Thousand Oaks Acorn Co. - The Acorn Bar (Coffee, Chocolate, Cinnamon) - Mar. 6, 2024

Chocolate of the Day

Thousand Oaks Acorn Co.
The Acorn Bar - Gluten Free - Coffee, Chocolate, Cinnamon
Good + - Good ++
Weight: 1.75 oz. (49.6 g.) in total bar
Calories: 210 calories in 1 bar
Cost: $5.00 for 1 bar (part of a $30 pack of 6 bars)
Purchased from: Thousand Oaks Acorn Co., online order

Welcome to Day #7 of Chocolate and Outdoors Theme Week.

Today's Gluten Free Coffee, Chocolate and Cinnamon Acorn Bar was from Thousand Oaks Acorn Co. (Thousand Oaks, CA).

Where I live (California), we're surrounded by several varieties of oak trees; however, we rarely get the opportunity to try an edible acorn product, much less one with chocolate.

Aroma notes included: coffee cookie, chocolate/mocha, oat cookie/cereal, and very faint coconut, spice and dried fruit.

Texture: All the ingredients were fully incorporated/blended; and the bar had a hearty, chewy texture, with a very slightly stone-ground meal/seed mouthfeel (pea protein, flaxseed meal, acorn flour). It hung together well and was not crumbly. 

Flavor notes included: an attractive, aromatic blend of mocha (coffee + chocolate brownie bar), along with several "back seat" flavors: brown sugar and oats; warm spice (ginger); coconut; and faint dried fruit (apricot).

I enjoyed: 1.) the rich aroma and flavors; 2.) trying a bar with acorn meal (thank you!); 3.) the fact that this was brown sugar sweetened, but wasn't overly sweet or gooey; 4.) that it was substantial and filling--making it great as a fuel for outdoor treks. I will be taking these on future hikes.

Ingredients: Oats, Brown Sugar, Vegan Butter Oil Blend (Palm Fruit, Canola, Flax and Olive), Water, < 2% Salt, Natural Flavor, Pea Protein, Sunflower Lecithin, Lactic Acid (To Protect Freshness), Annatto Extract (Color), Water, Flaxseed Meal, Acorn Flour, Organic Ginger Chips, Coconut Flakes, Apricots.

Allergen-related information: "Contains: Acorn." "Made in a Facility on Shared Equipment That Also Processes Soy, Peanuts, and Other Tree Nuts, and Fish (Marine Collagens).

*

 

Bulletproof - Chocolate Dipped Collagen Bar Coconut - Oct. 10, 2022

Chocolate of the Day

Bulletproof 360, Inc. 
Chocolate Dipped Collagen Bar - Coconut 
Good ++
Weight: 1.23 oz. (35 g.) in 1 bar
Calories: 160 calories in 1 bar
Cost: $3.79 for 1 bar
Purchased from: Country Sun Natural Foods, Palo Alto, CA

Welcome to Day #6 of Chocolate and Coconut Theme Week.

Today's Coconut Chocolate Dipped Collagen Bar was distributed by Bulletproof 360, Inc. (Seattle, WA). 

Aroma notes for this bar included: tree (maple) syrup, chocolate, and slightly nutty and sweet coconut "nougat." The softly crunchy bar interior was covered with a layer of smooth dark chocolate. 

The combined flavors and texture exceeded my expectations. (I brace myself a little when I sample energy/protein style bars and see "natural flavors" in the ingredients list.) Yes, this designed-to-be-functional, keto friendly (Net 3 g. carbs), protein bar wasn't single origin dark chocolate, but it was surprisingly tasty.

Bulletproof founder, Dave Asprey, has focused on aspects of nutrition and longevity. Collagen (grass-fed) proteins are often featured in their offerings. Today's Collagen Bar contained 7 grams of protein (about the same amount of protein in 1 egg; or 1 ounce (28 g.) of cheese; or 1.25 oz. /(35.37 g.) of almonds).*

Ingredients: Cashew butter, chocolate coating (unsweetened  chocolate, inulin, erythritol, cocoa butter, vanilla extract, stevia leaf extract), inulin, hydrolyzed collagen, MCT oil powder (caprylic and capric acid triglycerides from highly refined coconut oil, coconut oil, tapioca dextrin), coconut. Less than 2% of: safflower or sunflower oil, sunflower lecithin, natural flavors, sea salt, organic stevia leaf extract.

