Betterland Foods, Inc. - Woo bar - May 15, 2022

Chocolate of the Day

Betterland Foods, Inc. 

Woo bar

Good +

Weight: 1.6 oz. (45 g.) in total bar

Calories: 200 calories in 1 bar

Cost: $ N/A - gift from a friend (Thank you Don and Wendy!)

Purchased from: N/A - gift

Welcome to Day #10 of Chocolate, Nuts and Nibs Theme Week.

Today's "Woo" bar was manufactured for and distributed by Betterland Foods, Inc. (Napa, CA). The company was founded in 2021 by Lizanne Falsetto (creator of thinkThin bars).

This bar's aroma had slightly sweet, slightly salty, subtle cocoa and caramel candy bar, nut and faint plant protein notes.

This chocolate-covered bar had a caramel-y, light nougat-y and nutty, sweet center with a soft chew. Flavor notes included: light caramel, a maple-like sweetness, vanilla, subtle chocolate and nuts.

The limited edition Woo bar was formulated to have "half the sugar and 2x the protein" (of a more traditional, popular candy bar). The bar had 22 total carbs. (8 grams fiber, 9 grams of sugar(s)). The 8 grams of protein was achieved using peanuts and "cow-free whey protein" (Perfect Day's "animal-free dairy").* 

Normally I prefer chocolates with a shorter ingredient list. But I also appreciated my teeth feeling slightly less sugar-coated after eating this Woo bar than after sampling other candy bar-like confections. Any chocolate (or nuanced cacao flavors) were not distinguishable in this bar, relegating the chocolate to a pleasant background flavor. Although there was added cocoa butter in the filling and the chocolate coating (which is not always the case with candy bars).

The Woo bar was comparable to a candy bar in taste, but had a more appealing nutritional story.

Ingredients: Caramel (inulin, soluble corn fiber, agave syrup, cocoa butter, caramel color, sunflower lecithin, tapioca starch, natural flavors, gum arabic, salt, beta carotene), chocolate (cane sugar, chocolate liquor, cocoa butter, vanilla powder), peanuts, cow-free whey protein, agave syrup, rice syrup solids, glycerine, water, agave inulin, cocoa butter, peanut oil, sunflower oil, sunflower lecithin, sea salt, guar gum, natural flavor, vanilla extract.

Allergen-related information: "Contains milk, peanuts. Manufactured in a facility that also processes other tree nuts, soy, egg, peanuts, milk."

*Perfect Day is a food technology startup, based in Berkeley, CA. The company uses fungi to make protein that is "molecularly identical" to (whey) protein found in cow's milk and is part of a new wave of companies creating lab-grown proteins.

The fermented alternative protein Perfect Day produces has a much lower carbon footprint than whey produced from a traditional dairy farm; and the end product can be used to make "cow-free" dairy products like cheese, yogurt or ice cream. However, while it does not contain lactose (the sugar in dairy milk that can upset stomachs), it may not be suitable for those with a sensitivity to whey protein (one of two types of protein found in cow's milk).

NibMor - Organic Dark Chocolate Extreme with cacao nibs - May 12, 2022

Chocolate of the Day

NibMor
Organic Dark Chocolate Extreme with cacao nibs
Good +
Weight: .918 oz. (26 g.) / 3.55 oz. (101 g.) in total package
Calories: 130 calories in 1 serving (3 pieces)
Cost: $4.99 (sale) for 1 package
Purchased from: Piazza's, Palo Alto, CA 

Welcome to Day #9 of Chocolate, Nuts and Nibs Theme Week.

Today's Organic Dark Chocolate Extreme (80% cacao) with cacao nibs snack size pieces were manufactured for Nib Mor, Inc. (Kennebunk, ME).

These certified gluten free, organic, "snack size" (small rectangular bar-shaped) pieces were made with Rainforest Alliance Certified cacao.

These 80% cacao chocolates (tiny, rectangular "bars") had a dark chocolate aroma and flavor (dark chocolate cake, mousse), with a very, very faint mint note. Smooth texture was accented with crunchy cacao nibs (bits of cacao beans). 

Note: These smaller pieces were similar to a large NibMor 80% cacao bar, but these did not contain sea salt.

Ingredients: *Organic chocolate liquor, *organic cane sugar, *organic cacao butter, organic cacao nibs, organic soy lecithin (an emulsifier), organic vanilla.

*Rainforest Alliance Certified Cocoa, "helping to protect the environment and farm families."

Allergen-related information: "Made in a facility that also processes peanuts, tree nuts, milk (and) soy."

