To those who claim that white chocolate is not real chocolate, I say "Think again!" The reasoning behind this assumption is logical, as many white chocolates do not contain any actual cocoa or derivatives from the cacao bean. However, this white chocolate bar from Divine contains cocoa butter, and therefore is as "real" as chocolate comes in my book. As for the strawberries, I'm not sure I can say the same.
This Divine bar is made with "strawberry crisp," which is similar to the dehydrated fruit that is used in most chocolate bars that contain "fruit". I am always a little skeptical of these crispy fruits. The texture is often more fruit loop than fruit bit, and while I was eating this bar, although it was delicious overall, the term "fake strawberry" kept coming to mind. Not the kind of words I want floating about while indulging in something that I regard as otherwise quite healthful.
I suppose that the advantage to using dehydrated fruit is that it helps with the overall texture of the bar, if not with the texture of the fruit itself. Over the years of eating a handful of white chocolate chips after school, I've learned that white chocolate is best enjoyed when left to simply melt in your mouth. The strawberry crisp in this bar melts quite nicely along with the chocolate, whereas if there were actual bits of real dried strawberries, you would have to stop and chew. This would be a very different experience indeed.
The Theo Congo bar also presented me with something out of the ordinary: vanilla nibs. "What are vanilla nibs?" you may be wondering as I did when I first encountered this delightful bar. This term is a little misleading, as they are not actual bits of vanilla bean in the way that cacao nibs are bits of cacao bean. The Congo bar contains regular cacao nibs and is flavored with ground vanilla bean. Vanilla bean is extremely potent, so although it's ground in this bar, and therefore not detectable at a texture level like the cacao nibs are, its flavor is quite pervasive. I loved this addition. The bar itself is really simple, made with only pure ingredients of cocoa beans*, sugar, and cocoa butter besides the nibs and vanilla, yet it tasted quite different from other 65% cacao bars I've had in the past. (And you know as well as I that I've had more than my fair share ; )
It is interesting that I tried both of these bars at the same time because white chocolate is also characterized by strong vanilla flavors. I wonder if perhaps my body needed vanilla in the way that the body needs iron when it craves red meat? But vanilla? What does vanilla do besides lend a wonderfully full and rounded quality to everything its added to?
*"Cocoa" and "cacao" are often used interchangeably. I generally use the spelling that reflects the labeling of each bar, though personally I prefer "cacao."
This Divine bar is made with "strawberry crisp," which is similar to the dehydrated fruit that is used in most chocolate bars that contain "fruit". I am always a little skeptical of these crispy fruits. The texture is often more fruit loop than fruit bit, and while I was eating this bar, although it was delicious overall, the term "fake strawberry" kept coming to mind. Not the kind of words I want floating about while indulging in something that I regard as otherwise quite healthful.
I suppose that the advantage to using dehydrated fruit is that it helps with the overall texture of the bar, if not with the texture of the fruit itself. Over the years of eating a handful of white chocolate chips after school, I've learned that white chocolate is best enjoyed when left to simply melt in your mouth. The strawberry crisp in this bar melts quite nicely along with the chocolate, whereas if there were actual bits of real dried strawberries, you would have to stop and chew. This would be a very different experience indeed.
The Theo Congo bar also presented me with something out of the ordinary: vanilla nibs. "What are vanilla nibs?" you may be wondering as I did when I first encountered this delightful bar. This term is a little misleading, as they are not actual bits of vanilla bean in the way that cacao nibs are bits of cacao bean. The Congo bar contains regular cacao nibs and is flavored with ground vanilla bean. Vanilla bean is extremely potent, so although it's ground in this bar, and therefore not detectable at a texture level like the cacao nibs are, its flavor is quite pervasive. I loved this addition. The bar itself is really simple, made with only pure ingredients of cocoa beans*, sugar, and cocoa butter besides the nibs and vanilla, yet it tasted quite different from other 65% cacao bars I've had in the past. (And you know as well as I that I've had more than my fair share ; )
It is interesting that I tried both of these bars at the same time because white chocolate is also characterized by strong vanilla flavors. I wonder if perhaps my body needed vanilla in the way that the body needs iron when it craves red meat? But vanilla? What does vanilla do besides lend a wonderfully full and rounded quality to everything its added to?
*"Cocoa" and "cacao" are often used interchangeably. I generally use the spelling that reflects the labeling of each bar, though personally I prefer "cacao."