Allergen-related information: Contains: coconut, cashews, milk. "Processed in a facility that also processes peanuts, egg, soy, milk, wheat, tree nuts."

*The amino acids that form the building blocks of collagen are important. Collagen proteins play an important role in healthy skin, hair and joints. (Collagen protein contains 19 amino acids, and is especially rich in glycine, hydroxyproline and proline.) Bulletproof protein offerings include mostly Type 1 and Type 3 collagen proteins. For more information, visit their website, https://www.bulletproof.com/

Libeert - Organic Dark Chocolate Lemon and Ginger (bar) - Jan. 18, 2020

Chocolate of the Day:

Libeert - Belgian Chocolate Creators
Organic Dark Chocolate Lemon and Ginger (bar)
Good - Good +
Weight: 1.76 oz. (50 g.) / 3.5 oz. (100 g.) in total bar
Calories: 266 calories in 1/2 bar
Cost: $2.99 for 1 bar
Purchased from: Grocery Outlet Bargain Market, Palo Alto, CA

Welcome to Day #4 of Chocolate and Ginger Theme Week

Today's Organic Dark Chocolate Lemon and Ginger bar was from Libeert (Comines, Belgium).

Libeert (founded in 1923) offers a range of chocolate figures, tablets (bars) and pralines; and they produce their chocolates using what they call "The Family Recipe"—a description that includes not just constituent ingredients, but also how they do business in a broader context.

This Lemon and Ginger dark bar consisted of a smooth (in flavor and texture) organic dark chocolate base that was embedded with tiny micro-bursts of flavor—bits of refreshing sweet, slightly tart lemon and hints of spicy ginger.

Divine - Organic Dark Chocolate 85% Cocoa (Sao Tome) with Turmeric and Ginger bar - Jan. 17, 2020

Chocolate of the Day:

Divine Chocolate

Organic Rich Dark Chocolate 85% Cocoa (Sao Tome) with Turmeric and Ginger bar

Good +

Weight: 1.4 oz. (40 g.) / 2.8 oz. (80 g.) in total bar

Calories: 226 calories in 1/2 bar

Cost: $4.75 for 1 bar

Purchased from: Easy Foods Company, Mountain View, CA

Welcome to Day #3 of Chocolate and Ginger Theme Week.

Today's Organic Dark Chocolate with Turmeric and Ginger 85% Cocoa bar made in Germany and was from Divine Chocolate (London, UK).

This 85 percent cacao dark bar was made with cacao grown in Sao Tome.* It had an authentic fresh ginger aroma, a very slight granular texture (from the spices) and a rich chocolate, ginger and turmeric flavor.

While most 85 percent bars are quite bold and dark, this organic and fair trade chocolate tasted relatively smooth and mild. (A blind taste test might result in a guess of 70 percent cocoa solids. However, the sweet ginger granules** offered a slight sweet uptick.)

*Sao Tome is part of the two-island nation (Sao Tome and Principe) on the Equator, on the central African west coast (Gulf of Guinea). 

**Ingredients: Organic cocoa mass, organic sugar, 9 percent ginger granules (sugar, 30 percent organic ginger), organic cocoa butter, organic turmeric powder, organic ginger extract.

Honey's Mama's - Ginger Cardamom Cacao Nectar Bar - Jan. 16, 2020

Chocolate of the Day: 

Honey Mama's 

Ginger Cardamom Cacao Nectar Bar

Good - Good +

Weight: 2.5 oz. (70.75 g.) in 1 bar

Calories: 351 calories in 1 bar

Cost: $6.99 (estimate) for 1 bar

Purchased from: New Leaf Markets, Half Moon Bay, CA

Welcome to Day #2 of Chocolate and Ginger Theme Week. 

Iced ginger ale and iced ginger beverages offer bracing refreshment in the summer. However, ginger is also a welcome, warming spice in winter.

