The heart-shaped boxes have been bestowed. The rosy nosegays conveyed. But chocolate deserves a place in your heart — and on your dessert plate — all year round.

Why do we love it so? Years ago, I asked Carole Bloom, cookbook author, teacher and chocolate authority, about chocolate’s allure. It contains a chemical, she said, that creates the same chemistry in the brain as occurs when people are in love, a feeling of euphoria.

We all might benefit from some chocolate-induced cranial jubilation. And we have three delicious suggestions.

Is there anything more Parisian than profiteroles? The thick, decadent sauce covering these ice cream-filled choux puffs is made with six ounces of fine bittersweet chocolate — and you’ll want to drizzle it on just about everything. The recipe hails from Kate Laidlaw’s “Emily in Paris: The Official Cookbook” (Weldon Owen, $32.50), and we think the Netflix series’ fictional Chef Gabriel would approve.

We certainly do, because the recipe can be broken up and assembled in stages, Laidlaw says. Make and bake the puffs ahead of time and freeze them for up to two weeks. Then warm them in a 375-degree oven until just thawed and crisp. Let cool, then fill with ice cream and drizzle that sauce. Laidlaw suggests vanilla, salted caramel or pistachio ice cream, but we won’t fault you for choosing a chocolate flavor.

Chocolate pots de crème remain a favorite at our house. These indulgent little “pots of cream” are traditionally made in little cups with specially designed lids, so when the pots de crème cups are placed in a bain-marie, a hot water bath, inside the oven, the lids prevent splashes from spoiling the luscious contents. But who has such a specialty item at home? Instead, try the user-friendly approach thought up by the chefs at America’s Test Kitchen, who cook the chocolate custard on the stovetop, then pour it into individual 5-ounce cups or ramekins to serve. Easy.

If you’re looking for something with a serious nostalgia factor, chef Michael Owens, director of food services at Southern California’s Bracken’s Kitchen, offers up moon pie cookies. Dark chocolate cakelike discs are sandwiched around a buttery marshmallow fluff-style filling. Some might argue that these rich cookies should be dubbed whoopie pies, but whatever you choose to call them, few could argue about their delectability.

Michael Owens’ Moon Pies

Makes 9 to 11 sandwich cookies

INGREDIENTS

1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, room temperature

1 cup sugar

1 large egg

1 cup evaporated milk

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

2 cups all-purpose flour

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup cocoa powder

1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

Filling:

1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, room temperature

1 cup powdered sugar

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 cup marshmallow creme

DIRECTIONS

Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 350 degrees. Line baking sheet(s) with parchment paper.

In large bowl of electric mixer, cream butter and sugar on medium speed using the paddle attachment; beat until light in color, scraping down sides with a rubber or silicone spatula as needed. Add egg, evaporated milk and the vanilla slowly to incorporate; beat on medium speed and scrape the bowl as needed.

Sift together flour, salt, cocoa powder, baking soda and baking powder. Add the dry ingredients to the mixer and mix until well incorporated.

With a pastry bag fitted with a medium sized, plain piping tip, pipe the batter into circles the size of a silver dollar on prepared baking sheet. Bake until the cookies feel set or firm to the touch, 12 to 14 minutes. Let cool to room temperature on wire rack. Meanwhile prepare the filling.

In large bowl of electric mixer, use paddle attachment to cream together the butter, powdered sugar and vanilla until fluffy and no lumps of butter remain. Add marshmallow creme and mix to blend.

Transfer filling to a pastry bag equipped with a large, plain tip.

Match the cookies together by size. Pipe filling on the flat side of one cookie, top with matching cookie and sandwich them together. Repeat until all the cookies are filled. Store cookies airtight in refrigerator.

— Courtesy of Michael Owens, Bracken’s Kitchen