Orange Hibiscus bar - June 11, 2013

Chocolate of the Day: 

Trader Joe's
Dark Chocolate Bar - Orange Hibiscus
Good - Good +
Weight: .75 oz. (21.2 g.) / 2 oz. (57 g.) in 1 bar
Calories: 120 calories in .75 oz. (21.2 g.) piece
Cost: $9.99 for 7-bar tasting pack
Purchased from: Trader Joe's, Menlo Park, CA

Today's citrus fruit and floral-forward bar was part of a Trader Joe's (Monrovia, CA) Dark Chocolate Tasting Odyssey pack of 7 different bars (a seasonal item from earlier in the year).

Orange is a good match with hibiscus and chocolate, and this Orange Hibiscus 70% cacao bar was no exception. The bar was infused with a "floral and fruity tea, mingled with orange (oil) and hibiscus (tea and powder) flavors." Other ingredients that added to this refreshing bouquet included: elderberry, apples, rosehip peels, kiwi, dried strawberry pieces, sunflower petals, rose petals and cornflower petals.

Fruit and floral, indeed. The dark chocolate base had a balanced profile, without any overpowering notes, allowing the tea or other flavor additions to shine through.

Today was Day #5 of Chocolate and Hibiscus Theme Week. 

Rawganic Hibiscus bar - June 10, 2013

Chocolate of the Day: 

Rawganic (Raw Chocolate)
Hibiscus bar
Good
Weight: .353 oz. (10 g.) for 1/6 bar / 2.12 oz. (60 g.) for 1 bar
Calories: 52 calories (estimate) in 1/6 bar
Cost: $6.00 (estimate) for 1 bar
Purchased from: Rawganic, Burleigh Heads, Queensland, Australia

Today was Day #4 of Chocolate and Hibiscus Theme Week.

Hibiscus flowers are grown in tropical and semi-tropical regions around the globe, including Australia.  This helps explain why the flowers are known by many names (rose mallow, roselle, Jamaica, sorrel, etc.). Today's Hibiscus bar hails from Rawganic (Burleigh Heads, Queensland) in Australia.

Rawganic offers a line of raw, organic and vegan chocolate bars (in addition to packaged lacuma, mesquite and maca).  

Today's dark chocolate (70% cacao) agave-sweetened bar contained organic hibiscus flowers, organic lacuma and just a touch of pink himalayan crystal salt. It had a slightly sharp flavor -- a hint of tartness from the hibiscus I am guessing. As with many raw bars, I liked the fact that it was not too sweet.

Oakland Chocolate Co. - Hibiscus truffle - June 9, 2013

Chocolate of the Day:

The Oakland Chocolate Company
Hibiscus Tea truffle
Good - Good +
Weight: .42 oz. (11.8 g.) (estimate) for 1 piece
Calories: 63 calories (estimate) for 1 piece
Cost: $2.00 for 1 piece
Purchased from: The Oakland Chocolate Co., Oakland, CA

I enjoy mixing spices, herbs and flowers when cooking. This week I've been blending hibiscus, citrus and pink peppercorns, a combination that creates an interesting raft of flavor for beverages, desserts and chocolate items.

Happily, Nancy Nadel at The Oakland Chocolate Company (Oakland, CA) celebrates these flavors as well, inspired by her relationship with cacao farmers in Jamaica*.

I tried Nancy Nadel's Hibiscus Tea truffle and a Pink Peppercorn Caramel side-by-side today. The truffle's white chocolate ganache (filling) was infused with a hibiscus tea flavor, was coated with dark chocolate and topped with an attractive bit of tropical pink (lightly candied hibiscus blossom I'm guessing).

Today was the third day of Chocolate and Hibiscus Theme Week.

*Trivia: Hibiscus based drinks go by various names. The name for a popular, red drink in Mexico made with this flower is flor de Jamaica (pronounced ha-mie'-ka), and Hondurans enjoy: agua de Jamaica. Interestingly, a similar red beverage in Jamaica is called Sorrel.

Chocolat Lily - Hibiscus - June 8, 2013

Chocolate of the Day:

Chocolat Lily
Hibiscus truffle
Good+
Weight: .5 oz. (14.1 g.) in 1 piece
Calories: 75 calories (estimate) for 1 piece
Cost: $ N/A
Purchased from: N/A - Chocolat Lily, Portland, OR

Today was Day #2 of Chocolate and Hibiscus Theme Week.

