Damn the Freshman 15

I'm far from a chocoholic, but cacao (essentially raw chocolate) is an interesting substance. Packed with magnesium, phenylethylamine, and all sorts of yummy little antioxidants. And in nib form, it's like an uberpowered dark chocolate bomb. Perhaps too intense for some, who might be more used to Dove.

Sweetriot, a company based in New York, has found a gentler, incredibly tasty way to deliver cacao to the masses--swathing it in chocolate.

Sweetriot has two main products: tins of chocolate-dipped cacao nibs and UnBars, a four-piece fat little chocolate bar spiked with cacao.

The tins of cacao nibs come in Flavor 50, Flavor 65, and Flavor 70. Flavor 50 is sweetriot's gentlest introduction into cacao, with the chocolate being 50% dark. Flavor 65 has 65% dark chocolate, and Flavor 70 has 70% dark chocolate...mixed with espresso! They are all good, but I like my dark chocolate, so the 70% was the best for me. Not to mention, the espresso adds a lovely little flavor snap.

The nibs come in adorable little tins which feature the artwork of emerging artists. Each tin has around 140 calories and, because of the cacao, much less sugar than just chocolate.

These nibs are versatile too. I was popping them into protein shakes, sprinkling them on top of oatmeal and yogurt, and just nibbling on a few when I wanted a bittersweet jolt. When you're done, you even have a cute little tin.

The other sweetriot product I tried was the unBAR. It's made of four smaller squares, and comes in two flavors: Flavor 65 and Flavor 70. Both correspond with the percentage of dark chocolate. In addition, the bars contain crunchy bits of cacao. In an interesting but quite tasty surprise, the Flavor 70 has raisins!



In addition to creating a tasty product, sweetriot ensures that all of its cacao comes from Latin America and is fair trade. The company also puts a significant emphasis on keeping its ingredients pure, and actively supports social responsibility. In truth, I care more about the company's product than its mission, but it's good to know.

I was super happy with sweetriot. They really have created some great chocolate treats, and are doing a great job of bringing cacao to the masses.