Niederegger Marzipan Ingwer

Back during my last trip to New York at the beginning of the year, I spent my last night there going all out at a couple of my favorite stores. I kept telling myself that I would get around to reviewing the bulk of the goodies before Christmas...but so far, I have not been doing a really good job of it.

But today was just a marzipan kind of day, so into my bounteous stash I went. Happy happy, joy joy! Not only did I have marzipan, but I have marzipan with ginger in it!

This bar consists of semi-sweet chocolate (52%) that enrobes a generous slab of marzipan which is studded with bits of ginger.



First, the bar is nicely scored and molded.

The chocolate was indeed dark-looking. While my bar was well within its shelf life and showed no bloom (it was actually quite glossy), what annoyed me was that the chocolate shell had splintered away from the marzipan in several places. It's not an overly thick layer, but it is not exactly wafer-thin either. Maybe that's for the best, though. The chocolate, while not bad, never really rises beyond "meh." Its strongest flavor is a peppery warmth from the ginger. It's very brittle and doesn't have much of a melt. No, it's not awful, but I would never want to eat it all by itself.



But forget the chocolate -- let's talk about the marzipan! Omigawd, to be able to get a loaf of this stuff! Of course there is the sweet, cherry-like almond taste you expect of marzipan. It's not too sweet, it's not bitter. The texture is moist but not sticky. Grainy but not dry. It's really the perfect marzipan.

And what could possibly make such a thing even more perfect? If you guessed ginger, you would be correct. And there was just the right amount of it. You smell it and feel the heat it gives off more than you actually taste it. But it's wonderful. It's not too much and not too little, it complements the marzipan while not distracting from it.



Maybe it's a good thing that the chocolate on this bar was not better, because it may have been the only thing that kept my few remaining fragments self-control in command. If you like marzipan, you simply must get your hands on this bar.

Be sure to check out Jim's review. He loved it too.



PURCHASED FROM:
Barzini's (New York City)

PRICE:
$2.29

OFFICIAL WEBSITE:
niederegger.de

Milka Marzipan-Crème Bar

Woohoo! The first marzipan review of 2010! If you have read my marizpan reviews before, then you know I am a hardcore fan. Just before the holidays, I was browsing at my local German deli/mart and I found this bar.



The Milka Marzipan-Crème bar is a semi-sweet chocolate bar with a marzipan filling. Smelling the bar, you get a faint whiff of cherry -- but mostly it is just the chocolate that comes off.



Biting into the bar, the flavor is all cherry and almond. The chocolate was a little waxy, but it did taste good. It's more on the milk side rather than the dark side. It didn't seem as sweet or as smooth as the normal Milka chocolate. The flavor of the chocolate really fell to the wayside of the marzipan.



And the marzipan was kinda weird. In terms of flavor, it was quite good -- nutty, sweet. It was the texture that got me. It was dry and flaky, and not in a good way. (The bar I got was on the older side and slightly bloomed, which might explain some things.) If it had been a little moister, it still wouldn't have been the best marzipan bar ever -- but I would have enjoyed it much more.

It's not that this bar was bad, it was just disappointing. I would like to try another bar and see if the issues I had with this one were simply due to freshness.



PURCHASED FROM:
The German Deli (Upland, California)

Vosges Holiday Bonbon Collection

Let me say a big thank you to Vosges Haut Chocolate for ignoring the fact that I rank rather high up on the Naughty List, and for treating me to an early Christmas present by sending me this collection of holiday-inspired truffles.




There are four different truffles in the collection:

* Mascarpone & Ceylon Cinnamon Snap
* Holiday Plum Pudding
* Candy Cane Peppermint
* Eggnog & Jamican Rum

And just try tell me they aren't beautiful to look at, I dare you! Anyway, for this review, I will start with...