This pretty, flower-shaped chocolate from Chocolat Lily (Portland, OR), was decorated with a light blush of color, and had a very subtle hint of hibiscus flavor infused into a soft chocolate ganache (filling).

This truffle and others (infused with fruit, berries, spices and other flavorful ingredients) were hand-crafted by Anne Pattison Simmons, founder and head chocolatier at Chocolat Lily. I first became aware of her work during a recent trip to Belize.

Anne was also a founder of Cotton Tree Chocolate in Punta Gorda, Belize, a company that specializes in sourcing local ingredients and employing local women. She applies a similar philosophy to Chocolate Lily truffles, made from (organic wherever possible) ingredients in her garden and from local Portland-area farmers. Thank you to Anne and to other chocolate crafters who bring heart and passion to your work, for the benefit of us who are lucky enough to enjoy the end product.

Madre Chocolate Hibiscus bar - June 7, 2013

Chocolate of the Day:

Madre Chocolate
Hibiscus bar
Weight: 1.5 oz. (43 g.) total bar
Calories: 225 calories (estimate) in 1 bar
Cost: $6.00 for 1 bar
Purchased from: Madre Chocolate, Hawaii (online order)

Certain flowers blend well with chocolate, particularly if the flower can stand up to the stronger flavor of dark chocolate. In this floral category: lavender, rose, geranium, and hibiscus -- the subject of this week's theme.

Today's 70% dark chocolate hibiscus bar from Madre Chocolate (Hawaii), was made with fair trade Dominican cacao. Red hibiscus flowers are quintessentially tropical, and the blooms (often incorporated as dried flowers or tea made from the flower) imparted a tart and saucy floral + citrus flavor.

Thank you to Madre Chocolate, for continuing to incorporate endemic Hawaiian fruit and flowers into new fresh-tasting flavor combinations. (For those unfamiliar with Madre, try their Triple Cacao bar, with cacao fruit pulp, cacao nibs, and dark chocolate for a multi-dimensional chocolate tasting experience.)

Spicy Pecan Chocolate sorbet - June 6, 2013

Chocolate of the Day: 

Scream Sorbet
Spicy Chocolate Pecan sorbet
Very Good
Weight: 3 oz. (84.9 g.) / 12 oz. (339.6 g.) in total container
Calories: 90 calories (estimate) in a 3 oz. serving
Cost: $8.00 (estimate) for 1 container
Purchased from: Scream Sorbet, Oakland, CA

I said farewell the last day of Spicy Chocolate Theme Week with a special treat -- a small bowl of Spicy Chocolate Pecan sorbet from Scream Sorbet (Oakland, CA) that I'd squirreled away in the back of my freezer, just for this occasion.

Why was this special? Two reasons. First, this was great sorbet. Second, Scream Sorbet shut its doors recently, to the disappointment of many die-hard fans -- a reminder to enjoy all of life's most wonderful things while they are here today.

Using a special process, Scream Sorbet created a range of flavors with very high quality, fresh ingredients, resulting in the best ice cream you've ever tasted, without the benefit of any cream or milk. And today's Spicy Chocolate Pecan was no exception, a product of the best organic pecans and Askinosie Soconusco (Mexico) cocoa powder. A dash of cayenne pepper gave just the right amount of spicy kick throughout.

There is a rumor that Scream Sorbet may re-open in some form (food truck? farmers market?) this month. One can hope.

Pacari - Chili bar - June 5, 2013

Chocolate of the Day:

Pacari Chocolate
Chili (bar)
Good
Weight: .352 oz. (10 g.) in 1/5 bar / 1.76 oz. (50 g.) in total bar
Calories: 60 kcals in 1/5 bar
Cost: $N/A - sample pack
Purchased from: N/A - sample pack, Pacari Chocolate table at San Francisco Fancy Food Show, San Francisco, CA

Welcome to Day #7 of Spicy Chocolate Theme Week.

Today's Chili bar (Chocolate Fino Organico Con Aji (Merken Chili)) from Pacari Chocolate (Quito, Ecuador) was part of a 4-bar Andean Flavors Collection pack. The other three flavors were: Cuzco Pink Salt and Nibs, Lemongrass and Andean Blueberry.

The dark chocolate base was smooth and well balanced. And the smoked chili, coriander seeds and salt spice blend used to flavor the bar was very subtle -- barely detectable in fact.

Pacari Chocolate goes one better than bean-to-bar chocolate. Their tree-to-bar, organic (gluten and soy free) chocolate bars were "made by the batch" in Ecuador. The company partners with small cacao farmers for their cacao beans.