John Kelly - Chocolate and Peanut Butter Truffle Fudge - Nov. 9, 2015

Chocolate of the Day: 

John Kelly Chocolates
Semi-Sweet Chocolate and Peanut Butter Truffle Fudge Bar
Good - Good +
Weight: 1.7 oz. (48 g.) in total bar
Calories: 250 calories (estimate) in 1 piece/bar
Cost: $4.25 in total bar
Purchased from: Studio 41, Benicia, CA

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

John Kelly (actually two people) started producing their fudge truffle chocolates in Hollywood back in 2004.

I "discovered" a whole trove of John Kelly Chocolates at Studio 41 (Benicia, CA), a store full of interesting gifts and chocolates. Benicia's  historic downtown area is full of creative independent businesses—a refreshing change from the chain stores that now inhabit most Bay Area cities—making a stroll through downtown and by the water a very pleasant experience.

Today's Semi-Sweet Chocolate and Peanut Butter Truffle Fudge Bar was diminutive but dense. A pleasant chocolate fudge aroma escaped as I peeled back the gold foil wrapper.

As with most fudge, this was sweet; but it was more balanced than most. The thick peanut butter layer helped. Nuts are a great way to dial back and complement sugary sweetness.

Chapul - Chaco Bar Peanut Butter and Chocolate - Nov. 8, 2015

Chocolate of the Day: 

Chapul, LLC
Chaco Bar - Peanut Butter and Chocolate
Good
Weight: 1.9 oz. (54 g.) in total bar
Calories: 220 calories in 1 bar
Cost: $2.99 for 1 bar
Purchased from: Sprouts Farmers Markets, Mountain View, CA

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

Well, it's time to try a bar with something different.

Today's energy bar contained brown cricket protein powder. Fear not. There was no identifiable cricket flavor or texture in this Peanut Butter and Chocolate Chaco Bar from Chapul (Salt Lake City, UT).

What I could taste was the first two ingredients: slightly fruity, chewy, moist dates, and honey. The bar contained a blend of dates, organic raw honey, chocolate, peanuts, oats, cricket flour and flax seeds.

Many living things rely on insects for valuable protein and a complete set of amino acids. Humans too—and not just the ancient Greeks and Romans, who also ate bugs. There are insect markets in Cambodia and in other Asian countries. Fried grasshoppers (chapulines) are on the menu in Mexico.

And American Indians included roasted cricket flour in their diet. The name for this particular "Chaco" bar was inspired by the Chaco people, a "pre-Colombian civilization in the Colorado River Watershed."

Reese's Nutrageous snack size bars - Nov. 7, 2015

Chocolate of the Day: 

The Hershey Company
Reese's Nutrageous (snack-size bars)
Good ++
Weight: 1.76 oz. (50 g.)/ 9.68 oz. (274 g.) in total package
Calories: 250 calories in 2 bars
Cost: $2.49 for 1 bag of bars
Purchased from: CVS/pharmacy, Mountain View, CA

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

This bag of Halloween-themed, Reese's* Nutrageous snack size bars contained a sweet candy bar blend of milk chocolate, peanuts, peanut butter and gooey, golden caramel.

I love single origin dark bars; but I still have a soft spot for Reese's themed treats now and then.

*Reese's peanut butter cups were created in the 1920s by H.B. Reese who had worked for Milton S. Hershey, and used Hershey chocolate in these cups. In the 1960s, the H.B. Reese Candy Company became part of the Hershey Chocolate Corporation. 

Tillamook - Chocolate Peanut Butter Ice Cream - Nov. 6, 2015

Chocolate of the Day: 

Tillamook
Chocolate Peanut Butter Ice Cream
Good ++ - Very Good
Weight: 1/2 cup (70 g.)/ 1.75 Quarts (1.66 L) in total container
Calories: 190 calories in 1/2 cup serving
Cost: $4.99 (estimate) for 1 container
Purchased from: Grocery Outlet Bargain Market, Palo Alto, CA

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

"Why am I eating chocolate ice cream for breakfast when it's so cold outside?" I love ice cream. Thank goodness there are no silly rules like you can't eat ice cream after Labor Day. So, here I sit enjoying this rich, creamy treat with my happy spoon.

Today's Chocolate Peanut Butter Ice Cream from Tillamook (Tillamook, OR) was a creamy (did I mention how creamy this was?), satisfying blend of "Dutch Chocolate" ice cream with a swirl of peanut butter. This ice cream was a great example of how chocolate and peanut butter (and cream/milk) complement each other very naturally.

Tillamook County Creamery Association is a farmer-owned dairy cooperative in NW Oregon. Tillamook farmers-owners are known for their cheese; but they have also been making ice cream* since 1947.

*Tillamook ice cream tastes more "natural" to me than many other ice creams. However, hats off to them for continuing to listen to their customers. In early 2016 Tillamook plans to simplify their recipe(s) and their ice cream will no longer contain Carageenan, Cellulose Gum, Mono and Diglycerides, and/or Polysorbate 80.

