Chocolate Archives - Page 12 of 30

November 29, 2020January 10, 2021 Michael

Rocky Road — It’s Better than the Ice Cream

Candy Bars

Rocky road ice cream is fine. It’s generally not the first (or second, or third) flavour I’ll go for in an ice cream shop, but it’s there, and it’s tasty enough. I like it, but I definitely don’t love it.

But what about the candy bar? Annabelle’s Rocky Road is one of those hard-to-find old-timey candy bars that’s been around for decades despite the fact that there’s a decent chance that you haven’t heard of it. I know hadn’t before buying it for this blog.

There’s not much to it — it’s just marshmallow coated in a layer of cashew-studded milk chocolate. I enjoyed it way more than I thought I would.

Sometimes the marshmallow in a candy like this can be overly chewy and spongy, but the stuff here strikes a delightful balance between chewiness and creaminess. And the generous layer of milk chocolate is clearly above average, with a really satisfying flavour that compliments the marshmallow quite well.

As for the the cashews, they add a nice nuttiness without being too crunchy or assertive; the creamy chocolate and chewy marshmallow are clearly the stars of the show. The nuts are there in the background, but they let the marshmallow and chocolate shine.

Manufactured by: Annabelle
Nutritional info (1 bar, 46 grams): 220 calories, 10 grams of fat (4 grams of saturated fat, 0 grams of trans fat), 5 mg cholesterol, 30 mg of sodium, 28 grams of carbohydrates, 1 gram of fibre, 20 grams of sugar, 2 grams of protein.
Ingredients: Milk chocolate, sugar, corn syrup, cashew nuts, palm kernel oil and coconut oil, cocoa powder, whey powder nonfat milk powder, soy lecithin as an emulsifier, vanillin (an artificial flavor), sorbitol, gelatin, glycerine, salt, artificial flavor [Milk chocolate contains: sugar, cocoa butter, chocolate liquor, milk powder, soy lecithin (as an emulsifier), natural vanilla and artificial flavors]

November 25, 2020January 10, 2021 Michael

Kit Kat Caramel Crisp – An Overwhelming Punch of Caramel

Candy Bars

The smell hits you hard when you open the Kit Kat Caramel Crisp wrapper — caramel, but caramel times a million. It’s intense.

The flavour is equally intense. Featuring bits of crispy caramel in a thick milk chocolate coating, the caramel flavour here is unmistakable and overpowering. There’s also something about it that’s vaguely off; the packaging lists “natural flavour” among the ingredients, and there must be some kind of flavouring going on because normal caramel shouldn’t taste like this.

It’s also intensely sweet. The nice thing about Kit Kat, normally, is that the wafers do a great job of balancing out the chocolate’s sweetness. But the outer coating of chocolate here is so thick and so sweet that it completely overwhelms the wafer. The wafer adds crispiness, but that’s about it.

Also adding texture: the toffee-like crispy caramel bits. The creamy/crispy contrast here is quite nice; it’s just too bad that the flavour is a bit wonky.

Manufactured by: Nestle
Nutritional info (4 pieces, 40 grams): 200 calories, 10 grams of fat (6 grams of saturated fat, 0.1 grams of trans fat), 5 mg cholesterol, 45 mg of sodium, 25 grams of carbohydrates, 1 gram of fibre, 21 grams of sugar, 3 grams of protein.
Ingredients: Sugar, milk ingredients, wheat flour, cocoa butter, unsweetened chocolate, modified palm oil, palm, palm kernel and vegetable oils, cocoa powder, sunflower and soy lecithin, natural flavour, salt, baking soda, protease, xylanase, tocopherol, citric acid.

November 19, 2020January 10, 2021 Michael

Aero Dark Chipotle Truffle – A Nice Combo of Sweet and Spice

Candy Bars, Chocolate

Spicy chocolate is an odd combo that can be off-putting if done poorly. Done right, however, and the spiciness adds a nice warm heat that compliments dark chocolate surprisingly well.

I honestly didn’t think Aero could pull it off, but hey, what do you know — they did it.

The chipotle truffle part of the bar doesn’t have a ton of flavour — there’s a mild floral heat, but for the most part, the bar tastes of dark chocolate with a bonus spicy kick. The level of spice is mostly just a mild tingle; you don’t even notice it at first. It’s there, but it’s subtle enough that it never gets in the way or makes the bar taste gimmicky.

And the dark chocolate is quite tasty; it’s on the sweeter side (the sweetness is likely amped up by the milk chocolate interior, which complements the dark quite well), but it has a deep chocolatey flavour that’s quite satisfying. As for the texture, the snappy exterior and the classic Aero bubbliness is a delightful combo.

