Sweet Loren's - Chocolate Mint Cookies - Nov. 4, 2024

Chocolate of the Day

Sweet Loren's 
Chocolate Mint Cookies
Good + - Good ++
Weight: 1.6 oz. (46 g.) / 9.6 oz. (272 g.) in total package
Calories: 180 calories in 2 cookies
Cost: $7.99 for 1 package of 12 cookies
Purchased from: Farm Fresh, online order

Welcome to Day #8 of Chocolate and the Mint Family Theme Week.

Today's gluten-free, dairy-free Chocolate Mint Cookie dough was manufactured for Sweet Loren's, Inc. (Los Angeles, CA). 

Aroma notes included: peppermint and chocolate (cookie). And as with any "freshly baked" cookies, these small, pre-formed cookies (that came from a package of refrigerated dough) smelled good right out of the oven.

The baked Chocolate Mint cookies had a relatively soft texture, with slightly more crispy edges. And yes, as the name Sweet Loren's suggests, the number one ingredient was sugar.

For those wanting something sweet, but needing strictly allergen-free, companies like Sweet Loren's offer some convenient and attractive options. The cocoa powder, molasses and chocolate chunks added flavor depth that I appreciated.

Ingredients: "Sugar, Flour Blend (oat, tapioca, potato starch), Palm Oil**, White Confectionary Chips (sugar, palm kernel** and palm oil**, natural flavors, sunflower lecithin, salt), Filtered Water, Cocoa Powder, Molasses, Chocolate Chunks (sugar, unsweetened chocolate, cocoa butter, vanilla, salt), Sea Salt, Baking Soda, Peppermint Oil."

Allergen-related information: "Made in a dedicated room free of gluten, wheat, milk, peanuts, tree nuts, and sesame. Manufactured on shared equipment with products containing egg and soy. Strict allergen cleaning controls and testing are in place to ensure allergen control standards are met."

 

Intrigue Chocolate - Lavender, Coffee, Long Pepper (bar) - Nov. 3, 2024

Chocolate of the Day

Intrigue Chocolate
Lavender, Coffee, Long Pepper 64% Dark (bar) 
Good ++
Weight: 1.25 oz. (35.5) / 2.5 (71 g.) in total bar
Calories: 194 calories (estimate) in 1/2 bar
Cost: $13.00 for 1 bar + shipping
Purchased from: Intrigue Chocolate, online order

Welcome to Day #7 of Chocolate and the Mint Family Theme Week--featuring several days of chocolates flavored with different members of the very large mint family: peppermint, yerba buena, basil, rosemary, lavender and more.

Today's Lavender, Coffee, Long Pepper 64% Dark (bar) was from Intrigue Chocolate Co. (Seattle, WA), a small-batch maker offering bars and confections--most with at least one local, Pacific Northwest flavor inclusion. 

Origin story: The cacao ("mostly Trinitario and Amelonado") used to make this chocolate was from Uganda, Rwenzururu, Semuliki Forest. And the lavender was from B&B Family Lavender Farm (Sequim, WA).

Aroma notes included: dark chocolate, slightly woodsy, distinctive floral (lavender) with light menthol (mint), sweet green, and very faint and harmonious savory (pepper). I could not smell the coffee, but I think it added a richness and a grounded quality, and somehow tied together these 4+ flavors in an unexpectedly successful way.

Texture: smooth, well-tempered dark chocolate with both a very slight crunchiness (likely coffee), and a relatively creamy texture and melt.  

Flavor notes included: dark chocolate (chocolate-y, dark ganache), with a blend of authentic lavender, faint fruit (blueberry), and very faint savory (pepper) and barely detectable (in most bites) coffee.

This 64% cacao bar was sweet without being overly so--allowing one to really appreciate a skillfully executed blend of complex, bold flavors--that could've been pulled in many directions; but instead the finished blend was almost smoother and greater than the sum of its parts. 

Makers tasting notes: "Medium-roast coffee draws together the perfume of the lavender and the musky bite of the long pepper."

Ingredients: "Chocolate (cocoa mass, sugar, cocoa butter, soy lecithin [emulsifier], natural vanilla flavoring), lavender, coffee, long pepper"

Allergen-related information: "Processed in a facility with milk, soy and nuts."