Oodaalolly - Roasted Cacao Nibs (Philippines) - May 13, 2022

Chocolate of the Day

Oodaalolly Chocolate
Roasted Cacao Nibs - Philippines
Good + - Good ++
Weight: .5 oz. (14.1 g.) / 8.81 oz. (250 g.) in total package
Calories: 90 calories in 1.5 TB (1/2 serving)
Cost: $14.00 (sale) for 1 package 
Purchased from: Oodaalolly, LLC, online order

Welcome to Day #8 of Chocolate, Nuts and Nibs Theme Week, featuring items with chocolate and nuts, cacao nibs and/or combinations of these elements.

Today's Oodaalolly Roasted Cacao Nibs were a product of the Philippines, but roasted and packaged by Oodaalolly, LLC (El Cerrito, CA) for sale in the U.S. 

Oodaalolly founder and chocolate maker, Hernan Lauber, also offers a line of chocolates (bars) that feature cacao from the Philippines (and sometimes flavor inclusions from this island nation as well). We paired these nibs with a small bowl of pili nuts, but they also would have worked in oatmeal, ice cream, infused in whiskey, tea or coffee, or in a spice blend/rub.

Today's single origin nibs (pieces of Trinitario* variety of cacao beans) were from Davao (in the southern Philippines).

Aroma and flavor notes for these nibs included: cacao, slightly green (seed, nut), faint earth, roasted nut, roasted coffee, toast, and chocolate cookie notes. (There may have been a very faint, slightly acidic, diffuse fruit in this taste bouquet.)

The nibs had uniform, balanced, roasted cacao flavor(s), while retaining the fairly complex essence of the cacao bean(s). They were well-suited to both sweet and savory applications.

Ingredients: Cacao nibs (Theobroma cacao)

Allergen-related information: "Non-GMO, gluten free, vegan"

*Trinitario variety cacao often has some of the true chocolate-y flavors often associated with bolder (forastero) varieties, but is less subtle than some milder heritage (criollo) varieties. 

Donkey Balls - Tiny Balls - chocolate covered Macnuts - May 12, 2022

Chocolate of the Day

Donkey Balls

Tiny Balls - Chocolate Covered Macnuts

Good + 

Weight: 1 oz. (28.3 g.) / 8 oz. (226.8 g.) in total package

Calories: 155 calories (estimate) in 1 oz. (28.3 g.) serving

Cost: $6.99 (estimate) paid for 1 package

Purchased from: (retail shop in Kailua-Kona, Hawaii)

Aloha and welcome to Day #7 of Chocolate, Nuts and Nibs Theme Week.

Today's Tiny Balls Chocolate Covered Macadamia Nuts (Macnuts) were packaged by KRM Distributors, LLC (Kailua-Kona, HI). 

The "Keoki's Donkey" retail store on the Big Island of Hawaii offered a variety of packaged coffees, chocolate-covered nuts with risque names, and other items (honey, teas) with local ties. The chocolates featured an image of a cartoon donkey named Keoki wearing a Hawiian shirt.

The aroma for these round balls included chocolate-y, nutty and malty notes. A subtle hint of vanilla in the milk chocolate added a faint, warm hot cocoa note.

At the core of each ball lay a whole, softly crunchy, macadamia nut. The nut center was generously enrobed in a smooth, relatively firm--and what, happily, tasted like a slightly higher percent cacao--milk chocolate coating. 

These were labeled "tiny balls" but were still generously sized. The bigger balls (other Donkey Ball flavors) almost required one to take a bite first, unless you wanted to feel you were taking on a "jawbreaker" (very large, round and hard candy).

This was a fun novelty chocolate from Hawaii, made with a relatively short list of ingredients (without preservatives or artificial ingredients).

Ingredients: Milk chocolate (sugar, milk, cocoa butter, unsweetened chocolate, soy lecithin-an emulsifier, vanilla), Macnuts.

Allergen-related information: Contained milk, nuts (macadamia nuts) and soy (lecithin). (No further information on package.)

Note: These chocolate-covered nuts were expired; but had been stored in a cool, dark place.

SOMA - Spark of Joy Caramel Chocolate with Roasted Quince and cacao nibs (bar) - May 11, 2022

Chocolate of the Day

SOMA chocolatemaker
Spark of Joy Caramel Chocolate with Roasted Quince and cacao nibs (bar)
Good ++ - Good +++
Weight: 2.3 oz. (65 g.) in total bar
Calories: 400 calories in 1 bar
Cost: $13.00 (estimate) for 1 bar
Purchased from: Bar and Cocoa, online order

Welcome to Day #6 of Chocolate, Nuts and Nibs Theme Week.

Today's Spark of Joy Caramel Chocolate with Roasted Quince and cacao nibs (bar) was from SOMA chocolatemaker  (Toronto, Ontario, Canada).

