Chocolate - My Ememy, My Friend

Sunday was Mother's Day and a woman new to our ward was both surprised and delighted to see that instead of handing out a flower to each Mother, we received a bar of See's Chocolate. She exclaimed that she had moved many times and lived in many wards and this is the first time she received chocolate. I believe it started in our ward quite a few years ago. At that time our bishop was the husband of one of my "Nuance friends", Jayne Sargent. Nuance was the name of our singing group, and we would get together once a week to rehearse, talk and laugh and eat chocolate. It was well known by our husbands that each of those things were and integral part of the whole. So when Jayne's husband became bishop and the discussion came around to what to get the ladies in our ward for Mother's Day, Paul suggested, "Why don't you get them what they really want - chocolate!"

There have been a lot of studies done on chocolate. Dark chocolate, my personal favorite is the most healthy. Among the findings are that it stimulates endorphin production which gives the feeling of pleasure and it contains serotonin, which acts as an anti-depressant. Any woman could have told you that without the studies. Well...maybe not the scientific words, but what woman when depressed, doesn't head for her own stash of feel good chocolate. Chocolate also has antioxidants. It has nearly 8 times the number found in strawberries! So when I eat chocolate dipped strawberries I am really eating healthy.

So that is the friend part. In my current position of caregiver for my aging mother-in-law I have needed my friend often. Unfortunately, the enemy part is obvious.

This is all leading up to a new recipe I just tried. It comes out of the April Bon Appetit magazine. If you like chocolate, then you must try the "Chocolate Mayonnaise Cake". It is made with both bitter sweet chocolate and cocoa. The mayonnaise makes it moist. Go figure. The frosting gives new meaning to butter cream and I discovered that it tastes really good on strawberries. So here is the best way to eat this cake. Take a very thin slice. It is 3 layers, so a thin slice will do ya. Then put on a large dollop of cool whip topped with sliced strawberries. The strawberries and cool whip seem to balance off the richness of the cake. I am serious. Oh, and I am incurable. I will always love my chocolate.