http://www.extremechocolate.com/ en Copyright 2008 Tue, 06 May 2008 03:02:52 -0500 http://www.sixapart.com/movabletype/ http://www.rssboard.org/rss-specification Caramel, fudge, and cherry crème are hardly unusual chocolate flavors. In fact, you find them in every box of Christmas candies, right alongside other standbys like mint, coconut, and orange crème. If you're dealing with a really adventurous company, you might find something like chilies or cereal crunch hidden in your chocolate delight. But that's not the end of the story when it comes to chocolate flavors! Fusion cuisine, the newest trend in cooking, means blending flavors that don't traditionally go together and, well, seeing what happens. In the world of chocolate, that means some pretty interesting ideas, ranging from pop rocks buried in chocolate truffles to olive and balsamic vinegar laced treats. http://www.extremechocolate.com/extreme-and-unusual-chocolate-flavors.html http://www.extremechocolate.com/extreme-and-unusual-chocolate-flavors.html Brands of Chocolate Chocolate Candy Chocolate Truffles Tue, 06 May 2008 03:02:52 -0500 We don't often think of Japanese chocolate. Belgian, Swiss, French -- sure. Or Japanese fish, for example. But Japanese chocolate? The Japanese chocolate obsession has a slightly unusual origin. On this side of the Pacific, we're used to thinking of Valentine's Day as a time for men to lavish affection on women -- or, in the words of my brother, "This thing's a lot more important to girls than guys, huh?" In Japan, however, Valentine's Day is a time for women to give chocolate to men. Not necessarily significant others, either: coworkers, friends, employers, what have you. And it's ALWAYS chocolate -- not a flower in sight. http://www.extremechocolate.com/forget-japanese-electronics-check-out-japanese-chocolate.html http://www.extremechocolate.com/forget-japanese-electronics-check-out-japanese-chocolate.html Chocolate - Misc. Chocolate Candy Chocolate Gifts Fri, 02 May 2008 03:56:37 -0500 Years ago, chocolate fountains became staples at weddings, parties, and tourist buffets. We're accustomed to seeing them everywhere we go. But every now and then, someone takes a simple idea to the extreme. That's the case with these unusual chocolate fountains! http://www.extremechocolate.com/extreme-chocolate-fountains.html http://www.extremechocolate.com/extreme-chocolate-fountains.html Chocolate Fountain Tue, 29 Apr 2008 03:45:11 -0500 Not long ago, the term "chocolate imaging" implied nothing more than meditating about your favorite foodstuff. While that's always fun, it did little to improve the look of what is, let's face it, usually a dumpy brown chunk of fatty goo. But thanks to FDA-approved edible inks and advanced printing technology, chocolate can now look better than you ever imagined. http://www.extremechocolate.com/picture-this-breakthroughs-in-chocolate-imaging.html http://www.extremechocolate.com/picture-this-breakthroughs-in-chocolate-imaging.html Chocolate - Misc. Fri, 25 Apr 2008 02:40:42 -0500 When we talk about chocolate makeup, we don't mean those mint-chocolate lipsmackers you buy in the drug store! In the past, chocolate makeup has usually meant a cheap concoction smelling of poorly made sweets. These days, however, chocolate makeup has become a worldwide phenomenon -- not to mention something no true chocolate lover can do without. There are many different brands marketing chocolate beauty products. Here are some of the best! http://www.extremechocolate.com/post.html http://www.extremechocolate.com/post.html Chocolate - Misc. Chocolate Gifts Tue, 22 Apr 2008 02:09:17 -0500 eight times the amount found in strawberries) and flavonoids, which can help reduce blood pressure. ]]> http://www.extremechocolate.com/chocolate-health-working-chocolate-into-a-healthy-lifestyle.html http://www.extremechocolate.com/chocolate-health-working-chocolate-into-a-healthy-lifestyle.html Chocolate - Misc. Fri, 18 Apr 2008 02:13:48 -0500 Let's face it: chocolate lovers crave chocolate. That's why we call ourselves chocolate lovers! But no matter how much we talk about chocolate's health benefits, we all know the truth: chocolate is okay. All that fat and sugar? Not so much. We tend to think of cravings as willpower deficiencies, but is that really the case? What exactly makes us crave chocolate, and how can we get it under control? http://www.extremechocolate.com/why-why-why-do-we-crave-chocolate.html http://www.extremechocolate.com/why-why-why-do-we-crave-chocolate.html Chocolate - Misc. Tue, 15 Apr 2008 03:00:20 -0500 How would you define extreme chocolate? What if it was fortified with vitamins, wouldn't melt, and lasted for up to two years? Well, that's exactly what Australian soldiers might soon find in their ration packs! http://www.extremechocolate.com/the-ultimate-in-extreme-chocolate.html http://www.extremechocolate.com/the-ultimate-in-extreme-chocolate.html Dark Chocolate Fri, 11 Apr 2008 04:46:29 -0500 Let's get one thing straight from