Celebrating American Chocolate Week

Today begins the third week of March, and the kick-off for the 19th annual American Chocolate Week. There's a little discrepancy whether the celebration begins on Sunday the 14th or Monday the 15th, so I've decided to extend it to a "baker's dozen" week and have 8 days of chocolate indulgence, beginning Sunday the 14th and lasting until Sunday the 21st. How's that for a nice little compromise?

How will I celebrate chocolate this week?

Because I have a midterm on Friday, I've decided to blog about the study breaks I've taken this semester when at school, and to review the chocolate dessert locations around Berkeley.

(Not all my study breaks have been "study bakes"!)

With the thesis looming these past 3 months, I've indulged in a bit more chocolate decadence than I typically do. Because I continue to take pictures and make notes about all my chocolate adventures, I wasn't quite sure what to do with all my "research". American Chocolate Week seems like the perfect opportunity to share it, and the best way to celebrate the beauty that is chocolate.

This week I'll feature some short blogs on chocolate desserts in the Berkeley area. Some of what I've sampled has been excellent; some not so much so. But I'll share the best and minimize the worst, as I break and blog about chocolate this week.

Are you ready?

Unfortunately, you'll have to wait until tomorrow to discover the bakery in Berkeley that serves up a near "perfect" chocolate cupcake. And if I didn't tell you it was VEGAN, you'd probably never know.