The Chocospherian – February 2022

The Chocospherian
Incredible Chocolate News	February 1^st, 2022

Written By: The Chocosphere Team

Notes from The Team…	Insights
Incr‘Edible’ Chocolate Deals…	Customer Service
Recipe Corner	Newsletter
What's New?	Topics

Notes from The Team

The winter holidays blew by and before we knew it, New Year's came and went. It feels like we just blinked and February popped up its head with Valentine's Day approaching at a run.

We have some beautiful baskets, bars featuring love poems, and so much more to give your loved one(s) the sweet Valentine's Day they deserve.

Unfortunately we are still dealing with some stock issues, so please be patient with us if we are out of your favorite chocolate. We would love to talk to you and discuss chocolate that we feel is similar or even help you to find a new love. Whether by phone or email, we never get tired of discussing chocolate and all of the amazing things that can be created with it, even if that creation is just a moment of pure bliss as the chocolate melts on your tongue.

Insights - Non-Chocolate Products

Normally we use this section to discuss our favorite chocolates. This time we would like to take a moment to appreciate the non-chocolate items that we carry, from vanilla, to tea, to amazing fruit spreads, there really is something for everyone at Chocosphere.

Vanilla:

We offer three sizes of La Vencedora Mexican water processed vanilla extract. This is not only a favorite amongst our customers, but we all use it as well. The water process means that there is no added alcohol, so the vanilla flavor is pure and smooth. La Vencedora also provides us with whole Mexican vanilla beans that we sell in two sizes, the larger 4oz package and a set of 5 individual beans.

If you are looking for Madagascan vanilla beans, we've got you covered there too! Norohy is an ethical sourcing company with the goal of guaranteeing consumers reliable, ethical, and high quality products. We offer two sizes of these organically-certified beans as well, the larger package of 125g and a set of 5 individual beans.

Tea:

Teekanne, of Düsseldorf, Germany, is a very experienced long-time tea provider, making fine teas since 1882. Their range includes a wide variety of herbal teas, black teas, white teas, and green teas.

Honeymoon introduces Chocolate Tea - A unique coffee replacement! The flavor? Much like a black tea with a strong chocolate aroma. Try it with honey and cream. Caffeine? None- but it features a heavy dose of theobromine. This active compound in chocolate will wake you up in the morning without the usual coffee jitters. Chocolate tea is made from the husk of cocoa beans.

Coffee:

Chocosphere has provided gourmet whole bean coffee for years. Our signature Chocoroast #2 is our nearby coffee roaster's answer to our need for Belgian-style dark-roast coffee. Brew yourself an espresso, press or pour-over coffee and enjoy the same depth of flavor that keeps us coming back for more!

Fruit Spreads:

Les Comtes de Provence has been making jam for more than 30 years. Their factory is located in Peyruis, not far from Manosque, in the French Alpes-de-Haute-Provence department. Their jams are made in Provence. They are organic and produced by expertise inherited from ancient and artisanal recipes and cooked in pots. Thanks to this production process, they are full of flavour. Seriously, they are amazing!!!

Incr‘Edible’ Chocolate Deals

There are just a few things on the “On Sale” and “Bargain Basement” pages. We keep adding products, but it seems they sell out as soon as we put them up. Remember our basket specials, where you will get extra treats for your family and friends for Valentine's Day!

We are running a special on our chocolate bars from February 1^st to February 12^th, 2022. Use the code BAR-NONE in the Gift Certificates/Coupon Codes field of the Shopping Cart screen and receive 15% off of your bars total when your total order before discount is $50 or more! The coupon will only apply to regular price (not on-sale or promotional) items marked by Chocosphere as "Bars and Tablets" in the Product Type drop down menu. All other items in your cart will ring up at regular price.*

*Important Conditions This coupon is only active from 4 PM PST February 1^st, 2022 to 11:59pm PST on February 12^th, 2022. This offer will not be honored retroactively and applies to merchandise in stock at the time the order is placed. All sales are final. Orders must be placed online using the coupon code. Phone and e-mail orders are not eligible for this promotion.*

What's New

We have a lot of new couverture from Amedei. If you have been wanting to know what your favorite bar or square would taste like as a cake, ganache, cream, spread, hot chocolate and more… Now is the time to try it out.

Here’s a link to all new products: New Products

Recipe Corner

PEANUT BUTTER CHOCOLATE BROWNIE BARS (NO REFINED SUGAR, EGGS OR GLUTEN)

Category: Cookies and Bars
Makes 20 bars

INGREDIENTS

330 grams (about 2 cups packed) of pitted dates, preferably Medjool. If you use Deglet Noor make sure they are moist and not dried out.
70 grams (5 T) cocoa powder
340 grams (1 cup) creamy peanut butter (no sugar added)

INSTRUCTIONS

Pre-heat the oven to 350 degrees.
Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper.
Process dates in a food processor until thoroughly mashed and smooth.
Add Cocoa Powder and peanut butter and continue to process until a cakey mixture forms. This may take a few minutes.
Use a tablespoon or cookie scoop to grab a chunk of the dough and form into a cube with your hands.
Place on the cookie sheet and flatten to about ½ inch thick with a fork in a criss-cross pattern as you would with a peanut butter cookie.
Bake about 10-11 minutes until the moisture is gone from top of the brownie/bar.
Allow to cool completely and enjoy!

Customer Service

Of course we are happy to help over the phone, but we do appreciate it when you place your order on line. It helps us give the most prompt and accurate service. And when you need help, we are here for you. There is generally someone answering the phones between 8:30am and 4:30pm Pacific Time, Monday through Friday, with the exception of commonly observed holidays.

There are five of us answering phones at Chocosphere, where we speak fluent Chocospherian. We try hard to answer all calls personally during normal business hours, but occasionally one slips over to voice mail. If you call and end up in voice mail, please leave a message. We will do our very best to call back promptly. If by chance you don't hear back from us in a reasonable time, please call again during our normal business hours.

We each have varying levels of experience. It is our goal to happily serve you the very best chocolate!!

Finally, and very importantly, our web site lists our service commitments as to when we ship an order based on when the order is placed. However, we certainly understand there are circumstances where you may want us to process an order faster, when you need your chocolate “now”! If you need your order shipped faster than our listed service commitment, please place your order online letting us know of your need in the “Comments” section, and then call us at 503-692-3323 x 0 for Customer Service) to let us know. We can't guarantee early shipping, but we always try hard to provide chocolate happiness to our valued customers.

If you want us to send a copy as an email every time there is a new issue or to tell you about special offers, please create an account at chocosphere.com and check the newsletter box.

Topics:

If you have a topic you would like us to cover in the newsletter, please drop us a line: customer-service@chocosphere.com and we will be happy to include it in a future edition.

Fax 503-692-1494