World Market - Blood Orange bar - Jan. 10, 2016

Chocolate of the Day: 

World Market
Milk Chocolate Blood Orange with Hawaiian Alaea Sea Salt bar
Good - Good +
Weight: 1.125 oz. (31.8 g.) / 3 oz. (85 g.) in total bar
Calories: 165 calories in 3/8 (3 squares) of bar
Cost: $3.49 for 1 bar
Purchased from: World Market, Mountain View, CA

Welcome to Day #5 of Chocolate and Orange Theme Week.

Today's Milk Chocolate Blood Orange with Hawaiian Alaea Sea Salt bar was from World Market (distributed by Cost Plus, Inc., Oakland, CA).

This bar had a mild, natural orange candy aroma, and a flavor and texture spectrum that tumbled out across the tongue—first orange flavor (blood orange oil) in sweet, smooth milk chocolate, followed by crunchy crystals of sea salt, followed by a tiny chewy fleck or two of bittersweet orange peel, mellowed with a hint of vanilla. Overall the flavors harmonized nicely, and I like "layers" of flavor that unfold like this.

It's also an exquisite balancing act to balance layered flavors like this. Too much salt or orange peel in one bite can be overwhelming. On the other hand, flavors that are uniformly ground down together might not work either. So hats off to anyone making inclusion bars like this.

"Hawaiian Alaea Red Sea Salt gets its color from a volcanic red clay used in traditional Hawaiian ceremonies to cleanse and purify."

Today's bar was part of World Market's "The Exotic Collection...of Sea Salt Chocolate" bars, so named because they contain flavor and salt inclusions from around the globe. I love the detailed illustrations that grace the packaging. If you look closely at the label for this bar, you'll see an orange tree (orchard) and some sea symbols around the edges.

The content and images in this post belong to ChocolateBanquet.com.

Integrity Cacao - Orange Essence - Jan. 9, 2016

Chocolate(s) of the Day: 

Integrity Cacao
Orange Essence
Nibbs N Cream
Celtic Sea Salt
Good ++
Weight: 1.58 oz. (44.7 g.) (estimate) for 4 pieces
Calories: 237 calories (estimate) in 4 pieces
Cost: $N/A - gift (Thank you Katy!)
Purchased from: N/A - gift from family member

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

My sister gifted me some chocolates from a friend (Merissa) in Southern California, who happened to be founder and CEO of Integrity Cacao (Thousand Oaks).

A small container held three different chocolate flavors: Orange Essence, Nibbs N Cream, and Celtic Sea Salt.

The pretty, Orange Essence rose-button shaped dark chocolates possessed a soft melt and a delicately fudgey soft middle. These chocolates were flavored with an authentic-tasting, lilting orange flavor (Orange Oil) with perhaps a touch of floral (rose?).

(I'd tasted a previous iteration of the Orange Essence piece more than a year ago when the company was called Love Bites Raw Confections.)

The other two chocolates were: 1.) Nibbs N Cream (a creamy white chocolate with Tahitian vanilla bean and crunchy cacao nibs)—a healthy version of cookies and cream; and 2.) Celtic Sea Salt - dark chocolate squares with tiny chunks of grey Celtic Sea Salt, that the maker suggested pairing with wine and fruit.

I really enjoyed these satisfying chocolates made with quality ingredients. Toned down sugar levels prevented them from being too sweet, which I appreciated.

The content and images in this post belong to ChocolateBanquet.com.

Nussli 118 - Chocolate Orange Rounds - Jan. 8, 2016

Chocolate of the Day: 

Nussli 118
Chocolate Orange Rounds
Good +
Weight: 2 oz. (57 g.) in package of 3 pieces
Calories: 162 calories (per label) in 3 pieces
Cost: $4.59 for 1 package of 3 pieces
Purchased from: Country Sun Natural Foods, Palo Alto, CA

Welcome to Day #3 of Chocolate and Orange Theme Week. It's January, and it's gray outside. But the sight of a tree loaded with bright orange citrus fruits peeping over a fence brightened my day.

Today's Chocolate Orange Rounds from Nussli 118 (Cambridge, MA), also were uplifting.

These "plant-based, sprouted and organic" confections were round balls sweetened with dates, flavored with cacao powder and orange oil, and rolled in raw coconut shreds. (They also contained coconut oil, coconut flour, vanilla, Himalayan salt and maple syrup.)

The subtle orange, almost floral, aroma and flavor in these natural* confections prevented the coconut from dominating too much, and helped balance the sweetness.