Today's Honey Mama's Ginger Cardamom Cacao Nectar Bar was from Portland, Oregon. This gluten-free vegan bar had a light chocolate and ginger spice cookie aroma, and a velvety melt and texture (coconut oil and honey).

If refrigerated or left in a cold room it might develop a soft, slight chew (a situation where you might notice the shredded coconut surrounded by relatively mild/smooth alkalized Organic cocoa.

A balanced hint of Himalayan pink salt rounded out the flavor arc in this bar.

Seattle Chocolate - Hiker's Trail Mix Dark Chocolate Truffle Bar - Jan. 4, 2020

Chocolate of the Day: 

Seattle Chocolate Company
Hiker's Trail Mix Dark Chocolate Truffle Bar
Good - Good +
Weight: 1.25 oz. (35 g.) 2.5 oz. (70 g.) in total bar
Calories: 180 calories in 1/2 bar
Cost: $4.50 (estimate) for 1 bar
Purchased from: missing information

Welcome to Day #3 of Hit the Trail with Chocolate Theme Week.

Today's Hiker's Trail Mix Dark Chocolate Truffle Bar—with peanuts, California raisins and roasted sunflower seeds in dark chocolate* (no cacao percent listed)—was from Seattle Chocolate Company (Seattle, WA).

The gluten free and vegan bar had a roasted peanut and chocolate aroma and the chocolate had a smooth, creamy dark chocolate truffle melt and mouthfeel. The raisins were moist and chewy, and the nuts and sunflower seeds provided some soft crunchy texture.

This trail mix bar was an enjoyable treat after a beautiful January hike with two lovely chocolate friends by the San Francisco bay.

*Rainforest Alliance Certified, Kosher Dairy, Non GMO Project Verified

Clif Bar - Sierra Trail Mix (bar) - Jan. 3, 2020

Chocolate of the Day: 

Clif Bar and Company
Sierra Trail Mix (bar)
Good
Weight: 2.4 oz. (68 g.) in total bar
Calories: 250 calories in 1 bar
Cost: $ missing information
Purchased from: missing information

Welcome to Day #2 of Hit the Trail with Chocolate Theme Week.

I love being outdoors in the winter. A walk or hike in the fresh air makes food (including chocolate) taste better. So, even though it's January, as long as it isn't raining heavily. I'll be outside this week every day (with chocolate).

Today's Sierra Trail Mix (bar) was from Clif Bar and Company (Emeryville, CA).

The bar contained peanuts, chocolate and raisins; and this hiking snack had a sweet trail mix and granola aroma and flavor, compressed into a crunchy, chewy substantial bar.

*One rumor has it that trail mix was invented by two California surfers in 1968 when they mixed peanuts and raisins together for a snack. I can remember as a child carrying around plastic bags of homemade trail mix, "gorp," and/or granola with chocolate pieces and nuts in California in the 1960s, so this story sounds plausible. 

Many outdoor enthusiasts (my parents included) in the 1960s and early 1970s were creative DIYers. My father, an engineer, made his own wetsuits, ski clothing, trail mix, and just about everything else one could think of. And my mother packed awesome paper bag lunches for family adventures.

Goodio Craft Chocolate - Winter Glow - Dec. 31, 2019

Chocolate of the Day: 

Goodio Craft Chocolate
Winter Glow 49% Chocolate Topped with Mulled Wine Crystals (bar)
Good
Weight: .85 oz. (24 g.) / 1.7 oz. (48 g.) in 1/2 bar
Calories: 117 calories (per label) in 1/2 bar
Cost: $ missing information
Purchased from: missing information

Welcome to Day #10 of Holiday Tea and Spirits Theme Week.

Today's Winter Glow Chocolate Topped with Mulled Wine Crystals 49% Cacao (bar) was manufactured by Helsinki Heaven Ltd for Goodio Craft Chocolate, from bean-to-bar, in Helsinki, Finland.

The Finns know more about winter than most of us around the globe do. And gathering in the dark months to enjoy some hot, sweet, mulled wine is a Scandinavian tradition. Goodio shares that tradition with us with this vegan, sweet chocolate bar that was lightly spiced* and had opaque magenta-colored mulled wine crystals on one side—giving it a faint but pleasant sweet red fruit (red grape, berry) flavor.

