It’s Valentine’s Day! This is the day for hearts, flowers and chocolate. So why not try creating something deliciously edible to set the ‘love-mood’ for your special someone. I’ve researched for recipes with chocolates in them. No, these are not all “sweet” recipes per se. There are main courses using chocolate in them to “umph” the dish.

DISCLAIMER: These recipes are not from me. These came from various recipe sites. All descriptions are from the cooks themselves.

So take a look. You might find something easy for dinner tonight.

Chocolate and Ancho-Chili Bacon of a Masterpiece
The flavors of bacon and chocolate combined is unforgettable… Take a risk and bite into a salty, sweet and mildly spicy fondue that you will come back to over and over again. You can even make it a breakfast fondue and send a nice french toast for a dip. [URL]

Smoky Sweet Spicy Wings
A perfect example of playing with the powerful punch of spice… sweet (brown sugar), spicy & smoky (chipotle), warm (cinnamon and cocoa), salty (garlic salt), tangy (tomato paste) I’ve re-created those flavors into the form of wings. We even threw them on the grill for more smokiness, but you can bake and broil for same effect. [URL]

Chocolate Pudding Recipe
I’m not saying that this chocolate pudding is heathy, but being made from milk instead of cream helps, and being set with a combination of eggs and cornstarch instead of just eggs cuts back on the cholesterol. At least that’s what I tell myself as I lift spoon after spoon of this addiction inducing pudding into my mouth. [URL]

S’mores Pops
These cute little bites of, in my opinion, the best thing about camping, are just the perfect treat to serve at a party, baby shower or any other type of party. I bet they would be perfect for a child’s birthday party (you could even let the kids make them themselves, with some assistance of course). I would even consider serving them at a cocktail party, they are fun, not messy and delicious. [URL]

Homemade Oreos with Chocolate Beer Ganache
Homemade Oreos with Chocolate Beer Ganache have a a comfort food meets a little extra decadence. [URL]

Ricotta Fritters with Mexican Chocolate Suace
Who doesn’t love ricotta fritters? Come to think of it, who doesn’t love any kind of fritter? These are light, crispy and fragrant with orange and cloves. The Mexican chocolate dipping sauce adds a nice fiery kick. [URL]

Cookie Dough Truffles
Decadent chocolate-chip cookie dough dipped in chocolate. It took some practice to get the hang of dipping them in chocolate but I think they turned out okay for a first attempt… Anyway, these were a big hit with the whole family. I froze some of them in little tins to give as gifts as well. [URL]

Chocolate Cherry Cordial Tart
Chocolate, cherries, chocolate Balsamic and flaky puff pastry…what’s not to love? Perfect with coffee or tea in the afternoon or with a big scoop of vanilla ice cream or frozen yogurt for dessert! [URL]

Chocolate Malt Krispie Bars
These cookies originated in Australia and New Zealand where they are known as “millionaire’s shortbread”… Equal parts candy and cookie, these slices are mind-blowingly good, thanks to an ideal mix of buttery, sugary, chocolaty, and salty flavors. All of the makings of a perfect dessert. [URL]

Katsu-Curry with Black Curry
Using black pepper instead of cayenne gives this curry a tingly stomach warming heat. Red wine gives the sauce a fruity complexity while taking the color down a couple of notches. Star anise adds mild notes of black licorice without being overwhelming. Black cardamom adds some smokiness which is complimented by the black garlic oil, which adds a touch of bitterness and the woody umami of charred garlic. [URL]

Game Day Chili
This was honestly the best chili I have ever made. It had so many layers of flavor. I used a combination of chili powders that I had on hand to make it a little more interesting. And the two key ingredients in my opinion…beer and chocolate. Yes, beer and chocolate. You’ve got to try it! The chocolate gave it such a warm, almost creamy, balanced heat. It was absolutely wonderful. [URL]

Spring Salad with Dark Chocolate Cardamom Dressing
I’m not really a salad person, but I’ve been making the effort to eat healthier as of late, so I bought some. The only real question was what I should do with it. I have a generic tomato balsamic dressing in the ‘fridge, but that seemed kind of blase tonight. So I decided to combine salad, something I don’t really like, with dark chocolate, something I really really like. I also added a small amount of Cardamom to the dressing because it seems to go well with chilled dishes. [URL]

Chocolate Pistachio Salami
While many desserts take effort, this one takes the cake for its simplicity. The recipe resembles truffles in its few key ingredients and ease of assembly, but instead of shaping them into individual nuggets of chocolate goodness, what you get with less labor are “salami” slices. Salame di cioccolato might seem traditionally Italian, but it’s also a favorite dessert in Turkey, Greece and Portugal, where variations include dried fruit or port. [URL]

Sarabeth’s Rugelach
The key to this rugelach is a buttery dough made even richer with the addition of cream cheese. The cream cheese makes the dough pliable, elastic, and very forgiving—all wonderful qualities for a rolled dough. [URL]

Mole Aproximado
The concept of mole is that the sauce is the main event–what it’s served with is in a supporting role. The sauce therefore must be interesting enough to maintain your interest through the whole course of an entree. This one is bursting with a balanced mixture of chiles and spices, a hint of chocolate for a mildly bitter background, and orange juice for acidity. I kept the traditional final frying of the sauce in oil and slow simmer, a feature of many Mexican sauce recipes. [URL]

Pumpkin Lamingtons
I originally made and posted these for Project Food Blog (the entry that got me eliminated – boo) and a lot of people asked for the recipe. Whilst pumpkin and I still are not really on speaking terms, this was a successful lamington and use of pumpkin so I am happy to post this. [URL]

Happy Valentines everyone! Spread the love!