the git-go: cocoa butter isn't chocolate, white or otherwise, no matter what candy purveyors might have you believe. It is, however, a necessary ingredient of all chocolate, and either alone or in combination with other ingredients can be a devastatingly creamy delight. That being the case, we here at X-Choc thought it best to provide a little primer on this unrepentantly delicious vegetable fat, which isn't really chocolate as such but makes chocolate what it is. http://www.extremechocolate.com/chocolates-cousin-a-quick-look-at-cocoa-butter.html http://www.extremechocolate.com/chocolates-cousin-a-quick-look-at-cocoa-butter.html Chocolate - Misc. Tue, 08 Apr 2008 10:11:19 -0500 Because they're such good people, kindly chocolatiers have recently introduced excellent low calorie, low carb chocolate for the diabetics and Atkins dieters among us. Don't scoff -- your old pal Pete can testify that it's scrumptious. Yet it does have its perils, and that's what I'll tell you about in this particular article. http://www.extremechocolate.com/the-delicious-perils-of-low-carb-chocolate.html http://www.extremechocolate.com/the-delicious-perils-of-low-carb-chocolate.html Chocolate Candy Fri, 04 Apr 2008 04:19:52 -0500 Curious about that stuff they call white chocolate? Well, the truth is out there, and in this article we'll track it down. If you've ever had your doubts about white chocolate, you're not alone. Delicious and creamy it may be, but chocolate? Well...maybe. But shouldn't it be brown? And where's that theobromine bite, that caffeine kick? Inquiring minds want to know. After exhaustive and painstaking research, we here at Extreme Chocolate can confirm that the naysayers have reason to be suspicious. Join us, and we'll explore the reality of a favorite choco-treat that's so extreme that it is, in fact, not really chocolate at all. ]]> http://www.extremechocolate.com/the-scary-truth-about-white-chocolate.html http://www.extremechocolate.com/the-scary-truth-about-white-chocolate.html White Chocolate Tue, 01 Apr 2008 11:16:15 -0500 Tsokolate is one of those things we can thank the Spanish for, at least in an oblique sense. It was they who spread the exotic Central American drink called xocolatl to all corners of their far-flung empire -- including the Philippines, a large cluster of islands between Asia and Australia. Once there, of course, it was Pinoy ingenuity that helped it evolve into the unique variant of hot chocolate that it is today. Hang tight and we'll tell you all about it. http://www.extremechocolate.com/tsokolate-a-delicious-filipino-delicacy.html http://www.extremechocolate.com/tsokolate-a-delicious-filipino-delicacy.html Hot Chocolate Fri, 28 Mar 2008 11:09:03 -0500 We like to think of ourselves as rather adventuresome here at X-Choc, but even we shudder at the thought of chocolate allergies. Why, those can lead to one of the most extreme chocolate experiences anyone could ever encounter: severely reduced chocolate intake -- or worse, no chocolate intake at all! We hate to even mention the possibility, but as chocolate lovers, you need to understand both the good and the bad about your favorite snack. Not that chocolate itself is necessarily bad; it's how your body responds to one or more of its ingredients that may cause an allergic reaction. http://www.extremechocolate.com/life-without-chocolate-the-horror-of-chocolate-allergies.html http://www.extremechocolate.com/life-without-chocolate-the-horror-of-chocolate-allergies.html Chocolate - Misc. Tue, 25 Mar 2008 19:13:45 -0500 Ask a true chocolate lover if chocolate addiction is a real affliction, and you're likely to get a resounding, "Well, duh." As with coffee addicts, the sacred bean holds us in its thrall...or does it? Scientists aren't so sure. Could it be that true chocoholism is more psychological than real? It's clear that chocolate truly doth have charms to soothe the savage beast (music -- ha!), but the jury's still out on whether or not it's truly addictive, in the sense of being habit-forming. That's what we'll cover in this article -- though we have to admit, our first tendency is to say not just yes, but heck yes. http://www.extremechocolate.com/could-chocolate-addiction-be-real.html http://www.extremechocolate.com/could-chocolate-addiction-be-real.html Chocolate - Misc. Fri, 21 Mar 2008 19:06:41 -0500 Once the sacred cacao bean is harvested, fermented, and packed, a process we've already detailed in these pages, it's ready to be put through the complex process by which it's converted into that combination of nectar and ambrosia we call chocolate. Entire books have been constructed around the processing of chocolate (hmmm...now there's an idea), but we've only got a few hundred words here -- so you're about to get a high-level, whirlwind view of the process. http://www.extremechocolate.com/how-cacao-is-processed-into-chocolate.html http://www.extremechocolate.com/how-cacao-is-processed-into-chocolate.html Chocolate - Misc. Tue, 18 Mar 2008 15:18:47 -0500