*Ingredients: Organic cacao beans, organic coconut palm sugar, organic cacao butter, organic coconut flakes, birch sugar, organic cinnamon, organic cardamom, bitter orange peel, organic cranberry powder, organic ginger, organic carnation.

Whole Lotta - Roasted Peanut Chocolate (bar) - Nov. 27, 2019

Chocolate of the Day:

Whole Lotta
Roasted Peanut Chocolate (bar)
Good - Good +
Weight: 1.98 oz. (56 g.) in total bar
Calories: 240 calories in 1 bar
Cost: $3.49 for 1 bar
Purchased from: Country Sun Natural Foods, Palo Alto, CA

Welcome to Day #3 of Chocolate and  Protein Theme Week.

Today's gluten free and dairy free Whole Lotta Roasted Peanut Chocolate (bar) was from Clif Bar (Emeryville, CA).

This relatively new fruit, nut, seed and spice bar contained 10 grams of plant-based protein. The "fruit" was date paste (the first ingredient listed). Dates can act as a binder, sweetener and as some added moistness for many types of compressed bars. This fruit can deliver a powerful, gooey sweetness. However, this bar was not too sweet (and there was no added sugar). Thank you!* The protein and peanuts helped balance out the sweetness.

*Some might think it's odd to be sampling hundreds of chocolates a year, and not be that fond of sugar. But, I'm more interested in tasting the nuances of chocolate and flavor inclusions, and too much sugar can preclude having this experience.

Bulletproof - Fudge Brownie Collagen Protein Bar - Nov. 25, 2019

Chocolate of the Day: 

Bulletproof
Fudge Brownie Collagen Protein bar
Good
Weight: 1.58 oz. (45 g.) in total bar
Calories: 210 calories in 1 bar
Cost: $3.79 for 1 bar
Purchased from: Country Sun Natural Foods, Palo Alto, CA

Welcome to Day #1 of Chocolate and Protein Theme Week.

Today's Fudge Brownie Collagen Protein bar was manufactured for Bulletproof 360, Inc. (Seattle, WA). The company's CEO, Dave Asprey, has focused on products that help support health, longevity and performance.

This bar was designed not for fun or deep, rich chocolate flavor, but rather more with function in mind: high protein (11 g.), optimized fats (14 g.) and lower carbohydrates (14 g. total carbs and only 2 g. of sugars).

I liked this bar more than the often heavy, sweet and gooey compressed bars that claim to be nutrition or protein bars. This felt more lean and sleek and less sweet (with no added sugar, thank you!), with a uniform light crunch, touch of chocolate brownie flavor and a hint of sea salt.

Highly refined and fine-tuned oils* were used to make these bars. The collagen protein came from grass-fed cows.

*Ingredients: Organic cashew butter, grass-fed collagen protein, inulin (chicory), Bulletproof(tm) XCT oil powder (caprylic and capric acid triglycerides from highly refined coconut and/or palm kernel oil, tapioca dextrin, cocoa powder, organic cashews, Bulletproof (tim) Brain Octane oil (caprylic acid triglycerides from highly refined coconut oil), vanilla extract, organic coconut oil, sea salt, organic stevia leaf extract.

88 Acres - Double Chocolate Mocha Seed Bar - Nov. 22, 2019

Chocolate of the Day: 

88 Acres - the seed co.
Double Chocolate Mocha Seed Bar
Good +
Weight: 1.6 oz. (45 g.) in total bar
Calories: 200 calories in 1 bar
Cost: $2.95 for 1 bar
Purchased from: Country Sun Natural Foods, Palo Alto, CA

Welcome to Day #5 of Chocolate and Seeds Theme Week.

Today's Double Chocolate Mocha Seed Bar was from 88 Acres - the seed co. (Boston, MA).

This nut-free, gluten free and soy free bar had a slightly nutty, coffee aroma. The company's seed blend of pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds and flax seeds gave this a nice crunchy texture. The mocha flavor was subtle and balanced.

