# 57: Savory Chocolate Throwdown

Back in September, we had a Chocolate Throwdown at work with a sweet and savory category.  Of course I entered the savory side to challenge myself.  I considered recipes like Chocolate Chorizo Bruschetta, Chocolate Covered Bacon, and Chocolate Pasta.  After spending quite a bit of time researching recipes (many more hours than you might think!), I finally stumbled upon a recipe that looked interesting, creative, and yummy! - this was the White Chocolate Vanilla Parsnip Soup.  I ran a test batch and ended up eating for days and days.  I was quite happy with the finished product so I decided I would go with the soup.  I was really happy with the finished product and presentation and I was eager to submit my entry.  The funny thing is that one of my colleagues made the same soup - so immediately my dish wasn't looking very original. After the judging and voting my soup won second place in the Savory category.  And no, I didn't lose to the other soup - but a giant chocolate covered cheese ball!

Soup is garnished with dark chocolate dusted croutons and a sprig of dill.  Yum!

#56: Chocolate Waffles for the Holidays

For some of you, these chocolate waffle cookies may look quite familiar - that's because I made them for 2 different cookie exchanges! They were such a big hit the first time that I decided to replicate for my second exchange. The recipe was adapted from a Martha Stewart cookie magazine and super simple. After making the batter (filled with eggs, flour, sugar, chocolate, milk, etc.), I took a spoonful and set it in the waffle iron. A set of 2 took about 3 minutes to cook. I made my waffle cookies pretty large and it made about 30 cookies. After letting them cool, I dipped one side into a chocolate/powdered sugar/milk mixture and then dusted with powdered sugar. This is a fun twist on the waffle - good for any time of day!