ChocolateBet: October 23, 2012

Chocolate of the Day: 

Vosges Haut Chocolat
1.) Sage Honey truffles (2) - Good
2.) Field Songs truffles (2) - Good + - Very Good

Chocolate and Banana Theme Week was fun this past week. Now it's time to move into the flavors of autumn. Today's Sage Honey and Field Songs truffles were part of a 9-piece "Harvest Moon" truffle collection from Vosges.

The 65% dark chocolate Sage Honey truffle was made with sage honey, and was decorated with a sprinkle of bee pollen. The sage honey notes were fairly muted in this mix. The yellow-dusted grains of bee pollen added some nice texture and faint, pleasant beehive flavor notes.

The second truffle, Field Songs, contained roasted yam puree and maple syrup in a 45% cacao deep milk chocolate base. And, these truffles were topped with -- my favorite part of the tasting experience: African grains of paradise (Afromomum melegueta); these grains lit up my palette with floral, pepper and jungle flavor notes.

Note: The third flavor in this Harvest Moon truffle collection was a Fig (with Armagnac) truffle, which was featured on this blog a few weeks ago, as part of Chocolate and Fig Theme Week. 

ChocolateBet: October 22, 2012

Chocolate of the Day: 

Jelly Belly Candy Company
Bean Boozled jelly beans - 2nd Edition

First Pairing (Chocolate)
1.) Chocolate Pudding jelly bean (1) - OK
2.) Canned Dog Food jelly beans (3) - Awful

Second Pairing (Banana)
3.) Top Banana jelly bean (1) - OK
4.) Pencil Shavings jelly beans (3) - Awful

Weight: .177 oz. (8 g.) for 8 beans / 1.6 oz. (45 g.) total box of about 45 jelly beans
Cost: $ N/A - gift
Purchased from: N/A - gift - Thank you Megan

People ask me if I only eat craft (higher end) chocolate. They seem disappointed when I tell them I do love artisan-made dark chocolate, but I sample a wide variety of items made with cacao.

These same people might be particularly offended by the pile of 45 jelly beans that I lined up in pairs today -- beans with flavors like diaper wipe vs. coconut; skunk vs. licorice; and centipede vs. strawberry.

The diabolical creators of these "Bean Boozled" jelly beans (look-alike pairs of beans that are anything but) at Jelly Belly Candy Company must chuckle when they see people gagging and choking on the "wrong" jelly bean. Thanks Megan for this box of jelly beans, filled with promise and peril. The toothpaste jelly beans weren't too bad, but the rotten egg ones were hastily spat out. I could go on; however, since today was Day #8 of Chocolate and Banana Theme Week, I'll focus on these two flavors, and their evil twins in this 2nd Edition collection.

There were four brown beans in this box that were the same color. The Chocolate Pudding jelly bean(s) looked just like the Canned Dog Food jelly bean(s). Unfortunately, the first three brown beans tasted like puppy dog chow (or what I imagine canned pet food might taste like). Thank goodness, the fourth bean was the Chocolate Pudding flavor. Hurray! It certainly tasted much better than the dog food flavor.

I had the same thing happen when I was trying/hoping for the banana flavored bean. Three failures, followed by a final success. The first 3 beans were an amalgam of artificial flavors in addition to a hint of old No. 2 pencil. Biting into the last bean and finding the (one and only) Top Banana bean was a relief.

The success of these odd-flavored beans shows how curious we humans are. The timing is, however, perfect (the week before Halloween) for a truly frightening treat.

ChocolateBet: October 21, 2012

Chocolate of the Day: 

Gelato Classico
1.) Banana Walnut - Light - Very Good
2.) Caffe Moca - Good +
1 small cup with two flavors
Calories: 200 calories (estimate)
Cost: $3.50 (estimate)
Purchased from: Gelato Classico, downtown Palo Alto, CA

Even though temperatures were dropping, gelato beckoned this evening at the local Gelato Classico (Concord, CA) shop.

I lapped up every bit of my small cup with two flavors: Banana Walnut Light (93% fat free), and Caffe Moca -- with some help from the little plastic shovel-shaped spoon. The banana was quite good -- my favorite of the two flavors; and, the nut bits did indeed taste like freshly chopped walnuts. If this was low fat version, you could have fooled me. I would happily try more low-fat versions of other flavors in the future.

