An Evening Of Dark Organic Chocolate, From Appetizers To Dessert

MIDDLEBURY — New Morning Store will presents its 3rd Annual Chocolate Dinner, to benefit the education programs of The Audubon Center at Bent of the River in Southbury, on Saturday, March 4. This year’s dinner event will be held in the LBD Performing Arts Center at Westover School, on South Street (Route 188).

The event is set to a Central American theme, and will feature Mayan expert Michael Coe, PhD, anthropology professor emeritus, Yale, who will speak on “The Birth of Cacao: America’s favorite health food.”

Guests will enjoy an extravagant evening of organic chocolate from quesadilla to chili cake, great organic wines and music of the Americas.

The menu created by New Morning Executive Chef Carol Byer-Alcorace will open with hors d’oeuvres including Spanish country cheese (Tetilla, Cabrales-Blue, Manchego, and Asadero or Queso Fresco, all accompanied by house-made crisps); spinach, jack cheese and dark chocolate quesadilla with spicy pepita salsa; chili and cumin scented caramelized pepita, cacao nib nut crunch; and tiny cups of posole.

Dinner will begin with a salad of roasted corn, limas and pepper, romaine with cacao nibs, and raspberry balsamic dressing. Vegetables will include oven roasted asparagus with fresh herbed lemon mayo cumin and chili roasted pumpkin or butternut squash spears with an herbed chocolate balsamic drizzle.

The evening’s entrée will be roasted breast of turkey with red mole poblano on the side, huatia (Peruvian slow cut beef and sweet potatoes with herbs), and corn bread loaded with shredded sweet potato, dried fruits, scallions and bittersweet chocolate marbling.

The chocolate used by Chef Carol Byer-Alcorace was donated by Dagoba, an Oregon company that uses only organic beans from Latin America and the Caribbean. It has a 68 percent cacao content. The cacao powder will be donated by Green & Black, a company located in South London.

Organic certification is given to products that have been cultivated in an environment where the use of artificial and chemical fertilizers and pesticides is severely restricted. Organic production prohibits the use of genetically engineered ingredients. New Morning’s staff and chef invites the public to taste the difference on March 4.

Tickets are $55 per person and are available at New Morning Store, in Middle Quarter Mall at 738 Main Street South (Route 6) in Woodbury. Reservations are needed by February 17.

Live birds from Sharon Audubon Center will be greeting guests during the dinner event.

The Audubon Center at Bent of the River in Southbury is a 650-acre sanctuary and education center that features 15 miles of hiking trails.

For more information, call Gene Banks at New Morning, 203-263-0673, extension 317, or send email to CustomCare.NewMorn@snet.net.