Cacao & Cardamom - Citrus Almond Mendiants - Oct. 19, 2024

Chocolate of the Day

Cacao & Cardamom 
Citrus Almond Mendiants
Good ++
Weight: 3.71 oz. (100 g.) / 6.67 oz. (189 g.) (estimate) in total bar
Calories: 575 calories (estimate) for 5 pieces
Cost: $15.00 for 1 container + shipping
Purchased from: Cacao & Cardamom, online order

Welcome to Day #9 of Chocolate and Orange Theme Week; Day #1 of Chocolate and Bolivia Theme Week.

Today's Citrus Almond Mendiants were from Cacao & Cardamom (Houston, TX).  

The cacao in the 68% dark chocolate used to make these attractive, hexagon-shaped and fruit and nut-topped tiles (mendiants) was from Bolivia. 

Aroma and flavor notes included: bittersweet dark chocolate, flavorful and tasty, tart-sweet, candied Iyokan orange citrus peels, and impossibly thin, softly crunchy slivered Marcona almonds.

The Iyokan orange (similar in appearance to a mandarin orange) is a popular variety in Japan. Its appealing, fresh-tasting, sweet tartness made this my favorite item in this classy, three-ingredient confection.

Ingredients: 68% Bolivia Chocolate, Iyokan Citrus, Marcona Almonds

Allergen-related information: Contained nuts (almonds). (No other information was listed on this small container.) 

Bonajuto - Bittersweet Chocolate with Orange Zest (bar) - Oct. 18, 2024

Chocolate of the Day

Antica Dolceria Bonajuto S.r.l.
Bittersweet Chocolate with Orange Zest 01 (bar)
Good ++
Weight: 1.76 oz. (50 g.) in total bar
Calories: 270 calories in 1 bar
Cost: $12.00 for 1 bar
Purchased from: Il Parco, San Francisco, CA

Welcome to Day #8 of Chocolate and Orange Theme Week.

Today's Bittersweet Chocolate with Orange Zest 01 (bar) was from Antica Dolceria Bonajuto S.r.l. (Modica, Italy).

Aroma and flavor notes for this Italian chocolate included: bittersweet dark chocolate; faint herbal spice (licorice); subtle citrus (orange); and honeycomb.

The texture in this relatively smooth chocolate with a stoneground-like texture actually seemed to come more from the sugar. 

The very subtle orange zest was very finely ground--perhaps into glistening, visible sugar crystals and incorporated into the bittersweet dark chocolate.

I liked the flavor blend, the interesting complexity, that it didn't seem too sweet, and that there were just three ingredients (thank you).

Ingredients: "cocoa mass, cane sugar, orange zest"

Allergen-related information: "May contain almonds, hazelnuts, pistachios and milk"