1 Mother 2 Another

As I explained yesterday, I’ve
discovered a gaping hole in the chocolate world – an
unexplored area, if you will. Specifically, no one had really
delved into the world of chocolate from the point of view of a
pregnant or post-partum mommy.


As we all know, we’ve got specific cravings and wants when
the hormones are raging. So I made it my mission to find the best
of the best from small chocolatiers all across the country. For
more details on my criteria and how I narrowed the final list down,
see yesterday’s blog. But for now, let’s get to the
chocolate.

By the by, feel free to email this entry
to your spouse as the holiday shopping season starts, or simply
print and tape it up on your fridge to remind you that some
chocolate bliss is never more than a mouse click away.


So without further ado, here are my recommendations, in no
particular order. Enjoy in good health. And if you contact any of
these stores, tell them Jennifer sends a fond hello. And for the
record, did you know that a recent study showed that pregnant women
who ate chocolate every day had babies who cried less during their
first year of life? Food for thought . . .


href="http://www.yummiecookies.com">Yummie This place is
everything the name implies. I list it first because it makes no
pretence at being a superior bar of chocolate from some remote
cocoa bean in the Amazon. No, this online store simply comes up
with candy combinations that fit pregnant women to a
“t”. Conceived and run by a fellow mom, Yummie tickles
all your craving spots. Sweet? Salty? Crunchy? Smooth? It’s
covered. Now, I’ve sampled most of her line (the sacrifice, I
know) and I can tell you that my all-time favorites as a pregnant
woman were her Peel ‘Em Pretzel Rods – two pretzel
sticks wrapped in caramel, chocolate, peanut butter, and heath
– and her Squirrel Stash – a ball of popcorn, caramel,
peanut butter, and dark chocolate. Trust me: head to the website
and your eyes will tell you what you want.


Legacy
Chocolates A small chocolate store in Menomonie Wisconsin,
I stumbled upon this site by accident and have already sent a
half-dozen people there. The selection is small and choice –
they do truffles, and do them incredibly well. You can choose your
chocolate “strength” – everything from milk to
very very dark. The fillings are made from the freshest, highest
quality ingredients and it shows. Their href="http://legacychocolates.com/catalog/product_info.php?products_id=30">
mint truffle really hit the spot for me. They use only fair
trade cocoa beans and since their truffles are not made with any
preservatives, the box is shipped to you with an impressive
cold-pack inside. The store suggests you refrigerate the truffles,
but they won’t be around long enough to need it. Reasonably
priced, they make an excellent gift and can compete against any
famous chocolate company. I mean it.


href="http://www.chocolatebarnyc.com">Chocolate Bar –
this New York City store pulled together the best chocolate chefs
in the area and stocked their store with some amazing creations.
It’s hard to go wrong here, but a couple things really stand
out from the hormonal aspect: First, their Atomic
Collection. Listen, you’ll love it. It sort of looks like
a chocolate-covered oreo, but it’s a chocolate cookie with
some sort of filling. My favorite is the Black and White –
homemade marshmallow, caramel, and graham covered in dark
chocolate. My girlfriend Renee loved the Elvis – homemade
banana marshmallow and crunchy peanut butter – while another
favorite is the PB&J (you can guess on that one). Hands down my
favorite part of their store. But they’ve also got an
incredibly good toffee – tied, in fact, for first place with
another store listed further down. And the store owner, a mom
herself, said a lot of pregnant women who come in the store crave
their Peanut Butter Caramel Retro Bar (I personally can’t
stay away from their Malted Milk Retro Bar). You try for yourself
and decide.


The Cocoa
Tree A small selection of unusual truffle flavors
guaranteed to hit the spot, from a small store in Franklin,
Tennessee. Many are liqueur-filled, so talk to your OB before
eating or save them for post-partum weep-fests. I love the Irish
Cream and the Jack and Ginger. But even better than their truffles
is their href="http://www.thecocoatree.com/index.php?cPath=22_46">toffee,
tied with the Chocolate Bar above for first place (and I know good
toffee). Rich and buttery and simply perfect.

href="http://www.normanloveconfections.com/index.htm">Norman
Love A client of mine first told me about this confectioner
from Florida. With no stores outside their hometown of Ft. Myers, I
thought I’d be destined to mail-order with them. Lucky me, I
stayed in a hotel on vacation that served Norman Love exclusively.
Rough life. Every single truffle is a work of art, and
they’ve got some incredible taste combinations. target="_blank"
href="http://www.normanloveconfections.com/darkchocolate-tropical.htm">
Tropical was a favorite of mine, though the target="_blank"
href="http://www.normanloveconfections.com/whitechocolate-pinklemonade.htm">
Pink Lemonade and href="http://www.normanloveconfections.com/whitechocolate-keylimepie.htm">
Key Lime Pie were huge on my list when newly pregnant. Tops
with them for me, though, was the mochachino, which I don’t
seem to be able to find on their website. Start a petition.


Jacques
Torres Finally, no chocolate list of mine would be complete
without my gold standard, my favorite man (other than my husband),
the guy I fondly refer to as “J.T.” Like we’re
best friends. Quite simply, he does the best quality chocolate
I’ve found. I’ve got a bar of his 72% house blend dark
chocolate in my bag for emergencies. Think I’m kidding?? He
makes all my favorites – the wicked hot chocolate
(French-style hot cocoa with a peppery kick to it), the passion
fruit truffle, you name it, I’ll eat it. Coincidentally, he
makes a mean chocolate chip cookie; anytime I’m in the store
I’ll buy a few and freeze them for later. Several of my
friends swear by his pistachio or macadamia brittle. While
pregnant, check out his chocolate-covered apricots; I found them
last pregnancy and thought he made them just for me – and
I’m not a chocolate and fruit kind of girl. He also makes my
favorite chocolate peanut butter bar. And as a bonus for kiddies,
this genius does chocolate-covered cheerios. Seriously, I love the
guy.


So that’s my list. I’ve got other favorite chocolate
houses here in Manhattan – Richart, La Maison Du Chocolat,
Max Brenner, Lilac, to name a few – but I wasn’t
searching simply for superior chocolate.


I wanted someone who understood a hormonal woman’s itch, and
was willing to scratch it.


If you’ve got favorites, by all means, post below –
I’m always looking to expand my waistline – er-
horizons.