A recent article mentions that the once thought-to-be-immune chocolate market is taking a hit from the weak economy.

It cites the Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory in Colorado as its main source, who says they’ve had to cut nearly 60 employees from their already modest workforce.

Have your chocolate buying habits changed? I can tell you mine haven’t! I have noticed some favorites have gone up a little in price but as long as it doesn’t get ridiculous I feel good chocolate is worth a little more anyway. What do you think?

[image: flickr]

Post from: Chocolate Bytes

Scientists are still spending time on chocolate, except this time around it’s not to tell us that it’s bad this week, good the next! Apparently they’re analyzing the more than 400 million parts of the cacao bean in an effort to help diminishing crops and possibly make chocolate taste better.

The dissection of the genome began this past Thursday and is expected to last five years. Mars, Inc. is funding the program by more than $10 million which doesn’t seem like much when you learn that fungal diseases cost the farmers approximately $700 million annually.

The research will allow them to see what parts of the bean are susceptible and give the scientists and farmers a better understanding of the bean. They also plan to release their findings publicly when it’s over because there will be more information than just one company can cover. Good for Mars!

It’ll be really interesting to see how this pans out or if, like a fair amount of research projects that get a lot of attention when they first start, it’ll just fade into history without any conclusion.

I’m also conflicted on the taste aspect. Quite a few companies are already getting it right (and the ones who aren’t used to but care more about the bottom line now), and I think “improving” on the taste of chocolate means it’s simply going to change it. I think it’s great that they want to make the crops more fungus resistant but I just don’t see how you can improve on the taste. What do you think?

[image: sxc]

Post from: Chocolate Bytes

I was contacted last week about trying out a new bar from Lindt, the Lindt Excellence Chili Bar. I excitedly responded that I’d love to, and then sat back and thought about it. I realized I had never tried a chili-infused chocolate of any kind – solid or liquid – even though it’s said to be one of the oldest ways of consuming chocolate. I anxiously awaited my sample, which showed up quickly.

The packaging of the bar is a lightweight cardboard that folds over in the back like an envelope so you can easily store any chocolate left over (does anyone actually have chocolate left over?). The bar itself is wrapped in the standard, easy-tear gold foil. Each bar is 3.5 oz.

“This combination of fine dark chocolate with exquisite chili pepper delivers an absolutely unique taste experience. When savoring this new creation, chocolate connoisseurs will experience how the initially mild, delicate flavor of cocoa gradually gives way to a full-bodied but harmoniously spicy touch. Seductively piquant!”

I would have to say they nailed it! The bar is a very smooth dark chocolate made from sugar, chocolate, cocoa butter and chili extract.

At first bite it’s a nice, mild dark chocolate with a very light fruity hint, but after just a few seconds the heat from the chili hits the back of your throat before creeping to your tongue. It’s not uncomfortable – and trust me, I’d be the first to say so. I’m not a wuss when it comes to heat, but I generally like to taste my food and don’t add extra hot sauce or peppers to it!

My husband, on the other hand, does and though he doesn’t like chocolate bars without nuts he gave the Chili Bar a try and loved it. He even took a square into work with him this morning so a co-worker who also loves spicy food could give it a try, and unsurprisingly he loves it as well!

My three daughters each got a smallish sliver as well and thought it was “neat” and “cool!” that a chocolate bar could have chili in it that made your mouth “feel spicy.” A hit all around!

Overall it’s a very good chocolate bar, and as I said above everyone who’s tried it has loved it. I’m glad I got the chance and I’m going to keep an eye out for it at the store so I (and definitely my husband!) can have a bar in the snack cupboard at all times!

It looks like it can be purchased online at the Lindt website (third one down on the right side) as part of a 6 bar chocolate kit for $17.94. I’ll update as I find more locations!

[images used with permission from Lindt]

Post from: Chocolate Bytes

This just is not the week for Oreos.

(Before I go on, let me reassure you that the driver escaped unharmed and there were no other injuries reported.)

So that being said, what a tragedy. As you can see, a semi hauling 20,000 pounds of ill-fated Oreos overturned on a freeway in Illinois yesterday morning.

They’re not sure yet what caused the accident (they think the driver fell asleep), but I know where they can send the damaged packages!

Post from: Chocolate Bytes

I am so amused by this story: The Oreo – an American treat staple since 1912 – has just this month been launched in Great Britain, and some Brits don’t know what to make of it!

Apparently it’s too sweet, doesn’t hold up well in tea (most Brits have never seen a biscuit [cookie] dipped in milk before!), the cream filling is too toothpasty, and the color of the cookie is too dark.

In fact, the tea dipping is such an important part of biscuit enjoyment that one British author says:

“Our love of tea-dipping has influenced the selection of flour and the temperature at which biscuits are baked. Our biscuits are built for dunking.”

Sounds like the Oreo has started off with a disadvantage!

