ChocolateBet: September 29, 2012

Chocolate of the Day: 

JagRma LLC
NuttZo Omega 3 Seven Nut and Seed butter
Good+
Weight: 2 Tablespoons (32 g.) / 16 oz. (454 g.) total jar
Calories: 180 calories
Cost: $10.29 total container
Purchased from: Whole Foods, Los Altos, CA

Today was Day #8 of Chocolate, Figs and Coffee Theme Week(s). The question I asked myself this morning was: "Is it possible to combine all these items together in a yummy sandwich?" Answer: Yes.

To build this sandwich, I toasted two slices of gluten-free bread. One piece of toast was spread was NuttZo Seven Nut and Seed Butter spread, made with dark chocolate, peanuts, almonds brazil nuts, cashews, hazelnuts, flax seeds and sunflower seeds. I lightly sprinkled this spread with cinnamon and ground coffee. The second piece of toast was mounded up with two varieties of sliced fresh figs.

Last, but not least, I put these two halves of my NuttZo sandwich together and enjoyed the heck out of it.

Later, I made a second NuttZo sandwich with sliced fresh strawberries, figs and fig jam. This one did not have coffee or cinnamon, but was also very tasty.

Thank you to Danielle,  JagRMa founder, for Nuttzo butters (also available in non-chocolate, peanut free version) and for inspiring creative possibilities. Even your jar is upside down, so the nut bits are on top when you unscrew the lid and the oil is on the bottom. Brilliant.

ChocolateBet: September 28, 2012

Chocolate of the Day: 

Dick Taylor Chocolate
Black Fig bar
Good+ - Very Good
Weight: 1 oz. (28.3 g.) / 2 oz. (57 g.) total bar
Calories: 149 calories (estimate) in 1/2 bar
Cost: $9.00 for 1 bar
Purchased from: The Chocolate Garage, Palo Alto, CA

Today was Day #7 of Chocolate, Figs and Coffee Theme Week.

Black Mission figs have become a new favorite ingredient of mine after this week. These figs were consistently delicious no matter how they were prepared -- roasted with honey, dried, marinated, made into a spread, or eaten fresh.

Even if you're not ultra-excited about figs, if you like dark chocolate you might enjoy Dick Taylor's Craft Chocolate Black Fig (70%) bar made with cacao from Ecuador. This dark, rich bar paired well with a large cup of coffee with steamed milk (and, later, with a tiny glass of sherry), and I'm sure would pair well with other sweet or savory dishes as well.

This fig bar also was a great snack on a walk by the San Francisco Bay. Thank you to Julie for chocolate tasting help.

ChocolateBet: September 27, 2012

Chocolate of the Day: 

How Do You Take Your Coffee
RoBooSTAS Eating Roast Coffee and Dark Chocolate
Good - Good +
Weight: .5 oz. (14.1 g.)/ 1 oz. (28.3 g.) total package
Calories: 73 calories (estimate) in 1/2 package
Cost: $0.99 total package
Purchased from: Whole Foods, Palo Alto, CA

At the heart of today's chocolates were roasted Robusta coffee beans, that were coated with dark chocolate and a brown "candy" shell. These Roboostas were made in a peanut-free and gluten-free facility (Thank you to mom-owned company, How Do You Take Your Coffee (based in Reno, NV)).

Today was Day #6 of Chocolate, Figs and Coffee Theme Week. To fulfill the fig part of this rich, fall flavor trifecta, I enjoyed a large mug of dirty chai -- a spicy milk tea with cinnamon, cardamom and other spices, sweetened with homemade honey fig syrup; and I "dirtied" this chai up with a small shot of decaf vanilla coffee. 

ChocolateBet: September 26, 2012

Chocolate of the Day: 

Nuubia Chocolat
1.) Espresso Whiskey - Good - Good +
2.) Honey - Good + - Very Good
Weight: for 4 pieces: 1.28 oz. (36.2 g.) (estimate)
Calories: 192 calories (estimate) for 4 pieces
Cost: $6.25 per ounce ($100/lb.)
Purchased from: Cocoa Bella, in San Francisco, CA


Today's two high-end ($100/lb.) petite -- but precisely made and decorated -- dark chocolate square gems from Nuubia Chocolat (Pleasanton, CA) included the company's dark truffle with espresso whiskey flavored ganache, and a Honey truffle. The espresso truffle did have some dark, rich coffee and very faint sweet whiskey-like notes that I liked. The honey truffle was a very nice blend with natural honey and other complex notes (some almost nut-like) all the way through to the finish.


