Perfect Chocolate Pairings (Plus a Ghirardelli Chocolate Giveaway!) {CLOSED}

UPDATE 5/6/14: This giveaway is now closed! The winner (chosen by random.org) is comment number 7, Elena! Congrats Elena! Please email me at kitchenconcoctions at gmail dot com to claim your prize. Thank you to all those who entered! NOTE: Winner must contact Kitchen Concoctions within 72 hours at kitchenconcoctions at gmail dot com to claim prize. If winner has not claimed prize within 72 hours then a new winner will be notified. Kitchen Concoctions is not responsible for unclaimed, undelivered or damaged prizes.

If you don’t like chocolate, I don’t know if we can be friends.

No really. I just don’t get you.

A good piece of chocolate is the ultimate treat for me. Taking one satisfying bite and simply enjoying that little indulgent moment.

I first fell in love with chocolate- and I’m talking good, gourmet, quality chocolate- when I was in high school. That was the first time I went to San Francisco (a place I love!). While there, we visited Ghirardelli Square, a landmark shopping center in Fisherman’s Wharf. What a magical place that was! Right on the shore, filled with fresh seafood restaurants, eclectic shops and the sound of trolleys and tourists muddling around. Being the foodie that I am (even back then) a highlight of the visit was the Ghirardelli Soda Fountain and Chocolate Shop. I was in absolute awe of all the varieties of chocolate they had and fell in love with first bite and every bite afterward! Since that day I have loved Ghirardelli Chocolates!

A special memory and some intense dark chocolate is the perfect pair! Just like fine wine, robust coffee, and delicate herbs and spices; pairing chocolate, not only with still, quite moments, but with other food or drinks, enhances the flavor profile of the chocolate. The darker the chocolate, like the Ghirardellii Intense Dark Chocolate 72% Twilight Delight, the more you can savor when paired with the right foods.

Today, I am teaming up with Ghirardelli Chocolate to share with you some of my favorite chocolate parings as well as bring you a giveaway (more information about that below)!

Warming a piece of Ghirardellii Intense Dark Chocolate 72% Twilight Delight and topping it with some toasted coconut adds a nice nutty caramelized flavor to the intense dark chocolate. Then adding some chopped, raw or lightly salted almonds creates an amazing flavor combination with tons of texture.

Chocolate and peanut butter will always be a classic flavor combination. Simply smearing some good quality peanut butter on top of a square of Ghirardellii Intense Dark Chocolate 72% Twilight Delight makes for a quick chocolate pairing that no one can resist.

Chocolate covered strawberries will always be one of my favorites! I love biting into a plump, juicy strawberry dripping in melted intense dark chocolate. Simply heaven.

The velvety smooth and deep robust flavor of Ghirardellii Intense Dark Chocolate 72% Twilight Delight makes it a perfect sidekick to red wines that have cherry, blackberry and plum undertones, such as Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon. The folks at Ghirardellii get this and that is why they are going to be sharing their lovely chocolates at the Austin Food and Wine Festival next weekend. At the festival they will be featured as the exclusive chocolate where you can both sample product and be paired with a partner wine.

I had the opportunity to go to the festival last year and I wish I could go this year. Even though I will be missing out on all the food, wine, celebrity chefs, and of course chocolate at the festival; that doesn’t mean you have to either, well miss out on the chocolate that is!

While I wish I could send you all to the festival, I am going to send one of you a box of the six different flavors of Ghirardellii Intense Dark Chocolate Bars!

GIVEAWAY:

1 (one) of each of the six different flavors Ghirardellii Intense Dark Chocolate Bars (click here to see all the flavors)

HOW TO ENTER GIVEAWAY:

You have SEVEN separate ways to enter the Ghirardellii Intense Dark Chocolate Giveaway! (NOTE: Please leave a SEPARATE comment for each response below):

Mandatory:

1. Head over to the Ghirardellii site and take a look around and come back and leave a comment for which Ghirardellii Intense Dark Chocolate Bar you would like to try and what food or drink you would pair with it.

Optional Additional Entries (PLEASE LEAVE A SEPARATE COMMENT FOR EACH):

2. Tell someone about this giveaway, on a blog, Facebook or Twitter and leave a new comment letting me know and sharing the link.

3. “Like” Kitchen Concoctions on Facebook.

4. Follow Kitchen Concoctions on Twitter.

5. Follow Kitchen Concoctions on Pinterest.

6. Follow Kitchen Concoctions on Instagram. 

7. Sign up for the Kitchen Concoctions newsletter.

THE FINE PRINT: 

This give-away closes Wednesday 30, 2014 at 11:59 PM PST. ONE winner will be chosen at random (by random.org) and will be announced sometime after the give-away ends. Winner must contact Kitchen Concoctions within 72 hours at kitchenconcoctions at gmail dot com to claim prize. If winner has not claimed prize within 72 hours then a new winner will be notified. Kitchen Concoctions is not responsible for unclaimed prizes and will choose another winner if original winner has not claimed prize within 72 hours of being announced. Giveaway for US residents only. Kitchen Concoctions is not responsible for undelivered or damaged prizes. Contents of prize pack may vary slightly. NOTE: Please check back after giveaway closing to see if you are a winner. As much as I would like to run all over the Internet world looking for you, I do not have the time. So you as the winner MUST contact me with your information.

Disclosure: Thank you to Ghirardellii Intense Dark Chocolate for sponsoring this post and allowing me to share my perfect chocolate pairing. Giveaway is made possible with this sponsorship. All opinions are 100% my own.