ChocolateBet: January 10, 2011

Chocolate of the Day:
1 serving
Allegro Coffee Company
Drinking Chocolate
Organic Indian Spice 30 (Chai)
Very Good
Weight: 1 Tablespoon / 8 oz. (226 g.) total package/box
Calories: 95 calories total (45 calories for mix plus 50 calories for milk)
Cost: $6.99 for total box
Purchased from: Whole Foods Market, in downtown Palo Alto, CA

Today was Day #4 of Chocolate and Chai Theme Week. And I'm switching from chai flavored truffles to drinking chocolate from Allegro Coffee Company today. Allegro's Organic Indian Spice 30 mix contains "...milk chocolate blended with the ginger and cardamom of classic chai." This flavor is one of several flavored drinking chocolates offered by the company.

I used hot, low-fat (cow's) milk as a base for my hot drinking chocolate; however, I'm sure one could experiment with other milks. This mix does contain dairy -- in the form of organic Fair Trade Certified milk chocolate, and organic milk powder.

ChocolateBet: January 9, 2011

Chocolate of the Day:
1/2 truffle
Coco-luxe Confections
Chai truffle
Good
Weight: .24 oz. (6.8 g.) (estimate for 1/2 pc.)
Cost: $4.00 for small bag of 2 truffles
Purchased from: Coco-luxe, (at temporary holiday shop), Palo Alto, CA

Today was Day #3 of Chocolate and Chai Theme Week, and the day's chocolate choice was a Chai (dark) truffle from San Francisco, CA-based Coco-luxe Confections.

ChocolateBet: January 8, 2011

Chocolate of the Day:
1 truffle
Sweet Earth Chocolates
Chai Latte Truffle
Very Good
Weight: .48 oz. (14 g.) (estimate)
Calories: 72 calories (estimate)
Cost: $N/A - gift (thank you Alec, Ardis)
Purchased from: N/A - gift (from San Luis Obispo, CA)

Today was Day # 2 of Chocolate and Chai Theme Week. I experimented with making my own stovetop Chai (cardamom pods, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, cloves, pepper and other spices).

Today's Sweet Earth Chocolates  Chai Latte Truffle was very close to the mix of spice flavors that I like best. Sweet Earth specializes in Fair Trade, Organic chocolates.

Note: I initially photographed this little scene without a memory card in my camera. Oops. So, the little empty white paper cup is what remains after I ate Sweet Earth Chocolates Chai Latte Truffle. The image of the Chai Latte Truffle, above right, is from the Sweet Earth Chocolates truffle brochure.

ChocolateBet: January 7, 2011

Chocolate of the Day:
1 truffle
Coco-Zen
Chocolate Chai Spice Truffle
Good + - Very Good
Weight: .6 oz. (17 g.) (estimate)
Calories: 84 calories (estimate)
Cost: $N/A - sample at a benefit film screening
Purchased from: N/A - Coco-Zen table at a benefit, held at World Centric, Palo Alto, CA

Chocolate is one of those remarkably versatile foods that mixes well with a variety of other flavors. Today is Day #1 of Chocolate and Chai Theme Week. Chai itself is a blend of tea, spices and milk; and I've found wide variations in this beverage in Northern California. Personally, I like a chai that is cardamom-rich and light on the caffeine. However, I look forward to different chai + chocolate combinations this week.

Today's chocolate was a Chocolate Chai Spice truffle from Coco-Zen. Based in Pacifica, California, Coco-Zen makes hand-crafted chocolates with Fair Trade Certified, Organic ingredients.

Thank you also to Cynthia for sharing cardamom, ginger and orange chocolates from Quebec, after a Cuban lunch -- making today a very international food day.

