Askinosie Hey, Hey Hazelnut! spread - Aug. 27, 2013

Chocolate of the Day: 

Askinosie Chocolate

Hey, Hey Hazelnut! Chocolate Hazelnut Spread

Good + - Very Good

Weight: 1 Tablespoon (18 g.) / 6.5 oz. (184 g.) in total jar

Calories: 100 calories in 1 Tablespoon serving

Cost: $12.00 (estimate) in 1 jar 

Purchased from: Askinosie Chocolate, Springfield, MO (online order)

Today was Day #6 of Chocolate and Cheese Theme Week, and Day #1 of Chocolate and Fig Theme Week.This morning's chocolate, cheese and fruit plate almost made me late for an appointment it was so good. 

I savored every bit of my "Hey, Hey Hazelnut!" Chocolate Hazelnut spread from Askinosie Chocolate (Springfield, MO). I carefully slathered it on a piece of gluten-free toast -- alongside goat cheese, fresh black mission figs and strawberries, and a drizzle of saffron honey. Life was good and so was this breakfast.

Askinosie Chocolate is a bean-to-bar chocolate maker. However, Askinosie's relationships with farmers go beyond most chocolate makers. Pictures of farmers, like Peter Cruz, are featured on chocolate product labels. This hazelnut spread made "from (cocoa) bean to jar" contained cocoa powder (made in the Askinosie factory) using cocoa beans from Davao, Philippines.

The list of ingredients was short, simple, and high-quality: hazelnuts (oil and butter), cocoa powder, organic sugar, and roasted cocoa nibs. The hazelnut butter was made in the Askinosie factory as well, from scratch, "using DuChilly hazelnuts from Holmquist Hazelnut Orchards in Lynden, Washington, USA."

I ate this marvelous hazelnut spread on toast with Laura Chenel's Chevre -- Honey Goat Cheese, from Sonoma, CA, to be exact.

Chobani greek yogurt - August 26, 2013

Chocolate of the Day: 

Chobani, Inc.
Greek Yogurt - Bite - Raspberry with dark chocolate chips
Good
Weight: 3.5 oz. (100 g.) in 1 yogurt / part of a larger 4-pack
Calories: 100 calories (plus cream cheese and crust for "shotglass cheesecake")
Cost: $3.49 for 1 4-pack of yogurt
Purchased from: Piazza's Fine Foods, Palo Alto, CA

A raspberry flavored Greek Yogurt "Bite" (small container) with flecks of dark chocolate chips might be healthier than ice cream, but I probably downgraded the health benefits a bit by mixing this yogurt with some cream cheese. I poured this cheesecake-like filling over a ground nut (almond, pecan, walnut and date) crust -- to make shotglass and miniature ersatz cheesecakes.

I also made a similar pineapple cheesecake with Chobani's pineapple and caramel flavored Bite yogurt.

Neither one was as rich as a full fat New York style cheesecake, but they were tasty all the same. And, small portion sizes work well for me (and my test kitchen).

Today was Day #5 of Chocolate and Cheese Theme Week.

Mole sauce cheese plate - August 25, 2013

Chocolate of the Day: 

Chatfield's (PANOS Brands)
All Natural Cocoa Powder
Good - Good +
Weight: 1 Tablespoon (4 g.) / 10 oz. (283 g.) in 1 container
Calories: 20 calories in 1 Tablespoon
Cost: N/A
Purchased from: N/A

I was inspired by a chicken and mole sauce dish last night. So, I made my own savory mole sauce at home this afternoon, using unsweetened (and alkaline free) Chatfield's Cocoa Powder (Manufactured for Panos Brands, Saddle Brook, NJ).

Mole typically is a mix of many flavors. I used, for example, many types of fresh, dehydrated and ground chiles in this sauce (including sweet pepper, ancho, chipotle and red chiles); smoked and garlic salts; a bit of diced onion and roasted garlic; sesame and pumpkin seeds; almonds; a dab of quince paste for sweetness; a dash of fresh tomato salsa; thyme, and other herbs and spices.

This spicy mound of dark sauce was a great accompaniment to small cubes of bbq spiced cheddar, fresh avocado pieces, fresh sweet peppers, carrots, and other cheeses.

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

Mole burrito - Aug. 24, 2013

Chocolate of the Day: 

Fiesta del Mar
Mole Burrito
Good + - Very Good
Weight: unknown
Calories: unknown
Cost: $12.95 for 1 plate
Purchased from: Fiesta del Mar, Mountain View, CA

Today was Day #3 of Chocolate and Cheese Theme Week.

Not all chocolates are sweet. Mole sauce is a dark, flavorful, savory sauce made with ground chiles, herbs, nuts, seeds, and unsweetened chocolate. It is particularly delicious served atop vegetables or chicken, and is often served with cheese (queso).

