Polish Chocolates in USA

Back on World Chocolate Day in September one of the things your Chocolate Priestess found in her nearby Kroger were a few different types of filled chocolates from Poland.  I bought the ones called "Malaga" in a 8oz or 227g bag.  They came in this clear bag with a label on it listing all of the required information for the USA. Inside were these crescent shaped, silver foil wrapped candies with

Intentions Not Enough for This Hot Chocolate

Time for another hot chocolate drink review from your Chocolate Priestess.  You may recall, Sisters and Brothers, that I have reviewed two wonderful products from Intentional Chocolate in the past and loved them both.  Sadly not everything a company makes can meet the standards of The Chocolate Cult.


They sent me this 7oz bag of their "Dark Hot Chocolate" and reading the instructions I could

"Cacao Reserve" chocolate from Hershey

A few months ago I found these two boxes of "Cacao Reserve" chocolate from Hershey's in the clearance section of my local Kroger which you know is one of my favorite places to look for candies I may have missed.  I saw some reports the product line had been discontinued but just this morning as I'm working on this for you, Sisters and Brothers, I see you can find this product lines at several

Chocolate Cult Acolyte Birthday

Today, Sisters and Brothers, I want to see a lot of comments left for our very own Chocolate Coconut Acolyte whose birthday it is.  By the time she sees this tomorrow afternoon, I hope you will have left her at least a dozen well-wishes for all that she does for us.

What does she do?

She sacrifices herself to eat any chocolate and coconut offerings we are sent, she takes pictures of them then

A Godiva Gift for Christmas

Your Chocolate Priestess did receive one chocolate food gift this Christmas from a friend she's known since high school, which was two plus decades ago now.  My friend Lori came to our annual Holiday Party and she gave us this beautiful little box from Godiva.  I appreciated it even though it also felt a bit awkward since out of financial concerns our gift to our guests was all of the homemade

Astor's Great Chocolate Values

Back to our friends at Astor Chocolate for our day-after-Christmas Saturday Sacrament, Sisters and Brothers. This might surprise you, but your Chocolate Priestess did not receive chocolate as gifts, nor did I eat a lot of chocolate yesterday.  Even so, given the holidays, I wanted to choose a small Sacrament, and these two 3-ounce bars from Astor fit that requirement, even though they are big

Chocolate Movie Reviews

In 2010, your Chocolate Priestess will start doing movie reviews that relate to chocolate.  I'm going to do this as a change of pace and because movies can make great gifts.  Also I've received three movies myself that relate to chocolate and doing reviews for my Sisters and Brothers in the Sacred Substance is a good excuse to watch something closely.

Now, these won't be reviews focused on

Decent Hot Cocoa, Great Price

The last time your Chocolate Priestess mentioned Nestlé it was to condemn one of it's products, another cocoa mix.  Today I get to say positive things about a different flavor from that same product line.  A lesson that not all varieties of a product are equal and that you should give each a chance to stand or fall on it's own.


Last night my household tried the "Chocolate Caramel" flavor from

Russell Stover Stocking Stuffers

Sisters and Brothers, your Chocolate Priestess got the last of her stocking stuffers this morning at her local Hallmark store when she picked up a few cards using her Gold Crown membership card.  While I can't at this point reveal what these four treat look like or taste like since they are gifts for someone else, Russell Stover usually has decent chocolate that is a safe bet for their price.

Chocolaty Lips Stocking Stuffer

Sometimes I find chocolate related items in places I didn't expect.  Take this for example: "Chocolate & Hazelnut Lip Gloss" made for Borders Inc.  I found it in Borders less than a mile from my house in that check out aisle they create with racks of books and other products to try and catch your eyes on the way out.  This 5.5g gloss was about $4 but I was spending some birthday money and a

Dunkin' Donuts Christmas Options

Dunkin' Donuts is offering some Christmas themed donuts right now and so your Chocolate Priestess stopped in to her local Kroger's branch of the donut shop and bought a half dozen with four varieties.  Four vanilla donuts -- two glazed crullers, a cake with sprinkles and frosting, and a yeast with sprinkles and frosting.  And then the only two chocolate ones they had at around 10AM -- chocolate

Chocolate Stocking Stuffers of the Highest Caliber

Today's Sacrament will look at the final group of products that Theo Chocolate submitted to us for review.  These are five different flavors of their 3-ounce "Theo Origins" bars.  You can find your Chocolate Priestess's earlier revelations on Theo's Nib Brittle back in April 2009 and their 2-oz. bars in August 2009.


