A little backstory...

When I first arrived in Atlanta in 2002, howlingmoon, nisie and ryanroyce took me to Sweet Stuff Dessert Cafe in Roswell, to celebrate my coming to Atlanta. There was chocolate mousse cake. Mm. I left with a T-shirt that says "Life is short! Eat dessert first!"

Fast forward four years. My job has opened a new location in Alpharetta. The route seems familiar, and it occurs to me this might well be near Sweet Stuff. I promised myself I'd go on payday. bookofmirrors wanted to meet me so I could make her some ginger-cinnamon schnapps, so I suggested Sweet Stuff. She was nice enough to pay. I couldn't make up my mind whether I wanted Turtle brownie or Caramel brownie. I indulged in the Turtle there and the Caramel for later. The brownie was cool at the restaurant, and quite tasty.

I described the Turtle brownie to a customer thusly:

You know how brownies tend to be chewy chocolate rich and kind of cakey? ...Not these. These are like fudge had a brief, steamy tryst with cake in a darkened room, and these are what came from that stolen moment.

Then ...fast forward to five days later. I've been keeping the brownie in my fridge for emergency use. I've had a stressful and depressing week. So I took it out of the fridge, and had this religious experience:

...I put the brownie in the microwave for 25 seconds to take the chill off. There was a little bubble of chocolate inside it, so when I took it out, it was bleeding molten chocolate. The smell was like heaven. I ran my finger along the edge of the plate, caressing that dark sweetness, before licking it off slowly. I breathed in the heady aroma before diving in with enthusiasm -- lips and tongue eager, though part of me begged myself to show restraint -- I couldn't devour it quickly. I had to savor every luscious melt of it on my tongue. I had to make it last.

I have never had a dessert I would write brownierotica about before.

And my very smart boyfriend has made a mental note of what the place is so he can occasionally come home with the stuff and surprise me once he moves down here. *happysigh*

Here is an amazing recipe combining two of our favorite things...coffee and chocolate, of course. :)

( raspberry truffle brownies )