Look at GINGER. Once not that long ago it was just a spice in a container. Then fresh ginger came into vogue as we learned to give our food a little boost. Now it has its own elevated position in the beverage world not just as a stand-alone ginger ale, as it seems to be a compatible, healthy flavoring for any number of drinks whether hot or cold. As for snacking, ginger and chocolate are the darling of combo treats!

A parallel is the flower, HIBISCUS. Yes, its fragrance and compatibility make it a charmer again for beverages and plenty of flavor enhancers. Look at how pomegranate drinks have become more palate pleasers with the addition of ginger and hibiscus!  Somehow dishes and beverages seem to have a more chef-fueled flavor when you add something that some would consider exotic, something such as hibiscus.

Maybe the current number one trend-setting position goes to SORGHUM. In the summertime we enjoy the bounty of color from the fields of sorghum and appreciate how farmers are turning those fields into profitability. Now we see a different side to this grain as the growing gluten-free market space has heartily embraced the flavor of sorghum beers after several early rollouts of G-F ales that were less than enticing. Not only the beverage world but the chef-driven universe has embraced this sweetener with some top-tier creative moments.

Let’s end our discussion today with two food words that are making the rounds.
-Meatballs are everywhere and seem to have found a place at every tier of dining. They can quickly be fancified or presented as the alternative to the spate of burger spots.

-Parm. Eggplant has long championed its association with parm-topped dishes and now poultry-inspired foods are grabbing plenty of menu headlines. Sure, chicken parm has been a popular dish for a long time, but it now seems to be a pervasive special!

All these words and products speak the same language: Versatility as they are compatible with a range of pairing options. Time to uncover some of these foods and avoid total food hibernation.

What makes this book a welcome bookshelf addition and a hostess planning guide is the bounty of recipes that will be welcome additions for any holiday meal. Thanksgiving has come and gone, but this year for the first time there was a considerable amount of newspaper and blog ink devoted to vegan recipes. Clearly an understanding of how many people have made lifestyle changes rather than just thinking of these dishes as a passing trend.

Now the December big ones, Hanukkah and Christmas are quickly approaching. The first holiday would be unthinkable without latkes, potato pancakes, and Atlas has a version that is obviously vegan and with a few minor tweaks can be made soy and gluten-free. She believes that only those who prepare the recipe will notice the shift in ingredients, but everyone will be able to enjoy the finished dish. BTW, she has numerous recipes for the other Jewish holidays that likewise pose a recipe challenge, such as Vegan Matzo Balls!

A large part of the book is devoted to Christmas and what she calls “The Holiday Season.” This, after all, is a time with numerous office parties, neighborhood get-togethers, and an assortment of events that might just require a little hostess gift. If you bring a food for the buffet, then you’ll be assured of having something to eat! Here are some teasers to get you thinking:

–Fruit and Nut Chocolate Clusters. Easy to make as no baking is required and they are Gluten and Soy-Free.

–“Vegg” Nog. This recipe differs from so many of its predecessors as it is minus the tofu, but the vanilla almond milk and agave nectar combined with cashew butter make a smooth beverage.

–Creamy Cracked-Pepper Cheez. Now you can have a spreadable recipe that will highlight a buffet table. If you use gluten-free yeast, then you can appeal to an even wider audience.

Even though the book is divided into holiday sections, there are few recipes that are limited to a particular event. So many creative choices that can liven any meal.

Yes, the store is quite an adventure, whether the focus is on an international basis or the realistic consumer is just looking for something that has a gourmet flair without a gourmet price tag. Voilà, The I Love Trader Joe’s Around the World Cookbook by Cherie Mercer Twohy is the newest resource addition for those who have become TJ devotees. Devotees know who they are; they exclaim they were able to pull off a gourmet meal without incurring insane expenses.

Take the cheese department, so many choices, and the prices shriek “reasonable.” Even with a food item as simple as cheese that can be enjoyed with a slice of fruit or a basic cracker, the author has created numerous recipes to elevate the purchase into a more upscale cheese experience.

The cookbook has over 140 international recipes put together with the foods from TJ’s. Recipes are categorized by countries and are appealing for their understanding of our busy lifestyles: Good food, simple preparation. Many recipes fall into the new categories of major interest, Vegan and Gluten-Free. To make something as so-called exotic-sounding as Masala Lentil Chicken, the secret TJ solution is a 7-ounce container of Masala Lentil Dip. Pretty straightforward, but well worth the purchase price. Chicken dishes, for example, headline the tutorials as they span through almost all the nationalities.

