I was quickly running out of semi-sweet baking chocolate a few weeks ago and was not sure how long my next order would take to arrive. Since cake and pastry orders were still coming in, I needed a back-up plan in case I ran out. I happened to be in the city at the time, so I went to Walmart because I knew there were no high-end baking supply stores nearby. I immediately went to the snack aisle and sought out a Lindt Swiss Dark Chocolate 300 gram bar. I assumed that because it is a part of the Lindt product line, it would be of good quality. But then I saw another kind of semi-sweet chocolate for baking: Joe`s Tasty Travel Donini Dark Chocolate Bar, which said: “excellent for baking, eating & fondue”. After a quick check of the ingredients, and seeing how wonderfully low the price was ($3 for 250 grams) I bought some of Joe’s too.  |
| Admittedly, this is a terrible product shot of a very wrinkly Lindt wrapper, but I forgot to take the picture until after I opened the package. |
The Lindt bar is unbelievably smooth, which of course, it should be since that is the focus of their marketing. The chocolate is also light, with a sunny, springtime feel to its taste. It is perfect for use in chocolate ganache, truffle and tarts because it becomes all that much smoother when mixed with cream. The only thing I didn’t like about it was the overuse of vanilla. I am happy that Lindt used real flavouring in this bar (they don’t always), but there was just a bit too much vanilla for my liking. The only other downside was that I paid $5.99 for 300 grams – a big difference from the Joe’s semi-sweet chocolate.
What I liked about the Joe’s chocolate is that no vanilla was added at all, which makes it great for flourless chocolate cakes, brownies, and other cakes that require you to add melted dark chocolate and vanilla or other flavourings. This way, there will not be too much vanilla in your recipe. Overall, the Joe’s chocolate is not as smooth as Lindt, but it is a good quality for home baking.
In the end, my chocolate order arrived faster than I expected and I haven’t needed to use the Lindt or Joe's chocolate bars for anything other than personal baking. But my money was not wasted because I had the opportunity to discover a new great chocolate for baking with, and one that comes at a low, affordable price for your home baking projects. So check out the Joe’s Tasty Travel Donini brand at Walmart in Canada or go directly to the manufacturer’s web site at: www.doninichocolate.com. Joe’s also makes a white chocolate for baking, which is a lot less expensive and just as good as the standard grocery store baking chocolate.
Here is the info on the chocolate that I tasted today:
Lindt Swiss Dark Chocolate, 300 g
Lindt & Sprungli A.G. (Switzerland)
Ingredients: Sugar, cocoa mass, cocoa butter, soya lecithin, vanilla. May contain traces of peanuts, hazelnuts, almonds and milk.
Joe’s Tasty Travels Donini Dark Chocolate Bar, 250 g
Packed by: Downright Healthy Foods L.P., Toronto, ON Canada
Ingredients: sugar, cocoa liquor, cocoa butter, alkalized cocoa, soya lecithin. May contain peanuts, tree nuts and milk protein.
Looking for other quality chocolate for your baking projects? Check out one of my past posts on this subject: http://ultimatechocolateblog.blogspot.com/2011_01_01_archive.html.
In my daily life, I try to maintain a healthy lifestyle and eat right. But when I travel, I can relax and allow myself more. Especially after I found food tours, check More info Source. It seems to me that going somewhere and not trying national cuisine is an unforgivable mistake. In addition, you can learn more about local culture and traditions through food.
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