chocolate review

Pascha Organic Dark Chocolate 70% Cacao

I know I’ve reviewed Pascha chocolate before, but it’s soooo worth repeating. Pascha is one of my favorite bean-to-bar chocolate artisans for a variety of reasons.

One reason, and the it’s the reason I first bought Pascha, was the fact that my daughter can eat their chocolate bars because they are made in a peanut and nut free facility. In fact, they’re free of a lot of things, like the top 8 allergens including soy, dairy, egg, wheat and gluten.

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D. Barbero Italian Chocolates Review – Part 2

Last week I broke into my variety pack of D. Barbero chocolate Mixed Napolitains and discovered a nice surprise – 70% Cuban chocolate!  I wonder what’s in store for me today?

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D. Barbero Italian Chocolates

Sometimes life hands you a nice surprise...

...Like when out of the blue, your mom gives you a gift of “some chocolate I bought at an Italian restaurant’s gift shop” and discover not only is it delicious but it’s 70% Cacao Cubano!

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Extremely (and Supremely!) Dark Chocolate

I eat very little refined sugar and don’t consume artificial sweeteners. Not because I have to, but because I want to. For me, it’s the smart thing to do. I feel better physically and mentally. I live more days having that wonderful “sense of well-being” than I do without. And I still have a chocolate-filled life!

Last week I reviewed two stevia sweetened chocolates. I rarely eat chocolate with sucrose replacers like alcohol sugars or stevia. I much prefer eating chocolates that lower the sugar by increasing the cacao percentage.

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Lily’s Salted Almond and Milk

A couple of years ago I reviewed the Lily’s 55% chocolate bar sweetened with stevia. Ever conscientious of lowering my sugar intake, and because it’s been a while, I grabbed another Lily bar when I was out shopping. This time it was the 40% milk chocolate salted almond sweetened with stevia. I also wanted to revisit that 55% dark, so I grabbed one of those too.

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Vande Walle’s Candies – Part Two

A “Chocolaterie” is usually a business that makes chocolates and sells them at the same place. It’s also usually a small family-owned business and typically only at one location.

The term “Chocolaterie” is of French origin and isn’t used very often in the United States. Instead, we use terms like Chocolate Shop, Candy Store, or Chocolate Company. You may see the occasional “Chocolatier” or “Chocolat” used to imply that the business makes the chocolate it sells.

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Vande Walle’s Candies – Part One

A visit to Vande Walle’s Candies shop in Appleton, Wisconsin is a treat. I recently had the pleasure of fitting in a trip to Vande Walle’s while out shopping with my mother in-law. I loved my first step into the chocolate shop. The air conditioning felt so luxurious on that hot afternoon, and I took in the smells of chocolate, caramel, and mint hitting my senses in a delightful way.

Ah, the aromas of a chocolate shop. They’re almost identical wherever I go...

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Divine’s Seriously Smooth Milk Chocolate

You’ve heard me talk about Divine Chocolate before. It’s one of my favorite chocolate companies. I hold it in high esteem for two major reasons; excellent chocolate and an excellent story.

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NibMor Organic Daily Dose – Mint Dark Chocolate

NibMor (short for Nibble More) chocolate snack company makes small, 0.35 ounce squares of chocolate perfect for nibbling. They call it “Our Daily Dose” and it’s intended to be just the right amount for a delicious and healthy snack or end-of-meal treat.

My daily dose is a 72% dark chocolate with cacao nibs and mint.

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Unreal Dark Chocolate Almond Butter

As a kid I loved Reeses’ Peanut Butter Cups. The day after Trick or Treating for Halloween, my siblings and I would trade candy, each of us looking for more of our favorites. However, none of us would give up our peanut butter cups. We all coveted them and would be envious of the person that got more of them in their candy bag.

My favorite way to eat them was cold. I’d put one in the refrigerator after school and by homework time, I’d treat myself to an ice cold, milk chocolate covered, sugary peanut butter filled confection.

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