So the store of mystery can be a focal point in your new recipe file. A simple jar of olive tapenade can turn an ordinary turkey slider sandwich into something with a bit more kick. The options abound.

Trader Joe’s does that for you. They have the ingredients and Twohy has put them to work with this panopoly of recipes.

Then, the impasse. Your email is filled with offers. Deals, bargains, two-fers; you name it. They’re there. What happened? How did we get to this point, and why was no one offering us these “bargains” before? Marketing organization is the strategy that convinces businesses to take advantage of online energy. It’s simple for the companies, especially small companies, but no one should forget how well big players such as Gap (Groupon deal) and Amazon (Living Social deal) did with their offers!  Small businesses, on the other hand,  see the advantage of possibly getting 1,000 new customers. Will they have stickiness is the big question or does the purchaser only visit the place on his special deal visit?

Look at the possibilities that I awoke to this morning: Half-off a burger, $15 for $30 worth of food from a large selection of Asian and European restaurants, $25 for $50 at an American spot…I could continue, but it is rather alarming how these deals multiply. Subscribers are divided into only two groups: The Addicted and the Never Again. The fine print often gets the Never Again as they missed the expiration date or the deal was not what they expected.

The Addicted, a group I might claim chairmanship, means a daily scroll through the possibilities and some serious personal, private conversations about how many deals should one have floating in their cloud at any one time? I do have self-control, as in, I did not buy $20 worth of candy which looked like jelly beans for $10. Yet, a good chocolate offer…BTW, companies are sprouting up all over the country. New online contenders continually seem to offer a deal a day. Deal categories continue to expand from cooking classes to clothing to home decor and activity trips or vacations. You name it; there’s a deal site.

What’s one to do? Of course, cancellation would be an option, but then you’d miss the hot new restaurant that’s trying to get your attention. After all when you scan through sold out past deals, you see what you missed!

Just to show you the popularity of these programs, try to take advantage of the offer to get “free” money with a referral. Everyone you send it to seems to respond, “already subscribe.”

The obvious solution: Invest in the companies when they go public. They know how to make a deal.

New research from the Center for Culinary Development in their Culinary Trend Mapping Report showcase how we have become more adventurous diners. Just take a common Latin American inspired combination, chocolate and chiles, and stroll down a market’s chocolate aisle. Yes, plenty of sea salt and caramel treats, but the heat potential from the chiles combined with a high percentage dark chocolate has become an interesting best seller.

Other trends that signify a move to mainstream eating include the use of wasabi. No longer just a green presence on a packaged market sushi carry out order or at the Japanese restaurant, but a true flavor enhancer in a variety of snack foods. Japanese yuzu, a member of the lime family, makes regular menu appearances as a marinade or a sauce as the citrus brings out a broad range of taste.

Let’s not forget the cocktail meisters who have taken these flavor-rich ingredients and foods to create unique, new timely, of-the-moment drinks. Basil is so last year!

Diners are ready to be willing players. Bring on the challenges.

The national consumption tallies may not be totally accurate, but you know how you indulged. Was it more about the score or the opportunity to taste a variety of wings, strips, fingers, or great looking guacamole begging you to try it?  Let’s be honest when a store plans ahead so well as to offer perfectly ripe, good sized avocados for $1 a piece that you’re game to try the process yourself. (Lime; not lemon is the secret weapon.) Not every avocado needs to be mashed up. Perfect slices bring life and color to a morning omelet, and no one is shrieking about the negative health benefits of an avocado. This is a good fat.

Chicken wings have their own story to tell. This may be the first year I’ve seen them dressed as kung pao wings! Why not? How many people know how to make a true Buffalo wing anyway? BTW,  I’ve heard that upwards of 100 million pounds of chicken wings make an appearance on a Super Bowl weekend! That’s an impressive number.

Now that you’ve dipped and scooped and eaten your way thru the pre-game events and the crunching after-game statistics, this may be the week to focus on all the news that actually came out last week: Eat less and cut down on your sodium, the newly revised USDA Dietary Guidelines. Most of us probably inhaled enough salt over the weekend to do a marathon cleansing.

