Love by Chocolate

Autumn Harvest Blog Hop

AUTUMN FAVORITES

1st Grand Prize: A Kindle Fire or Nook Tablet

2nd Grand Prize: A $50 Amazon or B&N Gift Card

3rd Grand Prize: A Swag Pack that contains 10+ paperbacks, ebooks, 50+ bookmarks, cover flats, magnets, pens, coffee cozies, and more.

The colors, the holidays, and street fairs are some of my favorite things about the fall. However, living in South Florida has left me with a craving for scarfs, boots, and winter jackets. I love changing from the bright colors we wear in the summer to the muted oranges, browns and grays of fall.

In Chocolate Secrets Alex and Mike first meet at a NY street fair. She's selling gourmet chocolate and he's peddling decadent chocolate cakes and sexy NYC firefighter calendars.

Another fall favorite is all the beautiful calendars for the coming year. Here's one of my favorites.
Check out the worthy cause these guys are posing for.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/05/02/fdny-calendar-2013-sexy-firefighters-charity-photos_n_1471184.html#slide=929787http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/05/02/fdny-calendar-2013-sexy-firefighters-charity-photos_n_1471184.html#slide=929787

What's your favorite thing about Autumn?

Leave a comment with your email to be entered for the grand prize. You can visit over 200 blogs to enter.

Fall in South Florida

My Halloween decorations are finally done. Living in S. Fl. it's difficult to feel the change in seasons, especially Fall. The leaves don't really change color so I have to improvise and scatter those fake leaves around the house.

Imitating the smells of Fall is easier than trying to change the weather outside. The other night I filled the air in my house with the scent of a ricotta pumpkin cheese cake. For those of you who know me, you know baking from scratch is not my thing. I prefer semi-homemade.

I adapted the directions on the back of the box of Krusteaz's Pumpkin Square mix and used ricotta instead of cream cheese. The ingredients listed are not the best for you so I left off the sour cream topping. Like that's going to make a difference... The cheesecake came out delicious and the house smelled like Fall.

Fall is bringing more good vibes my way. With the recent sale of Avalon Books to Montlake Publishing, the 1st book in my Love by Chocolate series, CHOCOLATE SECRETS is going to be
reissued this month in both paperback and e-format.

CHOCOLATE SECRETS

The book takes place in the fall.
Excerpt-
"Who's minding the chocolate shop?"
"Don't worry your grandfather, Max is there."
Alex knew it would be impossible to keep her grandfather away on Halloween. He loved the idea that everyone dressed in ridiculous costumes just to get their hands on some chocolate.

Thanks for stopping by.
Enjoy the season with a good book and your favorite dessert.
Visit my website.
www.zeldabenjamin.com

Giveaways

Don't forget to stop by on Fri Aug 31. Along with over 100 romance authors, I'll be commenting on romance.

We have THREE grand prizes. You as a reader can go to EACH blog and comment with your email address and be entered to win. You can enter over 100 times!

Now what are those prizes?

1st Grand Prize: A Kindle Fire or Nook Tablet

2nd Grand Prize: A $130 Amazon or B&N Gift Card

3rd Grand Prize: Swag Pack!

Cocoa Ripple Ring - Hurricane Food

The outer bands of Isaac are blowing outside- mostly wind and lots of rain. Not a very good time to be outdoors. Since I'm stuck inside, I've already cooked up the chicken, ravoili, and crabmeat in my freeze.

The worst part any storm is the possibility of a blackout which can last for days. Better safe than sorry. If everything is fine, I've got delicious food for the week. What kind of food do you eat when you're stuck inside waiting for a snowstorm or hurricane to pass?

After cleaning out the frig I moved on to the kitchen closets where I found an abundance of hot cocoa packets. I remembered an old Better Homes and Gardens bundt cake recipe that used powdered cocoa. I don't bake from scratch, it's too precise. I prefer to bake semi-homemade and used a box of yellow cake mix.

Here's the recipe.

Cocoa Ripple Ring

1 1/2 cups sugar

1 cup butter, softened (2 sticks)

4 eggs

3 cups flour

1 1/2 tsp salt

4 tsp baking powder

1 1/3 cups milk

1/3 cup cocoa, or more,

(mix with a tbs of sugar if you like)

Cream the sugar and butter. Add the eggs

and beat well. Sift together the flour, baking

powder and salt. Add flour mixture and milk,

mixing alternately, until smooth. Layer batter

in thirds, alternating with cocoa mixture, into

a well greased 12 cup bundt pan. Bake at 350

35-45 minutes, till toothpick comes out clean.

Cool for 5 minutes in pan then turn out onto a plate,

Enjoy

ROMANCING THE HOP

COMING SOON

ALONG WITH 200 AUTHORS I WILL BE PARTICIPATING IN A BLOG HOP.

EACH AUTHOR WILL BE DOING A GIVEAWAY. THERE WILL ALSO BE 3 GRAND PRIZES.

ALL YOU'LL HAVE TO DO TO ENTER IS LEAVE A COMMENT ON ONE OR ALL 2OO BLOGS.

I'LL KEEP YOU POSTED SO YOU WON'T FORGET THE DATE.

Chocolate and Publishing

Chocolate and publishing a book are similar processes. Both take time if you want a positive outcome. Just like a chocolatier must be patient and achieve the right consistency when blending ingredients, an author can not rush the publishing process.
I've recently received emails from fans asking when the next book in my Love by Chocolate series will be available.
http://www.amazon.com/Zelda-Benjamin/e/B001JS8IPG/ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_2?qid=1343085464&sr=1-2
Book 4, Chocolate Couture was submitted many months ago. Unknown to the Avalon authors the company was in the process of being sold to Amazon. http://money.cnn.com/2012/06/04/technology/amazon-avalon-books/index.htm
I was told the submission is being sent to Montlake Romance, Amazon's romance imprint. Like a chocolate chef waiting for the perfect chocolate, I'm in waiting mode. However, I have not been idle. I redesigned my website, continue to write, and decided to keep up with my long neglected blog.
Even though my writing is taking a new direction, I will still keep this blog because chocolate is one of my passions.

Share the passion for each story I tell...
http://www.zeldabenjamin.com/

PRESIDENTIAL HOT CHOCOLATE

Do you make your hot chocolate from cocoa powder or melted from bars?

The original hot cocoa recipe was a created by the Mayans. It was a mixture of ground cocoa beans, water, wine, and peppers. The Spaniards began heating the mixture and sweetening it with sugar. After being introduced in England, milk was added.

Presidential Hot Chocolate (Former first lady Laura Bush ‘s Hot Chocolate Recipe.)

Ingredients

6 Tbsp. unsweetened cocoa

6 Tbsp. sugar

pinch salt

2 1/2 cups milk

2 1/2 cups light cream

1/2 tsp. vanilla

pinch cinnamon powder (optional)

whipped cream

orange zest

Cooking Directions

Mix cocoa, sugar, and salt.

Add milk. Heat to dissolve.

Add light cream, vanilla and cinnamon. Heat to just under boiling.

Mix very well and pour into warm mugs.

Top with whipped cream, cocoa powder, and fine orange zest.

I don’t have a preference for cocoa powder over melted chocolate. Chloe, the chocolatier in my Love by Chocolate series is known for her secret hot cocoa blend. Readers meet her in Chocolate Secrets. Chocolate Magic is her story.

For me the secret is in the foam. I like my hot chocolate or hot cocoa made with milk and topped with either marshmallows or whipped cream. How do you drink your hot chocolate?