"Chocolate isn't always bad for you," Zemack advised. "It's good for your soul."

Although she genuinely loves chocolate, the positive interaction with people is what pushed her to create class ideas and hold events. "I think the attraction to this whole thing is everybody else," she said. It's like they're on vacation. It is really fun." She's done chocolate tasting at bachelorette parties and women's group meetings, and hopes to hold more bridal and corporate tasting events.

The Framingham native moved to Porter Square two years ago, and calls Burdick's Chocolates and Cardullo's two od her favorite places to buy chocolate.

As part of her tastings, Zemack developed a rating system, so that people can evaluate the chocolate on smell, taste, after-taste, and texture. The chocolatier encourages people to pinpoint the distinct flavors in her assortment. She also designed a chart to map out the different chocolate properties. "It's as interesting as wine," she said.

Zemack has always had an obsession with chocolate, but the experimentation officially got under way a few years ago on Valentine's Day. As Cupid's arrow landed in Zemack's kitchen, she found true love when she made her first chocolate box. She filled the masterpiece with chocolate-covered strawberries as a gift for her boyfriend.

"He was amazed by the intricacy," she said.

Last year, Zemack started "The Tasty Show" on Cambridge Community Television. After about four shows, she turned her general cooking show into a website devoted to chocolate.

In addition to maintaining the site, Zemack continues to teach classes at the Cambridge Center for Adult Education. Last fall, she sent a course proposal with pictures of her chocolate boxes, and CCAE directors instantly liked the idea. The first class she taught was chocolate sculpting.

"I loved the idea that it was a tactile class for food," said Rebecca King, CCAE associate director and director of education.

In the fall, Zemack plans to explore the historical and cultural aspects of chocolate in a class called What is Chocolate? She is also teaching Chocolate Tasting, which will expose people's taste buds to different types of chocolate.

Along with teaching classes, Zemack plans chocolate events, which have been a hit with sweet lovers. Her first event was the The Tasty Show Chocolate Tasting Party at the Zeitgeist Gallery last May. The event was a success after 1,000 of Zemack's handmade truffles disappeared within 40 minutes. Guests then broke into the five chocolate sculptures.

"I just wanted to do something fun," she said.

King heard about Zemack's event at the Zeitgeist Gallery and was impressed by her creativity. "I thought it was a clever way of highlighting the artistry of it," King said.

Zemack is now finalizing plans for "Chocolate...for a Change," a showcase of Boston's best chocolatiers, to benefit the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society, scheduled for November 5th.

It's nice to bring an event that will help so many people," she said. "People like chocolate and I like giving it to them."