ChocolateBet: February 2, 2012

Chocolate of the Day: 

York (The Hershey Co.)
Peppermint Pattie Heart
Good +
Weight: .48 oz. (13.6 g.) /8.5 oz. (240 g.) total bag
Calories: 50 calories
Cost: $3.49 total bag
Purchased from: Walgreens, Palo Alto, CA

Today was Day #5 of Chocolate + Hearts and Flowers Theme Week.

York Peppermint Patties came in a special flavor this month -- Peppermint Pattie Hearts. These dark chocolate covered, heart-shaped pieces came individually wrapped in a larger plastic bag. The conventional white peppermint centers were colored pink to match the occasion -- a celebration of Valentines day/month.

ChocolateBet: February 1, 2012

Chocolate of the Day: 

Moonstruck Chocolate Co.
Dark Chocolate Hazelnut Bark
Good + - Very Good
Weight: 1 oz. (28 g.) / 3.56 oz. (101 g.) total tin
Calories: 150 calories
Cost: $9.99 total tin
Purchased from: Piazza's Fine Foods, in Palo Alto, CA

Today was Day #4 of Chocolate + Hearts and Flowers Theme Week.

Bark? Dark Chocolate Hazelnut Bark? OK, but only if it's decorated with red and pink heart shapes. I didn't really say that, but I could have. I broke off a piece of this bark bar from Moonstruck Chocolate Co. (Portland, OR), revealing a dense mesh of finely chopped hazelnut pieces.

And, to pack in more Oregon nut goodness, I paired this bark with a handful of dry roasted hazelnuts from Freddy Guys Hazelnuts (Monmouth, OR). Did you ever notice that hazelnuts are the most heart-shaped nut around?

ChocolateBet: January 31, 2012

Chocolate of the Day: 

Vosges Haut Chocolat

1.) Blood Orange Campari caramel - Good + - Very Good
Weight: .3 oz. (8.49 g.)/ 5.4 oz. (152.8 g.) total 18-piece assortment box (estimate)
Calories: 45 calories (estimate)
Cost: $29.00 for 18-piece box
Purchased from: Vosges.com (Chicago, IL)

2.) Barcelona Milagro Heart - Very Good
Weight: 1 oz. (28 g.)
Calories: 150 calories (estimate)
Cost: $4.00 1 heart
Purchased from: Vosges.com (Chicago, IL)

Today's two treats from Vosges (Chicago, IL) reminded me of warmer times and places.

The Barcelona Milagro Heart of Love looked like it belonged in a Mediterranean jewelry box. This chocolate embraced hickory smoked almonds and grey sea salt in a base of 45% cacao "deep milk chocolate." I've liked this term since I first saw it in a Vosges catalog several years ago. And deep milk chocolate certainly mixes well with salt, smoked nuts, caramel/toffee, and savory items.

The second item was from a Vosges exotic caramel assortment; the tarte taste from the red hibiscus (flower) powder topping, Campari and blood orange made this dark chocolate-covered caramel more colorful and lively.

Today was Day #3 of Chocolate + Hearts and Flowers Theme Week.

ChocolateBet: January 30, 2012

Photo: Bouquet of Fruits, Inc.

Chocolate of the Day: 

Bouquet of Fruits, Inc.
Valentines Chocolate Dipped Strawberries
Good+
Weight: 2.7 oz. (75 g.) in 2 pieces
Calories: 274 calories
Cost: $44.95 total box of 12
Purchased from: drugstore.com

When you get home after a long day at work, and you don't have the energy to cook dinner -- I recommend chocolate dipped strawberries. Once a year, somewhere near Valentines Day. Take two, and call me in the morning.

Photo: My house; dinner

This particular assortment box of Valentines Chocolate Dipped Strawberries was from Bouquet of Fruits, Inc. (Fresno, CA), and contained 12 large, luscious heart-shaped berries dipped in different types of chocolate -- chocolate with pink and white icing; white chocolate and coconut; white chocolate and chocolate chips; chocolate with..... Well, you get the drift.

Today was Day #2 of Chocolate + Hearts and Flowers Theme Week.

ChocolateBet: January 29, 2012

Chocolate(s) of the Day: 

Vosges Haut Chocolat
1.) Smoked Tomato milagro heart - Good + - Very Good
2.) Red Fire milagro heart - Very Good

Welcome to Day #1 of Chocolate + Hearts and Flowers Theme Week.

Nothing says Valentines Day is coming up in two weeks like flaming chocolate milagro (miracle) hearts.

Vosges (Chicago) offered three different flavored hearts this season. Featured today: the company's 1.) Smoked Tomato heart (smoked tomato, toffee and 62% cacao dark chocolate); and 2.) Red Fire heart with Mexican ancho and chipotle chillies, Ceylon cinnamon and 55% cacao dark chocolate.

I was very interested in trying the Smoked Tomato flavor. The best part: biting into pieces with smoked flavor, without too big a piece of tomato (think smoky sun-dried tomato fragments). Too much tomato in a bite may add a sharper, acidic element that may not appeal to everyone. Even better: alternating bites of Smoked Tomato and Red Fire hearts. Both hearts had a slightly uneven distribution of flavor spikes, which added interest and an element of surprise. Two hearts in one -- can't get more Valentinian than that.

ChocolateBet: January 28, 2012

Chocolate of the Day: 

Diamond Foods, Inc.
Cocoa Roast Almonds
OK+
Weight: .10 oz. (.28 g.) / 4.41 oz. (126 g.) box of 7 bags
Calories: 10 calories
Cost: $ unavailable
Purchased from: Target, Mountain View, CA

Today was Day #7 of Chocolate and Almond Marzipan Theme Week. I combined yet anther style of marzipan, with cocoa coated toasted almonds.

Calissons (diamond-shaped marzipan, honey and fruit confections) typically found in southern France or Italy - mai oui! Cocoa Roast Almonds (from Diamond Foods) sweetened with artificial sweetener Sucralose? Not so much.

Originally, I had planned to dip some gluten-free almond cookies (made from almond flour and sugar) in some melted chocolate. Alas, the cookies were past their freshness date. Thank you to The Chocolate Garage community for coming to the rescue and supplying the Calissons.

ChocolateBet: January 27, 2012

Chocolate of the Day:

Vosges
Marzipan Bar
Very Good
Weight: 1 oz. (28 g.)/ 3 oz. (85 g.) total bar
Calories: 165 calories
Cost: $7.50 total bar
Purchased from: Vosges, Chicago, IL

Vosges Haut Chocolat (Chicago) does lush and lovely photo shoots of their chocolates that I can only envy. My little blurry pics, stolen between work, sleep and commute hours this month certainly don't measure up. But, the images at right will give you a tiny inkling of what Vosges "designer" bars are all about: exotic flavor combinations blended with reasonably good chocolate.

Today's Marzipan dark chocolate (62% cacao) bar was filled with a sweet, Sicilian almond marzipan and amaretto center. The dark chocolate outside contrasted sharply with the light and translucent center, and took the sugar level down a peg or two.

A chocolate thought bubble lingered above my head: I wondered how a slightly less sweet center paired with a slightly less dark chocolate combination would have tasted.

I was impressed this week with the range of marzipan formulations. And I'd barely scratched the surface of what was available. I wasn't able to hunt down marzipan flavored with rose water, or orange blossom water in time. Maybe next year. Today was Day #6 of Chocolate and Marzipan Theme Week. Tomorrow, I'll experiment with gluten-free almond cookies and chocolate.