Good Hope Bakery - Gluten-Free, Dairy-Free Chocolate Brownie - Apr. 10, 2024

Chocolate of the Day

Good Hope Bakery
Gluten-Free, Dairy-Free Chocolate Brownie
Good ++
Weight: 2.89 oz. (82 g.) in 1 brownie
Calories: 330 calories in 1 brownie
Cost: N/A - sample provided. ($4.00 for 1 brownie)*
Purchased from: N/A - sample from Gluten-Free Good Hope Bakery

Welcome to Day #1 of a Baked Goods With Chocolate Series.

Today's Gluten Free and Dairy Free Chocolate Brownie was from Good Hope Bakery (Springvale, UT).

The company specializes in gluten free cookies, brownies and other treats, that are made in a dedicated gluten-free facility. Their offerings can be ordered online and shipped nationwide (anywhere in the U.S.). (The individually-wrapped brownies were well-sealed.)

Aroma notes for today's individually-wrapped chocolate brownie included: chocolate-y (brownie); very faint vanilla; and other delicate wafts of other baked goods (freshly baked chocolate chip cookie; very faint, fig (cookie) and chocolate souffle).

Texture: An appealing blend of a relatively light, cake-like brownie interspersed with firmer, chocolate-y chips/pieces with a rich melt. This hearty brownie landed squarely in the "Goldilocks" zone for me: not too gooey, not too dry. Just right.

Flavor notes included: chocolate-y (brownie), chocolate chips, and faint cocoa with vanilla accented with a pinch of salt that helped balance the sweetness. It was made with oat flour; there was no "oat-y" taste (a good thing in my book when it comes to certain chocolate items.)

Each generously-sized brownie contained 6 grams of protein; and 50 grams of carbohydrates. I ate this brownie with some California walnuts and almonds, and plenty of water, before a hike outdoors; and it provided satisfying taste (and fuel) for the day.

Ingredients: Granulated Sugar, Certified Gluten Free Oat Flour, Dairy Free Chocolate Chips, Eggs, Canola Oil, Cocoa, Water, Vanilla Extract, Salt, Baking Powder.

Allergen-related information:  Contains Egg. Gluten Free (Made in a dedicated gluten-free facility.) Dairy Free. 

*Pricing for multi-packs is also available. Five-brownie packs are currently $18.50 and packages of 10 are $35.00. Check with Good Hope Bakery/website for most up-to-date information. At the time of this writing, the company provided both online order and pickup options.

Kind Cereal - Dark Chocolate Almond cereal - Mar. 26, 2021

Chocolate of the Day

Kind LLC

Dark Chocolate Almond (cereal)

Good +

Weight: 1.94 oz. (55 g.) / 15 oz. (425 g.) in total box

Calories: 240 calories in 1 serving (2/3 cup)

Cost: $6.98 (estimate) for 1 box

Purchased from: Walmart, Mountain View, CA 

Welcome to Day #5 of Chocolate and NOPQ Theme Week, where we're featuring chocolate items that have flavor inclusions and origins with letters that start with N, O, P and/or Q. Today's cereal with chocolate also contained oats and quinoa.

Today's Dark Chocolate Almond cereal was from Kind LLC (New York City, NY).

This primarily flake-based cereal contained a blend of almonds, cocoa, oats, sorghum, quinoa and amaranth. The golden brown flakes appeared to have a very light cocoa powder coating, giving it a slightly richer color, that was accented with tiny, darker chocolate squares. 

The cereal flakes had a hearty texture and crunch, a slightly nutty cereal flavor, and were not too thick or thin. And the dark, semi-sweet chocolate pieces offered additional bursts of sweet, rich dark chocolate flavor.

The almonds, quinoa and oats contained a fair amount of protein. This gluten-free cereal contained 6 grams of protein in each 2/3 cup serving. 

Ingredients: "Almonds, oats, sorghum, brown rice, semi-sweet chocolate (sugar, unsweetened chocolate, cocoa butter, soy lecithin, vanilla extract), cane sugar, red rice, canola oil, quinoa, amaranth, cocoa powder, Natural Flavor, sea salt, Vitamin E (mixed tocopherols for freshness)."

Allergen information: "Contains Almonds and soy. May contain tree nuts and sesame seeds."

