Chocolate & Massage: A Night to Remember

If the attendees of the Sacramento Institute of Fun's Massage & Chocolate Night had half as much fun during the event as I did conducting the chocolate tasting/education portion of the evening, then mission accomplished!

On Friday morning, Chris (one of SIF's founders, pictured middle above) and I appeared on my58 to promote the event. Directly below is a pic of the tray that I brought to the studio (ready for its closeup!) Also pictured above are Margaret and Jeffrey, all founding members of SIF.

Then, later that evening, I arrived at Revolution Wines with my presentation and six different chocolate desserts to share with the guests.

Before I comment on the night or any of the food I made, I really want to thank a few of the sponsors for the evening: Dove Chocolates, they sent me several samples of their Promises miniatures, and I was able to distribute them to the attendees in little goody bags with my business cards. I also want to thank the E Guittard Company. They sent me a few pounds worth of both bittersweet and semisweet chocolate wafers, which I was able to use in the making of a trio of truffles! Deadly... Thanks goes to Ghirardelli, I was able to get their coverture chocolate at bulk cost, and also to Shawn of Askinosie chocolates. He sent me some chocolate that arrived on Friday, but I was still able to put to use! Lastly, I would like to thank the people at Pamela's products. They sent me a sample of their chocolate cake baking mix, (along with a huge box of other items I will post on soon!!) and so I used it to make a dish that was a gluten free alternative to the brownies I served.

Thank you for making such awesome products and helping me to share during my presentation!


Below are some pictures from the event (along with my description of the dishes I made when applicable)…


Casey of the SIF made this yummy garlicky asparagus bowtie pasta dish... It was good for everyone to eat a little something before all the chocolate, and it went sooo well with the Pinot Grigio that the folks at Revolution were pouring!



The evening began with the introduction of Bassil Kamas, by one of the co-hosts of the event, Carmen Isais. Bassil is a Certified Massage Therapist who headlined the event with me, and was there to present the health benefits of massage. Bassil has dedicated his practice to helping others achieve a greater sense of balance, prosperity and purpose in their lives through massage. I highly recommend Bassil, he is the Winner of Best Massage in 2008 by KCRA's A-list. He is also hoping to gain the title in 2009! If you were at the event Friday night, and you liked what you saw & felt, vote for him here!

Bassil & Carmen

I began my presentation with a brief history of chocolate, and explained its origins in South America. I would speak for about 7-10 minutes, then pass around a treat for everyone to try.

Me on the right, rockin the mic…

The first dish I served was Chocolate-covered potato chips. Made with wavy thick cut variety, and double dipped in Ghirardelli chocolate. A picture of them are on the my58/KCRA tray above. I am not sure what came next, but I know I am also missing a picture of the three kinds of truffles I served. They are also on the tray above.

The truffles were made with Bittersweet E. Guittard chocolate wafers and rolled in:
1. Crushed gingersnap cookie, 2. Toasted coconut, 3. Unsweetened Nestlé cocoa.

At the top of this picture, are the gluten-free cupcakes (made with Pamela's Gluten-free Chocolate Cake Mix), & decorated with my signature (chocolate) buttercream frosting. Pictured below them in the darker chocolate are double fudge brownies, covered in chocolate ganache, and kissed with a dollop of my signature (chocolate) buttercream frosting. Baked in a glass votive for my guests to feel as elegant as they were!

A closer pic of the gluten free chocolate cupcakes.

And another shot of the cupcakes and brownies together.

These are brownie pops. I made these from some chocolate that was left over from other dishes I had made for the event. So these were basically a bonus dish... I had some lollipop sticks, and so I baked some of the leftover brownie batter from the votives in a large pan and cut pieces of brownie and rolled them around the sticks. Then dipped them in Ghirardelli. To me, this dessert was very relative to the theme of the group: The Institute of Fun. Eating a brownie pop and sipping wine with your friends. Sounds like fun to me.

The grand finale of the night was… Chocolate-covered bacon!!
I am happy to report it was a huge hit. I used the Ghirardelli & some
of the Askinosie chocolate, and sprinkled each piece with brown sugar.

The door prizes from a game we played at the end
of my presentation called, "NAME THAT CANDY!!"

Me, at the end of the evening. So happy to be there!
The Cakegrrl Chocolate & Comedy Tour
will roll into a town near you very soon…

Seriously, though… I am just. Wow. I am so blessed to be here in California doing what I love to do. I feel so happy & lucky to interact with so many people… Thanks so much to Carmen, Jeffrey, Chris, Margaret, Casey, & Gina at Revolution. Hope we can do it again soon!