Bissinger's - Peanut Butter and Maple Oat Crunch - Nov. 5, 2015

Chocolate of the Day: 

Bissinger's
Peanut Butter and Maple Oat Crunch bar
Good
Weight: .375 oz. (10.6 g.) / 3 oz. (85 g.) in total bar
Calories: 60 calories in 1 square (1/8 of bar)
Cost: $4.99 for 1 bar
Purchased from: Bristol Farms, San Francisco, CA

Welcome to Day #1 of Chocolate and Peanuts Theme Week.

Charles Schulz's famous cartoon strip "Peanuts" has been part of the "funny papers" for decades. One popular chocolate quote attributed to Charles Schulz: "All you need is love. But a little chocolate now and then doesn't hurt," may not have come from Schulz,* but it's a sentiment many people share.


Hats off to "Peanuts" and to peanuts—the humble legume that pairs so nicely with chocolate. Beginning today, I'll be paying tribute to this chocolate and peanut butter, and peanuts in various combinations.

Today's Peanut Butter and Maple Oat Crunch bar from Bissinger's (St. Louis, MO) was an example of absolute truth in advertising. When I opened the inner wrapper, the intertwined scents of genuine maple sugar, oats, peanut butter, and chocolate, came gently wafting toward me.

The layered sweet flavors and textures were pleasant, and if you like peanut butter, crunchy sweet things, and (60% dark) chocolate, this attractively designed bar, emblazoned with a "B" on the one side of each square, would be a fun bar to try.

*This quote often appears on the Internet with a picture of Snoopy (the famous beagle in Peanuts comic strips). I called the Charles M. Schulz Museum and Research Center in Santa Rosa, CA, to check this quote. Apparently there was a Hallmark card with this quote, but it's unclear whether Schulz himself used this phrase, or whether a writer crafted this quote.

Cachet - Cocoa Nibs 70% Dark Chocolate bar - Nov. 4, 2015

Chocolate of the Day: 

Cachet
(Kim's Chocolates N.V.)
Cocoa Nibs 70% Dark Chocolate bar
Good
Weight: .866 oz. (25.3 g.) / 3.5 oz. (100 g.) in total bar
Calories: 153.3 calories in 2 squares of bar
Cost: $3.69 for 1 bar
Purchased from: Piazza's Fine Foods, Palo Alto, CA

Today was Day #9 of Cocoa Nibs Theme Week.

As with yesterday's bar, this Cachet Cocoa Nibs 70% Dark Chocolate tablet (bar) was embedded with tiny caramelized nibs. The Cachet brand is part of Kim's Chocolates N.V. (Tienen, Belgium), one of the largest chocolate manufacturers (and the largest exporter to North America) in Belgium.

I like the taste of cocoa nibs in their natural, unadulterated state, as long as nibs aren't overly dry and there are no off-flavors.* There were no funky nibs that I could taste in this bar (a definite plus). (About 1/3 of chocolates that contain cocoa nibs that I try have at least one tiny, "off" nib that can disrupt the tasting experience.)

Also, the caramelized nibs in today's bar weren't overly sweet (double plus). They added some crunchy texture, without extra sugar, to this 70% dark chocolate bar.

This generously-sized and reasonably priced bar was relatively thin, which some prefer. Thinner bars can be easier to eat and break into pieces; and they allow more immediate access to flavors in a bar.

*Nibs are bits of cocoa bean. One of the most exacting tasks a chocolatemaker making bean-to-bar chocolate has is screening out any moldy or funky beans that come into their facility before grinding them up into nibs. I'm not sure how large manufacturers sort beans; but for small batch makers, this can mean hours of hunching over trays and visually inspecting beans. If funky beans aren't caught earlier, inspecting the nibs later may require a magnifying glass—or special visual scanning technology—one reason why it's best to catch any inferior beans as early in the process as possible.

Charles Chocolates - Caramelized Cocoa Nib Bar - Nov. 3, 2015

Chocolate of the Day: 

Charles Chocolates
Caramelized Cocoa Nib Bar - 72%
Good - Good +
Weight: .875 oz. (25 g.) / 3.5 oz. (100 g.) total bar
Calories: 131 calories (estimate) in 1/4 bar
Cost: $6.99 for 1 bar
Purchased from: Piazza's Fine Foods, Palo Alto, CA

Welcome to Day #8 of Cocoa Nibs Theme Week.

Today's Caramelized Cocoa Nib Bar from Charles Chocolates (San Francisco, CA) was made with 72% Bittersweet Chocolate.

I was greeted by a rich chocolate aroma when I opened this package. Taking a bite of this thick bar was tougher than I thought it would be. (It looks amazing, but you may want to cut it up carefully with a knife first.)

A generous helping of caramelized nibs on the bar provided texture and an attractive golden color; and the sweet crunchy bits complemented the smooth, solid bittersweet dark chocolate.