Taza Peppermint Stick Bar; + Smokin XO Hot Pants - Dec. 26, 2015

Chocolate(s) of the Day: 

Taza Chocolate
Peppermint Stick bar
Good ++
Weight: 1.25 oz. (35 g.) / 2.5 oz. (70 g.) in total bar
Calories: 200 calories in 1/2 bar
Cost: $3.49 for 1 bar
Purchased from: Whole Foods Market, Los Altos, CA

Today was Day #5 of Chocolate, Smoke and Fire Theme Week—with a post-Christmas chocolate double feature.

The first chocolate was the Peppermint Stick 60% dark stone-ground chocolate bar from Taza Chocolate (Somerville, MA). It was full of authentic flavor, and robust, slightly crunchy texture, from organic ground peppermint stick and cacao nibs.

This bar was made with direct trade and Non GMO verified ingredients, and was gluten free and pareve.

XO Baking Co.
Gluten Free Chocolate Cake - Gourmet Cake Mix
Good ++
Weight: unknown 
Calories: unknown
Cost: $5.99 (estimate) for 1 box of mix
Purchased from: HomeGoods, Santa Clara, CA

This second chocolate of the day came from a cake mix. I added some smoke-infused olive oil and a small pinch of alderwood smoked sea salt to this mix. In finished form, these cupcake-sized, chocolate cakes were cooked in blue jean "muffin top" silicone cooking molds ("Fred" brand), that humorously (and rather accurately) depicted holiday overindulgence.

This smokey chocolate cake was great topped with smoked almond ice cream. Perfect dessert for those who love umami flavors.

The gluten-free Chocolate Cake mix was from XO Baking Co. (Woodland Hills, CA).

The content and images in this post belong to ChocolateBanquet.com.

Trader Joe's - Uncured Bacon Ganache Bar - Dec. 25, 2015

Source: Trader Joe's website

Chocolate of the Day: 

Trader Joe's
Uncured Bacon Ganache Bar
Good ++ - Very Good
Weight: 1.5 oz. (42.5 g.) / 3 oz. (85 g.) in total bar
Calories: 220 calories in 1/2 bar
Cost: $1.99 for 1 bar
Purchased from: Trader Joe's, Mountain View, CA

Today was Day #4 of Chocolate, Smoke and Fire Theme Week.

Merry Christmas today to all those who celebrate!

Today we continue with chocolates that have smokey and/or fiery flavors. Santa must smell like a smoke-cured ham for days after visiting all those chimneys on Christmas Eve. I don't know of too many ham chocolates (honey-baked smoked ham bar anyone?), but bacon is a relatively popular inclusion.

This Uncured Bacon Ganache Bar from Trader Joe's (Monrovia, CA) was filled with a chocolate, caramel and slightly smoky flavored bacon ganache. It was nicely balanced and not too sweet. I'm a sucker for alder wood smoked salt (and umami flavored foods in general), so this filled 70 percent cacao bar was an enjoyable gift this morning.

The content and images in this post belong to ChocolateBanquet.com.

Chuao Chocolatier - baconluxious bar - Dec. 24, 2015

Chocolate of the Day: 

Chuao Chocolatier
baconluxious chocolate bar
Good - Good +
Weight: 2.8 oz. (80 g.) in total bar
Calories: 420 calories in 1 bar
Cost: $5.99 for 1 bar
Purchased from: Piazza's Fine Foods, Palo Alto, CA

Today was Day #3 of Chocolate, Smoke and Fire Theme Week.

What's the best breakfast on a winter morning? How about a chocolate bar with "...maple sweetness, a sprinkle of bonfire smoked sea salt and crispy, uncured bacon in milk chocolate?"

That description fits today's baconluxious bar from Chuao Chocolatier (Carlsbad, CA). This bar had balanced, subtle flavors—with a hint of maple sweetness and a subtle hint of smoky bacon saltiness.

Merry Christmas Eve to all who celebrate. Best wishes to Santa as you shimmy down those chimneys tonight.

The content and images in this post belong to ChocolateBanquet.com.

flying noir - rookasmooka with smoked guava sea salt - Dec. 23, 2015

Chocolate of the Day:

flying noir
rookasmooka
Good ++
Weight: .4 oz. (11.32 g.) (estimate) in 1 piece
Calories: 60 calories (estimate) in 1 piece
Cost: $N/A - part of a larger purchase
Purchased from: N/A - from flying noir

Welcome to Day #2 of Chocolate, Smoke and Fire Theme Week.

