I read an article in the Star Tribune last week about a Minneapolis elementary school who is not celebrating Valentine’s Day in their classrooms this year. There has been a lot of backlash about this decision, and honestly, I don’t see why people are so fired up. I’ve always hated Valentine’s Day. I see it as a fake holiday that either a) reminds you of your single status (most of my teens and twenties) b) creates pressure to perform un-natural acts of love (my thirties) or c) creates unnecessary stress and expense in preparing classroom party valentines (right now). Last year I spent almost $100 at the craft store to make little valentine monsters with paper cups, yarn, and glue guns. Why so much? I don’t know what the hell I’m doing, so I just bought everything. To be free of all of this Valentine nonsense? Yes please.

In the meantime, my bestie gave me a beautiful chocolate cookbook for Christmas that I haven’t done anything with because I’ve been working on healthy lifestyle choices. But it’s hard to not be tempted when you see chocolate hearts everywhere you go. So here is my plan. I’m going to cook out of this cookbook all week, making a few chocolate treats to send to my friend and my faithful readers (my mom and aunts – I’m late with your Christmas gifts anyway) while feasting on the savory chocolate recipes in Theo. Let’s see how my plan works out.

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