Hi! My name is Stephanie Zonis, and welcome to the March, 2004 edition of For Chocolate Lovers Only! Each month, you'll find recipes, tips, and recommendations on great chocolate specialties. Ready for spring yet?

Chocolate Recommendation of the Month: What do you get when you combine a brownie-walnut base, a light chocolate buttercream filling, and a dark chocolate ganache glaze? If you’re really lucky and it’s done very well, you get a Triple Chocolate Butterbar, from the Upper Crust Crumbs Dessert Company in North Carolina. Butterbars are the creation of Patti, the head baker at this small enterprise, and they’re something special. They’re very rich, but they still manage to be delicate and light-textured. They’re not enormous, so they don’t overwhelm you, but you’ll definitely know you’ve had a dessert after eating one. And if you’d like a little variety in your desserts, Butterbars are also available in Lemon Streusel, Pralines and Cream, Chocolate Peanut, Strawberry Cheesecake, Chocolate Mint, and the not-yet-listed-on-the-website Café Mocha.

If you’re throwing a bridal shower this spring, these would be perfect for the occasion, but then again I can also envision them on the dessert tray at an informal family party or if you just want something fun and different around the house for an after-meal sweet. You can order online or by calling Upper Crust Crumbs Dessert Company at (336) 374-6318 (this is also the fax number); if you live in North Carolina, you can find Butterbars at any Whole Foods Market or Earthfare store. Bear in mind that Butterbars are perishable; they must be refrigerated (this increases shipping costs, alas), but they can also be frozen, which is quite convenient and will theoretically stop you from eating too many at once (this may well be a problem once you taste them). I like the attitude at Upper Crust Crumbs Dessert Company, and Patti, at least, obviously knows her way around a kitchen! Find out more about Butterbars at www.uppercrustcrumbs.com.

Do you have a comment, question, or suggestion? I’d like to hear it. You can reach me at: sdziadwm@nac.net. Please specify that you’re writing about chocolate. Thank you! Pam R., I’m sorry I couldn’t get back to you, but your husband’s e-mail address rejected my reply as spam. In answer to your question, however, I didn’t get to the NYC Chocolate Show last November at all, so I can’t say much about the exhibitors except those I’ve written up before.