Sahale Snacks - Banana Pecan with Cocoa Nibs & Cinnamon bar - Dec. 13, 2017

Chocolate of the Day: 

Distributed by Sahale Snacks
Banana Pecan with Cocoa Nibs and Cinnamon Bar
Good - Good +
Weight: 1.4 oz. (40 g.) in 1 bar / 5.6 oz. (160 g.) in box of 4 bars
Calories: 200 calories in 1 bar
Cost: $?.?? for 1 box of 4 bars
Purchased from: Grocery Outlet Bargain Market, Palo Alto, CA

Welcome to Day #1 of Chocolate, Fruit and Nuts Theme Week.

Today's box of 4 individually-wrapped Banana Pecan with Cocoa Nibs and Cinnamon Bars were distributed by Sahale Snacks (Seattle, WA).

These bars were natural tasting and well-balanced, with a hint of banana bread and nuts. They had a pleasing chew to them (not too soft or too stiff). They had a rich flavor; the first ingredient listed was cashew butter (dry roasted cashews, date paste, brown rice protein).

Despite the sweet ingredients (bananas, dates) and tapioca syrup, caramelized sugar, they were refreshingly restrained in terms of sweetness. The dark chocolate flavor was supplied by cocoa nibs. Again, not too sweet, but flavorful. Light hints of cinnamon and vanilla gave the bar a slight warmth—a nice touch in the cooler months.

The Banana Pecan snack bar contained 5 grams of protein; and it was a satisfying bar for breakfast and as an any-time-of-day snack.

Thanksgiving Chocolate Banquet - Taza, Lake Champlain - Nov. 24, 2016

Chocolate(s) of the Day: 

Taza Chocolate
Maple Pecan 70% Dark Stone Ground Chocolate bar
Good +
Weight: .625 oz. (17.5 g.) / 2.5 oz. (70.7 g.) in total bar
Calories: 105 calories for 1/4 bar
Cost: $5.95 for 1 bar
Purchased from: SweetE Organic, Mill Valley, CA

Happy Thanksgiving to all who celebrate in the U.S. I'm very thankful for family, friends—and another day with new chocolates to try.

Maple Pecan Bar
Today's gluten-free Maple Pecan 70% dark bar from Taza Chocolate (Somerville, MA) was made from organic, direct trade, stone-ground chocolate and it contained maple (organic maple sugar and natural maple flavor) and roasted pecan nut pieces. (The company is also offering Cranberry Pumpkin Spice, Gingerbread and Peppermint Stick bars this holiday season, in addition to its eggnog chocolate disc which is quite good as hot drinking chocolate.)

Chocolate Turkey
I also enjoyed a dark chocolate place-setting turkey and a maple leaf-shaped (gold foil-wrapped) Dark Chocolate 57% Maple Caramel from Lake Champlain Chocolates (Burlington, Vermont).

I'll save the chocolate-covered cranberries for the next few days...I couldn't eat another thing right now.

Sugar and Spice Cookie Plate - Oct. 24, 2016

Chocolate(s) of the Day: 

The Phoenix Pastificio
1.) Best-Ever Macaroons (2) - Very Good
2.) Pecan Chewies (Chocolate) (1) - Good ++ - Very Good
Weight: unknown
Calories: unknown
Cost: $11.50 for 3 cookies
Purchased from: Grand Lake - Oakland Farmers Market, Oakland, CA

Walkers Shortbread
1.) Gluten Free Pure Butter Ginger and Lemon Shortbread (1) - Good++
2.) Gluten Free Pure Butter Chocolate Chip Shortbread (1) - Good++
Weight: 1.09 oz. (31 g.) in 2 cookies
Calories: 160 calories in 2 cookies
Cost: $3.98 (estimate) for 2 boxes of cookies
Purchased from: Grocery Outlet Bargain Market, Palo Alto, CA

Welcome to Day #2 of Chocolate, Sugar and Spice Theme Week. We're celebrating today with a cookie plate.

I like cakes and cookies; however, to avoid sugar overload, I save these sweet baked good items for the holidays. Oh, and look at that. It's almost Halloween; so what are we waiting for.

The Phoenix Pastificio
The first cookies I tasted were macaroons and pecan chewies from The Phoenix Pastificio (Berkeley, CA)—a company that specializes in organic pasta, sauces and baked goods. And a few of their offerings are gluten free.

However, these were not delicate, pastel-colored, filled French macaron rounds. Nor were they cloyingly sweet coconut macaroons.

The Phoenix Pastificio's "Best-Ever Macaroons" (regular and chocolate) were decadent and delicious. A "bitter" almond paste center (that maintained a moist, sweet almond brownie-like texture) was surrounded by a firmer, attractive extruded pastry shape. And the whole cookie was dusted with a liberal amount of powdered sugar.

The company's flourless chocolate Pecan Chewy had a meringue-like lightness, and yet maintained a satisfying, chewy chocolate texture with a hint of pecan nut flavor). The Phoenix Pastificio cookies held up commendably well, given that they'd spent some time in my refrigerator since my trip to Oakland where I bought them.

Walkers Gluten Free Shortbread
Walkers* (Aberlour-on-Spey, UK/Scotland) has been producing shortbread and biscuits (cookies) for decades. I was delighted when they started offering gluten-free versions of their rich, buttery shortbread rounds, a few years ago.

No doubt, the shortbread is the star. However, tiny bursts of chocolate in the Chocolate Chip version gave these rich cookies a little extra flavor oomph. And the Ginger and Lemon Shortbread cookie was also nice. Ginger is always a welcome, warming holiday spice, and a sparkle of lemon added additional flavor.

A five cookie-plate was fun, but too much sugar for one day. (Hey, I said I was gluten free. I didn't say I was glutton free.)

*Founded in 1898 by Joseph Walker, not only is Walkers well-known, but (according to one source I found) they're also Scotland's largest exporter of food items.