CHOCOLATE IS A TURN-ON ANY DAY

                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: WEDNESDAY, February 12, 1992                   TAG: 9202110226
SECTION: EXTRA                    PAGE: A3   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: Toni Burks
DATELINE:                                 LENGTH: Medium
CHOCOLATE IS A TURN-ON ANY DAY
On Valentine's Day, I suspect that there'll be as many thoughts turning to chocolate as to love. While chocolate is a traditional gift chosen by the romantically inclined, real lovers of the stuff find that chocolate is a turn-on any day.
But how's this for the ultimate turn-on? Last fall, the Nestle Chocolate & Confection Co. offered a cruise aboard the Queen Elizabeth II through New England and eastern Canada and served chocolate things throughout. Passengers played chocolate bingo, went on a chocolate treasure hunt and indulged in chocolate and champagne receptions.
At some point during the cruise, passengers were polled on their chocolate fantasies. Here are some of the responses:
"My chocolate fantasy is to be given controlling interest in Nestle after which I'd sail away on the QE2 with a hold full of Chunky's . . . and I'd nibble and taste and savor and chew until the next dividends came due."
"To share a chocolate mousse with Burt Reynolds."
"To take a bath in chocolate with whipped cream."
"I should like to have an unlimited supply of milk chocolate (some with and some without nuts) available to me as I relax on a hammock on the lawn at Tanglewood with no one there except the Boston Symphony Orchestra playing Beethoven's Seventh Symphony."
"I'm in a hot tub with Harrison Ford, Mel Gibson and Patrick Swayze and we're up to our necks in warm chocolate . . . "
"My fantasy is that the newest fad in good nutrition will be a chocolate diet."
"To find a beach of bittersweet sand with a pounding surf of milk chocolate surrounded by cliffs of semisweet (all with no calories) to nibble away the day, sip champagne (chocolate and champagne - the two most important food groups) . . . "
As I always say, a kiss is just a kiss . . . unless it's chocolate.
\ LIGHT TOUCH This recipe for mashed potatoes contains only 1/2 teaspoon of butter per serving. The fluffiness comes from the use of buttermilk and baking soda which react to lighten the potatoes. For a more buttery look and taste, use yellow Finnish potatoes, if available.
Lighter mashed potatoes
1 1/4 lbs. all-purpose potatoes, unpeeled and scrubbed, or peeled if desired
1 1/2 tsps. salt
Water
3/4 cup warm buttermilk
1/2 tsp. soda
2 tsps. unsalted butter
Freshly ground pepper
Combine potatoes and 1 tsp. of the salt in a medium saucepan. Add enough cool water to cover. Bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce heat and simmer until potatoes are tender when pierced with a fork, about 45 minutes. Drain, reserving a few tablespoonfuls of the cooking liquid. Place potatoes in a large bowl and mash with a potato masher or fork until fairly smooth (there might be a few lumps remaining). Combine buttermilk and soda; beat into potatoes with a wooden spoon until thoroughly incorporated. If you prefer creamier potatoes, add the reserved cooking liquid. Stir in butter, remaining 1/2 teaspoon salt and plenty of pepper to taste. Makes 4 servings.
\ PALATABLE OPINIONS Barbara Kafka, whose food columns have appeared in Vogue, Gourmet and other publications, has gathered a bookful of her pieces in "The Opinionated Palate."
And Kafka is nothing if not opinionated:
- "A pepper mill waved in my face just after the food arrives is an amenity gone amok."
- "Much in the world of food has become standardized. Some of it to clearly beneficial effect . . . Some of it is truly unpleasant, hideous, standardized to the lowest common denominator packaged foods."
- "Among my culinary gripes is one that may have been caused in part by us, the food writers, as we called for fresh, crisp and al dente. If I want a raw carrot, I will eat one. I don't want a raw carrot heated in butter."
The book, published by William Morrow & Co., also takes on the importance of family dinners, eating food in season and many other topics, from the serious to the annoying.
Kafka's previous books include "Microwave Gourmet" and "Food for Friends." - Associated Press

by Bhavesh Jinadra by CNB