Rest up. We move from the mash-up to the sublime. This coming week promises the allure of chocolate. After all Valentine’s Day Weekend approaches. Time to trade the green for the heart-love red. Buy a good chocolate, melt, and dip away!

Let’s just look at desserts and see if there is anything tantalizing our taste buds. It has been a year when manufacturers understood the dark chocolate numbers. As we saw more such high cocoa bars, we also started to see more flavor intensifiers such as sea salt and citrus. Yes, ironically as citrus prices have escalated due to extreme weather conditions, it is the year of citrus as a major add-on for the confection industry. Lemon and orange continue to lead the flavor profile.

As we’ve noted, the gluten-free market has expanded beyond the specialty store into the everyday market as well. G-F desserts are becoming an important go-to section that recognizes man cannot live by protein alone. Lemon, by the way, has become a major player for this market shopper, too. G-F desserts are becoming more adventuresome, such as chocolate fudge cake or cheesecake making a noble statement.

Don’t forget the explosion in chips as veggie chips continue to demand more market shelf. When was the last time you tried to go into a market to grab a chip snack of sorts only to stand and stare and read labels for what seems to be an interminable time? Welcome to the long, evolving chip aisle as sea salt and vinegar dominate the possibilities. Little companies are entering the space, too with specialty products that announce their flavors and the all-important phrase: Gluten-Free.

One fact about these types of trends, they are not outlandish nor far-stretched; they appear to be survivors.

These are concepts we can live with!

For every rule, there is an exception. At this time of year, candy corn grabs me as it fulfills so much of childhood memories even with the new harvest colorations. I indulge. When I travel I find it difficult, if not impossible, to walk past a candy shop, especially an old-fashioned shoppe. Did I mention that dark fudge and truffles pull me inside, too? Yet nothing is more disappointing than waiting for that special treat and discovering there’s nothing special about it. I just made that mistake with chocolate fudge recently. Major disappointment. Go for the good stuff.

It’s Halloween and candy choices are everywhere, and I’m happy to report that research acknowledges a candy eater as a happier and healthier person. Whoohoo!

Let’s examine the facts so that this weekend’s activities can be put to good use. Let’s start with a super one:

–People who regularly eat candy live longer than those who don’t. Need I say more? OK, the facts from a multi-decade study from the Harvard School of Public Health indicate that individuals who consumed candy 1-3 times a month did well in longevity, and daily candy eaters had better survival rates than those who abstained!

–Sugar actually gives you energy and helps you through difficult tasks. Sure there are health risks from too much sugar (obesity and diabetes as starters), but if you can handle sweets, then sugar has its benefits. That’s why the afternoon candy bar is such a wonderful option. Nap? Candy?

–Gum. Chewing gum can improve your mood and help you focus and lessen your stress levels. What a perfect time to become a gum chewer as flavor options seem to increase with each visit to the counter!

–Chocolate. Bet you thought we’d never get there, but the data continues to confirm the health benefits, as in lessening cardiovascular risk, from enjoying chocolate. The best results actually came from individuals who consumed chocolate 5 or more times a week!

What are you waiting for? Dig in. Halloween provides a mere excuse, but data cements the deal.

How about a one-calorie chocolate you inhale. Yes, merely inhale: Make that Le Whif, a small tube that lets you literally breathe chocolate into your mouth. You even have a choice of flavors: pure chocolate, raspberry, and mint. OK, now the really big news. Yes, chocolate is of special interest, but what about coffee: Le Whif Coffee, a breathable coffee powder with the equivalent caffeine as from an espresso or closer to a double may solve those times when you want a spot of coffee but don’t have time to make one!

Is either product as tasty as having a piece of chocolate or holding a cup of espresso? No, of course not. It’s more like a party trick. Something fun to savor without worrying about a messy cup clean-up or chocolate bar stickiness.

These lipstick-like inhalers do the trick and demonstrate what happens when you combine the talents of David Edwards, a professor of biomedical engineering at Harvard, with design engineers:  You get a good-looking product that uses particle engineering. This product is part of his artscience labs where creativity has taken on an exciting definition. Pick a flavor, choose a tube, and enjoy.

Take a breather has a wonderful new meaning!

