m biased because I am one, but Los Angeles has an excellent master gardener program and we’re associated with the University of California. Everything we tell you has to be scientifically backed up by the university. [Find a Master Gardener Program in your area here.]

What food do you recommend starting out with, for the new gardener? I.E., what’s hardest for a beginner to kill?

A lot of the Mediterranean herbs—rosemary, thyme, oregeano—come from a little dryer climate, and so are not as finicky about being watered all the time. Plus, even just growing a few pots of something, you’re going to have enough to actually cook with, Say you want to make tomato sauce, but your tomato plant only yielded 8 tomatoes—you’re going to be hard pressed to get a full crop. With herbs, you can easily grow as much you use.

What’s one crafty project you’d like to give our readers? (Our pick: turning a dingy BBQ into an herb container garden!)

The most fun I’ve had is taking weird containers, things that aren’t really pots, and growing things in them. Colanders do really well! It’s fun to have kitchen garden and then using kitchen utensils and materials in it! You can also take inexpensive plastic pots and make them into something special with paint or other materials. Container gardening lets you have fun and do something unique to this style of gardening.

What’s your favorite fresh-picked meal?

I made the most delicious upside-down tomato bread! I diced up cherry tomatoes, tossed in salt and herbs, put them in the bottom of pan, put herbed bread dough over the top, and baked it! It was so good! The tomatoes got all caramelized and made a crust. [You can see Fern’s recipe on the blog and give it a try yourself!]

You can follow Fern and get great tips and advice at Life on the Balcony, or ask her your questions on Twitter!

Are you going to give container gardening a shot? Post your adventures and fresh-from-the-garden recipes at our Facebook page!

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May 31st was National Macaroon Day, a celebration that to some, automatically conjures up images of gooey, chewy mounds of toasted coconut, squat and sweet and haphazard. To others, a “macaroon” is quite the opposite: an airy sandwich cookie with delicately ruffled edges, a pillow of Parisian goodness in pastel colors.

So who’s right? Here’s the confusion: they both are.

But before you throw up your hands in hopeless perplexity (it’s a holiday after all), here’s a little etymology lesson: the word macaroon came from Italian and the word maccarone  (not to be confused with ever-catchy Macarena).  The original macaroons were neither coconut lumps nor sweet little sandwiches, but something similar to an amaretto biscotti.
From there, a coconut variety gained popularity and was dubbed a macaroon in the United States. The French similarly broke out and called their chewy little sandwich version a macaron.

As more and more specialty pâtisseries, daring bakers, and fancy food photo-bloggers celebrate the French flour-and-meringue cookies, the debate as to what is dubbed a macaroon has intensified.

Some say that the French macaron is indeed a macaroon in English; it’s only a matter of translation and what language you’re speaking (FoodPr0n points out that Ladurée, who apparently invented the little treat phenomena, lists them as macaroons in the English site, but macarons on its French version. )

Others say that its simply too confusing, and that if you want the French version, you better call them macarons and leave the extra “O” to the very different American variety.
Our BakeSpace verdict? Be specific. Say coconut if that’s what you want, or break out the high school French lessons and ask for les macarons, si vous plait.

Either way, celebrate National Macaroon Day by getting get kid-friendly and fun with coconut macaroons or challenging your inner Parisian pastry chef with a batch of macarons. We’ve rounded up a few recipes for you to get started.

Don’t forget to weigh in on our Facebook page: Macaroons or macarons? Tomato or tomato?

From fellow BakeSpacers:
Coconut Macaroons from jmgallo
Bittersweet Chocolate-Dipped Orange & Coconut Macaroons from kitchenwench
Macaroons with Tofu & Marscapone Cheese Filling from House Foods America

From elsewhere on the web:
Grapefruit and Pistachio Macarons from Cannelle et Vanille
Coconut and Chocolate Macaroons from David Lebovitz
Almost Foolproof Macarons from MyFoodGeek

Corianda Dimes

I was named after a recipe for Coriander Chicken, in the Silver Palate, specifically. Maybe that’s where I got my appetite, for new media, PR, art/design and exploring. And food, though irony of irony, not a fan of cilantro.