Mascarpone & Ceylon Cinnamon Snap:



I love mascarpone cheese so much that I have been known to eat it plain, straight from the container. Mascarpone, should you not know, is a type of super-rich cream cheese that can be eaten on its own -- or mixed into anything and everything. In my family, we make cannoli filling with it. (Should you want to try my family's version pick, up a copy of Henry Hill's The Wiseguy Cookbook. The cannoli recipe on pages 86-88 is actually my mother's.)

And keeping with the Goodfellas theme, Ceylon cinnamon is basically the Godfather of the cinnamon world. All other cinnamon-type products, while still members of the family, are various levels of underbosses, capos, and plain old soldiers. The cinnamon is sprinkled generously atop the 45% deep milk chocolate shell. Inside is the mascarpone. This truffle also contains organic sour cream.



Giving the truffle a sniff from the top, it's the deep woodsy spice of the cinnamon that you notice. Once you get into the center of the truffle (normally I would just bite and dig in, but for the sake of pretty pictures we sliced the truffles first), what immediately stands out is the rich dairy smell of the cheese.

When I bit into this truffle, for a split second I swear all I saw was blinding white light and unicorns! There might have been a rainbow or two, and Barry Manilow was in the background singing a soaring crescendo. Yeah, this truffle is just that good. You start with a little heat from the cinnamon on top, then when you break through the deep milk chocolate shell, the cool silky filling flows into your mouth. It's sort of like an extra creamy chocolate mousse, mixed with a healthy dose of my beloved mascarpone cheese. The deep milk chocolate was the perfect choice. It's creamy enough that it didn't get lost in the strong dairy of the cheese, and yet not dark enough that it was bitter or upstaged the cinnamon. If I didn't know the sour cream was in there I wouldn't have noticed it -- but you know what? I don't care! If you only try one Vosges truffle in your lifetime, make it this one!


Holiday Plum Pudding:



I don't have much base of reference for plum pudding. About all I really know is that the Cratchits (the family from Dicken's "A Christmas Carol") seemed to think it would not be Christmas without it. Oh, and that the traditional version is a type of steamed pudding made with different dried fruits, liquors, nuts, and is often topped with hard sauce. But I can't say I've actually had one.



The Vosges version contains plums, Armagnac (a type of brandy), and marzipan, and is covered with 65% dark chocolate.

The truffle is topped with a pretty little piece of edible silver foil. What made this one stand out was the texture. The center, rather than being completely smooth, is layered. The top portion of the filling is the same silky creme as the others. Then right below that is a layer of what looks like finely chopped plums, and on the bottom of that is the grainy marzipan layer.

I loved the overall flavor. It was lightly boozy, and the plums were plump and sweet. The dark chocolate takes the edge off of the sweetness and melts nicely. I hate to say that what ruined this truffle for me actually was my beloved marzipan. Mind you, the flavor of the marzipan was good: almonds with mild cherry notes. It was the texture I didn't like. It was like a very loose, grainy fondant. Had it been smoother or firmer, I would have really loved it as is...did I mention that the plums were really sweet?


Candy Cane Peppermint:



It's hard to get more simple than all natural candy cane pieces, peppermint, and 65% dark chocolate. And simplicity is often a virtue.



I liked the fact that the top is where the crunchy bits of candy live. It gives a little contrast in texture, and the red bits look like shards of stained glass. The outer 65% dark chocolate shell is a really deep woodsy, earthy chocolate. There's some coffee flavor. On its own it would be a bit too bitter for me -- but paired with the sweetness of the smooth mint center, it's perfect.

The center is very cool on the tongue and the texture is almost like pudding. The chocolate is so smooth and rich I could practically drink it. The peppermint is brisk. It's very natural, not mediciny or artificial. Overall it worked beautifully.


Eggnog & Jamaican Rum:



WOOHOO! Eggnog! Eggnog with RUM! As I have said before, in honor of my best friend who is from St. Croix, I am partial to Cruzan rum. But Vosges didn't get that memo and instead they opted to use Appleton Estate rum. Appleton has been distilling rum since 1749 and is the oldest distillery in Jamaica -- so it's safe to say that they know a thing or two about making rum. The truffle also contains nutmeg and ginger, and it is all wrapped up in white chocolate from the Dominican Republic.



