Perfect Bar - Dark Chocolate Mint Refrigerated Peanut Butter Cups - Aug. 28, 2021

Chocolate of the Day

Perfect Bar LLC

Dark Chocolate Mint Refrigerated Peanut Butter Cups

Good +

Weight: 1.4 oz. (40 g.) in total package of 2 cups

Calories: 210 calories in 2 cups

Cost: $2.00 (sale) for 1 package of 2 cups

Purchased from: Sprouts Farmers Market, Mountain View, CA

Welcome to Day #6 of Cold Chocolate Theme Week.

Today's "Perfect Snacks" Dark Chocolate Mint Refrigerated Peanut Butter Cups were from Perfect Bar LLC (San Diego, CA).

These cool, filled chocolates had a pleasing peppermint-infused chocolate aroma.

Smooth dark chocolate surrounded a thick, coarsely ground, authentic-tasting nutty center with myriad tiny peanut bits and other ingredients (see below). 

The refreshing dark chocolate mint flavor was made moreso because the cups were refrigerated. These cool chocolates were perfect for eating during a heat wave. (And we are having one this week; so cold chocolates have been extra enjoyable.)

The chocolate, mint and peanut flavors were nicely balanced, and harmonized well. These cups were not too sweet or salty, and that allowed for greater enjoyment of the underlying flavors (thank you).

The decision to incorporate 7 grams of protein (in 2 cups), primarily from peanuts, milk and rice protein--as well as the inclusion of various "superfood" powders and oils (from fruits, vegetables, seeds)--made these cups a substantial and satisfying (more filling) snack as well. 

Ingredients: Organic peanut butter, organic and fair trade dark chocolate (organic cacao beans, organic cane sugar, organic cocoa butter, sunflower lecithin), organic honey, organic non-fat dry milk, organic cocoa, organic rice protein, organic dried whole egg powder, organic vanilla extract, dried whole food powders (organic kale, organic flax seed, organic rose hip, organic orange, organic lemon, organic papaya, organic tomato, organic apple, organic alfalfa, organic celery, organic kelp, organic dulse*, organic carrot, organic spinach), organic sunflower lecithin, peppermint oil, organic flax seed oil, organic sunflower oil, organic sesame seed oil.organic olive oil, organic pumpkin seed oil. 

Allergen-related information: "Contains peanuts, milk, and eggs." (Also some sesame.) "Produced on equipment also handling tree nuts. May contain occasional nut shells."

*Dulse is a dark red, edible seaweed that contains minerals (iodine, potassium) and omega-3 fatty acids.

Graeter's - Black Raspberry Chocolate Chip Ice Cream - Aug. 27, 2021

Chocolate of the Day

Graeter's Ice Cream Co. 
Black Raspberry Chocolate Chip Ice Cream
Good +
Weight: 2/3 cup (144 g.) / 1 Pint (473 mL) in total container
Calories: 390 calories in 2/3 cup serving
Cost: $8.49 for 1 container
Purchased from: Piazza's, Palo Alto, CA

Welcome to Day #5 of Cold Chocolate Theme Week, featuring frozen and refrigerated items with chocolate.

Today's Black Raspberry Chocolate Chip Ice Cream is from Graeter's Ice Cream Co. (Cincinnati, OH). 

The family-owned company's origins stretch back five generations to 1870. They still use a "French Pot Process" where small batches are made in small, very cold pots (and stirred by hand with a paddle, if the picture on the website is correct).

I have fond childhood memories of eating black raspberry chocolate chip ice cream in the back yard in the summer. So, I may be biased. I really enjoyed this version--made with real black raspberries grown in Oregon's Willamette Valley. (The company cites today's flavor as their "signature" and "most beloved" flavor.)

Tart sweet, dark berry flavor (and lovely dark berry color) harmonized with a sweet creamy base (cream is the first ingredient listed) and dark chocolate chips that were dark enough to create a pleasing, satisfying contrast.

Ingredients: Cream, milk, cane sugar, black raspberry puree, chocolate chips (sugar, chocolate liquor processed with alkali, cocoa butter, expeller-pressed non-GMO soy oil, milk fat, soy lecithin, natural flavors), skim milk, eggs, carob bean gum, guar gum, citric acid.

