Chocolate Success

Is there really a wrong way. Well, I suppose in cooking it's when you burn the dish you were about to serve. That's what happened to me Sunday morning. I attempted to make Maple Pecan Bacon. I had had this tasty morsel the morning after my wedding and it was divine.
So I decided Sunday morning would be my attempt. Well, it ended in failure. Sugar, maple or otherwise, burns black at a high temperature. And at 400 degrees it happens a lot faster than you'd think.
Thus we have:

 I was able to somewhat salvage a piece or two, but really it was burnt. Next time, lower temperature, for sure. Yes, I'll try it again, even though my husband reminded me I'm the only one in the house that will eat bacon with nuts on it. ;)

I did however, manage to succeed in two other recipes this weekend where originally I thought I'd flopped.
The first was the Ghirardelli Double Chocolate Chip Muffins. Do not let the name fool you. These are decadent cupcakes. :)  I think the sour cream is what clinches the deal. The batter was almost too thick, and I totally thought I had failed, but they turned out great.

 

My next win was my daughter's birthday cake. She wanted super rich flourless chocolate cake. So I searched until I found Tyler Florence's version called Cracked Chocolate Earth. Which, after my first taste, at room temperature, I thought it was a flop. However, after a day in the fridge, it was fudgy and brilliant. The powdered sugar makes it perfect, you could say it's the icing on the cake! (sorry I'm bad at puns)

 

What is my take-away from this weekend's cooking/baking?  That failures can just be another avenue for success. 

Have you failed at something only to find that avenue of success? Did a door close and you opened a window? Cooking or life-wise, let us know. :)

Ansha Kotyk is the upper middle grade author of GANGSTERLAND, about a boy, bully and magical comic book. She is a volunteer for NESCBWI conferences and is one of the hosts of #mglitchat.