Double Chocolate Edition: 88 Acres Dark Chocolate Sunflower Seed Butter and Cado Avocado Choco Peanut Butter Frozen Dessert
Mmm... chocolate
It’s been said that writing about music is like dancing about architecture. So writing about food sometimes feels like screaming about pollution (I don’t know, I honestly just Mad Libbed it there).
At any rate, how many ways are there to describe chocolate? Sweet. Silky. Smooth. Rich. Yes, chocolate is all of these things (sometimes). Dark chocolate has long been touted as the healthier option, but now there’s news that lead and cadmium could be in many dark chocolates. That is not a good kind of heavy metal(s).
However, we are not here to dampen your enthusiasm or lessen your enjoyment of your chocolate (dark or otherwise). We are here to talk about two (healthy-ish) products that come in chocolate flavors: 88 Acres Dark Chocolate Sunflower Seed Butter and Cado Avocado Choco Peanut Butter Frozen Dessert.
88 Acres Dark Chocolate Sunflower Seed Butter
88 Acres Seed Butters were recommended to me by my friend and Subsnax reader Alaina ( 👋 Hi, Alaina! Thanks for the snack recommendation!).
According to 88 Acres, this seed butter is “a smooth spread made from roasted sunflower seeds, organic chocolate, and a touch of sea salt for a healthier version of that chocolate hazelnut spread you used to love.” Okay, they are clearly throwing shade at Nutella. And Nutella tastes pretty darn good. BUT… maybe you’re allergic to nuts, or dairy, or you don’t want to eat something with palm oil in it. Well then, 88 Acres might be your jam (or, er, spread).
When something is described as “nutty” it often means zany, yet when something is described as “seedy” it means… kinda sketchy. But in this case, seedy is good. If you like sunflower butter (which I do - also, we used to have to send my kid to school with soy butter or sunflower seed butter instead of peanut butter due to other kids with severe peanut allergies) or tahini (which I definitely do; it’s made from sesame seeds), you’ll probably like 88 Acres Dark Chocolate Sunflower Seed Butter. It tastes like chocolate with sugar and some seediness (in a good way).
It’s very good on toast with a little fruit, or just eaten straight out of the jar. And it’s got 5 grams of protein, which is something. Nutritionally, you’re definitely coming out ahead if you eat this instead of, say, a typical milk chocolate bar. Find it in a fancy-ish grocery store near you, schmear it on stuff, and enjoy!
Cado Avocado Choco Peanut Butter Frozen Dessert
“Dark chocolate flakes and swirls of unsweetened peanut butter work together to create the perfect pairing in our rich creamy chocolate ice cream. An instant classic!” says Cado Avocado. You know what? They’re not wrong. Chocolate and peanut butter are a classic pairing for a reason (by the way, I may be in the minority here, but I don’t like chocolate and mint together. I like them separately! But I digress).
As someone who always appreciates a non-dairy dessert option, I got very excited when I saw this in the freezer at a local grocery store. I’ve tried just about every non-dairy dessert out there (made with everything from tofu to bananas to cashew milk, oat milk, and coconut milk), but I don’t think I’d ever tried an avocado-based one before. Honestly, it sounded a little wacky. But maybe good? After all, avocados are often described as “creamy” in texture, despite having no dairy in them. This is because they’re high in fat (the fat in avocados is “good fat” aka monounsaturated fat). Fat, as we all know, is what makes the texture of ice cream work well. And non-dairy frozen desserts often come up short in the texture department because of that lack of fat.
The Cado Avocado Choco Peanut Butter Frozen Dessert really delivered on both flavor and texture. No non-dairy dessert will ever really taste one hundred percent as good as real-deal ice cream made with actual cream. But this stuff came darn close. I took a bite of some regular chocolate and peanut butter ice cream we had in the house and then took a bite of the Cado and they tasted extremely similar. In short, I was extremely happy with the Cado Avocado Choco Peanut Butter Frozen Dessert and I will definitely be repurchasing it and trying the other flavors (except the mint chocolate chip).
Got a new snack you’d like me to write about? Want to talk to me about your favorite snacks? Let me know!
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