Nature Valley - Granola Cups - Peanut Butter Chocolate - Feb. 3, 2020

Chocolate of the Day: 

Nature Valley
Granola Cups - Peanut Butter Chocolate
Good +
Weight: 1.35 oz. (38 g.) / 6.75 oz. (191 g.) in total box of 5 pouches
Calories: 190 calories in 1 pouch of two cups
Cost: $3.00 for 1 box of 5 pouches (of two cups or pieces each)
Purchased from: Safeway, Palo Alto, CA

Welcome to Day #7 of Chocolate and Peanuts Theme Week, and Day #4 of Chocolate and Oats Theme Week.

Today's Peanut Butter Chocolate Granola Cups were from Nature Valley—a brand owned by General Mills, based in Minneapolis, MN.

The first Nature Valley granola bars came out way back in 1975, making them a pioneer in this market. And the product lineup expanded into a wider array of products over time that fall under the broad granola bar category, including today's offering that tasted like a sweet cross between a cookie and a bar.

If you're in a mood for an oatmeal cookie, with rich peanut butter and chocolate flavor, you're in for a treat.

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.

Chocolate Tree - Haggis Spice Dark Chocolate (bar) - Oct. 3, 2019

Chocolate of the Day: 

Chocolate Tree
Haggis Spice Dark Chocolate (bar)
Good - Good +
Weight: .875 oz. (25 g.)  / 3.5 oz. (100 g.) in total bar
Calories: 135.5 calories in 1/4  bar
Cost: $11.00 for 1 bar
Purchased from: Chocolate Covered, San Francisco, CA

Greetings and welcome to the first day of Salt and Savory Chocolate Theme Week.

Today's Haggis Spice Dark Chocolate bar hails from Chocolate Tree (Haddington, Scotland).

This bar smelled like a savory stew or porridge, with rosemary, pepper, sea salt and pepper doing their best to convince me this was true. These and other traditional haggis spices* were blended with (gluten free pinhead) oats and organic dark chocolate to create this unique bar.**

The chocolate was a relatively bold, but smooth dark chocolate, which had a relatively smooth melt. However, you'll experience tiny chewy bits of other ingredients embedded in this chocolate, yielding flavor spikes of rosemary and spice, tiny sparkles of sea salt and oats. This blend of salt, savory and sweet was well balanced and fun to try.

*Ingredients: Organic sugar, organic cocoa mass, organic cocoa butter, organic vanilla, gluten free pinhead oats (8%). Haggis spice (2%): organic black pepper, organic rosemary, sea salt, organic coriander seed, organic mace and organic thyme.

**You may have heard that haggis also contains sheep's innards. Fear not. There were no animal parts in today's vegetarian chocolate bar. It contained only the spices and salt used to make this traditional Scottish savory dish.

Copyright 2019. Unauthorized use of the text and/or images from this site, www.ChocolateBanquet.com, is a copyright violation.

Morsey's Creamery - Stracciatella Gelato; Off The Farm - Dark Chocolate Fudge GF Energy Bar - Oct. 1, 2019

Chocolate(s) of the Day:

Morsey's Creamery
Stracciatella Gelato (buffalo milk)
Good +
Weight: unknown - 2 scoop cup + dark chocolate shavings
Calories: unknown
Cost: $7.50 for 1 cup with two scoops
Purchased from: Morsey's Creamery, Palo Alto, CA

Off The Farm Foods, Inc.

Dark Chocolate Fudge Gluten Free Energy Bar

Good +

Weight: 3 oz. (85 g.) in total bar

Calories: 346 calories in 1 bar

Cost: $2.79 for 1 bar

Purchased from: Farm Supply Company, San Luis Obispo, CA

Welcome to Day #6 of Chocolate and Cowboy Country Theme Week, and another double feature day.

Morsey's Creamery - Gelato made from buffalo milk
I visited Morsey's Creamery (Palo Alto) again this evening (see write-up yesterday) to try their Stracciatella gelato (made from buffalo milk), topped with dark chocolate shavings. This was creamy gelato at its best, and not too sweet.

Thanks also to the herd of 400 water buffalo cows up near Sacramento (each with given names I'm told) making this all possible, and to those caring for them.

Off the Farm - Dark Fudge Energy Bar
And, a suitable second chocolate course seemed to be a Dark Chocolate Fudge Gluten Free Energy Bar from Off The Farm Foods, Inc., based in Redding, CA, where they still have cows, cowboys and a rodeo.