This evening I enjoyed a mole burrito plate at a favorite local restaurant, Fiesta del Mar (Mountain View, CA). I had a similar dish as few years ago with chicken and black beans, and this dish was a variant on this theme. The rich sauce was perfect with the chunks of white meat chicken, melted cheese, and a handful of thin slivers of fresh onion. The raspberry margarita on the side provided some sweetness.

Snack Delights - August 23, 2013

Chocolate of the Day: 

Philadelphia (Kraft)
Snack Delights
Milk Chocolate - Good
Weight: 2 Tablespoon serving / 8 oz. (226 g.) total container
Calories: 110 calories in 2 Tablespoon serving
Cost: $3.29 for total container
Purchased from: Safeway, Palo Alto, CA

Today was Day #2 of Chocolate and Cheese Theme Week. Several of the chocolates selected for this theme week were related to cream cheese. Of all the cheeses, this one may blend the most naturally with chocolate -- whether in cheesecakes, cheesecake brownies, refrigerated pies, parfaits, spreads or other desserts.

Philadelphia is a well-known cream cheese brand in the U.S. Part of Kraft Foods (Northfield, IL), the Philadelphia brand has been extended to include several flavored cream cheese spreads over the years. Today's "Snack Delights" cream cheese spreads were packaged in small recloseable plastic tubs and could be used as dips as well.

Today's two flavors I sampled, Milk Chocolate and Cinnamon*, were also sweet enough to serve as cream cheese frosting for cakes, banana bread, or cupcakes. This could be wonderful news, or not, depending on your preference for sugar.

I assembled a fruit, nut and snack plate (strawberries, blueberries, almonds, gluten free pretzels and gingerbread cookies) to eat with these spreads. I enjoyed the white chocolate cinnamon spread as much as the milk chocolate cream cheese with these snack items.

*Note: I do not normally "count" or feature white chocolate items on ChocolateBanquet.com; however, the cinnamon white chocolate cream cheese did pair nicely with the snacks and with its milk chocolate sibling.

Albatross Fudge - August 22, 2013

Chocolate of the Day: 

Dude Sweet Chocolate
Albatross Fudge
Good - Good +
Weight: .7 oz. (19.8 g.) / 5.5 oz. (156 g.) total box/package
Calories: 105 calories (estimate)
Cost: $12.00
Purchased from: Dude Sweet Chocolate, Dallas, TX

Certain savory and sweet foods, such as cheese and chocolate, seem to inspire cravings. So, I thought, why not combine the two. Today marked the beginning of Chocolate and Cheese Theme Week.

To kick off the week, I tried a few slices of Albatross Fudge, a sweetened condensed milk fudge with Valrhona African "Abinaio" 85% dark chocolate, Rogue Creamery (dehydrated) Blue Heaven blue cheese, and sea salt, as part of a fruit and cheese plate. This dense fudge (described as "very much a foodies chocolate") was created by the clever people at Dude Sweet Chocolate (Dallas, TX). (The name "Albatross Fudge" was inspired by a Monty Python (comedy) sketch.)

Blue cheese offers a distinct salty, acidic, flavorful bite that complements chocolate nicely if the blend is well crafted. And Rogue Creamery (Central Point, OR) offers some great blue, and other, cheeses as a starting point. (Rogue Creamery's next door neighbor, Lillie Belle Farms, makes a blue cheese (chocolate) truffle, which I had the chance to re-taste last month.) In both today's Dude Sweet Chocolate fudge, and Lillie Belle's truffle, the combined flavors were fun and intriguing.

Pairing suggestions from the Dude Sweet Chocolate website include:
"Great as a griddled sandwich and cappuccino as a dessert, pinot noir, chardonnay"

Mocha Almond Fudge bars - August 21, 2013

Chocolate of the Day: 

Turtle Mountain, LLC
So Delicious - Minis (box of 4 bars)
Mocha Almond Fudge bars
Good - Good +
Weight: 4.6 fl. oz. (136 mL) in 2 bars / 9.2 fl. oz. (272 mL) in total box
Calories: 300 calories in 2 bars
Cost: $4.23 total box of 4 (sale price)
Purchased from: Sprouts Farmers Market, Mountain View, CA

Today was Day #7 of Chocolate and Almond Theme Week.

Frozen desserts, popsicles and ice cream were perfectly designed for hot summer days. I enjoyed every bite of today's (two) frozen, "So Delicious" Mocha Almond Fudge Minis (bars) from Turtle Mountain, LLC (Eugene, OR).

These cool treats on a wooden stick were good considering that they were almond "milk" based. They had elements of fudge ribbon sweetness, but weren't too sweet. I carefully ate each frozen mini, bite by bite, in the back yard, until I had to run inside and lean over the sink, to prevent shards of frosty chocolate coating from calving onto my shirt. (Just the way I remember eating similar frozen treats when I was young.)

These non-dairy frozen dessert bars were also gluten free, soy free and vegan. (The So Delicious line of products also included dairy-free ice cream and yogurt.)