Health Warrior - Pumpkin Seeds, Honey, Cocoa and Peanuts - Dark Chocolate Bar - Nov. 21, 2019

Chocolate of the Day:

Health Warrior
Pumpkin Seeds with Honey, Cocoa and Peanuts Dark Chocolate Bar
Good +
Weight: 1.23 oz. (35 g.) for 1 bar
Calories: 170 calories in 1 bar
Cost: $2.19 for 1 bar
Purchased from: Piazza's Fine Foods, Palo Alto, CA

Welcome to Day #4 of Chocolate and Seeds Theme Week.

This Pumpkin Seeds with Honey, Cocoa and Peanuts Dark Chocolate Bar was from Health Warrior (Richmond, VA).

Health Warrior, founded in 2010 by three college athletes, offers a variety of chia and pumpkin seed bars and protein products (e.g., single serving protein muffins, protein powder).

Today's Organic, Certified Gluten Free and Non-GMO Project Verified bar had a hearty soft crunch from pumpkin seeds and peanuts. The seeds and peanuts were complemented with sweet wildflower honey and chocolate flavor from cocoa powder, resulting in an ebony-colored, shiny confection that was not too sweet (thank you!).

Charles Chocolates - Cocoa Nib Brittle Bar - Ruby Cacao - Nov. 13, 2019

Chocolate of the Day: 

Charles Chocolates
Cocoa Nib Brittle Bar - Ruby Cacao
Good
Weight: .875 oz. (25 g.) / 3.5 oz. (100 g.) in total bar
Cost: $8.50 for 1 bar (white dot w/ line through it)
Calories: 137.5 calories in 1/4 bar
Purchased from: Chocolate Covered, San Francisco, CA


Welcome to Day #7 of Chocolate and Nibs Theme Week.

Today's picturesque pink Cocoa Nib Brittle Bar—made with Ruby Cacao—was from Charles Chocolates (San Francisco, CA).

This creamy and sweet ruby chocolate* had a slightly fermented red berry (red raspberry and cherry plum jam) flavor, and had golden veins of faintly smoky-savory** toffee brittle running through it.

*Ruby chocolate (made with special ruby cacao beans) was introduced in 2017 by Barry Callebaut, a Belgian-Swiss chocolate company.

**At least compared to the ruby chocolate, these pieces of sweet toffee brittle seemed less sweet and relatively more savory.

Ingredients: ruby cacao bean (sugar, cocoa butter, whole milk powder, unsweetened chocolate, citric acid, soy lecithin), cane sugar, cacao nibs. 

BochaSweet - BochaBar Chocolate Peanut Butter - Sept. 15, 2019

Chocolate of the Day:

BochaSweet LLC
BochaBar Chocolate Peanut Butter bar
Good ++
Weight: 2.12 oz. (60 g.) in total bar
Calories: 260 calories in 1 bar
Cost: $N/A - part of a larger order
Purchased from: BochaSweet (online order)

Welcome to Day #6 of Chocolate and Nut Butter Theme Week.

Today's Chocolate Peanut Butter bar was from BochaSweet LLC (Las Vegas, NV). The company has focused on producing a healthier bar with superior versions of sugars and fats.

This bar tasted like a pressed, chewy chocolate peanut butter protein bar, with no off flavors, and with a sweetness that was natural without being too sweet (thank you!). It was substantial and filling in a satisfying way.

The company's sugar alternative (BochaSweet), used to sweeten today's bar is made from kabocha and is being incorporated into two BochaBars. Today's bar) contains chocolate, and the other is a vanilla almond flavor, with no chocolate.

Kabocha is a dark green, pumpkin-like squash rich in Vitamins A, B and C, manganese and other nutrients. Kabocha has also been a food staple in Japan for many centuries, and is consumed in some regions of Japan where populations have longer than average lifespans.

Whether BochaSweet's (pentose) extract, in its processed form, still contains all of the kabocha nutrients mentioned above, I do not know. But the resulting sugar substitute (which looks like sugar) is supposed to have a minimal effect on insulin--one of the holy grails, for sugar alternatives, along with a naturally clean, sweet taste, which BochaSweet also seems to have.

