ChocolateBet: October 24, 2007

Chocolate of the Day:

Vosges Haut Chocolat
Gianduja Bar ("exotic candy bar" line)
Good - Very Good
Weight: 32 grams/85 grams total
Calories: 190 for 1 serving
Cost: $6.95 (estimate)
Purchased from: Whole Foods, Los Altos, CA

This Gianduja "exotic candy bar" from Vosges Haut Chocolat (Chicago, IL) was made of almonds, caramelized hazelnuts, and deep milk (41% cacao) chocolate.

As described on the bar's packaging, first almonds and hazelnuts were caramelized with sugar, then ground into a thick paste, and blended into milk chocolate.

ChocolateBet: October 23, 2007

Chocolate of the Day:
1 serving/scoop
Safeway Select (light ice cream)
Caramel Caribou "Denali" light ice cream
Good - Very Good for light ice cream
Wt: ~ 1/2 cup or 62 grams
Calories: 120 calories/serving
Cost: ~ $3.00 for whole container (on sale - two for $5.99)
Purchased from: Safeway supermarket in Palo Alto, CA

ChocolateBet: October 22, 2007

Chocolate of the Day:

1 bar
Vosges
Mo's Bacon Bar
Very Good - Yum
Weight: 3.0 oz. (85 grams) in 1 bar
Calories: 425 calories (estimate) for whole bar (according to label)
Cost: ?
Purchased from: Whole Foods, in Los Altos, CA

This Mo's Bacon Bar from Vosges (Chicago, IL) is a bar that most people will probably either love or hate. Count me in the former camp.

What is a Mo's Bacon Bar? The packaging described the gluten free, savory milk chocolate bar by listing the ingredients (a combination of) "applewood smoked bacon, Alder wood smoked salt, (and) 'deep' milk chocolate."

Creator, Katrina Markoff explains, on the back of the package, that her interest in experimenting with chocolate + bacon dates back to age 6, when she remembers eating chocolate chip pancakes with syrup, and bacon.

The bacon pieces I tasted in this Mo's bar were just the right texture; they were still crunchy and they harmonized almost perfectly with the deep milk (41% cacao) chocolate that encased them.

ChocolateBet: October 21, 2007

Chocolate of the Day:
1 pop
Tootsie Roll Industries
Tootsie Roll Pop - Chocolate
Good; enjoyed nostalgic value (and biting into the center)
Wt: 0.6 oz./17 grams
Cost: free
Obtained from: Candlewood Suites, South Austin, TX

For all of us of a certain age... Yes, I think I can still remember the Tootsie Pop TV commercials I watched when I was a kid. I remember a wise cartoon owl character admonishing us to try not to bite into the chocolate tootsie pop center. You were supposed to be patient and lick the candy shell off instead. But, people had trouble being patient. And people would inevitably bite into the thing after only 3 or 4 licks, as I recall. Several baby boomer authors have written with humor and nostalgia about our candy-coated culture, and a few fondly reference TV commercials in the 1950s - 1970s. The book that I've read that seems most directly tied to this theme is Steve Almond's "Candy Freak." I also just bought a copy of the life and times of the Thunderbolt Kid by Bill Bryson - which I will read looking for chocolate memories (and the commercials that sold us these memories) as well. I'll look forward to reading a few more of these books in between new chocolate search expeditions.

ChocolateBet: October 20, 2007

Chocolate of the Day:

1 scoop
Amy's Ice Creams
"On Any (Given) Sundae" ice cream
Good+
Weight: 4.5 oz. (estimate) total
Calories: 290 calories (estimate)
Cost: $ 2.98
Purchased from: Amy's Ice Creams, Austin, Texas (Austin-Bergstrom Airport)

Well, you have to try the BBQ when you're in Texas, right? I'm not a big meat eater anymore; but I do enjoy at least one barbeque item when I'm in Austin or San Antonio.

Unfortunately, I was too full of BBQ from the Salt Lick (near Amy's Ice Creams) in the Austin, TX, airport, to completely finish this cup of ice cream (very unusual for me).

ChocolateBet: October 19, 2007

Chocolate of the Day:

Chocolove
Chilies and Cherries in Dark Chocolate bar
Very Good
Weight:  1.066 oz. (30 g.) in 1/3 bar / 3.2 oz. (90 grams) total bar
Calories: 151 calories for 1/3 bar
Cost: $3.99
Purchased from: Z. Cioccolatos, North Beach, San Francisco, CA

I brought this Chocolove bar with me on my business trip to Texas this week -- in case I didn't have time to search for new chocolates. I thought this chocolate with (ancho and chipotle) chili peppers in it might be a good thematic choice given that I'd be in Texas.

The bar was made of good, quality dark (55% cocoa content) chocolate; and it could have passed for a higher percentage than this. I really liked the fact that I could taste the cherries and the chilies in this well-balanced bar.

The "free" love poem inside the wrapper was clever.

This subject of this passionate poem reminded me to go back and rent/watch two movies: "Chocolat" with Johnny Depp and Juliette Binoche; and also "Como Agua Para Chocolate" (aka Like Water for Chocolate). Both are good films for lovers of chocolate, chilies, and love poems.

ChocolateBet: October 18, 2007

Chocolate of the Day:

1/2 bar
Redstone's
Jalapeno Bar (with Peanuts)
Very Good
Weight: 1.5 oz. / 3 oz. total bar
Calories: 220 for 1.5 oz. serving (1/2 bar)
Cost: $4.75
Purchased from: The Texas Store ("Everything in Texas is Bigger"); Austin, TX

This Redstone's Jalapeno milk chocolate bar with salted peanuts was very good. The milk chocolate was good; the salted peanuts added some crunchy texture and helped balance sweet and savory flavors; and the jalapeno pepper gave the bar a bit of a zing.

I'm still in Texas on business. In between meetings and marathon email bouts, I'm eating chocolate (brought from home). I have found some local (Texas) fare. For example, I stopped at Rudy's Barbeque in San Antonio, TX, before driving back to the hotel. The day was sunny and warm, and perfect for eating BBQ outside on a wooden table and bench. Soaked up as many photons as possible.

I happened to read an article in the local paper when I was in the hotel waiting for my computer to boot up - about chocolate and pets. This got me thinking...I need to research this whole topic of chocolate's toxicity as it applies to some of our furry and feathered friends. Stories seem to vary in terms of how toxic chocolate is, in part because it depends on the size/weight of the dog, and the type (cacao content) of the chocolate.

Today's Chocolate-Related News: by BJ Darnell: Chocolate can kill...
Catoosa County News - Ringgold, GA, USA

Halloween is just days away, and you need to think now about the safety precautions you are going to put into place to keep your pet, as well as your children, safe. Rules are the best for everyone when we have people out there who delight in the misfortune of others.

All candy is not created equal, but whether it is artificial or the real thing, chocolate can and will kill your pet. I have people all the time tell me that they give their pets chocolate and it has not hurt them.

Sorry folks! You must have been living right, because you are going to do that once too often and suffer the consequences of your actions.

Dogs especially love chocolate; the more the merrier, if you would believe them. The majority of the time, you are just too late realizing how sick your pet really is and do not make it to the veterinarian in time.

I personally do not think you should even buy treats or chewies that taste like chocolate because it will just cause a drive in your animal to acquire it by whatever means it can.

I have heard stories of animals climbing onto chairs to get to whatever is on the table they smell. Dog need more help, ordinarily, than cats, who can, flatfooted, make the top of the table and the counter in one bound. Remember, candy dishes should have tops and be placed where small children and pets can not have free access to them.