More Original Social Networking

We went to Rob and Cindy's place last weekend for another fondue party.  We started it all with the dessert fondue party we had on new years and they decided to step it up a notch and do a meat fondue.

And so, we arrived, and the table was beautifully set up with beef, pork, shrimp, chicken, veggies, fresh bread, cheese dip, and batter.  There were also sauces:  shwarma, sweet thai chili,  death from above, barbecue, buttery buffalo, and shrimp sauce.

Then, the oil was brought out and the dunking began.

Tempura battered chicken with thai sauce was my favourite. My husband and Rob enjoyed tempura shrimp. I couldn't have it because shrimp makes me physically sick (even though it's delicious)

The one thing that Rob and Cindy and I really enjoyed, though?

Tempura fried broccoli or cauliflower, dipped in cheese.  Fuck yeah.

After dinner, Rob and Alex and I enjoyed a glass of port that Rob made. Chocolate raspberry port. Fuck yeah, again.

Adventures in Cake Pops

I love to bake. I love to bake new things. I love cake. I love baking cake. I do not really like making cake pops, but they are -delicious-.

I bought a package of Wilton's orange candy melts with intent to make pumpkin cake pops to give to the kids around the neighbourhood that I know.  Sadly, I melted the candy at too high a temperature, and had no more orange chocolate.  Sadness.

So, Halloween came and Halloween went and in my freezer sat 50-some lonely, naked, freezing cake pops just begging to be dipped in delicious warm chocolate. What better way to end quickly?

I had a spare package of light cocoa candy melts in my drawer so I decided I'd give it a go again today.

This time, I used the stovetop instead of the microwave.  I heated it slowly, gradually. The chocolate was never too hot to touch.  When it was melted, I still found it too thick, so I added a bit of vegetable oil, a bit at a time, until it was the right consistency -- dippable.

Then, so began the dipping. We had a few casualties of war:

Poor bastards. I'll give them a good home, later.

But all in all, I finished a good solid, (but seriously fugly), chocolate cakepops.

They don't look like much, but they certainly are tasty.


Oh, and for those who are curious as to what I might've done with my ruined melted orange chocolate?

Chocolate flowers.  Hey, the Behemoth loves them.


Cake pops: let it be known! With time, I shall conquor you!