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Thursday, February 7, 2013

It's Chocolate Lover's Month! By: Stephanie Burkhart




What goes hand-in-hand with Valentines but chocolate? If you know me, I'm hooked on coffee and addicted to chocolate. This is my month.

I love Lindt, Mozart Krugels, dark chocolate, milk chocolate, and white chocolate. And let's not forget the Andes mint chocolate.

Chocolate is made from the seeds of the cacao tree. It's a complex process of fermenting, drying, and roasting.

The Aztecs were one of the first to brew up a chocolate beverage and the Spaniards brought it to Europe.

Enjoy these chocolate fun facts:

The Mayan and Aztecs used cocoa beans as currency.

The Swiss consume more chocolate per person than other nation on Earth.

Napolean is rumored to have carried chocolate with him on all his military campaigns.

The word chocolate comes from the Aztec word "xocoatl" meaning "bitter water."

Question: What's your favorite chocolate treat? Do you like receiving a nip of chocolate on Valentines Day?


A Polish Heart
99 cent sweet contemporary romance
Blurb: Can Sofia's faith give Darrin his heart back?


Excerpt:

"What's the real Darrin like?" she asked.
He paused. "I don't know."

"Of course you do. Tell me your favorites."
He arched an eyebrow. "Favorite what?"

"Favorite things. It doesn't matter." Her smile warmed his heart. She cared. His favorite things mattered to her.

"I like the New England Patriots. They're an American football team. I like comic books, traveling, designing buildings, listening to music, and anything technical."

BOOK TRAILER LINK: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lC6_397PerU


Review:
"Sofia and Darrin's story is a heartwarming one. Totally enjoyable read." - Tara Manderino, Amazon Reader


AMAZON:http://amzn.com/B007AS29AO

BARNES & NOBLE:http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/a-polish-heart-stephanie-burkhart/1111503774?ean=2940033247875


SONY EBOOK STORE: https://ebookstore.sony.com/ebook/stephanie-burkhart/a-polish-heart/_/R-400000000000000712746

SMASHWORDS:  
https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/164429

Author Bio: Stephanie Burkhart works as a 911 Dispatcher for LAPD.  She spent years tasting chocolate and her favorites are all listed above. :) 



14 comments:

  1. Chocolate - even saying the word makes me feel better. I'm with you, chocolate is such a great treat. My favorite is See's milk chocolates. The Lions Club up here in the mountains brings in a van every holiday to sell the delight. One piece means more and then some more again.

    We have Swedish children and every Christmas we get a box of their chocolate. Very, very good.

    Nice bit of info, Stephanie.

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    1. Paisley, thanks for popping in. There's so much you can do with chocolate and that's what makes it fun.
      Smiles
      Steph

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  2. Steph--of course, I love chocolate. I might say everyone does, but that's not true. My daddy would not eat anything chocolate. Mother did make chocolate cakes on our birthdays, but all other times--some kind of cake or pie that Daddy liked.
    I like those little Andes Chocolate Mints, too....yum. I like Doves, and butterfingers, and Baby Ruths. And chocolate covered raisins, and...well, the list is so long! And I make a killer chocolate bark and end up eating more than anyone else. I can make candy, but I have never mastered chocolate pie.
    A Polish Heart is such a delightful story--and different, too. Congratulations--I know it's doing well!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks Celia for stopping by. Did you known Baby Ruth was named after president Grover Cleveland's daughter, Ruth, who was a baby when he was in the white house? You know Marie Callendar does a fantastic chocolate pie. I usually get one or two for Thanksgiving or Christmas.

      Smiles
      Steph

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  3. I'm eating a Hershey kiss as I write this - not my favorite but it was closest to hand so will work! Generally I'm a dark chocolate girl but an English Crunchie bar is still one of my favorites and it's like a honeycomb covered in Cadbury's milk chocolate.

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    Replies
    1. LOL! Munch away I say. I just recently got a box of mint oreos that I'm working into my weight watcher routine. I am a SUCKER for the Cadbury creme egg that comes out now for Lent & Easter. That is a big temptation for me.

      Smiles
      Steph

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  4. Although I'm not a real chocolate lover, but I suppose peanut M&Ms are good sometimes. Dark Chocolate also has medicinal purposes, but then recently I see marijuana supposedly does, too. LOL People with low magnesium levels crave chocolate. Isn't that wierd? I can see where chocolate could be used as currency.
    Iwish you all the best with your book, A Polish Heart.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Sarah, I heard that dark chocolate had medicinal purposes as well. I didn't know low magnesium levels make you crave chocolate but that makes sense. Thanks so much for stopping by and adding to the interesting facts.

      Smiles
      Steph

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  5. Definitely ganache! Or maybe that fudge ribbon sitting atop a chocolate eclair...or a slice of devil's food cake...or that M&M...

    ;)
    Rose

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  6. Dove Dark Chocolate Promises are my favorite, but Lindt milk chocolate taught me to appreciate quality chocolate. It's still my favorite milk chocolate. Of course, there's also rocky road ice cream and German chocolate cake and chocolate chip cookies and... :-)

    I love "A Polish Heart."

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  7. I am a proud chocoholic. If it's chocolate, I love it. But without a doubt, my favorite is Lindt truffles. The white chocolate and stracciatella varieties are the best, in my opinion. I would love forever anyone who gave me chocolate for Valentine's Day (or really any occasion).

    lovey_20_81@hotmail.com

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  8. Good, rich, dark chocolate with nuts! Or any chocolate, but size and quality do matter. ;-)

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  10. Hi Steph,

    Chocolate always gets my attention. And speaking of relevant, I recently did research at a wonderful chocolate store thats over 100 years old near where I live. A little info about the research and a link to the store is on my website. Guess you've figured out chocolate will play a role in my next story! Thanks for all the fun facts!

    Nancy Kay

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