Everyday Inspiration

I've recently been watching old episodes of various cooking shows on my computer. If I could have only one TV station, I would choose Food Network. The chefs are so creative and concoct the most decadent, luxurious, complicated foods I can imagine. I always think, "I could do that!" Then as soon as the show ends, it becomes, "Yeah, that's not going to happen." Suddenly, it doesn't seem so impressive that I substituted rosemary for parsley on roasted potatoes. My dream is to one day take a cooking class from a famous chef. I'm thinking that since we'll be living in New York City for a couple years, that would be the place to make that happen! Ryan said he would do take a class if it was one where Bobby Flay teaches guys how to grill. I'd better start saving for that now. Although, I'm sure there will be more pressing needs for our money in the meantime. You know, little things like groceries, gas, and airline tickets.

So tonight, I was online researching said airline tickets, and couldn't help wishing for a sweet dessert. We finished off the batch of chocolate chip cookies days ago. I made, and ate, vanilla pudding earlier in the week, and we now have nothing resembling dessert anywhere in our 2 cabinets. But on my third trip to the refrigerator, where I open the door and hope something delicious will magically appear, I noticed a half container of fat-free plain yogurt. This was our "sour cream" last week in our chili and nacho dip since IGA was out of real sour cream. I was hoping to make something with chocolate, but due to my new-found cooking shows, I wanted to also add an unexpected flavor to try out my Iron Chef skills.

I combined the yogurt with unsweetened cocoa powder I had on hand. I sweetened it with pure Grenadian honey and added a splash of lime juice. Some heavy cream would have been nice, but all I had was 1% milk. Thanks to google, I learned that adding melted butter to milk was a quick substitute for cream, if you don't mind the extra fat. Since I'm never opposed to adding a little butter to food, I gave it a try. As it turns out, it cut the tartness of the yogurt just fine. I poured the mixture into small glasses, put them in the freezer for about a half hour, and then topped them with blackberries before serving.


It probably would have also worked to add the berries to the mixture and put the whole thing in the blender before freezing it. But, for using only ingredients I had on hand, and also satisfying my sweet tooth (for the time being), I would have to say it was a success. And if I can do this, anybody can!