Remedy Organics - Cacao Essentials 14 g. Protein (beverage) - Sept. 23, 2021

Chocolate of the Day

Remedy Organics

Cacao Essentials 14 G. Protein (beverage)

Good - Good +

Weight: 12 fl. oz. (355 mL) in 1 bottle

Calories: 200 calories in 1 bottle

Cost: $4.32 for 1 bottle

Purchased from: CVS Pharmacy, Palo Alto, CA

Welcome to Day #7 of Chocolate Breakfast Theme Week.

Today's Cacao Essentials "protein-based wellness shake" was from Remedy Organics (Englewood Cliffs, NJ); and it was a great way to start the day. It was relatively light but with a rich natural taste. And it contained enough protein to stave off hunger until lunch.

Aroma notes for this vegan beverage with 14 grams of protein included plant (nut and seed, fresh green peas) and chocolate (pudding, custard).

The texture was relatively smooth (almost velvety) for a high-protein beverage. Protein drinks often have a grainy taste or mouthfeel. There was a very slight granular, astringency in the finish, but it was not bothersome.

The flavors tasted fresh and authentic, and similar to the aroma, with plant (nut and seed) and chocolate pudding notes. 

This offering (and other Remedy shakes and shots), developed by holistic nutritionist Cindy Kasindorf,  exemplify changes in public preferences and how protein "health" bars and beverages have evolved in the last few decades. 

Today's organic protein drink was made without refined sugar, gluten, dairy or artificial colors or ingredients. It was 100% plant-based (vegan). (It did contain vegetable gums, which are used as thickeners and stabilizers.) And it wasn't too sweet (thank you).

Ingredients: Organic almond milk (water, organic almonds), organic pea protein, organic coconut sugar, organic cocoa powder, organic hemp seeds, organic dates, organic natural flavor, organic acacia fiber, organic cinnamon, organic sunflower lecithin, vitamin blend (calcium derived from seaweed, vitamin A, vitamin D2), gellan gum, organic maca, organic ashwagandha, guar gum, sea salt, organic stevia powder, organic prebiotic fiber (derived from tapioca).

Allergen-related information: "Contains tree nuts." (Made without gluten or dairy ingredients.)

Red Plate Foods - Dark Chocolate Granola - Sept. 18, 2021

Chocolate of the Day

Red Plate Foods
Dark Chocolate Granola
Good +
Weight: 1/4 cup (28 g.) / 11 oz (311 g.) in total package
Calories: 110 calories in 1 serving
Cost: $4.99 for 1 package
Purchased from: Sprouts Farmers Market, Mountain View, CA 

Welcome to Day #2 of Chocolate and Breakfast Surprise Theme Week. 

Today's Dark Chocolate Granola was made by Red Plate Foods (Bend, OR). 

The company creates foods free of common allergens (gluten, dairy, peanut, tree nuts, soy, egg), and vegan offerings.

This granola had a satisfying, authentic chocolate and oaty aroma, taste and chew with a mild crunch in the texture, punctuated by bites of creamy dark chocolate chips. 

This breakfast (or anytime) cereal and snack was not overly sugared (thank you!). It was sweetened with a judicious amount of molasses, maple syrup and monk fruit. And a faint hint of vanilla added a bit of baked goods warmth often associated with chocolate cake or cookies.

Ingredients: "gluten-free oats, applesauce, Non-GMO canola oil, cane sugar (vegan), organic cocoa, chocolate chips (cane sugar (vegan), cocoa liquor, cocoa butter, vanilla), molasses, pure maple syrup, sea salt, monk fruit.

Allergen-related information: "Gluten free." "Manufactured in a facility free of gluten/wheat, dairy, egg, soy, tree nut, peanuts, fish, shellfish, sesame, celery and mustard."

Chamisa Chocolate - Oat Milk Maca Breakfast Bar - Jan. 24, 2021

Chocolate of the Day

Chamisa Chocolate
Oat Milk and Maca Breakfast Bar
Good ++
Weight: 2 oz. (60 g.) in total bar
Calories: 310 calories (estimate) in 1 bar
Cost: $N/A for 1 bar
Purchased from: N/A - sample from Chamisa Chocolate - thank you

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

Today's Oat Milk and Maca Breakfast Bar was crafted by Amanda Hatherly at Chamisa Chocolate (Santa Fe, NM), a micro-batch chocolate maker.

I sometimes eat oatmeal for breakfast; but, today's Chamisa prototype Breakfast Bar was a delicious, elevated chocolate + oat a.m. entree. (For the broad-minded, this bar would also be perfectly enjoyable as a lunch/picnic/hike or dinner dessert.)