Today's "rookasmooka" from flying noir (Oakland, CA) was a (twice) hand enrobed square, encrusted with Kauai guava smoked sea salt and organic sugar. It was filled with a 70% Amano Ocumare* ganache "with malty rooibos."

The overall flavors were sweet and chocolatey, with a very faint smoky finish from the guava wood.

The salt and sugar crystals gave this rookasmooka a sparkly snowy, crunchy exterior around a creamy interior, creating an interesting bundle of flavor and texture.

This chocolate was part of a 2-piece "art and chocolate" sampler box from flying noir. (The second purple and white chocolate pictured was the company's "brasilao" piece, with fresh lime and cachaca.)

*Amano Chocolate is a chocolate-maker based in Utah. Single origin chocolate (bars) include bars made with cacao beans from the Ocumare region of Venezuela.

The content and images in this post belong to ChocolateBanquet.com.

Flour Chylde - Buche de Noel cake - Dec. 22, 2015

Chocolate of the Day: 

Flour Chylde Bakery
Buche de Noel cake
Good ++
Weight: unknown
Calories: unknown 
Cost: $32.00 for 1 cake
Purchased from: Flour Chylde Bakery (phone order, farmers market pick-up)

Welcome to Day #1 of Chocolate, Smoke and Fire Theme Week.

Today's chocolate was a holiday treat—a Buche de Noel from Flour Chylde Bakery (Novato, CA). This gluten-and dairy-free version of a holiday classic was a carefully rolled chocolate sponge cake filled with vanilla frosting and drizzled with fudge icing.

The Buche de Noel (or yule log) cake is designed to look like a large wooden log that traditionally is burned on Christmas Eve. The chocsimile of this log may have a "branch" or two (or candy mushrooms) sprouting from its cake form. The frosting is often textured to look more like tree bark; and the cake is occasionally dusted with powdered sugar "snow."

I've wanted to make this Buche de Noel cake; however, its roll-and-fill construction process looked daunting. I decided it would be better to buy one from an experienced gluten-free bakery like Flour Chylde.

Well balanced chocolate and vanilla flavors dominated, but there was a faint twinkle of holiday spice that I couldn't quite pin down—pumpkin spice, rum raisin, or sugar plum dust? I'm not sure. (The cake did contain some pumpkin.)

Happy Winter Solstice to all! Progressively lighter days will be here soon.

The content and images in this post belong to ChocolateBanquet.com.

Cosmopolitan - Palermo Duo Swirl Hazelnut Chocolate Spread - Dec. 21, 2015

Chocolate of the Day: 

Cosmopolitan Food Group, Inc.
Palermo Duo Swirl Hazelnut Chocolate Spread
Good
Weight: 2 Tablespoons (37 g.) / 12.3 oz. (350 g.) in total jar
Calories: 219 calories (estimate) in one 2 TB serving
Cost: $1.99 (estimate) for 1 jar
Purchased from: Grocery Outlet Bargain Market, Palo Alto, CA

Today we bid adieu to Chocolate and Hazelnut Theme Week -- with an eighth item, one last bonus hazelnut day.

Unscrew the lid on a jar of Palermo Duo Swirl Hazelnut Chocolate Spread from Cosmopolitan Food Group, Inc. (Hoboken, NJ) and you'll find a decorative duo of chocolate hazelnut cocoa cream + manila-colored "milky cream" combined into one alternating, dynamic duo.

This was marketed as a spread; however, it could also be used to frost cupcakes, as a filling between cake layers, or perhaps piped onto a pastry shell.

I spread some of this festive spread on plain, gluten-free toast; and the toast helped to balance out the sweetness.

The content and images in this post belong to ChocolateBanquet.com.

Mars Snickers Mixed Nuts bar with hazelnuts - Dec. 20, 2015

Chocolate of the Day:

Mars Chocolate North America, LLC
Snickers Mixed Nuts bar
(with peanuts, almonds and hazelnuts)
Good
Weight: 1.76 oz. (49.9 g.) in 1 bar
Calories: 240 calories in 1 bar
Cost: $1.09 for 1 bar
Purchased from: Bed Bath and Beyond, Mountain View, CA

The Snickers candy bar brand from Mars (Hackettstown, NJ) has expanded to include several variations over the years.

Today's milk chocolate-covered Snickers Mixed Nuts bar contained, as promised, a mix of crunchy peanuts, almonds and hazelnuts—the latter nut being a new addition I believe, as well as the traditional sweet caramel and nougat.

This latest Snickers (Limited Edition bar) came out in November 2015, just in time for Day #7 of Chocolate and Hazelnut Theme Week.

The content and images in this post belong to ChocolateBanquet.com.