Not all chocolate is created equal, regardless of what advertisers would have us believe. Many are the types and names of delightful concoctions, each with its own carefully guarded secret recipes, each trying to woo us and seal our loyalty to their brand of chocolate.

Just look at the mind-boggling proliferation of Hot Chocolates. From its origins in the New World, this simple beverage has been elevated to super-stardom. Almost every country in the world boasts its own version of this delight.

Whether enjoyed as the quintessential morning eye-opener, savored over brunch with a good friend, or sipped après a candlelight supper for two, hot chocolate shines in sheer virtuoso versatility.

Chocolate, my friends, is the only reason for any number of old favorites and dessert standbys to exsist. Without the blessed addition of this felicitous discovery, even staple items would have long faded from common usage. For example, where would any of the following be today without chocolate:

• cake - who among you has not swooned with ecstasy at their first mouthful of the meltingly delectable, molten-velvet interior of a lava cake?
• ice cream - not withstanding with the bewildering array of flavors available from Baskin Robbins and Laura Secord, the undefeated queen of the freezer is still Hagen Daas' dark ode to frozen treats, "Chocolate Royale"
• candy bars - even the megalithicaly popular granola bar would be a mere handful of nuts and flakes without its essential coating of milk chocolate...
• fondue - of course, there is little that can compare to the taste bud-pleasing blend of Edam, Gouda, and a good, nutty Emmental, but for sheer dipping pleasure, nothing can compete with fresh, sweet pineapple spears and succulent strawberries swirled in dark and delicious Belgian Callibaux
• cookies - I ask you, is there actually anything that can hold a candle to the heavenly, fresh-from-the-oven aroma of newly baked cookies? Filled with gooey sweet chips just waiting to dissolve on the tongue, these chewy morsels come in many versions, including 'healthy' low-fat, low-sodium, no-chocolate, carob-replacement attempts to persuade us away from the real McCoy. Chocolate lovers, unite - accept no substitutes!
  

In fact, chocolate remains the only reason to even consider any number of fine, but otherwise ordinary offerings

My love affair with chocolate began in my childhood, far, far back in the dimly remembered mists of time... Alright, maybe not that far back, but certainly when I was quite young and was offered my first taste of a fudgsicle..

It was a scorching hot day, and part way through the obligatory Sunday outing in the family Studebaker, that my parents decided to stop at a tiny gas station to buy us a nice cold soda. Once inside, we were allowed to choose our favorite - mine was Pure Springs Honey Orange, a sinfully sweet drink only a child could love.

For some reason, my mother chose a fudgsicle instead of her usual cream-sicle with its distinctive orange juice flavored coating. We were amazed at this wild variance from her normal behavior, and when she offered us each a 'taste' we leaped at the chance.

That cool morsel hit my tongue and slid down my parched throat almost before I could savor the rich chocolatey goodness. I was hooked - an instant addict. Pure Spring Honey Orange was relegated to playing second fiddle to this new god. No summer would ever again be complete without the frosty flavor of a fudgsicle.

No paean to this amazing gift would be complete without a few tidbits of information...and, no, Virginia, chocolate bars did not spring, fully formed, from the mind of Mr. Cadbury. There are those who believe chocolate was a gift from the gods, akin to the fire so dearly bought for us by Prometheus.

Chocolate comes to us from Peru, India, or Africa, according to whichever tradition you care to accept. Brought to the Americas, the humble cocoa bean flourished, and eventually became the cash crop we know today - just ask any commodities trader.

Chocolate takes on many guises, flavors and textures, according to the whim of the manufacturer, and how much of each component is added - cocoa powder, cocoa solids or fats, and chocolate liquor.

White chocolate is, technically speaking, not chocolate. It is choc-full of delicious cocoa solids, the cocoa fat that make it so smooth and creamy, but it contains no chocolate liquor. As the confection in question must contain chocolate liquor to be called 'chocolate' according to rule and convention, white chocolate should not be referred to by the name 'chocolate'...but when has that ever stopped anyone?

There are any number of great sites packed with fun and interesting chocolate knowledge and recipes, most all with gloriously photographed offerings. Just Google the word 'chocolate' or any search term containing that word (chocolate recipes, chocolate chip cookie recipes, etc.) to open the doorway to chocolate-lovers' heaven.

