ChocolateBet: October 25, 2010

Chocolate of the Day:

2 skulls
Vosges Haut Chocolat
Day of the Dead Caramel Filled Mini Skulls
1.) Tequila Caramel Skull - Good +
2.) Red Fire Caramel Skull - Very Good
Weight: 1.71 oz. (47.5 g) / 2.6 oz. (72 g.) total package of 3 skulls
Calories: 200 calories
Cost: $13.00 for package of 3 skulls (including 1 from yesterday)
Purchased from: Vosges Haut Chocolat, Chicago, IL

Today was Day #5 of Chocolate and Halloween/Day of the Dead Theme Week.

Both Halloween (when children go door-to-door trick or treating, October 31) and El Día de los Muertos (Day of the Dead, Nov. 2) are happening this next week and are observed in California. El Día de los Muertos is an occasion to honor the departed with prayers, sweets, gifts and favorite foods.

As I finish this lovely 3-pack of caramel-filled skulls from Vosges, I can confirm that these chocolates fit very nicely into either holiday tradition.

ChocolateBet: October 24, 2010

Chocolate of the Day:

1 skull
Vosges Haut Chocolat
El Día de Los Muertos package of 3 caramel skulls
Dulce de Leche Caramel Skull
Good + - Very Good
Weight: .86 oz. (24 g.) 2.6 oz. (72 g.) total package of 3 skulls
Calories: 100 calories
Cost: $13.00 total - for set of 3 skulls
Purchased from: Vosges Haut Chocolat, Chicago, IL

Sometimes it's good to be a chocolate cannibal. Eating this Vosges Dulce de Leche caramel filled skull made me feel that way.

Today was Day #4 of Chocolate and Halloween and Day of the Dead Theme Week.

ChocolateBet: October 23, 2010

Chocolate(s) of the Day: 

3 different chocolates
Christopher Norman Chocolates

1.) Suspicious Cat
Good+ - Very Good
Weight:  1 bite's worth -- .5 oz. (14.1 g.)/ 2 oz. (56.6 g.) total cat
Calories: 75 calories (estimate)
Cost: $15.00
Purchased from: Christopher Norman Chocolates, NYC, NY

2.) One Ghosts (raspberry-flavored) truffle
Good+
Weight: .45 oz. (12.7 g.) (estimate)
Calories: 67.5 calories (estimate)
Cost: $2.00 (estimate)
Purchased from: Christopher Norman Chocolates, NYC, NY


3.) One Jack-O-Lantern truffle
Good+
Weight: .45 oz. (12.7 g.) (estimate)
Calories: 67.5 calories (estimate)
Cost: $2.00 (estimate)
Purchased from: Christopher Norman Chocolates, NYC, NY

Chistopher Norman Chocolates' "Suspicious Cat" was made of dark chocolate with white chocolate highlights. The 4-inch (10.2 cm) tall cat might have been suspicious of the ghosts and the jack-o-lanterns emblazoned on nearby truffles (from assortment box shown).

ChocolateBet: October 22, 2010

Chocolate(s) of the Day:

2 pieces
Christopher Norman Chocolates
1.) Devil truffle - Good +
2.) Black Cat truffle - Good +
Weight: .8 oz. (24 g.) (estimate for 2 pieces)
Calories: 120 calories (estimate for 2 pieces)
Cost: $
Purchased from: Christopher Norman Chocolates, New York City, NY

Today was Day #2 of Chocolate and Halloween - Day of the Dead Theme Week. Devils and black cats are popular symbols associated with upcoming Halloween festivities. So, I had one of each -- truffle, that is -- decorated with these Halloween-related symbols on top. I had ordered a box of four different seasonal truffles; and tomorrow I will try the jack-o-lantern- or the ghost-decorated truffle.


I thought the cats would get more excited about this theme; but they were more interested in taking an afternoon nap. (Note: Don't worry; I do not let pets eat any chocolate.)

ChocolateBet: October 21, 2010

Chocolate(s) of the Day:

1.) 1/5 bar - Kras - 88% Ghana Cacao Dark Bar
Good + - Very Good
Weight: .48 oz. (14 g.) / 2.4 oz. (70 g.) total bar
Calories: 69 calories (estimate)
Cost: $ Not applicable
Purchased from: Not applicable

Thank you to Bill for sharing chocolate brought back from a recent trip to Croatia. Given its high (88 percent) cacao content, this bar was very smooth tasting (not bitter) and had a nutty flavor.

And now, with the second chocolate of the day, we move into "Chocolate and Halloween/Day of the Dead Theme Week."

2.) 1 small package - Simply Sinful Candy - Toffee - with Dark Chocolate and Almonds
Very Good
Weight: .85 oz. (24 g.) (estimate) in sample
Calories: 128 calories (estimate)
Cost: $ N/A - samples were being handed out at festival
Purchased from: Simply Sinful Candy booth, at the Waterfront Festival - Art, Wine and Chocolate; Suisun Bay, CA

Earlier this month, I attended the Waterfront Festival in Suisun Bay, CA. Toffee chef Patsy Anderson (pictured right) and associates, from local company Simply Sinful Candy, were handing out samples of their toffee made from local ingredients. (Their sugar, for example, comes from the C and H Sugar Factory nearby.)

Their Simply Sinful (devil) logo inspired me to hold off on eating this toffee until today -- Day #1 of Chocolate and Halloween/Day of the Dead Theme Week. Halloween is, after all, the one acceptable holiday for devils. Simply Sinful's Toffee also comes in pecan and other flavors.

ChocolateBet: October 20, 2010

Chocolate of the Day:

1/2 tin
Dean and DeLuca
Dark Chocolate Orange Peel
Very Good
Weight: 3 oz. (85 g.) / 6 oz. (170 g.) total container, tin
Calories: 400 calories (estimate) for 1/2 tin
Cost: $9.00 for total container
Purchased from: Elements (gift shop), Aria Resort, CityCenter; Las Vegas, NV

Dean and DeLuca's round silver tin filled with Dark Chocolate Orange Peel pieces concluded (Day #7 of) Chocolate and Orange Theme Week.

I thought I tasted a hint of cinnamon along with the orange oil used to flavor these dark gems -- providing a nice tie-in for the holidays, now that we're slouching toward Thanksgiving. Part of me still wants to cling to the false notion that it must still be summer--ish; but I had to don a warm coat this evening, so it's time to move on. Tomorrow I'll be starting to embrace the Fall/Winter holiday season with a warm chocolate Halloween/Day of the Dead hug.

ChocolateBet: October 19, 2010

Chocolate of the Day:

5 sticks
Sweet's
Orange Sticks
Good +
Weight: 1.48 oz. (42 g.) / 4.1 oz. (116 g.) total package
Calories: 160 calories in 5 sticks
Cost: $1.99 + shipping for online orders
Purchased from: Sweet's / Sweet Candy Company, Salt Lake City, UT

Sweet's has been a family business since 1892, if I understand their materials correctly, making them one of the longest running family businesses in the candy industry. Their orange sticks, with fairly natural tasting orange gel centers, were dipped in dark chocolate. Other types of chocolate covered sticks (e.g. raspberry) are also available from the Salt Lake City-based company.

Today was Day #6 of Chocolate and Orange Theme Week.