There is no shortage of chocolate recipes in my repertoire, but seeing as Valentine’s Day is less than a week away, I’ve handpicked these 5 recipes for you based on their effort-to-chocolate ratio: with these very easy treats, there is no excuse not to show your special someone how much you chocolove him/her.

Of course, a well-chosen present won’t hurt; check out my Valentine’s Day Gifts for Food Lovers, and all my other gift guides.

Also, if you’re in Paris, you can submit a love message to be displayed on the billboards of the city on V-Day! Doesn’t get much more romantic than that.

Three-Ingredient French Hot Chocolate (Vegan)

Can you guess the unusual ingredient that makes this vegan hot chocolate as velvety as you will find in Parisian tea rooms?

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Blame it on my recent nuptials: I am in a romantic mood. And since V-Day is coming up fast (February 14, if you’ve just landed from another planet) I had fun creating this selection of fabulous Valentine’s Day gifts for food lovers.

And of course, many of these will work if you’re looking to celebrate Galentine’s Day!

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I am keeping my nose to the grindstone (not as painful as it sounds) finishing up the manuscript for my new cookbook Tasting Paris, which is an ode to all the good things one can eat in Paris, and there are very many. I am stoked to announce that the photography will be done by the amazing Nicole Franzen, and I cannot wait to see my recipes and my home city through her eyes.

I have to get back to writing headnotes and processing feedback from my fabulous recipe testers and tying up all sorts of fun loose ends (“check weight of average orange,” “why is rue des Écouffes called rue des Écouffes,” “look into the biography of Arlette Lenôtre,” “OK to recommend as hangover food?”) so I will leave you with these quick notes from January:

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Itching to travel again in the spring? I want to make sure you see and taste the best France has to offer! When it comes to Paris I’ve got you covered, but there are many other cities with exciting and delicious things for you to experience. So I’ve asked a team of French bloggers from different cities to share their favorite spots, and I am offering them to you in this new series.

In Strasbourg, Frédérique recommends…

After leaving Paris 25 years ago, Frédérique spent 15 years in Alsace and seven in Strasbourg itself. This European capital is a goldmine for a gourmet like her. A textile creator by trade, her motto is to “beautify daily life” and she beautifies her own by spending most of her free time in the kitchen! She shares this culinary passion with the readers of the blog she keeps to document life in her workshop. Where will she take us today?

A market or food shop: The market on Boulevard de la Marne

In the XV-Orangerie neighborhood, this is the largest market in Strasbourg, set up along the Boulevard de la Marne. It’s an authentic, colorful market, filled with an abundance of vendors selling a wide variety of items: produce and food vendors (selling fish, meat, charcuterie, and cheese), stands with honeys, spices, flowers and plants, clothes, shoes, baskets, and kitchen utensils (such as kougelhopf molds and cookie cutters for the traditional Christmas sablés). The market is open on Tuesday and Saturday mornings.

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