Here are two of my favorites:

Each country brings its own distinctive flair and flavor to any chocolate preparation. The dark, bittersweet French delight may be an acquired taste, as can be the ultimate chile-infused Mexican molé (a rich, to-die-for, chocolate / cinnamon based sauce that is simply wonderful with chicken).

As well, all chocolate lovers are opinionated about their personal favorite. Some prefer milk chocolate, while some prefer the smoky, sophistication of a dark, or bittersweet, but whatever the intensity you crave, nothing can beat the melting succulence of Belgian Callibaux chocolate for smooth, creamy texture, rich flavor, and sheer, melting love-on-the-tongue. (No points for guessing my current rave...)

Chocolate can be baked with, consumed as a beverage, added to enhance almost any food, and devoured on its own. What an amazing confection!

While surfing the web for photos to illustrate this hub, I was debating which of my all-time best chocolate recipes I would share. As chance would have it, I came across a delighful depiction of a frozen chocolate martini. It reminded me so much of the marvellous potion I whipped up many, many years ago, that the choice of sharings became quite clear.

Here follows, gentle readers and fellow chocolate lovers, my recipe with variations. One celebrates the marriage of chocolate and maple walnut, the other is for the purists among us.

I give you...(drum roll)...The Brown Bomb

Equipment:

• electric blender
• ice cream scoop
• measuring spoons
• small metal spoon (optional)
  
• piping bag or small plastic zip-lock baggie
• six stemmed glasses
• swizzel sticks

Ingredients:

• 1 pint maple walnut ice cream - homemade is best, but any top quality, commercial brand will do - always best with natural ingredients and no additives. Allow two scoops of ice cream for each serving.
• 2 cups heavy cream - 35% or whipping cream will give the best results
• candied Montmorency cherries - Marascino cherries may be substituted
• two blocks semi or bittersweet chocolate, melted - your choice. The semi-sweet chocolate will impart more sweetness, but I prefer the bittersweet for the added zing of dark flavor.
• Everclear - this almost pure-grain alcohol used to be available only in Alaska, but you can also substitute any high quality Vodka. I have used Stolly with great success.
  

Method:

Chill blender in freezer for about 10 to 15 minutes before use. If blender is acrylic, chill for an additional 10 to 15 minutes.

Chill stemmed glasses and swizzle sticks in freezer while you are preparing your treats.

Allow ice cream to soften slightly before use. Spoon 12 generous scoops ice cream into blender - 2 scoops for each serving

Add 1 cup heavy (whipping) cream - about 2 1/2 tablespoons per serving - Blend at high speed until smooth

Return blender with contents to freezer to allow cream mixture to set up while you complete the remaining steps

Whip remaining cream until stiff peaks form and set aside

Melt chocolate in top of double boiler over boiling water, stirring constantly. Remove from heat before the chocolate is completely melted, and continue stirring while the last bits melt. Set aside to cool slightly

When chocolate is cool enough to handle, spoon it into the piping bag or the plastic zip-lock bag. Then cut one bottom corner off the zip-lock bag to make your own disposable piping bag. You can also simply drizzle on the chocolate with a small spoon.

Remove ice cream mixture from freezer and, on high speed, blend in 3/4 cup Everclear - about 1 to 1 1/2 ounces of alcohol per serving

Measure into chilled glasses and drizzle with melted chocolate. Garnish with a spoonful of whipped cream, a candied cherry and a swizzle stick.

Serve immediately

Variations on this theme include the following substitutions:

• Hagen Daas Dark Chocolate ice cream for the Maple Walnut or
  
• Dark 'n' Delicious frozen yogurt for either ice cream
• Stolly Raspberry Vodka for plain vodka or Everclear - best with dark chocolate ice cream or frozen yogurt

If you are fortunate enough to acquire some Everclear, you will quickly discover why this delicious concoction is called a Brown Bomb. Everclear, which burns with a blue flame and leaves no residue, enjoys somewhat of a reputation for potency. Please indulge responsibly.

Perhaps no other food, and I use the word 'food' advisedly, has captured our imaginations quite so completely.

Chocolate has inspired songs, games, books, movies - odes have been composed in its honor. Chocolate is, arguably, the single, most-given of all those tokens we share to affirm love and appreciation. Next to the gift of flowers, chocolate is, perhaps, the most enjoyed and expected tribute in almost any age group.

How better to close than to leave you with a few choice images of this wonderful creation, this thing we call chocolate...