Hi! My name is Stephanie Zonis, and welcome to the February, 1999 edition of "For Chocolate Lovers Only". Each month you'll find great recipes, tips, and recommendations on where to find chocolate specialties.

Chocolate Recommendation of the Month: Christopher Norman Chocolates, Ltd.. can be reached via e-mail at: CocoaKings@aol.com, by phone at (212) 677-3722, by fax at (212)677-8687, or by regular mail at 75 Bank St., Suite 2-K, New York, NY 10014-5911 (there is no website). Chocolate is very popular as a Valentine's Day gift, of course, but this is chocolate for the discriminating chocolate lover. The pieces are classy and beautiful and very expensive, as befits artisanal chocolates made by hand. "Standard" fillings range from maple walnut to mountain mint; more exotic creations feature flavors such as star anise and dark chocolate, Tuscan red wine in bittersweet chocolate, and something called "Cupids & Cream" (dark and white chocolates with cinnamon and cardamom, covered in milk chocolate--billed as an ode to Valentine's Day). No matter what you select, however, there's nothing "standard" about the quality of these confections! New to the line are small, distinctively-wrapped chocolate bars; my favorite is a gianduja in dark chocolate. In addition, the gift wraps used for their boxes are gorgeous. Of course they mail order, and there are even a few retail locations (contact them for details). Christopher Norman Chocolates advertises their products as a "fin-de-siecle necessity", and they might just be right. This is chocolate made by craftspeople, not by machines, and I can assure you that you will get what you pay for. Try some today!

Chocolate Question of the Month: Recently a reader inquired about the names and contact information for chocolate cooking schools in this country. I thought this was a terrific idea; imagine a cooking school devoted entirely to chocolate! Unfortunately, I don't know of any such places. I think that a web search would be the way to go here; many cooking schools must be on line by now, and I'd certainly expect them to advertise any chocolate classes or programs they have, as chocolate desserts are so popular. Incidentally, if any of you do know of the existence of a chocolate cooking school, please tell me about it.

Do you have a comment, question, or suggestion? I'd like your input into this column. You can reach me at: sdziadwm@nac.net;please specify that you're writing regarding "For Chocolate Lovers Only". Thank you!