A sweetener like this that doesn't result in glucose spikes and lacks any bitter aftertaste should peak interest in the chocolate and confection industry. One possible barrier to the adoption of this sweetener may be its relatively high cost, at least initially.*

And now, on to fats...Consumers have grown wary of vegetable oils in processed foods and bars.

This BochaBar contained MCT oil, that contains medium-chain triglycerides. It is often extracted from coconut oil or palm oil. MCTs are made of of shorter chains of fatty acids than some other fats in our diet, are naturally found in coconut and palm oils as well as goat's milk and (human) breast milk. They are thought to be a bit easier to digest than longer chains found in other food sources.

*Higher adoption rates and volume can sometimes bring down costs over time.

Choquiero Chocolate - Luca Maca Lucuma and Vanilla Bean bar - August 25, 2019

Chocolate of the Day: 

Choquiero Chocolate
Luca Maca with Lucuma and Vanilla Bean 60% bar
Good+++ - Very Good
Weight: 1.6 oz. (45 g.) in total bar
Calories: 250 calories in 1 bar
Cost: $5.59 for 1 bar
Purchased from: Country Sun Natural Foods, Palo Alto, CA

Welcome to Day #4 of Chocolate and Ecuador Theme Week.

Today's Luca Maca with Lucuma and Vanilla Bean 60% cacao bar was from Choquiero Chocolate (Grass Valley, CA; Made in Santa Cruz, CA). *

The company is committed to creating bars using ethically sourced, organic, unroasted cacao (in this case Ecuadorian Wild Arriba Criollo cacao), sweetened with coconut sugar.

This bar had subtle smoked toffee/caramel and fruit (mango) notes. I associated some of this aroma and flavor with lucuma, a Peruvian/South American fruit, aka egg fruit, that also contributes a thick, creamy texture.** Unfortunately, like cacao fruit, it doesn't travel well, so most of us in the U.S. have only experienced lucuma in powdered or, more rarely frozen, form.

Maca and coconut sugar added rich, subtle sweetness to this bar and vanilla added an upbeat, slightly floral sweetness of its own.

Beware, this creamy, silky little number with lovely chocolate and spiced cookie flavor highlights went down very easily, and quickly. Poof! And it was gone.

*Congratulations to Choquiero Chocolate on the opening of their new store in Nevada City, CA, near Grass Valley.

**Some have described lucuma fruit as a green-skinned, round, golden-orange relatively sweet avocado (with a pit in the middle) with the texture of a slightly starchy fruit + a cooked sweet potato.

Jouvay Chocolate - Granada Cocoa Farmers' Coop - Jouvay 60% Cocoa with Nutmeg (bar) - July 2, 2019

Chocolate of the Day: 

Jouvay Chocolate
Grenada Cocoa Farmers' Coop - Jouvay 60% Cocoa - touch of Nutmeg (bar)
Good +
Weight: 1.5 oz. (42.5 g.) / 3 oz. (85 g.) in total bar
Calories: 210 calories in 1/2 bar
Cost: $ missing information
Purchased from: missing information


Welcome to Day #2 of Chocolate and Island Nations Theme Week.

Today's Jouvay Chocolate 60% Cocoa (with a) Touch of Nutmeg bar was made with cacao from the Grenada Cocoa Farmers' Coop (Grenada, West Indies). Grenada is a lush tropical island in the Caribbean Sea known for its cacao and spices.

Jouvay Chocolate is a partnership between Grenada cacao farmers and LA Burdick Grenada. The company is majority-owned by the cacao growers who are also involved in the manufacturing process, doing "value-added processing" (several steps further than the fermentation of beans) in-country, where the beans are grown—vs. shipping cacao beans to other countries (U.S., Europe, Australia, etc.) for chocolate making, as is often the case.

The base chocolate in this four-ingredient** bar was sweet and pure. However, it was difficult not to be swept away by the presence of nutmeg, which made itself known in the aroma and flavor.

