Tick tock.
January 3 is the deadline for recipes at the Chocolate Adventure Contest.
So go ahead. Choose one adventure ingredient—or more—that intrigues you. If you've never thought about using, say, fresh mint leaves or rice flour in combination with Scharffen Berger chocolate, there's no better time than now.
Your recipe doesn't have to be complicated, but it must be thoughtful. One previous winner used only 4 ingredients: fresh pomegranate, Scharffen Berger 70% cacao, wasabi paste, and cocoa powder. Another reinvented a classic chocolate shake—by including ancho chile pepper, coconut milk and black sesame seeds.
Why enter the contest? Creating an original recipe offers the promise of discovery. The chance to invent. It's a reason to head to the kitchen with one of the most carefully sourced chocolates around. And of course, there's the tasty matter of two $10,000 grand prizes. One of 'em could be yours.
Two categories—Sweet and Savory—await your creations. The judges cast a keen eye primarily on three criterion: spirit of adventure/creativity, taste, and ease of preparation.
Past winners include a software engineer from Silicon Valley, an elementary school teacher from the Midwest and a paralegal from the east coast—proving that you don't need a culinary pedigree to join the fray.
Intrigued? Whisk yourself over to www.chocolateadventurecontest.com.