–Coffee. I am always on the lookout for the latest positive news about coffee and its potential health benefits. A meta analysis was conducted by researchers at Harvard’s School of Public Health examining over 700,000 people who are coffee drinkers. They found that having more than six, yes, six 8-oz cups of coffee daily, did not boost the likelihood of getting colon cancer. They found the same effect from soda drinking, but we need to think about the sugar-laden drinks as causing other problems such as obesity. Now the tea drinkers did not receive as big a boost in the clean health department. The jury is still a little unclear on this one. Coffee and soda drinks did not yield an increase in colon cancer.

–Dark chocolate. As readers of this blog know, I have a special warm spot for news about dark chocolate. Today’s report from Johns Hopkins University finds that a compound in dark chocolate may protect the brain after a stroke by shielding the nerves from further damage. Researchers hope that this particular property may someday be used to protect people against strokes. So a simple translation means eat and enjoy dark chocolate while at the same time you are insulating yourself from the dangers of getting a stroke. We’ve recognized the heart healthy chocolate benefits so this further validates additional benefit from a little sweet.

–Vitamin D. So much has been written about the vitamins lately and Vitamin D was last year’s attention-grabbing darling as so many people were all of a sudden diagnosed with a D deficiency. Could it be that we are so dedicated to our sunscreen regimen that the sun has no chance to give us its beneficial D attributes? Now that millions have been told to take Vitamin D, this particular study from the Cleveland Clinic says the optimal time to take this vitamin is with your biggest meal of the day. Figure out that simple calculation and pop your D to protect yourself. It will make a major difference.

Keep in mind that this week, May 9-15, is Food Allergy Awareness Week.

Nothing complex about any of these reports, but they are all simple information solutions to improve our overall health.

Settle in with a hot brew and a piece of wonderful dark chocolate, and don’t forget to include your D with whatever meal has the most calories. We can enjoy ourselves and impact our health.

It doesn’t take too long to scan thru my archives to see how I feel about chocolate. Yes, I enjoy chocolate, especially dark chocolate, for its taste and its health benefits. I know plenty of people who have a mini square as a dessert and are good to go. They are not solving issues of depression; rather treating themselves to a taste they enjoy and appreciate. The mini-square bars have had their own revolution of late as consumer check-out lanes at markets are often filled with the little bites of pleasure. Hey, they don’t cost that much. It’s a simple, satisfying reward. After all, we are the grab-and- go society and what could be better at instant gratification than the mini!

Now the depression issue. Which came first the chicken or the egg? If you’re depressed, a little bite of chocolate or many such bites may help. Assume you are doing something more medically sound for the depression anyway so this is just a mini stop. If you are not depressed, doubt how chocolate could cause it. Wait, maybe if you take in too much chocolate, you’ll gain weight and then become depressed. Apples and oranges.

Different issues. Go for the little square. It won’t hurt.

Try the Standard Grill–that’s a joke. Its popularity preceded its opening, and now diners and hipsters are willing to wait it out or sit in the Biergarten and enjoy being in a large space with plenty of room to party. Dinner reservations in the restaurant itself are hard to get–try 3 weeks a but there’s always the oft chance that someone didn’t show or that you’ll be just as happy at the bar. Try it. Drinks, dining, and vibe: All winners here.

If its nearby Mexican cuisine you’re after then Los Dados stands ready to make your guacamole tableside so you can truly enjoy the fresh tastes and beautiful color of a perfectly ripe avocado. Don’t forget a selection from the Margarita menu which intrigues with its cucumber or blueberry options. Rumor has it that htis restaurant’s increased popularity is directly related to its location across the street from the beginning of the High Line! Makes sense to me.

Thai more your palate pleaser, then head to Sea Thai Restaurant for first-rate Pad Thai and a long list of luscious appetizers and numerous vegetarian options.

As the burger popularity spreads into every neighborhood, this area does not want to be excluded. The latest BR Guest enterprise, Bill’s Bar & Burger is a no-nonsense operation with the real McCoy and its accompanying toppings. Start with the milk shake, and you’ll want to be a regular. Good, immediate food vibe that gets you back into the neighborhood without undue delay.

As you walk off your meal, there are a few places to hop off and see life under the High Line. One major player is Chelsea Market. OK, I know the Market has numerous food selections including excellent sushi at The Lobster Place and unbelievable chocolate choices at Jacques Torres (the fresh Squeezed Lemon is an instant winner), but it’s also a fun place to walk through and explore the various food stalls and talk with the purveyors. A great take-home purchase stop, The Nut Box, will wow you with their delicious dried fruit tastes; try the kiwi, mango, or pineapple slices. You’ll be pleased.