Nutmeg

This bar had a sustained spike of nutmeg* flavor throughout. Like vanilla, saffron, and many other flowers and "baking" spices, there is a happy warmth that comes with tasting nutmeg—an uplifting spice with a faint hint of aromatic peppercorn. (If you've never tried grating fresh nutmeg into a beverage or dish, I highly recommend trying this.)

*Nutmeg (Myristica fragrans) is a ground or grated spice from a seed of an evergreen tree, that originated in the Moluccas (Banda), or Spice Islands, in Indonesia. The British removed nutmeg trees from Indonesia and spread them to British colonies with similar climates in the early 1800s. Today, nutmeg is widely cultivated in Indonesia, Malaysia, India, Sri Lanka, and in the West Indies (especially in Grenada).

**Ingredients: cacao beans, cane sugar, cocoa butter, nutmeg.

Bearded Brothers - Mega Maca Chocolate bar - June 27, 2019

Chocolate of the Day: 

Bearded Brothers LLC
Mega Maca Chocolate bar
Good - Good +
Weight: 1.519 oz. (43 g.) in total bar
Calories: 180 calories in 1 bar
Cost: $3.00 for 1 bar
Purchased from: REI, Mountain View, CA

Welcome to Day #8 of Chocolate and Cashews Theme Week, and Day #3 of chocolate and Peru Superfoods Theme Week.

Today's Mega Maca Chocolate bar was from Bearded Brothers LLC (Austin, TX). The company's line of bars appear to be designed for outdoor adventurers who might want a quick boost of natural and convenient energy on the trail, on the mountain, or on the go in general.

This Organic, compressed date and nut (cashews, almonds) bar also contained maca powder, cacao nibs, Mexican cocoa, cinnamon, vanilla, chia seeds, coconut sugar and sea salt. The cacao flavors were very subtle.

Maca
Maca, a plant growing at high altitudes in Peru, is prized for its root that looks a bit like a beet or a radish. (Botanically speaking, it's in the mustard family.) It is rich in Vitamin C, carbohydrates, copper and other vitamins and minerals. It's also said to boost energy and sexual vitality, and to convey a host of other benefits that I can't corroborate. Additional studies are likely underway as I write this in 2019.

Maca root powder (the form we see it in) has been described as having an earthy, nutty flavor.

While color is not typically listed on ingredient lists or labels, maca root (like potatoes, carrots, radishes and other root vegetables), comes in different colors: including yellow, white, red and black, and the yellow or white powder (hard to tell in this form) seems to be common in stores in the Western U.S. It's not clear whether these varieties also have different superfood qualities or nutrient levels.

Fine and Raw Chocolate - Cashew Butter 54% bar - June 25, 2019

Chocolate of the Day:

Fine and Raw Chocolate
Cashew Butter 54% bar
Good +
Weight: 1 oz. (28 g.) / 2 oz. (56 g.) in total bar
Calories: 140 calories in 1/2 bar
Cost: $11.00 for 1 bar
Purchased from: Chocolate Covered, San Francisco, CA

Welcome to Day #6 of Chocolate and Cashews Theme Week, and Day #1 of Chocolate and Peruvian Superfoods* Theme Week—featuring chocolates that contain two or more of the following items: cacao, maca, lucuma, camu-camu and/or quinoa.

These items generally arrive in North America (and likely Europe and Asia as well) in powdered or partially processed form, and we rarely see the original source vegetable, fruit, nut, seed or plant associated with their respective claimed health benefits. Nonetheless it is interesting to try these exotic plants and botanicals that co-evolved with cacao trees in Central and South America.

Today's Cashew Butter 54% bar was handmade, from bean-to-bar, by Fine and Raw Chocolate / Fine and Raw LLC (Brooklyn, NY), and contained cacao and lucuma. The base chocolate was relatively mild (often the case with unroasted/raw cacao).

Lucuma is a round fruit with green skin and golden flesh that imparts a multi-layered sweet flavor. (Some liken it to a cross between an avocado and a mango, with mild sweet potato, caramel and maple flavor notes.) Like cacao fruit**, it starts to ferment quickly after harvesting, making it difficult to ship to other parts of the world.

This raw, gluten free, and Kosher chocolate was smooth, and had a relatively creamy melt and texture due to organic cashews (butter) and added cacao butter that were both fully blended with the cacao.