The Caffe Moca was quite pleasant with rich sections of cold, creamy chocolate.

Today was Day #8 of Chocolate and Banana Theme Week.

ChocolateBet: October 20, 2012

Chocolate of the Day: 

Concord Foods
Banana Pops!
Good - Good +
Weight: 1 oz. (28.2 g.) / 4 oz. (113 g.) total box
Calories: 180 calories for 2 pieces/1 banana
Cost: $1.25 total box/kit
Purchased from: Raley's, in Newark, CA

Today was Day #7 of Chocolate and Banana Theme Week. Not coincidentally, my Bananagrams (crossword-style word) game letter tiles suggested another chocolate + banana combination.

And today's chocolate choice was: a Freeze 'n Dip chocolate flavored coating kit from Concord Foods (Brockton, MA).

The Banana Pops! kit provided something between a ready-to-eat chocolate items and a make-it-from-scratch effort. I provided the fresh banana, that I peeled and cut in half first. I then impaled each banana half on a popsicle stick (included in the box).

After freezing the bananas on sticks for an hour, I took them out and dipped them slowly in the chocolate coating that I'd put in a glass.

The chocolate coating -- made with coconut and soybean oil, sugar, cocoa, and a dash of vanilla -- was slowly transformed from a thick chocolatey sauce dunk to a velvety solid coat, as the frosty fruit cooled it down.

The resulting banana and chocolate treats were quite tasty. The Banana Pops! kit made 8 pops total from 4 bananas.

ChocolateBet: October 19, 2012

Chocolate of the Day:

Vosges Haut Chocolat
Smoked Banana Caramel Bar
Good - Good +
Weight: 1.5 oz. (42.5 g.) / 3 oz. (85 g.) total bar
Calories: 200 calories in 4 squares
Cost: $7.50 total bar (+ any relevant shipping-related costs)
Purchased from: Vosges (online), Chicago, IL

I really enjoyed the smoky, sweet caramelized filling in this bar. It was made with mesquite smoked bananas and Alderwood smoked salt caramel. It was quite good and left me wanting more.

However, the dark chocolate (72% cacao) exterior didn't quite measure up to the wonderful filling. The base chocolate was smooth, but seemed a bit dull and lacking in flavor.


A more complex, single origin dark chocolate might be a better match for Vosges's creative and original flavors. I was excited to read about Vosges involvement in a cacao plantation in Belize, and look forward to hearing more about how this cacao will be incorporated in the future.

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

ChocolateBet: October 18, 2012

Chocolate of the Day:

World Market
Banana Chocolate Spread
Good
Weight: .67 oz. (19 g.) / 14 oz. (400 g.) total jar
Calories: 105 calories in 1 Tablespoon
Cost: $3.14 (sale price) for 1 jar
Purchased from: World Market, in Reno, NV

There are many ways to combine chocolate and banana. Today, I simply topped a bowl of sliced, fresh bananas with nuts, a cherry, and a small dollop of Banana Chocolate Spread from World Market (Cost Plus, Inc. of Oakland, CA).

A light layer of this banana chocolate spread would also be a sweet addition to a peanut butter and banana sandwich on gluten-free toast.

ChocolateBet: October 17, 2012

Chocolate of the Day: 

Talenti
Banana Chocolate Swirl
Good - Good +
Weight: 1/2 cup serving/ 1 Pint (473 mL) total container
Calories: 200 calories in 1/2 cup serving
Cost: $ 5.99 total container
Purchased from: New Leaf Community Markets, Santa Cruz, CA

Talenti (Dallas, TX) makes tasty gelato and sorbetto. Richer tasting than ice cream, but with up to a third fewer calories, the company's gelato (with flavors like today's Banana Chocolate Swirl) somehow tastes more satisfying as well. It's hard to explain why. Maybe it's the slightly denser, richer texture.


The banana, and a touch of lemon, added a tangy tropical fruit taste to this dessert, almost edging out the light chocolate swirl. However, all the flavors harmonized fairly well, especially given that banana can be a tougher flavor to work with. A caramelized nut topping might also be good with this gelato; I enjoyed mine plain.

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