What are "Theo Origins" bars?  These are five flavors created from

Chocolate Card Game

You know someone who loves Chocolate.  You might love Chocolate.  Either way you look to The Chocolate Cult for advice about specific products, news related to cocoa, consumer alerts, five sensory descriptions of wonderful chocolate and honest evaluations that help you decide where not to spend  your money.  In this holiday season, you can offer those in your life who love Chocolate something fun

How Many Chocolate Holidays does December Need?

As you know, Sisters and Brothers, sometimes your Chocolate Priestess mentions various fun holidays, both in the USA and around the world that you could use the Sacred Substance to celebrate.  I don't mention them all but I wanted to list the ones for December because I have an important question.

First, the list:

December 1 = National Pie Day
December 4 = National Cookie Day
December 9 =

Book Review: Sticky, Chewy, etc for Kids

Your Chocolate Priestess has been a book reviewer for many years now, working on her own then for an online bookstore and now as a member of the Vine Program at Amazon.com.  One of the books I was sent last month is Jill O'Connor's "Sticky, Chewy, Messy, Gooey Treats for Kids" and I'm going to review it using the three recipes I tried from it as well as general information about it.  Your orders

17th Annual Christmas Party Report

For most of you, Sisters and Brothers, this will be the second time you've heard about your Chocolate Priestess's annual tradition of hosting a huge Christmas/Holiday party.  The first mention was last week when I talked about how I was incorporating Chocolate and our Path into the party planning.  Today I want to share how that went with you and later I'll be reviewing the actual chocolate

Chocolate Stocking Stuffers that Give Back

If you are celebrating Christmas, it's getting close to the deadline for ordering anything without paying higher rates.  Our last Sacrament before that deadline, which is Monday, December 14th for many companies, is from Shaman Organic Chocolates.  They sent me these four bars in modest packaging that made me very happy to see.  Remember, saving the land saves the future chocolate that can be

Hanukkah & Chocolate

Hanukkah (or Hanukah or Chanukah), an eight  day Jewish festival, begins tomorrow.   Your Chocolate Priestess has seen a few chocolate related items online that are Hanukkah related especially Hanukkah Gelt or coins made of chocolate but also cookies and cakes decorated to look like Menorahs and Stars of David.  Even though one company told me they were sending The Chocolate Cult something for

Chocolate Milk Debate Misses the Point

I won't repeat all the various links to this big news story now in the States about whether or not chocolate milk should stay on the public school menu.  I won't repeat it because much of it is political and that really isn't the point.

The concern should be what is healthier for those who may drink milk at school.  So let's compare whole milk, 2% milk, 1% milk and skim milk first to see which

Hot Cocoa that Won't be at My Holiday Party

It is rare, Sisters and Brothers, that your Chocolate Priestess is so deeply disappointed in a product that she has to think really hard about each word she is typing out but this product from Nestlé disappointed my entire household tonight.


I expect two things from a hot cocoa mix that labels itself as "Chocolate Mint" in flavor.  I expect a chocolate flavor and I expect a mint flavor, that's

A Chocolate Cult Holiday Plan

Sisters and Brothers, I will get back to reviews, news commentary, and sharing the exploits I am privileged to have as your Chocolate Priestess but today I want to just briefly talk about how I'm using the Path we are all on to make my family's annual Holiday party more chocolaty but more healthy as well.

First, obviously I am using chocolate in as many desserts as I can.  I'm going to be making

Tollhouse & Cookie Racks & Holidays

Your Chocolate Priestess was raised in a simple, working class home in the Midwest.  We didn't have cookie racks, you know, those metal things that let you put what you've bake up a bit so the air can circulate and cool it faster and more evenly.  Nope, my mother used paper bags from the grocery store, cut and then laid out.  That's what I used for years until my concerns about health issues

Lovely, Tasty Truffle Gifts for Your Holidays

When these truffles from Coastal Mist arrived as an offering to The Chocolate Cult last week, your Chocolate Priestess was impressed with their simple and economical packaging, with nothing extreme or over the top.  Inside was this simple brown box with a ribbon and an information card.  After taking this picture and logging the product for us on my table of offerings received and schedule to

Russell Stover’s Sugar Free, 4 Flavors

Your Chocolate Priestess bought this four flavor bag of sugar free candies from Russell Stover a few months ago, they were on sale at my local Kroger.  We have some friends who have to watch their sugar consumption so I wanted to see if this was a good option for them.  During this holiday season you, too, may want to think about sugar free products.  While you may not want to give this specific

Chocolate and Heart Attacks

Sisters and Brothers, so far we've looked at a few claims about the health benefits of chocolate and cocoa and most of the time your Chocolate Priestess's number one concern has been that these studies done on lab animals are being too quickly applied to human models without appropriate testing.  Not so for today's topic involves study of human heart attack survivors and chocolate.