Allergen-related information: "Contains milk, egg, and soy." "Gluten Free" and "Star D (dairy) Kosher Certified"

Bindi Gelato - Chocolate and Cream Swirl - Aug. 26, 2021

Chocolate of the Day

Bindi Gelato 
Chocolate and Cream Swirl
Good - Good +
Weight: 3.2 oz. (90 g.) in 1 cup
Calories: 180 calories in 1 serving/cup
Cost: $2.99 for 1 container
Purchased from: Piazza's, Palo Alto, CA

Welcome to Day #4 of Cold Chocolate Theme Week, featuring frozen and refrigerated desserts and bars with chocolate.

Today's Chocolate and Cream Swirl (cup) was made in Italy* distributed by Bindi North America (Kearny, NJ). 

Bindi desserts had their start with the Bindi family in Italy in 1946; and were, at the very beginning, delivered by bicycle. Currently, they offer a line of different, Italian-inspired gelato flavors in single-serving cups. (The Limoncello flavor also looked good; however, I could not find other flavors in my local store.)

Today's sundae style gelato in a cup had a creamy and light (almost whipped) texture and mouthfeel--light contrasting visually with the dark, swirl(s) of dark chocolate. It was a nicely balanced blend and a convenient serving size for an frozen snack.

Ingredients: Rehydrated skim milk, sugar, water, butter, glucose-fructose syrup, cream glucose syrup, lactose, sorbitol, chocolate (sugar, chocolate liquor, cocoa butter, soy lecithin, natural vanilla flavoring), cocoa processed with alkali, milk proteins, modified starch, mono- and diglycerides, artificial flavorings, locust bean gum.

Allergen-related information: Contains milk and soy. May contain traces of eggs, wheat and tree nuts. (Note: contains artificial flavors.)

*Italco Food Products, Inc. owns the Bindi brand.

Kind - Dark Chocolate Almond Sea Salt Plant Based Creamy Frozen Dessert - Aug. 25, 2021

Chocolate of the Day

Kind LLC
Dark Chocolate Almond Sea Salt Plant Based Creamy Frozen Dessert
Good +
Weight: 2/3 cup (124 g.) / 1 Pint (473 mL) in total container
Calories: 290 calories in 1 serving (2/3 cup) 
Cost: $7.99 for 1 Pint container
Purchased from: Piazza's, Palo Alto, CA

Welcome to Day #3 of Cold Chocolate Theme Week featuring frozen and refrigerated items with chocolate.

Today's Dark Chocolate Almond Sea Salt plant-based creamy frozen dessert was from Kind LLC (NYC, NY). 

Kind's line of frozen pint flavors has mirrored their earlier/original nut and fruit snack bar flavors. And the newer line(s) of plant-based frozen pints and frozen bars are true to these original snack bars in spirit and flavor.

Today's frozen dessert had a smooth texture and a generous helping of crunchy nut pieces (chopped almond). The dark chocolate chunks were relatively flavorful given the chocolate was made with alkalized cocoa (with dark, even slightly earthy notes). The base had a faint fruity note. (The first ingredient was pear juice.) 

My only quibble: the vegetable gums (see below in ingredients list), even if these gums did help ensure a smooth and ice-cream like texture.

Ingredients: Pear juice (from concentrate), water, almonds, sugar, dried tapioca syrup, coconut oil, chocolate processed with alkali, chicory root fiber, cocoa butter, sea salt, gum acacia, natural flavor, soy lecithin, carob bean gum, tara gum, guar gum, salt.

Allergen-related information: "Kind Frozen Pint ingredients do not include gluten. However, Kind Frozen Pints are made on shared equipment with products containing gluten ingredients."

Negranti - Chocolate Sheep Milk Ice Cream - Aug. 24, 2021

Chocolate of the Day

Negranti Creamery

Chocolate Sheep Milk Ice Cream

Good +

Weight: 1/2 cup (85 g.) / 1 Pint (473 mL) in total container

Calories: 140 calories in 1/2 cup serving  

Cost: $8.99 for 1 container

Purchased from: The Market at Edgewood, Palo Alto, CA 

Welcome to Day #2 of Cold Chocolate and Theme Week, featuring frozen, and refrigerated items with chocolate--a fitting good-bye to summer in late August.

Today's Chocolate Sheep Milk Ice Cream was hand-crafted by Negranti Creamery (Paso Robles, CA)--a family owned and operated ice cream maker on the Central Coast of California. (Alexis Negranti makes the recipes.)

This sheep milk ice cream had a smooth, rich almost nutty chocolate flavor. 

The number one reason why I liked this, aside from an enjoyable taste: there were no artificial ingredients, preservatives or vegetable gums; and it was gluten-free. Also, this ice cream contained the shortest ingredient list (see below) that I've encountered in the ice cream section, perhaps ever. 