Off The Farm has focused on creating minimally processed energy and protein bars. And, this bar did look authentically hand-crafted rather than being compressed and squeezed out on an assembly line, making it more appealing. It looked more like a piece of individually-wrapped chocolate cake, or a brownie with nuts, seeds and oats. It had a soft chewy texture with some heft (nuts, seeds and grains provided 9 grams of protein).

Although with 49 grams of total carbs, I felt slightly less energetic than I thought I might afterwards, and ready to take a nap. This would be a good meal replacement bar, for hungry cowboys, rather than a snack. (I'd tried a similar bar a few years ago.)

Ingredients: Dates, cashews, non-GMO corn fiber, gluten free oats, almonds, apples, chocolate (unsweetened chocolate, processed with potassium carbonate, sugar, coco butter, sunflower lecithin), cocoa powder, sesame seeds, pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds, chia seeds, sunflower oil, Himalayan pink salt.

Copyright 2019. Unauthorized use of the text and/or images from this site, www.ChocolateBanquet.com, is a copyright violation.

barkThins - Dark Chocolate Cherry with Granola Crunch - Apr. 27, 2019

Chocolate of the Day: 

barkTHINS
Dark Chocolate Cherry with Granola Crunch
Good+
Weight: 1.4 oz. (40 g.) / 4.7 oz. (133 g.) in total package
Calories: 180 calories in 1 serving
Cost: $ missing information
Purchased from: missing information

Greetings and welcome to the first day of Chocolate and Cherries Theme Week.

Today's barkTHINS Dark Chocolate Cherry with Granola Crunch was manufactured for Ripple Brand Collective, LLC (New York, NY).

These pieces of bark were a great textural blend of smooth dark chocolate bark, chewy dried cherry pieces, and sweet, crunchy oat granola bits.

Cherry Love
As summer approaches, thoughts turn to cherry orchards that used to grow here in Silicon Valley in Northern California, and childhood memories of fresh cherries in the late spring and summer.

Fresh cherries may not be as locally grown anymore, but we can't wait until they're in stores and farmers markets starting next month (May).

In the meantime, let's enjoy chocolate offerings with cherries (be they Bing, Michigan or other varieties, and whether they're incorporated dried, fresh, frozen, or freeze-dried).

Gracie Jones, Jessica's, Paleonola, Sunfood - Three Granolas - Mar. 27, 2019

Chocolate(s) of the Day:

Gracie Jones Bake Shop
Granola

Good +

Jessica's Natural Foods, LLC
Gluten Free Chocolate Hazelnut Granola
Good +

Paleonola Granola
Chocolate Fix (Grain Free Granola)
Good

Sunfood Super Foods
Raw Organic Chocolate Rice Protein (powder)
OK+ - Good

Welcome to Day #8 of Chocolate and Starches Theme Week—a good day for a Granola fest. It was gray, rainy and sad-looking outside. Time for some upbeat music and bowlfuls of fun.

Today, we're celebrating three gluten-free granolas and one chocolate rice protein beverage. These three granolas each had their own flavor profile. Oats and rice provided our "starches" today.

The Granola from Gracie Jones Bake Shop (Palo Alto, CA) was fruit-forward and beautiful to look at (with golden raisins and red goji berries). It also contained diced/snipped pieces of other fruits (that looked like pears and peaches). It did not contain cacao from what I could tell, but it was too pretty to leave out of this crunchy granola sampler trio.

Chocolate Hazelnut Granola from Jessica's Natural Foods, LLC (Birmingham, MI) was naturally nutty with rich and authentic hazelnut and chocolate flavors. (You could see and taste whole hazelnuts.) Chocolate chips added extra chocolate flavor; and pumpkin seeds gave it some additional soft crunch and pleasant seed flavor.

And, the Chocolate Fix Granola from Paleonola (Pawtucket, RI) was made with a variety of nuts (almonds, pecans, walnuts, hazelnuts), seeds (pumpkin, sunflower, flax) and fruits (cranberries, apple juice). It was grain, soy and dairy free (made without oats or grains). And this honey and fruit-sweetened granola was the most chocolate-forward of the three granolas. Made with chocolate chips and a chocolate cookie like flavor with a faint coconut note.