ChocolateBet: January 6, 2011

Chocolate of the Day: 

1 oz. serving
Sunflower Food and Spice Co. Ltd., LLC
Candy Coated Sunny Seed Drops - Chocolate Sunflower Seeds
Very Good
Weight: 1 oz. (28 g.)
Calories: 135 calories (estimate)
Cost: $0.99 (post-holiday sale price)
Purchased from: Piazza's Fine Foods, Palo Alto, CA

Welcome to the last day (Day #7) of Chocolate and Flowers Theme Week. The "flower" focus today is the sunflower -- or seeds from the middle of sunflowers that have been chocolate and candy coated, to be exact.

These Sunny Seeds Drops were quite good with nothing else added. However, since it was Chocolate and Flower Theme Week, and because I like both sunflowers and roses...I also tried misting some of these seeds with a little rosewater (rose oil in water). And these were delicious -- even though the rosewater made the candy coating colors run a little.

ChocolateBet: January 5, 2011

Chocolate(s) of the Day:

1.) Dark Orange Cardamom chocolate cup with Lemon Lavender Sorbet
KSchocolat - Orange Cardamom, 72% Dark Chocolate small bar
Silver Moon Desserts Lavender Limoncello Sorbet
Very Good +
Weight: .5 oz. (14.1 g.) (estimate)
Calories: 60 calories (estimate) for 1 cup
Cost: $(combination of several ingredients)
Purchased from: KSchocolat Chocolate was from Chocolate Covered, in San Francisco, CA; and Lavender Limoncello Sorbet was from Piazza's Fine Foods, in Palo Alto, CA; the food-grade lavender buds, used for decoration on top, were from The Olive Press, in Sonoma, CA.

2.) Sweet Earth Chocolates
Cardamom Ginger Vegan Truffle
Very Good +
Weight: .45 oz. (12.7 g.) (estimate)
Calories: 72 calories (estimate)
Cost: $ N/A - gift
Purchased from: N/A - gift; thank you to Alec and Ardis

Today was Day #6 of Chocolate and Flowers Theme Week. Although today's flower (lavender) was also mixed with small amounts of citrus (orange and lemon) and spices (cardamom, allspice, ginger).

I melted a very small KShocolat Orange Cardamom dark chocolate (72%) bar in the microwave, and spread the melted chocolate into a cup mold. After the chocolate cup lining had started to harden, I spooned in a bit of frozen Lemon Lavender Sorbet (from Silver Moon Desserts), and topped this little chocolate dessert with a few lavender buds. This was the last of my stash of these Orange Cardamom bars from KShocolat. I'll have to take another chocolate field trip up to Chocolate Covered in San Francisco to see if this chocolate shop still carries their bars. Because I've already eaten this bar before (and I don't repeat chocolates on the blog), I had no choice but to eat a second chocolate.

Sticking with the cardamom and spice theme, I tried a Cardamom Ginger Vegan Truffle, from Sweet Earth Chocolates in San Luis Obispo, CA, that was part of a gift assortment box I was given over the holidays. This blend of cardamom and ginger was just right for my taste.

ChocolateBet: January 4, 2011

Chocolate of the Day: 
2 pieces
Tropical Chocolate Company

1.) "Flower"
 Good + - Very Good
Weight: .5 oz. (14 g.) (estimate)
Calories: 70 calories (estimate)
Cost: N/A - gift
Purchased from: N/A - gift

2.) "Yuzu Olive Oil" 
Very Good - Very Good +
Weight: .5 oz. (14 g.) (estimate)
Calories: 72 calories (estimate)
Cost: N/A - gift
Purchased from: N/A - gift

Today was Day #5 of Chocolate and Flowers Week. These two chocolates, from Tropical Chocolate Company -- based in San Luis Obispo, contained flower design elements. The first piece, "Flower" -- molded in the shape of a flower -- was a single origin chocolate made entirely from Waialua Estate Hawaiian 70% chocolate. The second piece contained local Arroyo Grande Yuzu citrus and Yuzu olive oil in a dark ganache, and was decorated with a yellow flower pattern across the top.