You have got to love a little Charles Shaw.....
I made a yummy salad...pears, dried cranberries, sliced almonds and some feta cheese
Decided to make my favorite pasta dish....penne, green beans, tomatoes....with a pesto sauce
and for dessert...brownies!!
It was a lovely evening of good food, girl talk and lots of giggles! It was just what I needed to fill myself back up. We even talked about what fun trips we will take this summer. It's always nice to have something to look forward to.......we are talking about a trip to Crater Lake, San Fran and Yosemite! Oh my...I get excited just thinking about it!
Thank goodness for friends...and brownies....they make everything alright!!
Last Friday I received an e-mail from one of my one of my dear ...sweet parents in my class asking me if I would like to attend a chocolate class at their store....her treat! I was thrilled...you see they own Oh! Chocolate....I delicious store that makes the best truffles ever! So needless to say I didn't need any time to think about this....umm...YES ...sign me up! I could also bring a friend...bonus! I called my friend Tracey...she of course said yes..because really who turns down the opportunity to go to a chocolate class?? Nobody sane! The class was on Sunday evening and would last 2 hours....can somebody say...HEAVEN!
We arrived at the store (which was beautiful) and met the other people who would be attending the class with us. The class started with a cup of Hot Chocolate...the BEST I have ever had. So rich...thick and creamy.....my initial thought was "wow this is just the beginning of what is to come". Next they placed small white plates in front of us that had several types of chocolate...starting with roasted coco seeds to White chocolate and all that falls in the middle. We were given a history of the family business, how it came to be and how the ended up in Washington. We did a tasting of all the chocolate on our plate..learning about the different types of chocolate and how they are used. We then moved over to a marble counter area...where we learned how to temper chocolate. That was really cool for me as I had never done that before. Of course the best part of the class was taking yummy treats such as oreos, marsh mellows, graham crackers, strawberries and raspberries and dipping them into our tempered chocolate. It was really fun to use our hands to play in the chocolate. Well ok I didn't get my whole hands covered in chocolate...as I have sensory issues and don't like to get my hands dirty...but for others it was really fun!
At the end of the class I walked up to the M's father ( M is the student in class) and thanked him for the class. I got teary eyed when he turned to me and said..."No...thank you for all that you have done for our son, we really appreciate it". Like I have said before those heart felt moments of thanks are worth so much more than any gift card that you get at the Holidays.
I had such an amazing time....and was so glad to have Tracey with me. We had a great group of people to share the evening with...and of course got to indulge in some amazing chocolate! I have only ONE huge regret of that evening. I didn't bring my camera. I want to cry just thinking about it now. Why you ask?? It can't be that big of a deal ..I mean it is a chocolate class right?? Well my answer to you is this.....the lighting......it was AMAZING.....the way it hit the beautiful white plate that was filled with chocolate samples......the way it hit the marble counter with the dark cabinets.....how it showed the smoothness of the chocolate after we had used our hands to temper it.......the way it hit all of the goodies we had dipped in chocolate and made them glisten. The lighting was a photographers dream....and although I am not a photographer I am just a wanna be....even I could recognize what beautiful pictures could have been captured that evening.
So they lesson I learned is this.....NEVER...EVER...leave home without your camera! Oh yes....and I need to get a SLR camera ASAP! :)
