Little Ivy Cakes

VERE Chocolate Review
and Being Organic

WOW! I got so much out of the interviews that Stef at Cupcake Project posted with Kathy, the owner/founder of Vere Chocolates. Thanks Stef and Kathy!

I thought the little bag the chocolates came in-decorated with a drip of "chocolate" was such a great idea and added such a nice personal touch too.

I also was just realizing and thought I would share that there is so much importance in being organic and healthy in our lives. We really should try to support those companies that are making the effort to be organic and healthy for 1. us 2. the economy, and 3. the environment. There is definitely a craze and trend for being healthy that has spread across the country. But, really how much? I actually read that only 63% of Americans say that they try to buy organic foods and drinks at least some of the time. From my point of view, I would say that maybe 70% of the people around me in my life still are not educated enough about what it really means to be healthy and don't care or don't know how to be healthy. They just aren't used to what healthy tastes like even. It seems like all we care about is if it tastes good. Sure some healthy products and veggies don't taste that great but, you eat them because they are good for you. After a while, you acquire the taste for them and think nothing of it anyway. I take this for granted I guess because I grew up with my mom being a healthy co-op goer to-the-extreme. She still is healthy and I go to her for all my questions on health and natural remedies. I hated getting weird healthy stuff for lunch as a kid and was embarrassed then but, Now I really appreciate it.

I am not perfect at being healthy-"And That'ss.....O...K."(a line from Daily Affirmations with Stuart Smalley on SNL with Al Frankin)
At one point I decided to try and get all my produce from the local farmer's market. Me and Sean took out a twenty from the ATM and bought fruit and veggies for that week. I was so invigorated to have fresh organic food and that I was supporting local farmers, I felt like I was contributing to my community and making a difference. However, I found that I couldn't prepare and eat the veggies and fruits before they started going bad. I was a little frustrated. I bought some salad mix and was told it would last up to 3 weeks- three days later, the salad mix was pretty much a black mush. Now, I understand organic is more perishable and I can deal with that-only to a certain point though. Being organic can be pricey so I am not going to be stupid and waste money on organic food that I don't even get to enjoy. But I will keep on striving for having a healthy life through eating well, exercising, and enriching myself with culture etc...

Anyway, what do you think about being organic and healthy? I am curious to see what others have to say. :)

(Oh, and if you live in California, I love listening to 89.9 KCRW especially on the weekends from 9-12:30 they have so many eye-opening issues and subjects. Saturday at 11AM is a food show too. You should REALLY check it out.)

Well, there is a method to my madness as Vere organic chocolate got me this organic subject.
Here's my review on the chocolate I won.

This Vere Chocolate was really rich and dark. The night after I received the chocolates in the mail my husband and I each tried one little square of each flavor which was probably too much rich dark chocolate for one night. It gave us some energy for sure! If I were a doctor, I would prescribe 2-3 squares a day. :)
Now because Sean and I liked liked the chocolate, we started giving it to friends to try, what we didn't realize is that in order to enjoy this chocolate, you have to appreciate dark chocolate and have a refined taste. If you're used to sweet chocolate, you may not like this stuff. Most of our friends didn't like the chocolate we gave to them, they wanted a more desserty-sweet chocolate.

Cayenne + Cocoa Nibs:
This was the first flavor I tried because the founder of Vere, Kathy, mentioned it was her favorite flavor in the interview with Stef at Cupcake Project.
This one was one of two ultimate favorites along with it being my husband's favorite of all of them. I really could taste the layering affects that Kathy was talking about. The first thing you experience when you take a little bite is the crunchy cocoa nibs-I love crunchy! Then you taste the wonderful velvety dark chocolate melting on your tongue... and just as you're wondering, "hey what about the cayenne?!" it hits you and gives you a nice cayenne heat-spice. It's not overwhelmingly hot but, just perfect. :)

Raspberry + Lemon:
I tasted this 3rd out of the bunch and it instantly became my other ultimate favorite.
The tarty- sweet from the raspberry and lemon really are a great compliment to the bitterish dark chocolate. But, if you're not a a fruity chocolate person, like my husband, you probably won't like this one.

Banana + Macadamia Nut:
Stef is right, You can't really taste the banana only slightly and because I like banana flavor I would love it if there were some decent size dried banana pieces in there. The macadamia nuts were extra crispy crunchy and I loved that! Overall I still really liked this one and ranks third on my list.

Espresso + Anise:
I liked the crunchiness of the espresso in the chocolate. I liked that there were just little bits of espresso in the chocolate versus having a whole chocolate covered espresso bean. And the two deep flavors of the espresso and the chocolate are lovely together. However, not so much on the anise. I can't put my finger on it, I like anise but, it was too strong or something especially along with the already strong bitters of the chocolate itself. I loved the idea though it's different and unique.

I had a cupcake order this weekend and wasn't able to do anything special with the left over chocolate. I think it's better just to eat by itself anyway. I am not sure if I want to bake with it. Some chocolate is just special enough to keep and eat alone or with wine on special occasions.:) Although, I did use the regular plain dark chocolate to decorate these chocolate vegan cupcakes I made. I put little chunks on top to decorate the them.

THE END!