* These sweets were natural in the way I wish the term really meant: no artificial or extra preservatives or flavorings, made with organic (as in organic farming practices) ingredients, with minimal processing.

The content and images in this post belong to ChocolateBanquet.com.

Vosges - Blood Orange Hibiscus Marshmallows - Jan. 7, 2016

Chocolate of the Day: 

Vosges
Blood Orange Hibiscus Caramel Marshmallows
Good - Good +
Weight: 1.5 oz. (43 g.) / 2.5 oz. (70.9 g.) in total bar
Calories: 170 calories in 3 pieces
Cost: $3.99 for 1 package of 5 pieces
Purchased from: World Market, Mountain View, CA

Today was Day #7 of Chocolate and Flower Theme Week, and Day #2 of Chocolate and Orange Theme Week.

Sadly, this is the last day of chocolate and flower week. Roses have dominated this week's line-up. But, today we'll be diversifying with something more tropical—hibiscus.

Watching palm trees sway in Hawaii, Central America (or even Southern California) and enjoying colorful flowers, sounds appealing after days of gray, cold rain. (Following a multi-year drought, rain is good; but I hope our state is banking the extra water this year, so that we can grow flowers in our yards again in the future.) And now, back to chocolate...

Vosges (Chicago, IL) is always coming out with great, new flavor combinations, including chocolates with flowers and fruits. Today's flavorful, but (refreshingly) not too sweet Blood Orange Hibiscus Caramel Marshmallows were covered with 62% cacao dark chocolate.

These chocolates were gluten free, GMO free, and made with fair trade certified ingredients.

The content and images in this post belong to ChocolateBanquet.com.

Firefly Chocolate - Orange + Rose bar (+ petals) - Jan. 6, 2016

Chocolate of the Day: 

Firefly Chocolate
Orange + Rose 85 percent bar
Good +
Weight: 1.86 oz. (52 g.) in 1 bar
Calories: 279 calories (estimate) in 1 bar
Cost: $9.00 for 1 bar
Purchased from: Firefly Chocolate, Fall Chocolate Salon, San Francisco, CA

Welcome to Day #6 of Chocolate and Flower Theme Week, and Day #1 of Chocolate and Orange Theme Week. Today I'm featuring a bar that included flowers and fruit in bloom this month (winter) in California—orange citrus fruits, a few hardy roses, and a sprinkle of loquat blossom petals.

Today's Orange + Rose dark chocolate bar was from Firefly Chocolate in Sonoma County (Windsor, CA). This 85 percent cacao, organic dark chocolate bar was made with stone ground cacao beans, coconut palm sugar and cocoa butter. And it was flavored with rose powder and orange peel powder.

This ultra-dark bar had a pleasing fragrance with hints of fruit, floral, and spice. The texture was smooth, and the rose petal flavor stood up to the 85% chocolate and the (very subtle) orange peel flavor better than I imagined. (Floral flavors can be delicate, volatile and easily lost.)

This bar was perfect for those who want to experience some lovely flavor elements without much sugar.

And if you'd like to turbo-boost the rose flavor, you can always make a rose petal wrap* (or rose "taco") by folding rose petals around small bites of a floral chocolate.


Roses and Loquats
The rose family is large. It includes the lush, romantic rose flower, as well as apples, pears...and loquats.

Conveniently, loquats bloom in January in California, so I picked some loquat blossoms (thanks to my neighbor Margaret!), and sampled these edible flowers, with the intent of doing some chocolate and flower match-making.

The small five-petal, off-white loquat flowers had an intriguing, slightly musty, almond blossom perfume aroma. As is often the case with flowers, the smell was different than the taste of the orange fruit that will develop in a few months. (Loquats came over from Asia. And, I believe loquat flowers are used in China to make or flavor a cough medicine.)

Rose5 Cocktail
On a related note, I made a low-alcohol Rose5 cocktail. This drink was made with 3/4 oz. of vodka that had been mixed with 1.5 oz. of simple syrup of rose petals and loquat flowers; a drop of chocolate bitters, 3 drops of almond liqueur, and a splash of soda water if you'd like. Garnish with ice cubes filled with petals if you want to guild the lilly. Adjust portions to your liking.

*Make sure to use fresh unsprayed or, preferably, organic roses petals. You'll find some roses have more perfume oomph than others; but they're all fun to try—either by infusing petals into a heated simple syrup (1/2 organic sugar + 1/2 water) and letting them sit for an hour or two to cool. Or, if you wish, you can muddle them into some vodka or gin and let them sit/infuse for awhile before straining the petals out.

