Original Beans - Piura Porcelana 75% bar - June 30, 2019

Chocolate of the Day: 

Original Beans
Piura Porcelana 75% bar
Good + - Good ++
Weight: 1.23 oz. (35 g.) /2.46 oz. (70 g.) in total bar
Calories:  calories in 1/2 bar
Cost: $7.95 (estimate) for 1 bar
Purchased from: Chocosphere.com

Welcome to Day #6 of Chocolate and Peruvian Superfoods Theme Week.

Today's Piura Porcelana 75% bar from Original Beans (Amsterdam) was made in Switzerland. It was made using with treasured "white" Porcelana (Piura Valley, Peru) cacao beans from the Piura Valley or Peru.

The inside of the Porcelana cacao seed (bean) is creamy white (instead of the more common purple and white) and these beans are prized for their delicate, complex flavor.

The bar had light, balanced fruit (berries, black currant), faint forest floor earthiness and fermentation notes. It had a smooth dark chocolate melt and taste, with balanced blackberry, black raspberry, black currant and red grape flavor notes. The fruit was subtle, full and round, complex and lower in acidity than most "bright" berry/fruit chocolate.

The flavor finish had a very subtle but long tail. It tapered off but then had a small fruit blip late in the curve, and a very slight earthiness even later.

The makers tasting notes described the flavor as having: lime, raspberry and pecan notes.

Also important to Original Beans founder, Philipp Kauffman, that the origin be honored for its treasured resources, like the Peruvian butterflies part of today's packaging design. Kauffman has pledged to plant one tree for every bar sold "...preserving some of the Earth's rarest places."

More superfoods...
Peruvian cacao could certainly be described as a superfood. A lot of people are using that term to market exotic foods with high nutritional value. But, of course, flavor and texture of the food in question are important too. And high-quality, bean-to-bar chocolate, like today's three ingredient bar (cacao mass, raw cane sugar and cocoa butter) gets high marks in all these areas.

Also consumed today was an Antioxidant Sweet Berry powdered mix from Amazing Grass (Newport Beach, CA), stirred into a glass of water.

The mix contained a variety of fruit and vegetable ingredients, green tea, as well as maca (discussed earlier this week) and camu camu* powders.

It may not have been as yummy as today's chocolate, but the company does produce offer offerings with cacao, as well as a convenient way to hydrate with a beverage full of vitamins and minerals, particularly if you have a tough time eating your greens before they wilt in your fridge.

*Camu Camu is an Amazonian, tart fruit high in Vitamin C. It looks like a bit like a large cherry plum or a miniature red apple in photos.

Primordial Chocolate - 70% Cacao Salted Maca Crunch bar - June 29, 2019

Chocolate of the Day: 

Primordial Chocolate
(Distributed by Fungi Perfecti, LLC)
70% Cacao Salted Maca Crunch bar
Weight: 1.4 oz. (40 g.) in total bar
Calories: 230 calories in 1 bar
Cost: $4.99 for 1 bar
Purchased from: Country Sun Natural Foods, Palo Alto, CA

Welcome to Day #5 of Chocolate and Peruvian Superfoods Theme Week.

Today's Primordial Chocolate 70% Cacao Salted Maca Crunch bar was distributed by Fungi Perfecti, LLC (Olympia, WA).

This bar had a slightly woodsy, chocolate aroma with a fleeting hint of coconut sugar.

The bar contained chocolate, cacao nibs, maca root and a blend of mushrooms/fungi: including: Lions Mane Mycelium, Reishi Mycelium, Cordyceps Mycelium, Chaga Mycelium; and Myceliated Brown Rice. A subtle touch of Peruvian Pink Salt rounded out this not-too-sweet (thank you!) bar.

A generous helping of cacao nibs gave the bar the "Crunch" that appeared in the title.

*Mycelium has to do with this little white/beige threads that eventually produce mushrooms (the "fruiting body"). Yes, this does make one wrinkle the nose a bit, and perhaps it's better not to know, as the chocolate tasted fun.