I enjoyed these chocolates with dried figs that I had marinated in coconut palm sugar, coffee and dark rum.

Today was Day #5 of Chocolate, Figs and Coffee Theme Week.

ChocolateBet: September 25, 2012

Chocolate of the Day:

Talenti
Coffee Chocolate Chip gelato
Good +
Weight: 1/4 cup / 1 Pint total container
Calories: 120 calories in 1/4 cup serving
Cost: $4.99 total container
Purchased from: Whole Foods, Los Altos, CA

Chocolate, figs and coffee continued to mix in mysterious and wonderful ways this morning. Breakfast consisted of a small affogato (a shot of espresso over a scoop of gelato) and 5 different fig spreads on toasted gluten-free bread.

Instead of the traditional vanilla gelato in the affogato, I enjoyed a scoop of (gluten free) coffee chocolate chip from Talenti gelato and sorbetto (Dallas, TX). Talenti founder, Josh Hochschuler, was inspired by (and learned how to make) Italian style ice cream (helado/gelato) while living in Argentina.

Today was Day #4 of Chocolate, Figs and Coffee Theme Week.

ChocolateBet: September 24, 2012

Chocolate of the Day: 

Jovial Foods, Inc.

1.) Chocolate Cream Filled - organic chocolate cookies
Good+
Weight: 1.2 oz. (33 g.) / 7 oz. (200 g.) total package of 6 servings
Calories: 160 calories in 1 package of 2 cookies
Cost: $3.99 total package
Purchased from: Whole Foods, Los Altos, CA

2.) Fig Fruit Filled - organic cookies
Good +
Weight: 1.2 oz. (33 g.) / 7 oz. (200 g.) total package of 6 servings
Calories: 130 calories in 1 package of 2 cookies
Cost: $3.99 total package
Purchased from: Whole Foods, Los Altos, CA


I bought two flavors of these small, gluten free cookies: 1.) chocolate and 2.) fig, with chocolate cream and soft fig fruit centers, respectively. It was good to find another good alternative to traditional fig bar cookies (that are made with wheat flour).

Each box of these organic cookies made in Italy for Jovial Foods (North Franklin, CT) contained 6 packets of 2 cookies each. The chocolate cookies were slightly crunchy with a creamy filling. Both flavors were satisfying without being too rich, and paired well with coffee/tea -- and also with imaginary chocolate and fig and coffee ice cream sundaes I was conjuring up, possibly for later this week.

Today was Day #3 of Chocolate, Fig and Coffee Theme Week.

ChocolateBet: September 23, 2012

Chocolate(s) of the Day: 

Paiarrop S.L. (Producer)/ Forever Cheese LLC (Importer)
ChocoHigos
Very Good
Weight: 1 oz. (28 g.) (estimate for 2)/ 4.9 oz. (140 g.) total container/package
Calories: 130 calories (estimate) for 2 pieces
Cost: $9.99 total container/package
Purchased from: Whole Foods, in Palo Alto, CA

What are ChocoHigos? Your first and only hint: "Higos" is the Spanish word for figs. And these little chocolate-covered beauties were produced in Valencia, Spain.

Dried Pajarero figs were hand-dipped in dark chocolate with a touch of vanilla. And they were very tasty. A nice complement to un cafecito, or a cup of coffee, as shown on the package.

These ChocoHigos were imported into the U.S. by Forever Cheese LLC (New York); and I bought them at the local Whole Foods grocery store.

Today was Day #2 of Chocolate, Figs and Coffee Theme Week. So, in honor of the number "2" I created a fig, coffee and chocolate tapas plate with some cheeses. (Thank you Katy and Trip for mentioning cheese.)

I roasted some figs with honey and coffee liqueur and cinnamon, ate them with a slice of Torrone a pani - with dark chocolate and almonds, and some cheeses. Died-and-gone-to-heaven-on-a-little-plate just about captured this moment.