CHOCOLATE EXTRAVAGANZA ...come on in! Let's Mingle!

There are four basic food groups:  milk chocolate, dark chocolate, white chocolate, and chocolate truffles.  

~Author Unknown ~

Odear December, what took you so long to arrive? Do you know that I wait for you all these 11 months? So please stay and don't fly by so fast!This X'mas is very special for me...it's our first X'mas together,my first white X'mas (oh yes, it's snowing outside as I am typing) and my first X'mas away from my beloved family & country. Everything that I have experienced all these years is a lot different from what I am experiencing now.It does get me nostalgic, especially when there's not many people who come to our house to see our X'mas tree or the wreath that I made from scratch!Back in India, it was the prime time when families visited each other with boxes of goodies from where they come. Then there is laughter on the dinner tables,lot of good homemade food, freshly baked goodies and everything nice! I miss all the good times I had with my cousins, especially those late night talks, sleepless nights...

I guess I should stop my banter now considering that I am alone at home right now and Jobin is not around for me to complain! :-) Well, the happy side is that our tree is lit ,stockings are hung and our little apartment looks very Christmas-y! Ok, we don't have a fireplace...so I am envying all of you who do have one!But that does give me one thing less to clean :-D

I think I love holidays because of the fact that I get to bake a lot, mostly for family and friends! This year is no different, I am going to continue baking,maybe more ...or so I would like to think :-) How can I resist baking more this year especially when I am hosting the Monthly Mingle, the brainchild of the fabulous Meeta, right here on my blog, during my most favourite month, December! The theme, as the title of this post suggests , is CHOCOLATE EXTRAVAGANZA. I am a hard core fan of anything chocolate, so I couldn't think of a better theme than this!
So just in case you happen (I know you will) to bake anything with chocolate in it, from cakes to cookies, tarts to pies, hot & cold puddings, souffles etc do send it to the Monthly Mingle. By the end of December (sob!) let's get together and share all the goodies on my table. I'll make sure that the coffee is brewing to keep you all warm!

If you do not have a blog and would like to participate, kindly send me the photograph of the chocolate goodie to airmathew AT gmail DOT com.

Here's what you need to do:

1. Create a dish (or as many as you like) that fits the Chocolate Extravaganza theme as described above.
2. Post about it on your blog from now till 27 December 2010 (entries must be in English, please).
3. Your creation should be prepared for the current Monthly Mingle theme and posted anytime from now till the given deadline. 
4. You must provide a link to this post and the official Monthly Mingle page.
5. Once you’ve posted your dish, send your entries to airmathew AT gmail DOT com with the your name & post link. Please make sure your pictures are not more than 300 px wide picture.

What are you waiting for? Get those mixers and baking sheets out! Just in case you need any ideas :-) feel free to go through my Recipe Index. Let's make this season Chocolate-y!