Other benefits the company offered up: "1.) Lactose intolerant friendly, 2.) 45 percent higher in protein than cow's milk ice cream, 3.) Significantly lower in fat than traditional cow's milk ice cream and gelato, 4.) Free from egg, gum, artificial ingredients and preservatives, and 5.) Crafted with fresh, wholesome ingredients, always." 

Ingredients: Sheep milk, cane sugar, cocoa, tapioca starch, vanilla extract.

Allergen-related information: "Made on shared equipment; may contain nuts"

Green Girl Bakeshop - Reishi Chocolate with chocolate chip cookies - Aug. 23, 2021

Chocolate of the Day

Green Girl Bakeshop
Reishi Chocolate with chocolate chip cookies
Good - Good +
Weight: 5 oz. (142 g.) in total package
Calories: 340 calories in 1 package/frozen cookie sandwich 
Cost: $4.49 (sale) for 1 package/frozen cookie sandwich
Purchased from: Piazza's, Palo Alto, CA 

Welcome to Day #1 of Cold Chocolate Week, featuring frozen and refrigerated treats, snacks and bars with chocolate.

Today's Reishi Chocolate frozen plant-based, cookie sandwich was from Green Girl Bakeshop (San Leandro, CA). 

This chilly organic treat had light green, nut, coconut, and cookie notes, rich chocolate flavor with a fleeting earthy/loamy, slightly bitter note (that I'm assuming came from the reishi mushroom).

It was satisfying and sweet, but not too sweet. (It was sweetened with judicious amounts of coconut palm sugar, applesauce, chocolate chips, evaporated cane sugar in the chocolate chip cookies--and maple syrup in the chocolate frozen filling.) 

Note: Green Girl offers some of the few gluten free ice cream sandwich alternatives available in our area, unless you have time to make your own with gluten free cookies (that you may have to bake first) and your choice of milk/cream filling. So, I felt grateful to find these.

Ingredients: 1.) Cookie: organic cassava flour, organic coconut palm sugar, organic applesauce, organic chocolate chips (organic evaporated cane sugar, organic natural chocolate liquor (non-alcoholic), organic cocoa butter, organic vanilla powder), organic coconut oil, baking soda. 2.) Gelato: Organic coconut milk (organic coconut water, organic guar gum--less than 1%), organic maple syrup, organic cacao powder, organic reishi."

Allergen-related information: "Contains tree nuts (coconut)...produced in a facility that also processes tree nuts, peanuts, dairy, wheat, and soy."

Macadamia Nuts Covered in Fine Dark Chocolate - Aug. 22, 2021

Chocolate of the Day  

Chocola
Macadamia Cubierta de Chocolate Oscuro Fino
(Macadamia Nuts Covered in Fine Dark Chocolate)
Good +
Weight: 2.03 oz. (57.5 g.) / 4.06 oz. (115 g.) in total package
Calories: 298 calories in 2 servings (1/2 package)
Cost: $9.49 for 1 package
Purchased from: Piazza's, Palo Alto, CA 

Welcome to Day #7 of Chocolate and Guatemala Theme Week.

Today's Macadamia Cubierta de Chocolate Oscuro Fino (Macadamia (Nuts) Covered in Fine Dark Chocolate) were from Chocola (Guatemala City, Guatemala, S.A.). The finished product was imported into the U.S. by Global Support, LLC.

This offering was made using Rainforest Alliance Certified cacao grown in Guatemala, and macadamia nuts that were also from Guatemala.

The aroma notes included: fruit and green herb (light persimmon, lemon sorrel, sour grass (oxalis)) and dark chocolate.

The rich, dark 50% chocolate formed a smooth shiny coating around the macadamia nuts--that had authentic (alternating characteristic rich, sweet and bland) mac nut notes. It was nice to be able to taste these mild nuts, that can be easily overwhelmed by other stronger flavors.

Also in the flavor mix: fleeting earth/soil, nut/dark chocolate, fruit (very faint overripe blueberry), and very faint, almost smokey, floral vanilla notes. These 50% cacao Chocola nuts offered a more interesting tasting experience than similar chocolate covered nut offerings found on U.S. supermarket shelves. More flavor(s). More fun.

Ingredients: "Dark chocolate 50% (sugar, cocoa butter, cocoa liquor, soy lecithin (emulsifier), natural vanilla), macadamia, acacia (glazing agent)."

Allergen-related information: "Contains tree nuts, soy products and may contain traces of peanuts."