ChocolateBet: January 23, 2011

Chocolate of the Day:
1 cookie
The Inspired Cookie
Espresso Lemon Chocolate Chunk Cookie
Good + - Very Good
Weight: 2.2 oz. (62 g.)
Calories: 260 calories
Cost: $2.99
Purchased from: Draegers, in San Mateo, CA

Today was Day #2 of Chocolate and Lemon Theme Week. Sarah Gill, founder,  The Inspired Cookie has managed to make a gluten free, dairy free, vegan, and nut free cookie that tasted fresh, fun and -- very cookie-like. This is no mean feat for those who have tried to produce baked goods without flour made from wheat or gluten.

The hint of lemon and espresso flavors, in amongst the chocolate pieces, added a nice pick-me-up to this individually wrapped cookie.

ChocolateBet: January 22, 2011

Chocolate of the Day:
1 piece
Sunflower Food and Spice Company
"All Natural" Java Juans
Good
Weight: .15 oz. (4.24 g.) (estimate) / 3 oz. (85 g.) total package
Calories: 21 calories (estimate)
Cost: $3.99 for total package
Purchased from: Sunflower Food and Spice Company

For the last day (Day #7) of Chocolate and Coffee Theme Week, I tried two candy coated products from the Sunflower Food and Spice Company. The first was a Java Juan, a roasted Mexican coffee bean dipped in chocolate and candy coated. The second was a package of Laughing Lemon Silly Seeds (candy coated sunflower seeds). And speaking of lemon, today was also Day #1 of Chocolate and Lemon Theme Week. I always enjoyed a little lemon peel with a shot of espresso, so why not mix these two flavors with chocolate today. 

ChocolateBet: January 21, 2011

Chocolate(s) of the Day:

Keoki's Chocolate Factory/Surfin' Ass Coffee

1.) Keoki's Big Island Don't Spill the Beans - Coffee Beans
2 pieces
Good +
Weight: .3 oz. (8.5 g.) (estimate for 2 pcs. I had)/ 4 oz. (114 g.) total package
Calories: 44 calories (estimate for 2 pieces)
Cost: $6.95 for total package
Purchased from: (small store in Hawaii)


2.) Keoki's Big Island Donkey Balls - Mocha Balls
1 ball
Very Good
Weight: .7 oz. (19.8 g.) (estimate)/ 8 oz. (227 g.) total package
Calories: 105 calories (estimate for 1 ball)
Cost: $11.95 for total package
Purchased from: (small store in Hawaii)

Today was Day #6 of Chocolate and Coffee Theme Week. It may be January; however, I'm pretending I'm back in Hawaii -- where I was when I bought these two chocolate items made with Kona coffee. Fortunately, both items were kept in well-sealed packages in my chocolate vault -- and seem to have a fairly long shelf life.

Donkey Beans are chocolate covered Kona Coffee Beans. And the Milk Chocolate Mocha Balls are part of Keoki's Big Island line of Donkey Balls, chocolate covered macadamia nuts that come in different flavors. Both are from Keoki's Chocolate Factory in Hawaii. If you can't visit Hawaii anytime soon, Keoki's products can also be purchased online.

ChocolateBet: January 20, 2011

Chocolate of the Day:
1/4 bar
Newman's Own Organics
Mocha Milk Chocolate bar
Good - Good +
Weight: .56 oz. (16 g.) / 2.25 oz. (64 g.)
Calories: 85 calories in 1/4 bar
Cost: $2.99 for 1 bar
Purchased from: Piazza's Fine Foods, in Palo Alto, CA

Today is Day #5 of Chocolate and Coffee Week. Having tried some chocolates that were bathed in coffee bean bits, with stronger coffee flavor, earlier this week, I chose what I thought might be a more subtle take on chocolate + coffee with this Newman's Own Organics Mocha bar.

Strong flavors usually need to get dialed back when you're creating a bar with 34% (cocoa) milk chocolate - but, after breaking off a piece and tasting this, I couldn't taste any coffee flavoring in this bar. It was very sweet though.

ChocolateBet: January 19, 2011

Chocolate of the Day:

3 pieces
Brown and Haley
Mocha Roca
Good +
Weight: 1.27 oz. (36 g.) / 8 oz. (226 g.) total container
Calories: 200 calories in 3 pieces
Cost: $7.99 for 1 container
Purchased from: Bed Bath and Beyond, in Mountain View, CA

It smelled like I'd opened a fresh can of coffee when I unsealed this tin of Mocha Roca from Brown and Haley. The foil wrapped pieces of Mocha Roca inside contained buttercrunch toffee centers that were embedded with bits of ground coffee and covered in chocolate and cashew bits. A winning combination of flavors overall. Like many chocolates that incorporate ground coffee beans to impart real coffee smell, taste and texture, the trade-off was having to chew on a few coffee grounds at the end. A small price to pay really.

Today was Day #4 of Chocolate and Coffee Theme Week.

ChocolateBet: January 18, 2011

Chocolate of the Day:
.75 oz. (21.2 g.) serving
Chuao Chocolatier
Coffee and Anise bar
Good + - Very Good
Weight: .75 oz. (21.2 g.) / 2.8 oz. (80 g.) total bar
Calories: 148 calories (estimate)
Cost: $3.97 for 1 bar
Purchased from: Walmart, American Canyon, CA

Today was Day #3 of Chocolate and Coffee Theme Week. And the chocolate choice for the day was a dark chocolate (60% cacao) bar "with finely ground espresso and star anise." I liked these three flavors together; they were blended in the right proportions for my taste. My only quibble: I found that I didn't care for the fine grit from the expresso/star anise that was detectable in some bites of this bar. I would have preferred to taste these nice strong flavors in a dark, (grit-free) smooth base.

This Coffee and Anise bar came packaged with an interesting insert on Chef Michael Antonorsi, co-founder of Chuao Chocolatier -- based in Southern California.

...And yes, you read the "Purchased from:" line correctly; I bought this relatively fancy bar at Walmart.

ChocolateBet: January 17, 2011

Chocolate of the Day:
1 truffle
Sweet Earth Chocolates
Espresso Vegan Truffle
Weight: .45 oz. (12.7 g.) (estimate) one truffle
Calories: 71 calories (estimate) in one truffle
Cost: N/A - holiday gift (thank you again to Alec and Ardis)
Purchased from: N/A - gift, purchased from Sweet Earth Chocolates, San Luis Obispo, CA

Among the many chocolate options today are vegan offerings. I marvel at those who can craft truffles without the help of cream or butter. This round Espresso Vegan Truffle from Sweet Earth Chocolates (made with Fair Trade chocolate) had a nice, smooth filling.

Providing a texture contrast was a coating of finely ground, rougher bean bits -- which can be seen in the "before" picture (above right). As readers of this blog know by now, the "after" pictures usually do not end well for the chocolate.

Today was Day #2 of Chocolate and Coffee Theme Week.