Skratch Labs - Skratch Anytime Energy Bar - June 28, 2019

Chocolate of the Day: 

Skratch Labs
Skratch Anytime Energy Bar
Good - Good +
Weight: 1.76 oz. (50 g.) in total bar
Calories: 200 calories in 1 bar
Cost: $2.95 for 1 bar
Purchased from: REI, Mountain View, CA

Welcome to Day #9 of Chocolate and Cashew Theme Week, and Day #4 of Peru Superfoods Theme Week.

Today's Skratch Anytime Energy Bar with chocolate chips and almonds was from Skratch Labs (Boulder, CO).

This chewy nut and fruit energy bar contained a nut and seed butter blend (cashew butter and tahini (sesame seeds, salt)), chocolate chips and almonds. Dried cranberries added some sweet-tart concentrated fruit flavor.

And, oats, quinoa crisps and sorghum flakes gave the bar some heft and soft crunchy texture.

Quinoa
Quinoa (pronounced keen-whah), a flowering plant related to spinach with edible starchy seeds grows in the the high plains of the Andes, and has become a popular export crop in Peru.

This pseudo-cereal was enjoyed by the Incas and peoples of Peru, Bolivia, and Ecuador for thousands of years before it became popular in other countries. Some peoples in northern South America who may have been consuming cacao as a beverage may have also been enjoying quinoa seeds as well.

Regardless of what you may think of the term superfood, quinoa is higher in protein and vitamins and minerals than some true grains. It's been a welcome alternative to wheat and other gluten-containing grains for vegetarians and people with gluten sensitivities and allergies. And it's found its way into chocolate bars too.

Bearded Brothers - Mega Maca Chocolate bar - June 27, 2019

Chocolate of the Day: 

Bearded Brothers LLC
Mega Maca Chocolate bar
Good - Good +
Weight: 1.519 oz. (43 g.) in total bar
Calories: 180 calories in 1 bar
Cost: $3.00 for 1 bar
Purchased from: REI, Mountain View, CA

Welcome to Day #8 of Chocolate and Cashews Theme Week, and Day #3 of chocolate and Peru Superfoods Theme Week.

Today's Mega Maca Chocolate bar was from Bearded Brothers LLC (Austin, TX). The company's line of bars appear to be designed for outdoor adventurers who might want a quick boost of natural and convenient energy on the trail, on the mountain, or on the go in general.

This Organic, compressed date and nut (cashews, almonds) bar also contained maca powder, cacao nibs, Mexican cocoa, cinnamon, vanilla, chia seeds, coconut sugar and sea salt. The cacao flavors were very subtle.

Maca
Maca, a plant growing at high altitudes in Peru, is prized for its root that looks a bit like a beet or a radish. (Botanically speaking, it's in the mustard family.) It is rich in Vitamin C, carbohydrates, copper and other vitamins and minerals. It's also said to boost energy and sexual vitality, and to convey a host of other benefits that I can't corroborate. Additional studies are likely underway as I write this in 2019.

Maca root powder (the form we see it in) has been described as having an earthy, nutty flavor.

While color is not typically listed on ingredient lists or labels, maca root (like potatoes, carrots, radishes and other root vegetables), comes in different colors: including yellow, white, red and black, and the yellow or white powder (hard to tell in this form) seems to be common in stores in the Western U.S. It's not clear whether these varieties also have different superfood qualities or nutrient levels.

Markham and Fitz Chocolate Makers - Brain Food 85% Dark Chocolate bar - June 26, 2019

Chocolate of the Day: 

Markham and Fitz Chocolate Makers
Brain Food 85% Dark Chocolate with Wild Organic Blueberries, almonds, cashews superfood bar
Good +
Weight: 1 oz. (28.3 g.) / 2 oz. (57 g.) in total bar
Calories: 120 calories in 1/2 bar
Cost: $11.00 for 1 bar
Purchased from: Chocolate Covered, San Francisco, CA

Welcome to Day #7 of Chocolate and Cashews Theme Week, and Day #2 of Peru Superfoods* Theme Week. Today's bar includes cacao and maca.

The Brain Food 85% Dark Chocolate bar with Wild Organic Blueberries, almonds, cashews and superfood powders (berries, maca) was from Markham and Fitz Chocolate Makers (Bentonville, AK).