I went into this truffle excited because it's eggnog and rum, but also a little worried, because it's a white chocolate truffle and I am just not a fan. But if anyone could make white chocolate doable for me it would be Vosges, so...

The truffle smelled sort of like rum and steamed milk. I didn't get the eggnog or the ginger at first. But the truffle center is like the best eggnog ever. It's creamy, it's rich, it's custardy. The nutmeg is there. The rum is strong enough that its presence is known, but it doesn't over power the other flavors. The ginger is represented by little soft bits of ginger that go unnoticed until they explode in your mouth. Yum! The white chocolate... OK, again let's remember that I don't like white chocolate. I did find that the outer shell seemed dry -- and that was not the case of the dark or the milks. It was creamy tasting, and there were good vanilla notes. If you are a fan of white chocolate, I expect you will love the shell. I loved the filling...oh, the bad things I would do for large quantities of that filling...

Overall, even with the couple of (minor) qualities I didn't care for, this remains a truly stellar collection. The Mascarpone/Ceylon Cinnamon Snap alone is so good that no matter how the other three flavors had turned out, I still would have been happy.

Absolutely outstanding.



PURCHASED FROM:
Sample From Company

Let me remind those of you who are still shopping for the perfect gift for the old friends and loved one (or for yourself) that Vosges Haut Chocolate is offering my readers 10% off orders placed by December 31st. Just be sure to use the special code BLGF09 when checking out.

Yoplait Delights Parfait: Raspberry Chocolate

Marvo talked about the Yoplait Delights on The Impulsive Buy's Podcast episode number 4...of course, he also dances in a dress...

While there is no dancing in this review, I actually did get to taste the Raspberry Chocolate parfait.



The cups are divided into two layers. The top portion is the Barbie doll pink layer of raspberry, and below that is a light brown chocolate layer.



The raspberry layer was my favorite of the two. It's the type of raspberry that tastes more like raspberry flavor than like actual fresh raspberries. It's sweet more than tangy. It's almost like a raspberry candy. In fact, it's like a soft version of a Raspberry Creme Saver. I would actually eat a full sized container of this flavor alone.

The chocolate side was a little harder to get used to. I think this is because in terms of color and texture it looks like chocolate pudding -- so then, though I knew it isn't pudding, for some reason I kept expecting that type of flavor, which isn't fair because -- DUH, it's yogurt. The chocolate side is more tart than the raspberry. It reminded me of soy chocolate milk. There is a very mild chocolate taste along with a tangy yogurt finish.

The texture for both flavors is very creamy and thick. One of the things I don't like about some of the "lite" yogurts is that they can be thin and runny. (Yes, Dannon, I am looking at you.) But there is no such issue with the Parfaits. It's comparable to its higher calorie siblings.

I am not sure chocolate is ever going to be my favorite yogurt flavor, but I am chalking that up to personal preference rather than a funky product. I did like the raspberry side, and I like the idea of the Parfaits. And I am definitely looking forward to trying the lemon flavor!




PURCHASED FROM:
Albertsons Supermarket

Figi's Marzipan Eggs

I know Easter has been over for a while, but my mother got me these beautiful marzipan eggs and I had to share them.

My mother ordered them online from Figi's (figis.com). Initially, I thought I had never heard of the company -- but then, looking at the site, I remembered that my grandmother used to buy things from them through mail order. (Figi's has been around since 1944.) With that in mind, I have probably even had Figi's marzipan in the past...but I can't say I remember it.



The eggs are very pretty. The colors are more vivid than they appear in the photos, and have a lovely airbrushed effect to them.



They could look stunning -- and they do -- but what really matters is the taste. (Did I mention they LOOK really good?)