We also tried some Raw, Organic, Vegan and Gluten-Free Chocolate Rice Protein Powder from Sunfood Super Foods (El Cajon, CA) that we mixed with water, to create a chocolate rice milk beverage to accompany these breakfast granolas.

It had an authentic rice flavor with a subtle and balanced hint of cacao and was high in protein (17 grams of protein per serving). However, don't expect this dairy/whey-free and soy-free powder to taste like the dairy milk you may be used to pouring on cereal.

Ladera Foods - Chocolate Almond Granola - March 23, 2019

Chocolate of the Day:

Ladera Foods
Chocolate Almond Granola
Good+
Weight: 1.06 oz. (30 g.) / 11 oz. (312 g.) in total package
Calories: 130 calories in 1 serving
Cost: $6.99 for 1 package
Purchased from: Safeway, Palo Alto, CA

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

Today's Chocolate Almond Granola was made by Ladera Foods (San Mateo, CA).

It was sweet and chocolate-y, and the oats and almonds helped balance this sweetness out. The maker claims that at 4 grams of sugar (per 1/4 cup serving), the granola contained "40% less (sugar) than leading brands." We believe it. Granolas can be very sweet.*

Note the position of the brown sugar in the ingredients list (below). It's much further down the list. Ingredients: whole grain oats, slivered almonds, maple syrup, olive oil, cocoa powder, brown sugar and salt. It had a light crunchiness and texture, and rich flavor to it.

*Today's granola was based on a family recipe; and their offering is created in the San Francisco Bay Area. Most granola cereals/snacks are oat-based.

When we grew up in the Bay Area, a family we knew had developed their own recipe they developed in 1968 for a three-ingredient granola (oats, butter and brown sugar). 

Their dad lightly stirred these three ingredients together in a frying pan on the stove. Their kitchen smelled like oatmeal cookies. Today's granola is likely healthier without the butter. However, we're also glad our first taste of granola was imbued with good memories from a friend's kitchen, where most granolas were based on homemade recipes as well.

Luna - Peanut Butter Dark Chocolate Chunk (bar) - Mar. 22, 2019

Chocolate of the Day: 

Luna 

Peanut Butter Dark Chocolate Chunk (bar)

Good

Weight: 1.48 oz. (42 g.) bar / box of 6 bars

Calories: 180 calories in 1 bar

Cost: $3.49 for 1 box of 6 bars

Purchased from: Grocery Outlet Bargain Market, Palo Alto, CA

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

Oats are a popular starch and cereal grain, often combined with chocolate chips or chunks, in cookies, granolas, cereals and oatmeal cereals. 

They're also a popular (non-wheat) inclusion in energy, nutrition and cereal bars, such as today's Luna Peanut Butter Dark Chocolate Chunk bar distributed by Clif Bar and Company (Emeryville, CA). 

Oats* can add a bit of substantial cereal oomph and texture/fiber to a bar and, to some extent, can help balance sweetness (if extra sugar isn't added to compensate for this muffling effect). Speaking of sugar this bar was labeled as "low glycemic" (19 grams carbohydrates and 5 grams of sugar).

This bar had mild peanut butter flavor. And small chocolate chunks adhered to one side of the bar, gave it a hint of rich chocolate flavor.

*The first ingredient listed was a Protein Grain Blend (soy protein isolate, organic rolled oats, organic rice flour). This gluten-free bar contained 7 grams of protein.

Van's - Chocolate Chip Snack Bars, Waffles - July 27, 2018

Chocolate of the Day: 

Van's 

Chocolate Chip chewy baked whole grain snack bars

Good

Weight: 1.2 oz. (35 g.) in one bar

Calories: 150 calories in 1 bar

Cost: $ part of a larger box

Purchased from: missing information 

Welcome to Day #6 of Chocolate Chip Week.

Today's Chocolate Chip chewy baked whole grain snack bar from Van's International Foods (Vernon, CA) helped power a nature walk in the baylands and a busy day at work.

Van's has offered both conventional and gluten free items (including waffles, pancakes and snack bars—some with chocolate) for many years.
  
Today's sweet, cookie-like bar was a blend of warm oat, fig and chocolate flavors with a hint of vanilla. The fig paste and concentrate added flavor and helped bind the ingredients together.

Map Chocolate Co. - "Favorite Flannel Shirt" Pumpkin Babka Caraway Seeds bar - April 21, 2018

Chocolate of the Day: 

Map Chocolate Co.

