prettier without plastic

I've been trying to figure out what to write for about an hour.  I really want to see if I can post something every single night of VeganMoFo, but I don't want to babble about boring stuff since my stats page tells me folks are actually reading my rambling.  Pardon me if I get a little random, but it's definitely starting to be That Time of Year again (look back a year on the right side --> if you want some fun reading).

Poor Mister has some kind of stomach bug.  Initially, he was trying to blame it on my Jambalaya, but I assured him that the stuff that tasted like seitan really was seitan and not some tempeh dressed up for Halloween.  As a result of his Angry Belly, he had no interest in whatever scrumptious feast I was gearing up to make...so I pulled my tall, narrow Tupperware out of the fridge and ceremoniously dumped some of my mom's stew into a pot to warm up.  I thought it deserved a prettier presentation than the glamour shot in plasticware, so here it is, all ready to be eaten:

look how pretty your stew is, Mom!

For some reason, it really disturbed me that there were no discernible flecks of herbs on there, so I thought I would add some "flavor."  I sprinkled it generously with powdered garlic (last night was not a All-This-Work-Just-For-Me kind of night) and a dash of sea salt.  I thought I detected a more adventuresome taste, until I warmed up a second bowl and forgot to season it and discovered that the enhanced taste was actually a function of it sitting in the fridge for a couple of days, and not anything that I did.  So, Well Done, Mom!

I almost did my chocolate round up, but I don't have enough "testing" done yet.  Don't worry - chocolate (and red wine) is my comfort food and the stress is being kicked up into high gear at work, so I should be ready soon!  I was ready to make my own chocolate sandwich treats by 1:30 this afternoon, so I'm pretty darn proud that I lasted until dessert time.

mmm....dessert

It's Beaujolais season and any day now the Beaujolais Nouveau will hit the shelves (not that I'm waiting...checking in....stalking...).  I discovered a perfect partner for the dark berry notes of this perfect Autumn wine - Bug Bites dark chocolate squares by Endangered Species.  A full review will be included with my chocolate round-up, but here are a few highlights:

• when I opened the wrapper, I was greeted by a small square picture of a bug with bug trivia on the back.  I'm not a big bug fan, but it was a clever idea.
• the texture is so smooth it was hard for me to believe it wasn't made with cream or milkfat, but it's not.
• one .35 oz square is the perfect size to satiate my craving for dark, bittersweet chocolate, and only sets me back 50 calories, 4 g fat, and 2.25 g sugar.  I may need to buy these in bulk!  They are the perfect replacement for my Ghirardelli addiction and [ironically] might just get me through the prep for Diet Season!