You know you are about to eat some good chocolate when you see the following warnings:

• This chocolate has plenty of texture. It is not slippery smooth like processed chocolate.
• This chocolate is full of complex flavors that explode in your mouth. The flavor profile has not been muted by a commercial process.
• This chocolate has a natural look, of course. It is not shiny.
• Sorry, but our experience is that after indulging in some of our chocolates, you might never be able to fully enjoy a traditional candy bar again.

What chocolate am I talking about? IgnaFire Chocolates are some of the best chocolate you will ever eat.  If you are craving chocolate, one piece of this will solve your craving, because it is that good.  IgnaFire chocolates are made straight from the cacao bean.  There is no commercial processing and no added cacao butter.  They don’t use the extensive heating and industrial processing that a lot of other chocolate placs do.  This keeps all the healthful flavanols and antioxidants that occur naturally in the bean along with all its natural flavor.  I am not kidding when I say one on these pieces of chocolate will curve any sugar you have.  Since I am lactose intolerant, my favorite part of this chocolate is that no dairy products are added!  This also works well for vegans too!  When you first bite into a piece of this chocolate, it does have a different texture.  However, the chocolate really does seem to melt in your mouth.

Besides having awesome chocolates, the company that makes IgnaFire Chocolates is concerned about the environment.  What better gift than one that is environmentally friendly to the planet?  The packaging is completely compostable.  The boxes the chocolate comes in are handmade paper with no glue.  This allows the boxes to be used over and over again.  The boxes also are compostable.  The printed information that is included with your chocolate is printed on dissolvable potato paper.  That literally just washes down your kitchen sink.  Lastly, the cellulose bag that the chocolate is in will compost in 45-60 days.  I have never seen a company so carrying about the environment.

Ignafire Chocolates will be some of the best chocolates you will ever eat.  I highly recommend picking up box for yourself (if not others) and enjoy!  Great chocolate, saving the environment, how can you go wrong?

This easy to make recipe is again from Prego. I made a few changes to it and made it my own. It also said to cook with a pizza pan. Unfortunately, pizza pan had holes in the bottom. I figured that wouldn’t work too well, so I talked to Elizabeth over at MomCooks, and she suggested a cookie sheet. That worked great. If you don’t have a pizza pan, definately use a cookie sheet instead. Like the last Prego recipe I did, this again will feed a family of 4 for under $20 (actually, I think the total for this recipe was $14.71). In this economy, we can all use recipes like this.

1 tbsp vegetable oil
1 large onion chopped
3 oz mushrooms, sliced
Vegetable cooking spray
1 egg, beaten
1/4 cup milk
3 1/2 cooked corkscrew pasta
1 1/2 cup shredded part skim mozzarella cheese
1 jar (26 oz) Prego Italian Traditional Sauce or Prego Tomato, Basil, and Garlic Italian Sauce.

Follow the directions on the pasta. While that is cooking, preheat your oven to 350 degrees.

Heat oil in a 12 inch skillet over medium heat. Add the onions and mushrooms and cook until the onions are tender. Remove the skillet from the heat.

Spray a 12 inch pizza pan (or small cookie sheet) with the cooking spray. Stir the egg, milk, pasta and 1/2 cup of cheese in a large bowl. Spread the pasta mixture in an even layer on the pizza pan. Bake for 20 minutes.

Spread the sauce on the pasta crust. Top with the onion mixture and then sprinkle with the remaining cheese. Bake for 15 more minutes or until the cheese is melted. Let stand for 5 minutes before serving.

I love when I find services out there that truly make my life easier.  Scan My Recipes is one of those sites. It is super easy. You send your recipe cards, clippings, and printouts to them via UPS. They then scan your recipes and convert them to text. You then have several ways to access your recipes. You get a CD-ROM archive, you have private online recipes access, and you can even order your very own custom cookbook! My favorite part of this is that it saves me the time to organize all this information. I also hate having to check in four different books just to find the recipe that I want. Now, all of your recipes are organized on one easy to find place (well, more than one — you’ll have online and offline access).  This is such a great idea — I think I am going to start looking for all my recipes to send in.

Now, all these events are going to be in Chicago since that’s where I live.  However, if you have anything you’d like me to add in your local area, just let me know!

Veggie Fest 2008 - Its a 2 day festival featuring cooking demonstrations, 40 vegetarian food venders and exhibitors, and discusssions on heathful living.  11 am - 6 pm Saturday at the Science of Spirituality Center, 4S175 Naperville Rd., Napterville.  For more information, call 800-222-2207

Windy City Chili Cookoff - Cooks compete for the best chili in salsa, chili verde, and traditional categories as part of the Retro on Roscoe Street Festival.  The $5 entry fee includes samples of the chili with they last.  The fee also benefits St. Teresa of Avila food pantry.  1 pm Saturday and Sunday at Roscoe St and Hoyne Ave.  For more information, call 773-871-5623

Morel Tales - The Illinois Department of Natural Resources is presenting  “Exploring the Wild Mushroom . . . Myths, Flavors, and Facts” at Kendall College in a Chicago Foodways Roundtable discussion.  $3 unless you are a Kendall College student (then free).  10 am Saturday at Kendal College, 900 N North Branch St.  Reservations can be made by calling 847-432-8255 or emailing chicago.foodways.roundtable@gmail.com

Party With Style -  Justin Hall from FIG Catering shows how to host an elegant and delicious dinner party.  Free. 2 pm Saturday at Bloomingdale’s Home & Furniture Store, 600 N Wabash Ave.  For more information, call 312-324-7678

fish Tips - Sam Dean grills halibut basted with maple chipotle marinade in a demonstration class for free.  Noon Saturday at Burhops Seafood, Plaza Del Lago, 1515 N Sheridan Road, Wilmette.  For more information, please call 847-256-6400

Brunch Demystified - Keven Hickey and Jonathan Lane of the Four Seasons present classes that explore the hotel’s famous Sunday brunch.  $100 includes brunch.  11 am August 10 and August 24.  120 W Delaware Pl.  For reservations, please call 312-649-2325

Sweet and Savory Grilling - Chefs Pamela Fitzpatrick and Mark Gyure show how to make three seasonal pizzas and desserts on the grill.  August 12 at Fox & Obel, 401 E Illinois St.  For reservations, call 312-379-0133

Swedish specialty - Chef Donna Scheppe teaches how to create a Swedish tea ring in a hands on class for $25.  1 pm August 4 at Two Kitchens, 2035 W Washington St, Suite 155, Naperville.  Register by calling 630-717-9630.

Ever have a night when you can’t figure out what to make for dinner?  I know I have that happen here quite often. Therefore, when I came across a site called Key Ingredients, I was definitely enticed to check it out. They make it super easy for you to find recipes for food that you already have in your house! I personally typed in ground beef and instantly had eight things to make supper. You can also type in multiple items you have available (like beef and garlic) and still get results (for that combination, I got seven results). You can also sign up quite easily for this site and its free. You are able to put your own recipes in there, and you have a great storage place for them. The added benefit is that you can share your good recipes with others. My favorite part of this site has to be the grocery list. If you find recipes that you want to try, you can click the grocery list. The program then compiles a list for you that you can print and take grocery shopping! How nice is that? If you are in need of a great place to store your recipes and to find new ones, definitely check out Key Ingredient.