The other two men in my life

Ben and Jerry came out with a super fabulous new flavor several months ago- Red Velvet Cake... Just fyi ;) This is really unbelievable even if you are not a fan of red velvet. It's hard to pick favorites here, but this is close to the top of the list! I hope it's not a limited flavor and decides to hang around awhile. Ironically, Elise had a project in her advertising class at BYU to market Ben and Jerry's. I volunteered to be her test market. She ended up not needing me, but I did the research anyhow, one pint at a time.
It's running a close second to my #1 slotted pick- Chunky Monkey. Other favorites are Triple Caramel Chunk and Peanut Butter Cup. Competing for the #1 spot along side Chunky is Haagen Daaz's Caramel Cone, which will change your life. ;)

Chocolate Cranberry Nut Bark

There's really no firm recipe for this one. Basically, melt some of your favorite chocolate and spread onto waxed paper in a fairly thin layer- around 1/8" or so. No strict rules here.
Let cool completely until set. If you melt chocolate on a wax paper covered cookie sheet, you can place in the fridge to speed dry time up. Melt good quality white chocolate and pour and spread onto of cooled chocolate layer. I used both kinds of chocolate because I don't like plain white bark usually. I do like dark / milk bark, BUT... the white is very pretty with all the toppings.
While white chocolate is still cooling, top with dried fruit, nuts etc.. really anything you like. I used cashews and dried cranberries. Break up into severe shards with sharp knife and package to give away or serve. That's it. This looks way more complicated than it is. ;)

Candy Bar

This is my tiny homage to Amy Altas, whom I love and aspire to be like in my fantasy life. This was for my book club I was hosting around Valentine's Day. I love serving dessert this way, with lots of fun treats to choose from, and people can help themselves.
I mixed red Valentine's treats, Godiva truffles, Hershey bars (because they were in the book I chose- "Unbroken" which I think has to make my top list of book picks) I made the chocolate cranberry nut bark, but everything else was purchased. Easy dessert!

Roasted Red Pepper Dip

This is another Best Bites and really really good stuff. Great for parties and munchies!

1 of roasted red peppers (about 1 c. chopped
3/4 cup mayo
1 (8oz) package cream cheese
2 T. minced onion
3 cloves of minced garlic
1 T. Dijon mustard
12 oz. pepper jack cheese-shredded

Preheat oven to 350. Blot all excess water from peppers really well. Dice. Combine mayo, cream cheese, onion, garlic and mustard. Add cheese and peppers.
Once this step is done, you can cover it and leave in fridge for 2-3 days- which is great!
Place in oven and bake 30-45 min. Remove when golden and bubbling. Serve hot with chunks of good french bread and cubes of good bagel or veggies.

Strawberry Bruschetta

I tried this recipe from Our Best Bites. You can add additional fruit such as kiwi, mango etc. I had strawberries on hand, so that's what I used. These are very very good, I fixed them as breakfast for company. These are especially wonderful when fruit is in full season...

Ingredients:
1 baguette of best quality french bread
1 1/2 cups diced strawberries (about 10)
1 med. mango and 3 kiwis or any other fruit

Orange Honey Creme Sauce:
4 T. melted butter
2 T. sugar
1/2 t. cinnamon
1/2 cup sour cream
3 T. honey
1 t. orange zest

Preheat oven to 400 degrees and slice bread into 1/2 inch pieces. Put on sheet pan in single layer and brush each with melted buter. Sprinkle cinnamon sugar over the tops. Bake 10-12 minutes. To make sauce combine all ingredients and put in fridge. If using several fruits, combine and top the bread with fruit. Drizzle with sauce and serve immediately.