Chocolate Sampler: December 22

Every week or so I do a Chocolate Sampler: News, books, reviews, tours. Basically what's happening with chocolate in the world.

I Love Chocolate Package at the Sofitel Hotels Sofitel Luxury Hotels invites chocolate-loving travelers to savor its exclusive “I Love Chocolate” package through Jan. 31, 2010 at 85 participating hotels worldwide. No matter the destination—whether New York, Paris, Hanoi or Buenos Aires—all guests will enjoy chocolate-infused stays complete with chef-prepared dark and milk chocolate confectionaries, gourmet cookies, and hot beverages. To sweeten the I Love Chocolate package, guests also receive their third night free.

• Sofitel Luxury Hotel’s I Love Chocolate package includes:
  
• Three nights for the price of two at participating Sofitel Luxury Hotels
• Complimentary breakfast served in the restaurant each morning
• An “all-chocolate afternoon tea” including hot chocolate, pastries and other delicacies
• Complimentary late check-out of 2 p.m.
• For more information, go HERE.

Leah Koenig tells you how to read Chocolate Labels: Parsing the cacao content on Culinate. From what the cacao percentage means to single origin, organic, fairtrade and more. To read the article, go HERE.

• The Independent reports that chocolate sales are down despite the comfort food prediction. This is a UK survey and does not include small organic chocolate companies. It's more the Mars, Aero, Twix, Milky Way sales. Read more HERE. However, bear in mind that Premium chocolate is the fastest growing part of what will be an $18 billion chocolate market by 2011, according to a report by the market research group Packaged Facts. (NYT)
  

The Chocolate Wars continue between Cadbury and Kraft with Hershey waiting in the wings. Read the NYT article HERE.

• Oline Cogdill of the South Florida Sun Sentinal has some 'tasty reviews' of 'dessert' mysteries in the Trib Live/A&E. Reviews include Fatally Flaky by Diane Mott Davidson, Cream Puff Murder by Joanne Fluke, The Battered Body by J.B. Stanley and The by Joanna Carl. All but Carl give recipes. Carl gives chocolate facts and trivia instead. Great reading for the food/mystery crossover people like me.

And one of my favorite recipes of the week was on Zen Can Cook for the Perfect Chocolate Souffle. Great photos and instructions. I'm going to attempt this soon. I just love individual chocolate souffles like this.

Photos: L: I Love Lucy. R: Zen Can Cook