Paul will be writing something about the lovely party that we had on Sunday. Lots of friends, lots of laughter, lots of chocolate; I certainly had a good time. While you wait for the funny, thoughtful missive that you are no doubt expecting from Paul, would you care for a cookie?

Many people do not think of pepper when they think of chocolate. Central Americans have have been combining chocolate, cinnamon and pepper for centuries, to great effect. These Mexican Chocolate Icebox Cookies were served alongside brownies with crystallized ginger, a gorgeous dark chocolate mousse, and some lovely chocolate-filled cookies baked by Anita. It was a real land-o-chocolate in our dining room. Sadly, I didn’t photograph the whole spread before inviting people to dig in.