It was sweetened with organic coconut sugar and lucuma and was not too sweet, especially unusual for a lower % cacao bar (thank you!). The lucuma did in fact add subtle aroma and flavor notes mentioned above (sweet potato, caramel, maple). Ground vanilla bean added a light, sunny, upbeat floral note.

Ingredients: organic cacao bean(s), organic coconut sugar, organic cashew nut, organic cacao butter, organic ground lucuma, organic whole ground vanilla

*While I inherently dislike the term Superfoods, and believe it is overused, it is difficult to come up with another term that summarizes this category.

**Cacao fruit/pulp is quite delicious but, unless you live in Hawaii, or perhaps south Florida, the odds are if you live in the U.S. or Canada that you've only tasted it in its refreshing, ivory-colored, frozen pulp form that tastes nothing like chocolate.

Keep Healthy Fruitkies - Chocolate Covered Mango bar - June 24, 2019

Chocolate of the Day: 

Keep Healthy Fruitkies
Chocolate Covered Mango bar
Good
Weight: 1.6 oz. (45 g.) in total bar
Calories: 132 calories in 1/2  bar
Cost: $1.99 for 1 bar
Purchased from: Pharmaca Integrative Pharmacy, Menlo Park, CA

Welcome to Day #5 of Chocolate and Cashews Theme Week.

Today's Chocolate Covered Mango bar was made in the U.S. and distributed by Keep Healthy Inc. (Northport, NY).

The bar had a medium-soft chew and contained a relatively light colored, sweet filling (dried mango, cane sugar and citric acid). The chocolate coating yielded a subtle, smooth chocolate flavor.

This bar did not contain cashews. But, to keep the connection with Cashew Theme Week, it was consumed with a handful of cacao nibs and cashews. And, did you know that mangoes are part of the cashew family?*

*Mangoes and cashews are also related to poison oak, poison ivy and poison sumac; so being botanical relatives isn't always what it's cracked up to be.

Fu Wan Chocolate - 36% Rose Lychee Nibs bar - June 4, 2019

Chocolate of the Day: 

Fu Wan Chocolate
36% Rose Lychee Nibs bar
Good ++
Weight: 1.59 oz. (45 g.) in total bar
Calories: 238 calories (estimate) in 1 bar
Cost: $14.00 for 1 bar
Purchased from: Chocolate Covered, San Francisco, CA

Welcome to Day #12 of Chocolate and Flowers Theme Week.

Today's unique 36% Rose Lychee Nibs bar was from Fu Wan Chocolate (Taiwan). This bar had an aroma with dried fruit, dragonfruit herbal tea and floral notes—and an interesting color and texture.

The flavor was full of lychee (what tasted like smoke-dried lychee fruit pieces, with a soft fruity chew) and subtle rose (Pintung organic roses) notes and crunchy cacao nibs. It was a fun and fresh bar to sample.

The chocolate had a slightly speckled or marbled gray-burgandy hue; and it was similar to other high-end white chocolate (albeit less sweet, thank you!) bars made with cacao butter, milk and, instead of cocoa solids, ground coffee or other finely ground seed or nut substitute (used to replace or add to the darker cacao solids).

Not to say these "white" bars aren't interesting. Some are quite tasty in a novel way.*

Due to its rather unique composition, it had a rapid, almost waxy, but not unpleasant, soft melt. To be clear, it also had real cacao nibs (pieces of cacao bean) sprinkled across the back of the bar, so it did contain cacao solids. (Otherwise it would not be featured here on Chocolate Banquet.)

*We've had bars with cocoa butter and very finely ground coffee beans that were so skillfully executed they could easily have been mistaken for a conventional coffee-flavored dark chocolate bar. We have also tasted other botanically-based white chocolate bars and confections made with a variety of ground seeds and nuts, including: ground Tonka beans (Dipteryx odorata—illegal in the U.S.), Cupuacu seeds (Theobroma grandiflorum), Carob pods (Ceratonia siliqua), Jaquar Cacao or Pataxte (Theobroma bicolor), and even Jackfruit seeds and Kola nuts.