Time to get back on the High Line.

This is a food blog so lots of foods to digest. Enjoy the walk.

Bon appetit!

With the renewed scare and emphasis on BPA and the continual cry that plastic bottles harm our environment, there is some good news. Several bottled waters now use less plastic than they did even a few years ago. Dasani from Coke is testing a bottle made from more plant materials, and Aquafina (Pepsi) has dropped its plastic use by over 50% in the past 8 years. The same is true for the popular eco-shaped holder bottle from Nestle which has reduced its plastic content by 1/4 since it was originally launched in ’07. Less is good.

If you’ve been wondering how healthy hot chocolate is as you’ve been consuming it with great relish during this especially cold winter, there’s good news. Nestle celebrates the Groundhog’s prediction of 6 continuing weeks of winter by introducing four new flavors of hot chocolate that have less sugar and are supplemented with nutrients. Hot chocolate drinks: No problem.

Fish oil again makes headlines with the newest study from Austria pointing out its potential in staving off schizophrenia in young people who already exhibit a degree of mental illness. Researchers believe that the fatty acids in fish oil help repair brain cells. This type of report hopefully will encourage other mental health researchers to examine the potential benefits from fish oil, a product that has made heart-healthy headlines for years!

Another hopeful glimmer of health news comes from a study of acai berries. The study shows that this berry, which has made major beverage inroads, will lessen some signs of aging and counteract many of the detrimental factors from high amounts of fats in our diets.

As we continue to search out more organic products, a disturbing report from the USDA found that fewer than 1 percent of all American farms are organic. An initial roadblock for many farmers is the necessary certification procedures, costs, and requirements of converting the land to certified organic. Hopefully, there is money in the Ag Dept budget to increase the number of farms to meet the growing interest as this small percentage manages to generate over $3 billion in sales. That certainly demonstrates support! Consumers feel confident with organic foods.

Good news for restaurants with the upcoming Valentine’s Day holiday. Several market research studies found that restaurants will benefit from the double positive: The holiday falls on a Sunday and is part of a three-day weekend. Let me add another factor: Cabin Fever. The East Coast has been hit by multiple weekend snow storms that have shut down many restaurants and made major roads impassable. Let’s celebrate next weekend as a dining out event! Reservations now.

Besides restaurants coaxing you out for V-Day, there are no shortage of new chocolate products to sweeten the deal. Don’t forget a sparkler or go for a true Champagne. Plenty of choices. Grocers are actively pursuing those who prefer the quiet luxury of a special home-cooked meal. They can meet you halfway by their large selection of prepared foods to help you lessen your kitchen time.

Eat healthy; dine well.

Dig out.

The list of possibilities to make this fun day, this year’s Valentine’s Day, extra tasty, after all this is a food blog, keeps on multiplying. No matter what last year was like; this is a new decade. Move on.

It may be too late to get personalized chocolate bars, but there are no shortage of Sweetheart candy messages. If it’s ice cream treats you covet, then Maggie Moo’s has two options to suggest: Pink Champagne Sorbet or a Dream Cake for two. That’s a small-sized cake of strawberry ice cream drizzled with chocolate ganache and topped with a chocolate covered strawberry.

What is it about strawberries and chocolate dips anyway? Just walking past Godiva windows should convince you that they have the market on the biggest berries out there. Yes, they are beautifully covered in chocolate!

Dairy Queen changes its cake shapes for the month of February. Not a round but a heart-shaped ice cream treat (chocolate soft serve topped with crunchy chocolate cookies pieces and then layered with vanilla soft serve). They also feature the Midnight Truffle Blizzard (chocolate truffle pieces, dark cocoa fudge and vanilla soft serve).

If you want more than just dessert, then restaurants have you covered with no shortage of options for special Valentine’s Day (evening) dinners. Prix-fixe menus are all the rage. Plenty of people will tell you that dining out that evening is a semi-hectic experience, but if you’re curious about its popularity, look at all the restaurants normally closed for Sunday dinner offering special dining packages. A great source for info is Open Table. Better hurry and reserve if dining out is your goal.

If you purchase by the 14th, you can extend the heart-shaped dining with Krispy Kreme’s assortment of heart and chocolate doughnuts, including the chocolate-iced heart doughnut with red drizzle. If you buy a dozen, they have a treat for you: “A Share the Love” card with a sweet surprise.