This Breakfast Bar had a rich, oaty aroma, from oat milk and a sprinkling (and incorporation) of whole oat pieces, and layers of flavor from whole raisins, pumpkin seeds and pieces of almond. It was sweet without being overly so (thank you!). 

Maca* root (powder) provided light sweetness, along with faint earthy and nutty notes.

Ingredients: cocoa beans, cocoa butter, oat milk, organic sugar, raisins, maca, pumpkin seeds, almonds. (Guess: Maybe a tiny dash of cinnamon?)

*Maca (Lepidium meyenii) root resembles a large, tuberous radish; and it has become a popular health food and flavor inclusion in recent years. Usually found in powdered form, this edible plant's origins are in the highlands of Peru/South America. It has been harvested there by native Peruvians for millennia, and used as a medicinal plant. (Maca has also been called "Peruvian ginseng.") 

Maca aroma and flavor observations range from butterscotch, caramel and malt to earthy and nutty.

Post Consumer Brands, LLC - Mom's Cocoa Marshmallow Safari - Mar. 5, 2017

Chocolate of the Day: 

Post Consumer Brands, LLC
Mom's Best Cereals
Cocoa Marshmallow Safari
Good - Good+
Weight: .53 oz. (15 g.) / 14 oz. (396 g.) in total box
Calories: 60 calories in 1/2 serving
Cost: $1.49 for 1 box of cereal
Purchased from: Grocery Outlet Bargain Market, Palo Alto, CA

Welcome to Day #3 of Chocolate Breakfast Cereal Week.

Get out your machete (and a spoon). We're headed deep into the sugared cereal jungle for the next few days.

Today's gluten-free Cocoa Marshmallow Safari cereal from Mom's Best Cereals, Post Consumer Brands, LLC (Lakeville, MN ) was made of "...sweetened corn puff cereal with real cocoa and marshmallows."

This reasonably-priced cereal was made without synthetic colors or flavors, hydrogenated oils or high-fructose corn syrup*.

And, I liked it. It delivered on its promise; and though it was sweet, in small quantities—I had a bit less than 1/2 cup (1/2 serving)—it was just fine. The marshmallows and cereal were relatively light in texture. Yet the cereal was satisfying with a pleasant cocoa taste.

And it was gluten free. I'm repeating myself here, because those who really need to avoid gluten find it tough to eat a standard American breakfast with cereal, toast, pancakes or waffles. It's nice not to have to worry about a gluten exposure that may slow you down later.

*Cocoa Marshmallow Safari cereal does contain corn syrup, but not high-fructose corn syrup. We're making progress.

Open Nature - Dark Chocolate Hazelnut Heaven - Mar. 4, 2017

Chocolate of the Day: 

Open Nature
Dark Chocolate Hazelnut Heaven
Good
Weight: 2.12 oz. (60 g.) / 12 oz. (340 g.) total package
Calories: 260 calories in 2 servings (1/2 cup)
Cost: $ missing information
Purchased from: Safeway (missing location information)


Welcome to the second day (Day #2) of Chocolate Breakfast Cereal Week.

There are many ways to enjoy a chocolate breakfast; and granola with chocolate and nuts is certainly a category worth exploring.

Oat-based/muesli cereals were staples for centuries in Europe. Cacao beans from the Americas were first brought to Europe by the Spanish in the early 1500s, and gradually spread to other countries, primarily as drinking chocolate.

Oat cereals and chocolate eventually became available in merged form by the 1800s in Europe and elsewhere. In some cases, early commercial chocolate was diluted with cereal grains, starches or flours. Although I'm sure Europeans with access to hot chocolate might have poured some into their oat cereals earlier than the 1800s. (I think I would have.)

The Maya and Aztec peoples mixed cacao with corn/maize and cereal grains in Central and South America for centuries before Europeans arrived.

Today's Open Nature Dark Chocolate Hazelnut Heaven granola distributed by Lucerne Foods, Inc.* (Pleasanton, CA) was crunchy and surprisingly light in mouthfeel and texture. It was sweet, but slightly less so than other prepared granola cereals (thank you).

When it came to the inclusions, dark chocolate (chips) and hazelnut bits, these were also on the light side, that is they were very subtle accent flavors and not the main attraction. However, it's easy to add a few toasted hazelnuts (I did) or some dark chocolate shavings/chips (I did not) to amp up these flavors if desired.

Note: While no wheat ingredients were listed, it was not advertised as a gluten free cereal. And, as I found out later, it did contain barley malt syrup.

*Lucerne Foods, Inc. operates as a subsidiary of Safeway.

