We arrived in plenty of time and spent about an hour and a half in line before being escorted over to have our books signed. Chef Keller was very warm and down to Earth. My mom asked about his Bouchon Bakery Nutter Butter recipe and he metioned that a cookbook featuring items from the bakery would be out in the fall!

The book itself is gorgeous and full of pictures and recipes that make my mouth water. I‘m having a hard time deciding what to make first, so if anyone has any suggestions, please let me know! And of course I wanted to share a bit of this experience with you, so I’m giving away a signed Ad Hoc cookbook!

There are two ways to enter to win:
1. Leave a comment on this post telling me what your experience was like at one of Thomas Keller’s restaurants or let me know which of his restaurants you’d most like to try.
2. Tweet about this giveaway (using @cakebatterbowl) or post about it on your blog or Facebook page. Please leave a separate comment for this entry.

Entries must be in by Tuesday, June 1 at 11:59pm EST. Good luck!

Thanks so much for all your support about URS! Since I haven’t been able to get into the kitchen this week, I thought it would be the perfect time to tell you about an absolutely delicious set of bon bons and truffles that Chef Eric of Derry Church Artisan Chocolates recently sent me. The flavors were all very unique and inspired by different parts of world, which I think is very clever.

My favorites were the Savannah (a spin on peach crisp with peach jam in a white chocolate ganache piped into a bittersweet chocolate cup and topped with a toasted oat/brown sugar and cinnamon crisp), Rome (strong cappuccino and milk chocolate ganache piped into a milk chocolate cup mold and topped with a creamy white chocolate mousse), and Cairo (Medjool date paste and aged balsamic vinegar reduction in a bittersweet chocolate ganache enrobed with bittersweet chocolate and accented with brown sugar and molasses) – just writing out the descriptions is making my mouth water! Each chocolate is like a little work of art and they are very reasonably priced considering they contain organic local ingredients and are handmade.  The best part is that Chef Eric has graciously offered to send one lucky reader a 15 piece bon bon set!

There are two ways to enter:
1. Check out the different flavors offered by Derry Church Artisan Chocolates and leave a comment letting us know which one you’d most like to try.
2. Tweet about this giveaway, or post about it on your blog or Facebook. Don’t forget to come back and leave a second comment with the link for your second entry.

Entries must be in by Thursday, April 15 at 11:59pm EST. Good luck and thanks Derry Church Artisan Chocolates!

I can’t think of a better way to celebrate than with a giveaway. I love buying presents – I’m one of those people who will brainstorm and research until I find the perfect gift. So, I’ve actually been thinking about this giveaway for a couple months now and slowly accumulating items for two prize packages that I would love to receive!

The first prize set ties in with my new blog design that is finally up (yay!) and is a Martha Stewart Cupcake carrying case, Williams Sonoma Daisy Crown Cupcake Pan, and a cute set of 6 spring sprinkles from Target.

The second prize set is an adorable apron from Anthropologie, a shower gel set from Sephora featuring apple pomegranate, vanilla cupcake, guava passion, and coconut crème scents, and a Stila Mango and Pomegrante Crush lip gloss set.

When you comment, just let me know which prize set you like the most and that’s the one you will be entered to win.

There are two ways to enter:
1. Leave a comment letting me know which of my recipes you’d like to try most.
2. You can get an additional entry for each time that you’ve blogged about one of my recipes (if you were inspired by one of my recipes and changed things a bit, that counts!). Post each link in a separate comment.

Remember, don’t forget to tell me which set of prizes you would like to be entered to win in each comment. Entries must be in by 11:59 pm EST on Friday, March 5. Good luck and thank you for following me on my foodie adventures. I’m already excited to see what the next year will bring!

p.s. The winner of the CSNstores Crème Brulee set giveaway was commenter number 55, Ashley – congrats!

And what better way to celebrate than with a giveaway! CSNstores.com is a Boston based online retailer that has a huge selection of home and office items, from bar stools and fitness equipment to wine refrigerators and bakeware. They have generously offered to give a BonJour Bain Marie set, which includes everything you need to make Crème Brulee successfully at home, to one lucky reader! The set includes a pro torch and four square ramekins that fit snuggly into a pan that contains a water bath – nothing says celebration like a perfect Crème Brulee!

There are two ways to enter:

1. Check out CSN’s over 200 online stores and leave a comment letting me know which one you had the most fun browsing.

2. Tweet about this giveaway or post about it on your blog or Facebook. Then come back and leave an additional comment with the link for your second entry.

Entries must be in by Wednesday, February 24 at 11:59pm EST. Good luck and thanks to CSN for hosting the giveaway!

When Hotel Chocolat recently contacted me about trying their premium chocolates, how could I resist? Hotel Chocolat (shok-o-la) is a UK chocolatier that specializes in high-end luxury chocolates, so I jumped at the chance to check out their new hip shop on Newbury Street in Boston.

The store itself was warm, sleek, and inviting, with shelves and tables brimming over with their signature chocolate slabs, truffles, and whimsical chocolate bars. I expected the cool contemporary store, but was surprised by the very wonderful, friendly, and unpretentious service (and yes, I was shopping anonymously!)! I immediately felt at home asking all my foodie questions.  All their chocolates are organic, and they actually own a cocoa plantation in St. Lucia and see the chocolate making process through from start to finish.

After perusing the store and sneaking in a few pictures, I decided I needed to sample a variety of treats. I selected the Christmas Goody Bag, which contained a cute solid milk chocolate penguin and Santa, milk chocolate Christmas pudding slab with crunchy shortbread cookies, Christmas Star hazelnut and caramel truffles, and a bag of Munchkin Snowballs, which are mini shortbread cookies surrounded in white chocolate and dusted with sugar!

Everything was incredibly rich and decadent. I couldn’t stop myself from ripping into the package on the train and was immediately transported to another place with just one luxurious bite!  The chocolates sets are the perfect holiday hostess gifts and I was so happy I was able to try them – thank you Hotel Chocolat!

And don’t worry – Hotel Chocolat didn’t forget about you! I’m giving away a Christmas Goody Bag and Milk Chocolate Advent Calendar to two lucky readers!

There are two ways to enter:

1. Check out Hotel Chocolat’s Christmas Chocolate Gifts and leave a comment with a link to the item you most want Santa to leave in your stocking!

2. Tweet about this giveaway (using #cakebatterbowl), or post about it on your blog or Facebook. Don’t forget to come back and leave a second comment with the link for your second entry.

Entries must be in by Saturday, December 5 at 11:59pm EST. Good luck!