L.A. Burdick got me going through bitter cold winters while at Harvard, frequently tripping on quaint, impossibly narrow little colonial-style cobblestone paths which were perpetually iced-over and slippery as all hell. Falling into a freezing cold puddle of dank brown slush only ruined my day in cases where I wasn’t concurrently on my way to this beautiful little gem of a boutique chocolatier. If I was, I simple brushed myself off and kept walking with an enthusiastic smile on my face.

Hazelnut-Orange Cake

Toasted hazelnut “dust” blended into fluffy, moist and airy flour cake, coated in gianduja (sweet chocolate mixed with hazelnut paste) and drizzled with slightly bitter, slightly sour orange-peel marmalade. A delicious accompaniment to a hot cup of afternoon coffee.

Luxembourgers (pistachio, lavender and ginger) with a shot of dark hot chocolate

I love French macarons. Two delicious almond flavored caps, light and airy from egg white in the dough wrapped around a dollop of smooth, flavored buttercream. In this case, the lavender had a fresh, soapy-clean, floral flavor while the ginger had a tart, almost bitter (but in a good way) sanitary twang. The traditional green pistachio macaron was my favorite, nutty and sweet, toasty and rich. A shot of bitter, incredibly thick and dense, dark hot chocolate to cut the sweetness of the macaroons puts me in a comfortable lull every time.