Van's - Double Chocolate granola clusters - Mar. 3, 2017

Chocolate of the Day: 

Van's International Foods
Double Chocolate soft baked whole grain granola clusters
Good
Weight: 2.12 oz. (60 g.) / 11 oz. (311 g.) total package
Calories: 240 calories in 2 servings
Cost: $3.99 for 1 package
Purchased from: Safeway, Palo Alto, CA

Good morning and welcome to Day #1 of Chocolate and Breakfast Cereal Week.

For a gluten-free person, breakfast cereals present a challenge. Happily, there are many more gluten free cereals on the market now, including several with chocolate.

I don't eat cereal often. We'll see if I can do so for a whole week without feeling over-sugared.

Today's Double Chocolate soft baked whole grain granola clusters from Van's International Foods (Phoenix, AZ) delivered on their promise.

Their chocolately granola was formed into pliable clumps vs. crispy chunks, with a texture more similar to a whole grain cookie bar. This recipe did not scrimp on the chocolate content. The granola clusters contained both chocolate chips with cocoa butter and cocoa powder.

My human and squirrel testers also approved of this ebony-hued, double chocolate granola, thanks in part to the bits of almonds, pecans and walnuts they contained.

The dense clusters of nuts, oats and a light touch of salt helped prevent runaway sweetness. The bowl of two servings (2/3 cup) I had with milk was a bit sweet, but also quite filling and satisfying.

Van's* has been making gluten-free waffles, blueberry waffles, and pancakes for many years. They were some of the earliest gluten-free offerings I found in local grocery stores in the early 1990s.

*Van's International Foods operates as a subsidiary of Tyson Foods, Inc. This particular granola was manufactured for Van's in a facility in Vernon, CA.

Mighty Leaf Tea - Chocolate Mint Truffle - Oct. 21, 2015

Chocolate of the Day: 

Mighty Leaf Tea Company
Chocolate Mint Truffle
Good
Weight: .106 oz. in 1 pouch (tea bag)
Calories: 0 calories (estimate) in 1 bag
Cost: $2.75 (estimate) for 1 cup of hot tea
Purchased from: Shoreline Lake American Bistro, Mountain View, CA

Today was Day #6 of Chocolate and The Great Outdoors Theme Week.

Early this morning, I drove across town to The Great Outdoors. I visited Shoreline Park (in Mountain View, CA) that had hiking trails and a lakeside bistro*.

Dew glistened on the pumpkins that were set up for Halloween. I sipped a cup of steaming hot tea, and the sun levitated upward in the blue sky.

The Chocolate Mint Truffle tea was from Mighty Leaf Tea Company (San Rafael, CA); and each "pouch" or tea bag contained cacao nibs, mint leaves and rooibos tea.

Absorbing warm autumn sunshine and scenery was a beautiful way to start the day. And after the sun warmed things up, it was time for chocolate-covered ice cream bars. That's the thing about The Great Outdoors, you have to adjust to the weather.

*The Shoreline Lake American Bistro will pack picnic baskets for customers to enjoy in the park, or paddleboating, too. What a great idea. Lunch and chocolate al fresco.

The content and images on this post belong to ChocolateBanquet.com.

Chocolate of the Day:

Straus Family Creamery
Coffee ice cream
Weight: 1/2 cup (91 g.) / 1 Pint (473 mL) total container
Calories: 240 calories in 1/2 cup serving
Cost: $3.50 for 1 Pint
Purchased from: Country Sun Natural Foods, Palo Alto, CA

Some people like fresh coffee on their breakfast tray*. On a sunny day like today, a cup of Coffee ice cream (with a hint of cocoa powder included) hit the spot. Pot of coffee, pint of ice cream...whatever floats your breakfast boat. A little of both is good.

And life is good with organic, gluten free ice creams from Straus Family Creamery. At 240 calories per rich and creamy serving, no one will confuse this Coffee ice cream with non-fat frozen yogurt, but sometimes a little healthy butterfat is very satisfying. Thank you to the cow on the label and to all the cows who made the milk and cream for this ice cream.

Today was Day #3 of Chocolate Cow Theme Week.

*OK, I admit it, I use a breakfast tray a few times a year -- less frequently than I eat over the sink. But, the term breakfast tray does conjure up a nice leisurely lifestyle, doesn't it?

ChocolateBet: October 14, 2008

Chocolate of the Day:

1 piece (bon bon)
South 'n France
Pistachio
Very Good - sweet, but nice; gluten-free
Weight: ~ 1 oz. (estimate)
Calories: 150 calories (estimate)
Cost: $0
Purchased/Sent from: South 'n France (www.southnfrance.com), in Wilmington, North Carolina

I packed this bon bon in my briefcase to accompany me on a business trip this week. It survived the flight across country relatively intact, and I continued my chocolate-before-breakfast routine this week in keeping with a full schedule. Sleep doesn't really matter when you have chocolate bon bons by your side, right?