Sadly, they don't taste nearly as good as they look. The texture was decent -- soft, and just a little bit crumbly. Unfortunately, the taste was very muted. Some of the sweet, almost cherry-like almond taste is there. But it's more like a shadow of a flavor than a rich, nutty marzipan. There is also a bitter aftertaste that I am attributing to the dyes used (I say that because the darker eggs had a stronger aftertaste).

Again, they are beautiful to look at. They just don't taste very good. I can't say I would ever order them to eat. But I would order them to decorate with, so my rating is marginally higher based on that.



PURCHASED FROM:
figis.com

Ben and Jerry's Mission To Marzipan Ice Cream

This flavor made me think of Jim over at Jim's Chocolate Mission Jim is the only person I know who seems to love marzipan as much as I do

Just in case you don't know Marzipan is a type of confection that is most often made from almond meal and sugar (although Persian versions sometimes contain rose or orange water as well).
I LOOOOOOOVES me some marzipan. I am talking break out the picture of whatever stud puppy I am lusting over that day kind of love- in fact we're gonna go with Paul Rudd because much like marzipan I have thought he was great since forever and a day ago (or since "Clueless") and hopefully now it (and he) will get some of the recognition it deserves. Anyway...

Back in the day at my house we always got the fruit shaped marzipan around Christmas and Easter. We probably didn't get to have it more because I seemed to be the only one that liked it but for some reason my parents didn't feel like it would be a holiday without it (kinda like fruit cake I guess). As an adult I buy it whenever I can- which meant the second my Albertson's had this Ben & Jerry's in the case I ran home with it.

The ice cream is a sweet cream base, to me the base it's self had more flavor that it picked up from the marzipan rather then sweet cream. It has that sweet, cherry like almond flavor that things made with almond paste have. It's nice because it's not too sweet because there is a faint nuttiness to it.

The Marzipan comes in an a combination of a swirl and almond cookie pieces. The swirl is a fluid, almost sticky ribbon that winds it's why through the ice cream. The cookie bits actually remind me more of pure marzipan paste rather then a cookie. It's crumbly but not crunchy in anyway. It is a tad grainer then marzipan is as a rule (I guess that's how you know it's supposed to be cookie pieces) it is embarressing to admit I went digging through the ice cream for the chunks of marzipan?

I haven't pulled out the elsive 11 rating for Ben and Jerry in a while but not only is this Paul Rudd good:

But it's an 11!




And here is the rest of it.

Ritter Sport Dark Chocolate Marzipan Bar

Hey Jim! I finally got around to reviewing this bar!
I have had this bar for a few months now and every so often I glance at it and think "I really should try that". In fact when Jim of Jim's Chocolate Mission did his review of the Ritter Marzipan bar (read his review HERE) I even went as far as posting on Jim's site that I was going to review it soon. And by "soon" apparently I meant 1 month and 4 days later. Uh... well I got there eventually.

I love marzipan. I am one of those 5 people who will actually like marzipan- yes, I buy and eat those little fruit shaped marzipan's you see around the holidays. This was also the first time I tried Ritter's take on dark chocolate.

The bar it's self is the standard 100 gram bar scored into individual pieces. The dark chocolate is wrapped around a very generous grainy and solid looking marzipan center.

So was it worth the wait?
The chocolate it's self is on the sweet side for a dark chocolate. It melts creamy and it does have just enough cocoa so that you don't mistake it for milk chocolate. It doesn't have the bitter quality I like about deeper darks but it is presentable. The clear star here is the marzipan.

And it is some good marzipan! The first notes are very cherry like. Imagine Amaretto De Serrano in a solid form. As you get deeper into the filling the flavor becomes nuttier and slightly buttery. The texture is crumbly and grainy, more so then I find most marzipan. But I liked that. It give the candy a more interesting edge over some of the generic chocolate covered marzipan's I have had. I really liked the marzipan- enough to eat it on it's own. The chocolate, I could take or leave. It is not the best dark chocolate I have ever had but it is far from the worst.

If you are a marzipan fan you shouldn't miss this bar. If you have never tried marzipan before this would be a good place to start.

PURCHASED FROM:
German Deli