There have

Simple Cookbook a Bit Too Simple

For your Chocolate Priestess's birthday this year, her local hardware store sent her a gift card for $10 so I had to go spend it.  One of the things I found was this little cookbook from Gooseberry Patch called "Our Favorite Chocolate Recipes" for about $7.  I tried three recipes out of it and today I want to share the results of those recipes and a summary of the problems I found in the book

Hot Chocolate Disappoints but Cookie Pleases

Ah, happy December 1st, Sisters and Brothers!  Your Chocolate Priestess has 12 more days to prepare for the biggest party her household hosts every year.  Now, we make 90% of the food we share at this bash but some of you may be looking to buy treats or catering for your own parties.  So I want to talk about some items you might consider.  I have mentioned the Bakehouse in the past and today I

Gelato Anytime

Your Chocolate Priestess mentioned gelato early this year after a time to the Chicago area and a wonderful little shop called Taviata where we got some plus a few other treats the chocolatier gave us and we bought.  I remember gelato from when I lived in Rome for two semesters or eight months if you like.  Finding it in the midwest was proving difficult and the tiny place that used to me in my

Soft Center Truffles with the Spirit of Christmas

Our second box of assorted organic, fair-trade truffles from Taraluna is the red box of Sjaak's "Soft Centers," which includes another nine flavors, all different from the "Nuts & Chews" your Chocolate Priestess revealed in the previous Sacrament.  This box is the exact same price as the vegan version, and it also has two nuts listed on the ingredients, so be wary if you are allergic to nuts,

Winner will choose Chocolate

Your Chocolate Priestess received an email late this afternoon telling her that she won a contest for a gift certificate to an online retailer through the Foodie Blog Roll that she is a member of.  I was very pleasantly surprised.

You know, Sisters and Brothers, what I plan to do with this gift certificate from RegionalBest.com, don't you?  Yup, I'll be getting chocolates I've never had before.

Chocolate Lacking in Mrs. Freshley Buddy Bars

In a previous review of a Mrs. Freshley product, your Chocolate Priestess mentioned that for the price it was an excellent product.  If you want to find that review, please use the search tool I've placed on the side bar.  Not all products a company makes are good nor are they a good value for the price.  Sadly the "Buddy Bars" is one of those disappointments, Sisters and Brothers.  Let me

Happy Thanksgiving 2009 from The Chocolate Cult

Sisters and Brothers who are in the USA, I want to wish you a Happy Thanksgiving this 2009.

For those of you who are not Americans, and your Chocolate Priestess can see that we have readers around the globe, I wish you a wonderful holiday season as well because I know for most of us there were be several important holidays over the next month or two.

While Thanksgiving is not normally a time

Vegan Truffles from Taraluna

Sisters and Brothers, I wasn't going to do a Special Sacrament midweek right now but then I received a notice of some special discounts and one of your Brothers has been asking me about vegan options.  As your Chocolate Priestess it is my duty not just to reveal information to you but to respond to your needs.  Cacao-Me, these are the vegan truffles you may be looking for.


The gold box in this

Help with Exercise the Chocolate Way

As suggested on the purple, not blue as my photo suggests, wrapper, I ate this Myoplex Lite bar within 30 minutes after my 60 minute bike ride I do 5 times a week.  I wanted to see if it made me feel any different at all.  Now I know that a much better test of this product would be to use it for at least a month but the company didn't send this to me and I don't buy more than one sample if I

Why Cocoa Smuggling Matters

It has been a while, Sisters and Brothers, since your Chocolate Priestess remarked upon the Sacred Substance in the news outside of health claims since those are increasing at a rapid pace it seems and being misused and misreported in an effort to increase all chocolate sales regardless of their actual healthiness.  Today I want to look at crime related to cocoa.


Most of the world's chocolate