ChocolateBet: April 11, 2012

Chocolate of the Day:

Donnelly Chocolates
Chinese Five Spice bar
Good - Good +
Weight: .4 oz. (11.25 g.) / 1.6 oz. (45 g.) total bar
Calories: 58 calories (estimate)
Cost: $6.25 total bar (estimate)
Purchased from: Fog City News, San Francisco, CA


This beautifully wrapped Five Spice bar with a hard snap was crafted by Donnelly Chocolates (Santa Cruz, CA). Chinese Five Spice is a combination of, you guessed it, five spices, typically: powdered star anise, cloves, cinnamon, Sichuan pepper and ground fennel seeds (with occasional variations that might include anise seed, ginger root, or cassia bark).

I'd like to fiddle around with the spices to see if I could come up with a favorite blend of two or more of these. Five different flavors made for an interesting mix with this dark chocolate bar, but was almost too much.

ChocolateBet: April 10, 2012

Chocolate of the Day: 

Kika's Treats
Dark Chocolate Covered Rice Cake Bites
Good+
Weight: 2 oz. (56 g.) / 4 oz. (113 g.)/ total package
Calories: 200 calories (estimate)

Cost: $6.00 total container
Purchased from: Kika's Treats, in San Francisco, CA

These glossy, dark chocolate covered, gluten-free beauties from Kika's Treats (San Francisco) were some of the better rice cakes I've eaten lately. Dark chocolate can do that.

 

ChocolateBet: April 9, 2012

Chocolate of the Day: 

The Plant Cafe Organic
Raw Brownie Bite
Very Good
Weight: .5 oz. (14.1 g.) (estimate)
Calories: 75 calories (estimate)
Cost: $1.75?
Purchased from: The Plant Cafe Organic, Embarcadero location, San Francisco, CA

As part of a walk along the waterfront in San Francisco today, I stopped at TCHO (S.F. chocolate maker) and also at The Plant Cafe Organic.

The Plant Cafe specializes in healthy, and local, organic food. Their menu offered several gluten-free items -- including a raw brownie, and its diminutive cousin, the raw brownie bit/bite-sized square. Thank you to the staff member who pointed out the smaller version. It was the perfect dessert item to follow a great chicken salad I picked up there.

This smooth, creamy, bite-sized chocolatey square, that was sweetened with agave, and also contained finely chopped dates, had a slight coconut taste, and was very satisfying.

The Granada Chocolate Company - Salty-Licious bar - April 8, 2012

Chocolate of the Day: 

The Grenada Chocolate Company
Salty-Licious bar - Himalayan salt in 71% chocolate
Very Good
Weight: .5 oz. (14.1 g.) / 3 oz. (85 g.)/ total bar
Calories: 72 calories
Cost: $6.00 total bar
Purchased from: The Chocolate Garage, in Palo Alto, CA

Today's organic dark chocolate "Salty-Licious" bar from The Grenada Chocolate Company (Hermitage, St. Patrick, Grenada) was rich, and almost sparkled with complex flavors -- with notes including what I can only describe as "jungle" and light, fragrant tobacco.

Made with Himalayan salt -- a version of this bar made with Caribbean sea salt may be available in the future.

The Salty-Licious bar was made from Grenadian Trinitario cocoa beans -- tree to bar -- in country, by a cooperative of farmers. Solar energy helps power the factory.

Today was Day #9 of Chocolate and Salt Theme Week. 

ChocolateBet: April 7, 2012

Chocolate of the Day:

Petits Carres au Chocolat/P'tit Carre au Chocolat
(Imported by Desirs de Provence)
Chocolat au Lait - Fleur de Sel de Guerande
Good - Good +
Weight: .31 oz. (8.8 g.) / 2.82 oz. (80 g.) total bar
Calories: 46.5 calories (estimate)
Cost: $9.95 total bar
Purchased from: TWG Tea, Vancouver, B.C., Canada

Today was Day #8 of Chocolate and Salt Week. This Petits Carres au Chocolat, milk chocolate (33%) with Guerande sea salt* bar from France, was attractively packaged and designed -- with a wrapped in burlap look. Salt was sprinkled on the back of the bar. The chocolate itself was smooth, but the cacao flavor(s) were diluted a bit from the powdered milk, soy lecithin, vanilla and aroma ingredients.

*Guerande sea salt comes from a salt marsh region in Western France (peninsula area on Atlantic coast), in a protected area, where salt has been collected centuries.

ChocolateBet: April 6, 2012

Chocolate of the Day:

Xocolatl de David
Salted Caramel bar
Good+
Weight: 1/3 oz.
Calories: 50 calories (estimate)
Cost: $8.95 total bar
Purchased from: Fog City News, in San Francisco, CA

This slim, dark chocolate (72% cacao from Ecuador) Salted Caramel bar from Xocolatl de David (Portland, OR) had a thin layer of caramel artfully applied in the middle. The different sweet-salt and cacao flavors were balanced.

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

ChocolateBet: April 5, 2012

Chocolate of the Day: 

Kika's Treats
Dark Chocolate Covered Crunchy Corn Cake Bites
Very Good
Weight: 2 oz. (56.5 g.) / 4 oz. (113 g.)
Calories: 220 calories (estimate) for 1/2 container
Cost: N/A - sample
Purchased from: Kika's Treats, San Francisco, CA

Today was Day #6 of Chocolate and Salt Theme Week.

These light, fresh and crispy, gluten-free, chocolate-covered corn cakes from Kika's Treats (San Francisco, CA) were one offering in a fun line-up of treats from Cristina Arantes, a very talented baker, maker and chef who is from Brazil. The light sprinkling of sea salt on these semisweet cakes was just about perfect -- not too much, but just the right amount to satisfy.

Kika's Treats (open by appointment, for pick-ups) is located in the "Dogpatch" area of San Francisco -- a fun neighborhood for foodies.