Gingerbread Dark Chocolate with Candied Ginger

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Over the weekend, Aaron and I did something very nerdy: we went to the Boston International Antiquarian Book Fair. Not sure what that is? I didn’t know what to expect either, so I checked their website beforehand and learned that it’s an “annual event focused on exhibits and sales of rare, collectible, and antiquarian books, manuscripts, autographs, maps, and literary ephemera.” See? Nerdy.

I love books, but this was more Aaron’s thing. He got all giddy over how the books were bound, the history behind them, and the typography and I, well…I got most excited about a signed first edition copy of The Velveteen Rabbit…for $30,000. Seriously.

As we were leaving the book fair in search of dinner, I commented that I couldn’t imagine spending tens of thousands of dollars on books that you can’t actually hold or read or enjoy, unless you enjoy looking at them from afar behind a glass case. I do understand dropping a lot of money on art, for example, if it’s a piece you’re going to appreciate and feel inspired or moved by day after day. Luckily, Aaron and I are generally on the same page in that we tend to value experiences and relationships over most material purchases, so I wasn’t worried about coming home from the fair with a book we couldn’t read.

We ended up at the Whole Foods down the street to pick up dinner (per usual), and as we made our way to the salad and hot bars at the back of the store, I meandered over to the local produce, the fancy kombuchas and juices, the holiday candles…and Aaron had an epiphany and said, “Oh, so Whole Foods is your museum.” Yes, I suppose it is. I have little tolerance for spending hours at MoMA, but drop me off at a health-minded grocery store and I can wander around all day. It’s one of my sources of recipe inspiration, too.

Take todays recipe for chocolate. As I was looking at the Whole Foods’ holiday display the way one might look at fine art, I found a bar of gingerbread milk chocolate. Non-vegan-ness aside, I’ve never been a fan of milk chocolate, and I knew what had to be done.

Homemade Gingerbread Dark Chocolate with Crystallized Candied Ginger. The chocolate at the store didn’t have candied ginger, but I hope you’ll agree, it makes sense. I love candied ginger and Aaron thinks it tastes like medicine, so…more for me!

I used my Dark Chocolate Vanilla Maple Almond Butter Cups as the starting point for this more seasonal spiced chocolate. Sidenote: If you haven’t made homemade almond butter cups yet, you must.  I think that recipe is one of my best, and I’m proud to say that this one ranks right up there too. I hope you enjoy it as much as we do!

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