Indulging in chocolate at the Fling

This past Sunday marked the 23rd Annual Chocolate Lovers' Fling, a benefit for Sexual Assault Response Services of Southern Maine. A yearly feast of all that is chocolate, the event regularly overflows the ballroom at the Holiday Inn by the Bay with people looking for a sweet fix. In what has become a tradition, my cousin and I made the annual pilgrimage.

This year there were 15 restaurants and caterers who offered up everything from mousse and cake to chocolate quesadillas. After the votes were in, Old Port Candy Company won the People's Choice Award for its decadent Black Bear Paw Fudge.

A panel of local celebrities served as the event's official judges. Here are the awards the judges handed out:

Best Brownie: Twenty Milk Street at The Portland Regency Hotel - Buddha Brownies
Best Cake: Bar of Chocolate - Chocolate Cupcake with Salted Caramel Frosting
Best Candy/Fudge/Truffle -- Nutmeg Foods - The Maine Sea Salt Bar
Best Cheesecake: Izzy's Cheesecake - Triple chocolate Cheesecake Cake
Best Mousse: Chocolate Falls of Maine--Chocolate Mousse Cups
Best Pie: The Green Elephant -- Chocolate Orange Mousse Pie
Best Specialty Item: Federal Jack's Chocolate Quesadilla
Best Torte: Holiday Inn By the Bay--Flourless Chocolate Mousse Torte with Chocolate Grand Manier Glaze
President's Award: Federal Jack's - Chocolate Quesadilla
Best Presentation: 20 Milk Street at the Portland Regency Hotel

I was absolutely thrilled to discover what has become my new favorite dark chocolate bar: The Coastline Confections River Mill Dark Chocolate with Maine Sea Salt. It combines my two favorite foods: chocolate and salt. I can't get enough of it (in fact, I'm enjoying some right now). If you like salt with your chocolate, you really need to give this one a try. I bought mine at Whole Foods Market, and it is likely available at other shops that sell gourmet chocolates.