Manufactured by: Nestle
Nutritional info (8 segments, 40 grams): 230 calories, 15 grams of fat (9 grams of saturated fat, 0.1 grams of trans fat), 5 mg of cholesterol, 15 mg of sodium, 21 grams of carbohydrates, 2 gram of fibre, 17 grams of sugar, 2 grams of protein.
Ingredients: Sugar, unsweetened chocolate, modified milk ingredients, cocoa butter, cocoa powder, modified palm oil, soy lecithin, natural flavour, polyglycerol polyricinoleate, annatto extract, paprika extract.

November 15, 2020January 10, 2021 Michael

Crispy Crunch – Better than (most of) the Competition

Candy Bars

After reviewing 5th Avenue, Butterfinger, and now Crispy Crunch, I think I can say with a reasonable amount of confidence that they’re all about the same. Crispy Crunch is probably the best of the bunch, however, if only for the presence of actual chocolate in the ingredients, and thanks to its more pronounced toffee flavour.

Actually, I take that back — the best of the bunch is none of the above. The real champion of this type of bar is Zagnut, which goes against the grain by forgoing chocolate altogether; instead, it’s coated with a layer of toasted coconut, a combo that works so much better than you’d think. It’s a fairly obscure candy bar that deserves a much higher profile. It’s delicious.

As for Crispy Crunch, it’s the same crunchy, peanut-buttery, toffee-infused candy you’ll find in all the aforementioned bars. Like the rest of them, I wish it had a more pronounced peanut butter flavour, but it’s tasty enough for what it is, and the layer of toffee beneath the chocolate sets it apart somewhat. The thin chocolate coating may as well not even be there, however, and the whole thing is probably a bit sweeter than it needs to be.

Go try a Zagnut is what I’m saying. I think you’ll be pleasantly surprised.

Manufactured by: Cadbury
Nutritional info (1 bar, 48 grams): 220 calories, 10 grams of fat (4 grams of saturated fat, 0.1 grams of trans fat), 0 mg of cholesterol, 140 mg of sodium, 32 grams of carbohydrates, 1 gram of fibre, 27 grams of sugar, 3 grams of protein.
Ingredients: Sugar, glucose syrup, peanuts, modified palm oil, modified milk ingredients, modified vegetable oil, blackstrap and fancy molasses, cocoa, unsweetened chocolate, salt, wheat flour, vegetable oil, mono- and di-glycerides, soy lecithin, natural flavour.

November 8, 2020January 10, 2021 Michael

BarNone – A Delicious Candy Bar, Back From the Dead

Candy Bars

Whoa, BarNone. Whoa Nelly. (Is whoa Nelly a thing people say anymore? I don’t think I’ve ever said it, but then I’ve never eaten a BarNone until now, so there’s a first time for everything, I guess.)

I honestly can’t remember the last time I was so pleasantly surprised by a candy bar. I’ve barely even heard of BarNone, but apparently it was released by Hershey in 1987 (and was called Temptation in Canada) only to be discontinued about a decade later. It was then revived by Iconic Candy, who specialize in bringing back discontinued sweets (and based on a photo on their website, they were at one point working on bringing back P.B. Max, and seriously, where’s my P.B. Max?? Why hasn’t that happened yet???).

BarNone features chocolate wafers topped with peanuts and coated in milk chocolate, and oh man, it’s so good. The wrapper calls it “the chocolate lover’s bar,” and yeah, that sounds about right. It’s covered in a generous layer of good quality chocolate, and the wafer has a deeply chocolatey flavour that’s thoroughly satisfying.

The peanuts are a nice touch; they add some crunch and a mild nutty flavour that complements the chocolate quite well. The whole thing is creamy, crispy, crunchy, and delicious. And it’s not too sweet, which really lets the chocolate flavour shine through. I don’t think it’s available anywhere in Canada outside of import stores, but it’s worth going out of your way for. I mean, did you not hear me? I said whoa Nelly, and I meant it.

Manufactured by: Iconic Candy
Nutritional info (1 bar, 42 grams): 230 calories, 13 grams of fat (9 grams of saturated fat, 0 grams of trans fat), 0 mg of cholesterol, 150 mg of sodium, 23 grams of carbohydrates, 1 gram of fibre, 12 grams of sugar, 4 grams of protein.
Ingredients: Milk chocolate (sugar, cocoa butter, unsweetened chocolate, milk powder, whey powder, soy lecithin, pure vanilla extract), chocolate cream (sugar, coconut oil, milk powder, cocoa powder, unsweetened chocolate, glucose syrup, whey powder, dextrose, soy lecithin, pure vanilla extract, natural flavor, salt), wafer (wheat flour, wheat starch, cocoa powder, soy lecithin, salt, baking soda, ammonium bicarbonate (rising agent), palm oil, yeast extract, malt extract), peanuts.