Europeans Do it Better

As I ease the pain of another morning feeling less-than-stellar with the best mocha made in Edmonton, I am more than thankful for chocolate and, in particular, the genius who first paired it with coffee; I bet it was someone Italian. Aren't so many of the rich, satisfying, sensual foods we enjoy Italian? It just makes sense.

Have you been to Italy? There is pure sex seeping from the city's pores; you can literally see and feel it. I once walked into a courtyard in the centre of Milan and was the only person not sucking face. Sure, I was busy licking my gelato, but it just wasn't the same. There's always next time.

But I digress, because clearly that's something I just can't help (no attention span). This morning's mocha was crafted by a lovely lady at Edmonton's nod to European patisseries, Duchess Bake Shop. At Duchess, all of the chocolate confections are crafted with Valrhona, a decadent, divine, dark French chocolate that makes the mocha here one in which I can let anything plaguing me fall away and just get lost. The Duchess tops their mocha with dollops of hand-whipped, vanilla bean-infused whip cream (today, mine is shaped like a heart); they don't pass on any opportunity for indulgence. It's easy to see why even early on a Friday morning, every table is occupied. They have also recently taken over the space next door and are planning to expand their haven of goodies -- excellent -- my love for Edmonton continues to grow.

As I am still battling a small plague of sorts and slightly feverish, I am unable to let loose my inhibitions in yoga today, so I'll do it here and bravely post my first photo (this is momentous, as my relationship with technology has always been somewhat rocky) -- behold my marvelous mocha.

Feeling fragile, I am forcing myself to adopt a certain level of laziness until I am no longer (as Miranda Priestly puts it so eloquently in The Devil Wears Prada) an incubus of viral plague, so am not quite up to my usual culinary exertions and have ordered a fabulous sour cream-cherry pie from Duchess for a bbq this weekend. Wendy, I wanted the chocolate ganache torte adorned with macaroons, but I figured your kids might prefer the pie; such discriminating palates children have. The adult behind the counter did, however, assure me the pie is equally impressive; she'd better not be lying to me or I'll be back with a vengeance.