book club brunch.

when you're asked to give a book club brunch for author Terry McMillan you definitely say “yes! yes, please!”. i've long been a fan and Terry's part of Ghirardelli's Savor the Dark Book Club, launching her new book I Almost Forgot About You - which is a really fun summer read. with the book club subscription, you get the book and three of Ghirardelli's Intense Dark bars -Intense Dark 72% Cacao Twilight Delight, Intense Dark Cherry Tango, Intense Dark Cocoa Nibs. The deadline to sign-up to order the subscription box closes this Friday, June 10 so you'll need to get on it quickly! and when you receive it, curl up with Terry's book and make yourself a cheese platter, add fresh berries and a lovely glass of champagne, or one of the other divine pairings Ghirardelli suggests. don't forget to follow Ghirardelli on instagram; facebook; twitter; and pinterest.

our Ghirardelli book club brunch was a blast! i invited a few friends over and Terry was the perfect guest of honor - she hilariously read some 'juicy bits' from her book to us and entertained us with great stories while we brunched. i decorated with the most beautiful peonies, roses, sweet peas i ordered delivered fresh from flower muse and they made such pretty arrangements when i put them all together myself (half the fun of flowers!). i had one of my favorite local bakeries, Valerie Confections make some chocolate tarts and mendiants, and bake a specialty chocolate cake all from Ghirardelli's baking chocolate - that cake was three layers of divine! they also created delicious tartines, like salmon and avocado, as well as Crème Fraiche Scones and Salted Caramel Croissants. it was all so perfect paired with the Ghirardelli Intense Dark, fresh fruits, tea and champagne. i highly recommend gathering up some friends and having a book club brunch of your own!

• photography by denise bovee for sfgirlbybay.

This is a sponsored post in partnership with Ghirardelli and all words and opinions are my own. Thank you for supporting the brands that help keep sfgirlbybay going with fresh content every day.