The content and images in this post belong to ChocolateBanquet.com.

Amano Cardamom Black Pepper bar - Jan. 5, 2016

Chocolate(s) of the Day: 

Amano Chocolate Company

Cardamom Black Pepper bar
Very Good
Weight: 1 oz. (28.3 g.) / 3 oz. (85 g.) total bar
Calories: 140 calories (estimate) in 1/3 bar
Purchased from: Amano Chocolate Company

Dos Rios bar
Good ++ - Very Good
Weight: 1 oz. (28.3 g.) / 3 oz. (85 g.) total bar
Calories: 142 calories (estimate) in 1/3 bar
Purchased from: Amano Chocolate Company

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

Amano Chocolate Company (Orem, UT) makes two bars that seem to possess remarkable floral flavor notes. They brightened up a dark, dreary winter day outside. (Even today's midday photos were sunlight-starved and in need of a pick me up.)

Both the Dos Rios and Cardamom Black Pepper bars were crafted from cacao beans from Guayas, in the Dominican Republic.

Like many bean-to-bar chocolate makers, Art Pollard at Amano has a relatively close working relationship with farmers that produce their preferred cacao beans. And rather than go with a fair trade certification logo, a note on the packaging states: "Fairly Traded with the Farmer." I'd covet that direct relationship too if it guaranteed me continued access to magic beans like this.

Amano tasting notes for the Dos Rios chocolate mention bergamot orange and lavender. It was so floral, it was hard to believe the base 70% cocoa Dos Rios bar didn't have any added flavors. I remember having the same reaction, when I first tasted the Amano Dos Rios bar a few years ago. Since I love floral flavors, I was delighted.*

The Cardamom and Black Pepper bar takes this same Dos Rios bergamot orange, heady floral-citrus flavor (think Earl Grey tea), and kicks it up a few notches. I also tasted light green fig, cardamom, almond blossom, green tea, and finally got a little lavender after a a few bites. Embedded sugar crystals enhanced the sparkle factor and gave the bar some crunchy texture. The single estate black pepper flavoring captured the pepper's floral notes, and not its heat.

The Amano Cardamom Black Pepper bar was a relatively recent addition—part of a group of bars with new packaging and with flavor inclusions. Previously the company offered a cardamom and black pepper truffle; this was a bar version of that award-winning confection.

*I readily admit my biases. I like chocolate with all sorts of complex flavors: chocolatey, nutty, citrus, etc. I love floral and umami notes and flavor inclusions. They may not be everyone's cup of tea.

The content and images in this post belong to ChocolateBanquet.com.

Amano Chocolate - Raspberry Rose bar - Jan. 4, 2016

Chocolate of the Day:

Amano Chocolate Company
Raspberry Rose bar
Good ++
Weight: 1.5 oz. (42.5 g.) / 3 oz. (85 g.) in total bar
Calories: 205 calories in 1/2 bar
Purchased from: Amano Chocolate table at Fall Chocolate Salon, San Francisco, CA

Today was Day #4 of Chocolate and Flower Theme Week, and roses loom large in this week's featured chocolates.

Even though January isn't peak flower season, winter dreams of roses. The local Stanford University Cardinal football team won the New Year's Day Rose Bowl game a few days ago. And I noticed rose-related imagery and objects today on a neighborhood walk that I'd never seen before. There was even a "real" rose, that had survived recent frosts.

Art Pollard and team at Amano Chocolate Company (Orem, UT) know something about conjuring bright, sunny and floral flavors in the middle of winter. The company makes chocolate in a region where winters include snow.

Amano's Raspberry Rose bar was inspired while Art was doing research at a pastry shop in Paris, which included sampling a raspberry rose cheesecake. The resulting chocolate was a complex fruity and floral bar.

Today's bar gave the taster a colorful and satisfying ride. The complex aroma and first impression included bold, earthy, acidic notes*. The first bite revealed sparkles of raspberry fruit flavor. The texture was a mix of crunchy (possibly flavor-infused) sugar crystals, and smooth rich chocolate.

The rose floral notes (from rose petals and rose extract) were a bit elusive but contributed nicely to the overall flavor experience, and a softly lingering aftertaste.

Oo la la, I think I just took a virtual trip to Paris. Nothing like a little culinary transportation on a wintery, gray day.

*The base 55% cocoa (kosher) chocolate for this bar was made with cacao beans from Ecuador, "fairly traded with the farmer." 

The content and images in this post belong to ChocolateBanquet.com.