No one wants to be left out of this marketing maze.

Dining-in works, too. So many wonderful recipe possibilities and items from Sunday farm markets–what’s redder than a beet?

Don’t forget champagne!

Ok.

Besides the giant heart-shaped boxes of candy, this is the year you might consider designing your own specialized candy bar for your love. The German company Chocri has figured out that Americans, too, have a sweet tooth and are offering us the opportunity to personalize a chocolate gift with Fair Trade, organic, Belgium chocolate. This has real possibilities, especially the Marzipan rose!

There’s also time to go the personalized M&M route, and the almost limitless array of other candies already dolled up in special V-Day boxes. Sweet choices.

Besides chocolate, which I have few complaints about unless it is milk chocolate rather than higher concentrations of cocoa, there are other wonderful food and beverage options. How about coffee or tea? Plenty of those already packaged up and ready to go. Don’t forget wine–so many choices. So many winning opportunities: Maybe this is the time of the year to think of a wine club, a lovely possibility!

Or just purchase a special wine for the final touch to a beautiful evening. How about a Late Harvest Riesling or a true Ice Wine to warm your spirit.

So many wonderful food choices for a special Valentine’s Day.

Am a little flummoxed by the quantity claim that the WineTime Bar contains as much resveratrol as 50 glasses of red wine! Now you understand my problem. Love the health benefits from resveratrol and the fact that the company sourced the Rhone reds, but am just a little confused by how much is too much.

Should we be drinking 50 glasses of red wine at a time? Should one bar which we will willingly enjoy for its fiber-rich, low-calorie, dark chocolate taste be a substitute for those many enjoyable sips of dinner reds? There’s something fundamentally wrong with this picture.

Who is doing the science to question how much resveratrol we should consume in one sitting? How much is too much? How many bars should we have daily? Three? 150 glasses?

Those who jumped on the early bandwagon and consume resveratrol pills may want to enjoy a bar instead. A glass of water and a pill is one approach, but a chocolate bar certainly sounds more appealing. We just have a few unanswered questions.

Personally, I prefer to have my cake and eat it, too, or in this case my chosen glass of red with a small bar of 71% dark chocolate and then my double espresso!

First off the Mars Snackfood folks have big plans to soften the blow. Consumers talked; the company listened, and many of the treats from bygone years are back, or will be real soon. Here are a few taste-teasers: I’m talking about the 3 Musketeers Truffle Crisp Bar (at just 170 calories, but not available til January), and the Milky Way Simply Caramel Bar (also January). Then the winning cherry chocolate combo, and my personal addiction in this line: M&M’s Wildly Cherry Chocolate Candies (December). Now we’re talking good news.

Wait, there’s more. You know how difficult it is to figure out if you want a scoop or a soft-serve. That’s no longer a problem. Baskin-Robbins has solved the decision-making with its new Double Header Cone.Price is a sweet treat, too, as most stores will sell this for $2.22. The biggest problem now is figuring out the combo you like best! Not too serious.

This is what I call a good news day!

Sure there are numerous obesity studies that want to slam into the chocolate debate and turn it into a debacle, but I stand firm in my belief that the healing powers of chocolate, whether after a heart attack or in general, are worth further research. This study spells it out simply: “The more chocolate consumed, the lower the risk for death.” That’s an impressive piece of information.

Of course, other factors play a significant role, but the flavonoid discussion is far from over. We’re not talking about overindulgence; rather a simple pleasure. Eating a box of anything or consuming a bag of scooped sweets will not stop additional factors that could be in play and create a less heart-healthy situation.

In the meantime, exercise, watch your cholesterol, and enjoy the continuing chocolate research.

Go for the gold.

Ethel M probably convinced me to go for the dark pieces and let others try the milk chocolate. Yet , you can just as easily find me in the grocery aisles that sell candy rather than the forbidding No Candy in this aisle sign. Skip that–I can’t be in that aisle; I might need a quick fix of something sweet.

I can enjoy a Dove, a Ritter Sport Marzipan, a Godiva, or a box of Junior Mints. I am a dark chocolate fan and my list of choices keeps expanding. Thanks. I appreciate the healthy treat.

Now the research continues to please my palate. It’s the flavonols, the antioxidants, and, of course, the pure, simple pleasure of taste. As with any food we enjoy, it’s all about moderation.

A little bit goes a long way, but if it’s dark it goes further!