Out my window here in northern Vermont is a winter world of Black & White with nothing much in between unless you count gray… But as February has two Red inspired events (Valentine’s Day and the Red Carpet driven Oscars) I found myself venturing into a foray of party-ready RED, especially on the eve of March… so here we go straight into color!
Red. Power. Privilege. Louis XIV strut along the gold trimmed mirrored hallways of Versailles in red silk stockings and scarlet 
heeled shoes… (Christian Louboutin carries on similarly with his signature red-bottomed heels). Thousands of miles away Cardinals flock to the Vatican in red wide-brimmed hats and caped long coats. Red also denotes the naughty. Satan is swathed in red from his horns to his tail in his fiery Hell. Fallen women lurk in red-light districts with red drawn across their lips. The Scarlet Letter is, well scarlet. Yet, despite the piety or the fallen, Red is simply good luck. Just ask the Chinese.
Before the 1800’s red dye was made from a bug (although this detail was a treasured secret for decades). But a tiny red bug, hand collected by the masses who never dared wear such brilliance, was dried and crushed into a powder worth its weight in gold and reserved as a royal color for Presidents and Dignitaries. Even after the synthetic dye hit the market red denoted the wealthy, the lovers, the exotic… those residing on a throne.
If you have been following my blog over the past two weeks, you must have known I would get around to this topic eventually– Yes, Comfort: Part 3 is FOOD! I am fairly certain that just about everyone would have a different response if asked which food provides comfort to them, but I hope to find common ground… For instance, close your eyes and imagine a creemee from your local stand on a warm July evening, or a steaming cup of cocoa on a pre-Christmas afternoon, or a bowl of fresh picked strawberries late spring, all of these would bring comfort and a bit of joy, right?
But for the sake of choosing one food, I’ve narrowed comfort down to one recipe for one sweet treat, bound to bring a grinning smile and delicious satisfaction after each little nibble: follow the simple directions below to produce a party-size chocolate bar!
Nine Cent Girl 