Salted Caramel Hot Chocolate

There is one thing I cannot resist every time the holidays come around, and that is Starbuck's Salted Caramel Hot Chocolate. The blend of their Signature hot chocolate (combining three types of chocolate), toffee flavored syrup, whipped cream piped on top and drizzled with caramel syrup lightly dusted with a smokey sea salt makes my holidays complete. And if the barista EVER asks if the lack of salt will be a problem, vehemently say YES! Why? Because while the general taste of the salted caramel and chocolate will be present, the salt adds a smoky flavor that cannot be replicated, bringing out the sweetness of the chocolate, blending together a rich flavor that shouts of comfort and decadence.

While in England and on Sint Maarten, Starbucks was not a daily occurrence. In fact, it barely existed in the former and not at all in the latter. So I went searching for a replacement. While there are no pictures, just imagine the lusciousness to come.

Starbucks' Salted Caramel Hot Chocolate

(with chocolate - this recipe is richer)
2 cups milk (I use 2% generally but whatever is your favorite)
3 oz of semisweet chocolate
1 oz milk chocolate
2 tsp of sugar (to taste)
Caramel (homemade or storebought)
Whipped cream (homemade or storebought)
Flaked sea salt (not regular table salt)

In a saucepan, combine milk, chocolate and sugar. Heat and whisk to combine until the chocolate is completely melted. Pour into two mugs, top with whipped cream. Drizzle caramel over the top and dust with a sprinkling of sea salt.

For a recipe that does not require chocolate, you may use the following recipe for hot cocoa. This is not as rich as the one above.

(with cocoa powder)
3/4 cup milk
1 tbl cocoa powder (use something good)
1 tbl of sugar
2 tbls of milk or cream
Toppings as above

 In a small mug or bowl, make a paste using the cocoa, sugar and cream. In a small saucepan, heat the milk until hot but not boiling. Take a whisk and combine the paste with the hot milk, whisking until frothy and combined. Pour into a mug and top as above. :) Makes a single serving.

So if you're somewhere over the rainbow, in a land that doesn't serve salted caramel drinks, make this and feel the warmth spread through your body.

Daily Writing Challenge - Quote

            So often now books are made into movies, events and characters once given life with personal imagination reinvented into moving pictures. The faces we created in our minds are changed. The feelings evoked are given voice.

Today's writing challenge is based upon emotion. 

Choose a quote from a recent movie and speak of what it means to you. Be vague, be specific. Do as you wish. But give a label to those unnamed feelings, the ones you keep hidden. Tell the world or keep it to yourself, use it to purge yourself of dark memories, of regrets, of the sadness in your soul.

The following is from the recent installment of The Hobbit movie trilogy, a dialogue between Thranduil and Tauriel as she weeps over Kili's cold body.

            "If this is love then I don't want it. Take it away, please! Why does it hurt so much?"

            "Because it was real."

Regret

            I told myself once that I would never regret. That I would never forget anyone, that they would not become merely a memory. And yet, as I grow older and meet more people, I wonder if I am wrong. What is life without the good and the bad? How can one cherish the things in life without knowing loss, without having the stinging feeling of regret follow them at least once?

            I thought I knew myself. I thought I knew what I wanted in life, who I wanted to be and how I wanted to live. And yet, there are so many things I cannot do, so many changes I have made for others… When will it be for myself? Perhaps then, only then shall I have no regrets, when my decisions are my own, my life mine to control, mine to live.

            But… I know that shall never be so. Whether it be family, a friend, a lover – my life will never be for myself. It shall always be tied to another, my life hanging on a thread, waiting, watching, willing.

            Who is there to tell of the regret in my heart? Who is there to understand the emotions warring within myself and withhold judgment? Just as you choose your own adventure in a book, flipping from page 3 to page 57, the decision becomes a reality; there is no turning back.

            Perhaps as time passes I will look back and wonder what this vague jumble of words meant to me and laugh at the folly in my mind. Or perhaps, I will feel as Tauriel does, her heart broken from a love she could not have, dictated by the designs of the world she lived in. Her love unexpressed, denied by all except the one who would wait for her. The one who gave his life to see her live.

I only hope that I will be content one day, knowing that my regret turned to happiness. Only time will tell…

Daily Writing Challenge - Austentacious

On December 16, 1775, Jane Austen was born. Now, in the year 2014, 239 years after the author was born, today is marked as the very first Jane Austen day.

I remember my first introduction to the world of Austen. It was 2004, the lights in the classroom had been dimmed and the small 12" TV hooked up to a corner of the ceiling started playing classical music. We only watched small excerpts of the 1995 BBC miniseries based upon Pride and Prejudice but from the moment I heard Elizabeth tell Darcy that he could not have insulted her in a more despicable manner, I knew I had to watch the rest.

Ever since that first introduction, I have read and re-read the novel a multitude of times and played the videos in the background as I studied an interminable number of times and yet still I do not tire of the story. There is something alluring about Elizabeth's independent nature and her tempestuous relationship with Mr. Darcy that cannot be explained. She is pert and sarcastic, with a witty nature that draws others to her, In contrast, Darcy appears to be aloof, cold and intolerant of the stupidity of others. Yet, they are perfectly matched. *sigh* Truly, one of the best historical romances I have ever read and a classic at that.

Today, as part of the daily writing challenge, I draw upon the world Jane Austen grew up in, the country of her heritage. Today, it is not so much a writing exercise but an exercise in humor, in craft and the incorporation of historical events.

As I am sure many of you have encountered, the slogan KEEP CALM AND CARRY ON has permeated even American society. But at the beginning, it was a motivational poster created by the British government in 1939 to rally the public in preparation for the Second World War. This was the third of such posters created; however, never printed. The other two read "Freedom is in Peril, Defend it with all your Might" and "Your Courage, Your Cheerfulness, Your Resolution, Will Bring Us Victory."

A number of parodies have evolved from the initial campaign but the idea behind the posters remains. The slogans are often motivational or serve to create a following.

Today, the challenge is to create your own KEEP CALM poster. A number of sites are available to create your own posters, the one I used is the Keep-Calm-o-matic.  You can link it to a social media account or make your own with anonymity.

Here are some of my creations which tie into interests or have a loose association with events or people from my life.

In honor of this day

For my knitting buddies and Ravelry

Because who wouldn't want a cuddly ball of fat?

Daily Writing Challenge

Browsing on the internet for prompts and challenges is a challenge in itself. Sometimes searches yield gems, treasure troves of inspiration, and other attempts result mermaid's purses dangling off the hook, or even old boots.

As I sifted through sites, blogs, boards and articles, I found Nighthag's Corner which had a number of prompts each day to choose from, giving you the freedom to stay in your own comfy little niche or to branch out into other genres and styles.

For December 14th, the prompts were as follows:

Daily story starter

Write a short story of at least 750 words using the following opening sentence
     He was going to be late home again...
     They were searching house to house

Writing theme

Write a poem or short story of at least 750 words inspired by one of the following themes
     Red dress
     Hanging tree


And the last... (which I chose for today)

Picture prompt

Write a poem inspired by the picture below

Words adrift

And sentences lost

Paragraphs twisted

            On a floating page

Crushed pulp

And dried sheets

Bound together

            Into a novel

Books

…of truth

…of lies

…of heartbreak

Of the unknown future

So, what would you write today? :)