Fig Almond Anise Dark Chocolate

When my co-worker and ace snack-finder Dana announced she had a bar of chocolate with figs, anise, and almonds, I jumped up for the challenge. She found it at Chase's Farm Stand in Wells Maine, which by law farm stands are usually loaded with interesting food and other goodies.

The first bite was mostly anise, which was quite disconcerting. The second bite was anise and fig, which was better because one balanced the other (strong/sweet). Third was the almond and anise, which was OK. The almond pretty much got lost, and the only real interest the almond has is to go along for the ride with the chocolate.

I have to say if offered another piece, I would politely decline. To echo Dana's sentiment, if the stuff was INSIDE the chocolate, it might be better, or less tactile (specifically the anise). But I think I might have to do some farm stand exploration, word on the street is that they also had a pomegranate seed bar too.

Sweets Map of Boston

Have you ever eaten lunch at a place just because you love their dessert? Have you ever walked 20 minutes out of your way, just to get a particular cookie?

There are a few places I've found around town that I'll always go out of my way for. Check out my personal map of Sweets in Boston.

Enjoy!

Oreos Versus Snackwells - the Vanilla Cookie Standoff

As the summer approached, my palate abandoned my post-lunch chocolate ache for a refreshing vanilla cookie craving. Having Vanilla Creme Snackwells in the snack machine was bad for two reasons, 1) I used up my stash of change for meters, and 2) my nutritionist would not approve. Then I get home last night and found that my adorable husband brought home a bag of Vanilla aka Golden Oreos. This brings me to my posting, a comparison between the two.

Snackwells are kind of like the Vienna Finger, the slightly more bland cookie, like an off-brand animal cracker can be. However, I think they put some kind of little kick (chemical probably) that gives it a nice boost and gives it an addicting quality. Because it's not completely sweet, I find it perfect.

Vanilla Oreos are pretty amazing. The creme is heavier, the cookie is fab, but I got that OUCH from my teeth on sugar overload.

As Nabisco corners the market here (they own both Oreos and Snackwells), it's difficult to compare the two labels side by side for an easy determination of what is better for you by serving size or grams.
At first glance, it almost looks like Oreos (right) are better, however, you have to rely on the daily value % to give you some kind of comparable scale. Snackwells (left) are better for you, well, as better as cookies can be for you. So good in fact they sell them in 4 packs. If anyone knows how to do the math to figure out 4 snackwells VS 4 vanilla oreos, you win!