co co. sala

We had fun spending time with Ben's brother Dan and his family when they came out for a visit a few weeks ago. We had a babysitter one night and were able to meet them in D.C. for a kid-free evening which was so nice.

We tried Co Co Sala for brunch last year (it was amazing) and knew it would be the perfect spot to take Dan and Michelle for dessert. Everything we ordered was delicious. They have the best salted caramel hot chocolate. We tried three different dessert plates and a few appetizers. The mood lighting was extreme so the photos don't do the beautiful presentations justice.

The hot chocolate sampler.

Strawberry "caprese" flatbread. Strawberries, basil, and smoked mozzarella with a cacao infused basil and asparagus vinaigrette. So good.

Warm sticky toffee pudding cake, chocolate shavings, brown butter toffee sauce, and ginger caramel ice cream.

Dark chocolate mousse with vanilla crème brulee, salted caramel, crispy chocolate pearls and brownie alongside a dark chocolate sorbet and a cinnamon toffee bon bon.

Buttery shortcake, tart passion fruit curd, passion fruit caramel, creme fraiche chocolate cheesecake, and minty fresh foam.

Valentine's Day Tea

I surprised the girls with a little Valentine's Day tea party after school with pink lemonade and heart-shaped brownies. And heart-shaped pancakes for dinner.

christmas cookies.

The post-Christmas mess is starting to disappear. Most of the cookies and treats have been devoured.

In addition to sugar cookies and these delicious peppermint patty surprise chocolate chunk cookie bars (phew) highly recommended by my sister, I made four different kinds of cookies this year.

Peanut butter kiss cookies (made with Hershey's Bliss), chocolate peppermint bark cookies, candied orange slice cookies (a family recipe and one of my favorites), and salty chocolate nutella thumbprints (a new recipe I tried this year found here).

I thoroughly enjoyed each one. (And will definitely be taking part in another Lettuce Eat Cake weight loss contest in January.)

Molten Chocolate Cake

I wanted a chocolate dessert for Valentine's Day but wanted to keep it really simple. I went with these delicious molten chocolate cakes which are very easy to make. Love that chocolate center.





Bittersweet Molten Chocolate Cakes
from Bon Appetit

Ingredients

12 teaspoons plus 5 tablespoons sugar
8 ounces bittersweet (not unsweetened) or semisweet chocolate, chopped
3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter
3 large eggs
3 large egg yolks
1 tablespoon all purpose flour

Preparation

Generously butter eight 3/4-cup soufflé dishes or custard cups. Sprinkle inside of each dish with 1 1/2 teaspoons sugar. (I used cooking spray and cocoa powder and it worked wonderfully. The cakes didn't stick at all.)
Stir chocolate and butter in heavy medium saucepan over low heat until smooth. Remove from heat. Using electric mixer, beat eggs, egg yolks, and remaining 5 tablespoons sugar in large bowl until thick and pale yellow, about 8 minutes. Fold 1/3 of warm chocolate mixture into egg mixture, then fold in remaining chocolate. Fold in flour. Divide batter among soufflé dishes. (Can be made 1 day ahead. Cover with plastic; chill. Bring to room temperature before continuing.)
Preheat oven to 425°F. Place soufflé dishes on baking sheet. Bake cakes uncovered until edges are puffed and slightly cracked but center 1 inch of each moves slightly when dishes are shaken gently, about 13 minutes.
Invert cakes onto a serving dish or eat right out of the soufflé dish. If desired, serve with ice cream.