Now if you’ll excuse me, I have an overwhelming craving for some tasty dark biscuits!

[image: stock.xchng]

Post from: Chocolate Bytes

Everyone remembers the red dye cancer scare from the early 90’s and the subsequent bags of redless M&M’s or cans of cherry-less fruit cocktail.

It was found that large amounts of it caused cancer in lab rats, but as more research was done it was determined that small amounts of it were safe and the health risks were small, though certain uses are still banned today. Many manufacturers switched to a different red dye anyway.

However, a recent study has found that some dyes might be good for you and could actually protect against cancer!

A researcher in Oregon added aflatoxin (a highly toxic carcinogenic) with and without the dye to food pellets that were given to trout. Nine months later she found that those who were given the aflatoxin with the dyes had 50% fewer liver tumors, 50% lower incidence of stomach cancer and a 40% lower incidence of liver cancer compared with those that had been exposed to just the aflatoxin alone.

Obviously a lot more research needs to be done, but it sounds like an interesting breakthrough! What do you think?

Post from: Chocolate Bytes

The Second Annual AirBake Extreme Cookie Challenge, sponsored by Wearever, was at FAO Schwarz in New York City last week, with a “Cookie-Off” hosted by Heroes actor Noah Gray-Cabey. The five finalists have been chosen and two of their recipes were sent to me to share with you!

Extremely Chocolatey Beaver Huts
by Jessie Grearson & Eleanor Sapat from Falmouth, ME

1/2 cup butter, softened
3/4 cup white sugar
1 egg
1 1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/3 cup cocoa powder
1/3 cup Quaker instant oats
1 Tbsp. cream or half and half
½ tsp. baking soda
¼ tsp. salt
¼ cup white chocolate chips
¾ cup dark chocolate chips
¼ cup chopped walnuts
One Hershey’s kiss
5-6 Tbsp. Nutella
1/6 bag thin stick pretzels, some broken, for decorating huts

1. Preheat oven to 350°.

2. In large bowl beat together butter, sugar, eggs and vanilla until light and fluffy.

3. In another bowl whisk together flour, cocoa, oats, baking soda and salt; stir into the butter mixture and add cream slowly, just enough to form a stiff, but well-blended dough.

4. Fold in chocolate chips and chopped walnuts (we think of these as rocks and stones).

5. Roll by large tablespoons into rough balls, about the size of a ping-pong ball (these are your mud huts) then hide a chocolate kiss “beaver” inside one cookie.

6. Bake cookies for 10-12 minutes on an ungreased AirBake cookie sheet in the preheated oven until set (watch carefully).

7. After cookies cool, spread a small amount of Nutella as muddy layer over each hut and have fun adding pretzel “sticks” to the outside of each beaver hut.

Makes 20-24 cookies.

[image and recipe used with permission from Wearever]

Post from: Chocolate Bytes

The Consumerist had a great article yesterday on how to determine if M&M’s, Mars or Hershey candy is expired:

“For M&Ms and Mars candy, there’s usually a 10 digit code of numbers and letters, but you only need to worry about the first three. The first number is the last number in the year (8 means 2008, 7 means 2007, etc) and the next two numbers stand for the week of the year (so, a number like 804 would be the fourth week of 2008: February 2008).

“For Hershey’s candy, there’s a 2 character code for the month and year. The year is like the other code, with the number being the last number in the year, the second character is a letter that represents the month. A = January, B = February, and so on. So a code like 9A would mean that the candy expires January of 2009.”

I grabbed a bag of M&M’s to check this out, and as you can see in the picture above this one apparently expired in December 2007, which is lame because I bought it in February 2008. But as several commenters in the original post pointed out, though, expired candy likely won’t make you sick, it’ll just taste off. I haven’t noticed anything funky about it so I think I’ll live!

Post from: Chocolate Bytes

Harry and David are voluntarily recalling 66,500 8 oz. bags of their Covered Select Blend Espresso Beans because they may contain milk not declared on the ingredient label.

The bags affected have “Best if used by” dates after 8/28/05, sold prior to April 5th, 2008. Bags subject to this recall do NOT have a “Contains milk, soy” statement on the nutrition label and are packaged in 8 oz. clear plastic bags, tied at the top with a tan ribbon.

Consumers with product can return it to any Harry and David retail store for a full refund.

[image: stock.xchng]

Post from: Chocolate Bytes

American Idol judge Paula Abdul has apparently shelled out $3000 for a dress made for the reality show Project Runway a few months ago. It’s no ordinary dress though – it was made out of Hershey chocolate wrappers! Hershey and Project Runway teamed up this week to auction off all the dresses used in the candy wrapper competition, which came to approximately $7,583.98.

She says she plans to wear it for Halloween this year. Check out a projection of what she’ll look like here.

[image: stock.xchng]

Post from: Chocolate Bytes