Aroma notes for this relatively complex, sweet, fragrant bar included: warm spice, caramel, lightly spiced fruit (caramel apple, guava, very faint pear).

The smooth, cocoa butter-y base had a caramel, fruit and faint nutty flavor. Cocoa nibs (Ecuador) provided a crunchy textural accent as well as tiny bursts of dark, nutty unsweetened cacao flavor. The finish was very light, faint cocoa nib, and barely there quince notes.

The maker's suggested pairing: blue cheese. I tried part of this bar with some blue cheese and roasted walnuts. The combination resulted in a great dessert tapas (snack) plate and complement to a meal.

This was a skillfully-executed, tasty "caramel chocolate"--and a creative use of fruit (a thin circular slice of slow-roasted, spiced quince) and cacao nibs. A winter warmer that would be good anytime of day or year.

Ingredients: Cocoa butter, organic cane sugar, milk powder, cacao nibs, quince, natural vanilla, salt, spices

Allergen-related information: "Contains milk. May contain trace amounts of peanuts, tree nuts, (and) soy."

Ritter Sport - Milk Chocolate with Cashew (bar) - May 10, 2022

Chocolate of the Day

Alfred G. Ritter GmbH and Co. KG
Ritter Sport Milk Chocolate with Cashew (bar)
Good +
Weight: 1.75 oz. (50 g.) / 3.5 oz. (100 g.) in total bar
Calories: 274 calories in 1/2 bar
Cost: $1.99 for 1 bar
Purchased from: Grocery Outlet Bargain Market, Palo Alto, CA

Welcome to Day #5 of Chocolate, Nuts and Nibs Theme Week.

Today's Ritter Sport Milk Chocolate with Cashew (bar) was produced in Germany by Alfred G. Ritter GmbH and Co. KG (Waldenbuch, Germany).

This candy sweet, buttery ("30% cacao minimum") milk chocolate (made with Rainforest Alliance Cocoa) was accented with pieces of roasted and lightly salted (and softly crunchy) cashew nut pieces.

Ingredients: Sugar, cashew nuts (22%), cocoa butter, cocoa mass, whole milk powder, lactose, skimmed milk powder, butterfat (milk) (total milk solids 18%), emulsifier ("soya lecithins"), salt. 

Allergen-related information: Contained nuts (cashews), milk (dairy), soy (lecithin). "May contain contain traces of peanuts, other nuts, cereals containing gluten and egg."

 

Wholly Gluten Free - Fudge Brownies - May 9, 2022

Chocolate of the Day

Wholly Gluten Free
Fudge Brownies
Good ++
Weight: 3.2 oz. (90 g.) / 8 oz. (225 g.) in total package of 5 brownies
Calories: 340 calories in 2 brownies (plus nut and cocoa nibs)
Cost: $ missing information
Purchased from:  Grocery Outlet Bargain Market, Palo Alto, CA

Welcome to Day #4 of Chocolate, Nuts and Nibs Theme Week.

What goes well with nuts and cocoa nibs? Chocolate fudge, cake, brownies, ice cream, and many other desserts. With that thought in mind, I selected today's Wholly Gluten Free Fudge Brownies, distributed by Run-A-Ton Group, Inc. (Chester, NJ). 

I found these individually-wrapped Fudge Brownies (sold in a box of five) in the freezer section. I enjoyed two (de-frosted) brownies: one by itself, and the second with nuts and nibs. 

I thought that, especially after being frozen and de-frosted, this gluten-free brownie might have a heavier texture. But that was definitely not the case. The light (almost fluffy) rich chocolate cake-style brownies with chocolate chunks and a rich, moist chocolate fudge-cake texture and flavor tasted fresh baked.

The second brownie--paired with pecans and walnuts, cocoa nibs (from Nicaragua) and a dash of Saigon cinnamon--had a lot going on. (Note to those with nut allergies: this brownie did not contain any nuts, before I added some.) 

The added nuts, nibs and warm spice added crunchy texture and flavor(s), and helped balance the sugary sweetness. However, these additions also pulled the focus away from the light, soft fudge-y cake-like brownie underneath all these toppings. 

Ingredients: Organic cane sugar, water, sunflower oil, cocoa powder, gluten-free whole oat flour, brown rice flour, chocolate chunks (sugar, chocolate liquor, cocoa butter, natural vanilla extract, salt), tapioca syrup, potato starch, tapioca starch, chia seeds, garbanzo beans, vanilla, aluminum-free baking powder (sodium acid pyrophosphate, corn starch, baking soda, monocalcium phosphate), sea salt, guar gum, baking soda.

Allergen-related information: (Contained corn (corn starch).) "Free from wheat dairy, egg, soy, nuts (and) sesame." "Produced in a dedicated gluten free bakehouse."