Favorite Flannel Shirt pumpkin babka with caraway seeds bar

Good - Good +

Weight: 1.25 oz. (35 g.) / 2.5 oz. (70 g.) in total bar

Calories: 187 calories in 1/2 bar

Cost: $12.00 for 1 bar

Purchased from: Chocolate Covered, San Francisco, CA

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

Today's "Favorite Flannel Shirt" pumpkin babka with caraway seeds bar was from Map Chocolate Co. (Eugene, OR).

The bar's packaging unfolded a bit like a Russian nested doll. Underneath the brown paper outer wrapping was a beautifully illustrated, botanically-themed wrapper. And at the center, was a square chocolate bar, imprinted with an intricate, mandala-like pattern. The flip side was dusted with a tiny riot of pumpkin and caraway seeds, spices, sugar and oat particles.

This bar had a pleasant, faint intriguing aroma that was tough to pin down (dried plum, dessert, light spice with a comfortable top and bass notes). The aroma did have a comforting/comfortable quality, thus the possible connection with "Favorite Flannel Shirt" and "babka" in the name.

A babka typically might contain yeast dough/gluten, but it seemed that organic oats* were used instead to simulate the grain component here.

The base chocolate had relatively bold, dark flavor with a touch of citrus acidity, and bar had a lingering, even finish.

*Ingredients: "cacao beans, organic cane sugar, cocoa butter, organic pumpkin, organic oats, organic spices, caraway, maple syrup, olive oil, organic brown sugar"

Allergy information: Soy free; may contain nuts and/or dairy due to shared equipment.

Pirate Brands - Chocolate Granola Fruit Coins - Feb. 16, 2018

Chocolate of the Day: 

Pirate Brands, LLC

Chocolate Granola Fruit Coins

Good 

Weight: .8 oz. (23 g.) / 4 oz. (115 g.) in total box of 5 bags

Calories: 80 calories in 1 bag 

Cost: $1.99 for 1 box of 5 bags

Purchased from: Grocery Outlet Bargain Market, Palo Alto, CA 

Welcome to Day #2 of Chocolate, Enchanted Islands and Pirates Theme Week.

These pirate-themed Chocolate Granola Fruit Coins—made in Canada and distributed by Pirate Brands, LLC (Parsippany, NJ)—were small compressed disks made of dates, raisins, oats, chocolate chips, dried coconut and quinoa. Each coin had a denomination (number) stamped on it. (Date doubloons?)

"Thar be chewy!" the pirate on the label advised. Aye, indeed they were, in a good way. The oats and quinoa helped give these snack pieces shape, and balanced out the sweetness from the dates and raisins. And the chocolate chips lent a rich flavor that tied together fruit and grain ingredients.

These fruit granola snack pieces contained "no artificial colors, preservatives or flavorings."

Kind LLC - Dark Chocolate Sea Salt Popped Snack Bites - Dec. 7, 2017

Chocolate of the Day: 

Kind LLC
Dark Chocolate with Sea Salt - Popped Snack Bites
Good
Weight: 1 cup (60 g.) / 6.5 oz. (184 g.) in total package
Calories: 220 calories in 2 servings
Cost: $2.99 for 1 package
Purchased from: Grocery Outlet Bargain Market, Palo Alto, CA

Welcome to Day #3 of Chocolate Snacks Theme Week.

Today's Dark Chocolate with Sea Salt Popped Snack Bites were from Kind LLC (New York, NY).  This was a lighter, more thoughtful snack than most.

Whole grain snacks often have a heavier feel to them. However, the crunchy, whole grain snack morsels (bites) in this mix contained popped corn and sorghum; and other ingredients were applied with an equally deft touch resulting in an airier taste and feel.

The hybrid bites were considerably lighter than other oat-based granola snack mixes, and other coated popcorn snacks—often swimming in sugar and salt.

This whole grain (oats, brown rice, sorghum, amaranth, millet, quinoa and buckwheat + popcorn) blend did contain tapioca syrup and smidges of molasses and brown rice syrup, but didn't taste that sweet. (Thank you.) Similarly, the sodium (sea salt) level was a kindly 55 mg. per serving.

What about the chocolate? Semi-sweet chocolate (sugar, chocolate liquor, cocoa butter, soy lecithin, vanilla extract) was the fifth ingredient listed, but contributed some rich, flavor depth that helped tie together all those grains.