This ultra-dark chocolate was made with cacao grown in the Dominican Republic, and had a dark chocolate, berry, nut and seed aroma and flavor. The base chocolate had a creamy melt and texture, and crunchy bits of almonds and cashews. The organic, dried blueberries were a nice touch and added natural blueberry flavor; and the 85 percent bar was not so sweet as to overpower the berry add-ons.

*The list of "superfoods" this week includes cacao, maca, lucuma, camu-camu, and quinoa. And while they may be found growing in other Latin American/South American countries, the latter four on this list are often associated with Peru. I could include potatoes (which also originated in/near Peru) as well, but it is more difficult (outside of gluten free chocolate baked goods that use potato flour/starch) to find chocolates with potatoes :-).

Fine and Raw Chocolate - Cashew Butter 54% bar - June 25, 2019

Chocolate of the Day:

Fine and Raw Chocolate
Cashew Butter 54% bar
Good +
Weight: 1 oz. (28 g.) / 2 oz. (56 g.) in total bar
Calories: 140 calories in 1/2 bar
Cost: $11.00 for 1 bar
Purchased from: Chocolate Covered, San Francisco, CA

Welcome to Day #6 of Chocolate and Cashews Theme Week, and Day #1 of Chocolate and Peruvian Superfoods* Theme Week—featuring chocolates that contain two or more of the following items: cacao, maca, lucuma, camu-camu and/or quinoa.

These items generally arrive in North America (and likely Europe and Asia as well) in powdered or partially processed form, and we rarely see the original source vegetable, fruit, nut, seed or plant associated with their respective claimed health benefits. Nonetheless it is interesting to try these exotic plants and botanicals that co-evolved with cacao trees in Central and South America.

Today's Cashew Butter 54% bar was handmade, from bean-to-bar, by Fine and Raw Chocolate / Fine and Raw LLC (Brooklyn, NY), and contained cacao and lucuma. The base chocolate was relatively mild (often the case with unroasted/raw cacao).

Lucuma is a round fruit with green skin and golden flesh that imparts a multi-layered sweet flavor. (Some liken it to a cross between an avocado and a mango, with mild sweet potato, caramel and maple flavor notes.) Like cacao fruit**, it starts to ferment quickly after harvesting, making it difficult to ship to other parts of the world.

This raw, gluten free, and Kosher chocolate was smooth, and had a relatively creamy melt and texture due to organic cashews (butter) and added cacao butter that were both fully blended with the cacao.

It was sweetened with organic coconut sugar and lucuma and was not too sweet, especially unusual for a lower % cacao bar (thank you!). The lucuma did in fact add subtle aroma and flavor notes mentioned above (sweet potato, caramel, maple). Ground vanilla bean added a light, sunny, upbeat floral note.

Ingredients: organic cacao bean(s), organic coconut sugar, organic cashew nut, organic cacao butter, organic ground lucuma, organic whole ground vanilla

*While I inherently dislike the term Superfoods, and believe it is overused, it is difficult to come up with another term that summarizes this category.

**Cacao fruit/pulp is quite delicious but, unless you live in Hawaii, or perhaps south Florida, the odds are if you live in the U.S. or Canada that you've only tasted it in its refreshing, ivory-colored, frozen pulp form that tastes nothing like chocolate.

Keep Healthy Fruitkies - Chocolate Covered Mango bar - June 24, 2019

Chocolate of the Day: 

Keep Healthy Fruitkies
Chocolate Covered Mango bar
Good
Weight: 1.6 oz. (45 g.) in total bar
Calories: 132 calories in 1/2  bar
Cost: $1.99 for 1 bar
Purchased from: Pharmaca Integrative Pharmacy, Menlo Park, CA

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

Today's Chocolate Covered Mango bar was made in the U.S. and distributed by Keep Healthy Inc. (Northport, NY).

The bar had a medium-soft chew and contained a relatively light colored, sweet filling (dried mango, cane sugar and citric acid). The chocolate coating yielded a subtle, smooth chocolate flavor.

This bar did not contain cashews. But, to keep the connection with Cashew Theme Week, it was consumed with a handful of cacao nibs and cashews. And, did you know that mangoes are part of the cashew family?*

*Mangoes and cashews are also related to poison oak, poison ivy and poison sumac; so being botanical relatives isn't always what it's cracked up to be.