Chocomize lets you customize your chocolate. Image: Flickr/f10n4

Chocomize, a company based in Cherry Hill, N.J., is the latest in build-your-own tastyness. Chocomizing will let you choose your chocolate and up to 100 add-ins, and deliver it right to your door in just a few days. The chocolate from Chocomize can be ordered one-at-a-time or in bulk — however you prefer.

The appeal of Chocomize

Chocomize, a relatively young company, started up with a very basic concept. Three choices of chocolate and one hundred mix-in choices. Choose your chocolate, choose up to five mix-ins, and you’ve got custom chocolate. For instance, if you’ve always wanted to try a bacon and gummy bear chocolate bar, it’s yours. In short, Chocomize is appealing because you can customize whatever treat you want. There are bulk orders available too, so you can have a Chocomized treat for a big event. Chocomize also donates 1 percent of its proceeds to charitable organizations of the customers’ choice.

The Chocomize move

Chocomize is just the latest in customized food products. Companies that specialize in sodas, ice creams and multiple other foods have started customizing orders. Handmade and customized products are becoming more popular with the revival of arts-and-crafts style purchases. This growing “Makers Movement” is already worth more than $1 billion, with companies like Etsy providing online marketplaces. Chocomize offers one more customization choice, $4 at a time.

Chocomizing it yourself

The fancy boxes and professional printing can definitely make buying from Chocomize worth the money for some. However, if you just want to try out customized chocolate, you can do it much less expensively at home. Go to a candy-supply or restaurant supply store and pick up melting chocolate along with whatever mix-ins you want to try. Use a crockpot set on low or a double-boiler to melt the chocolate. Mix in whatever you would like with the melted chocolate, and pour it into a wax-paper lined pan. If you want to be fancy, you could even pick up candy molds at any restaurant supply store. For less than $1 per bar, you can have your own Chocomize experience.

Is there a deeper chocolate depression link? From Wikimedia Commons.

It is a known phenomenon that some people eat chocolate to relieve depression, but there is growing concern about whether the chocolate-depression relationship is a vicious cycle.  A recent study found that people who eat the most chocolate are more likely to suffer from depression. The study was headed by Dr. Natalie Rose, MD, of the University of San Diego, and was published in a recent issue of Archives of Internal Medicine.  I could go for my own chocolate study about now, but I don’t want to run for short term loans to pay the dentist and the personal trainer I’d need.

Chocolate depression link

The study of the chocolate depression link, as reported by WebMD, was conducted on 931 individuals in the San Diego area. Of the test subjects, those who ate 8.4 servings or more per month tested positive for possible depression. Those who ate 5.4 servings or fewer did not test positive for depression. Individuals who ate 11.8 servings or more monthly tested positive for possibly having major depression, a worse form of the disease.  The study was done via questionnaire, and none were on anti-depressant medication.

No link known at present

In the same study, Dr. Rose, et al., did not conclude causality was implied, or that one was caused by the other.  (Correlation, as ever, does not imply causality.)  The authors decided that “Future studies are required to elucidate the foundation of the association and whether chocolate has a role in depression, as cause or cure.” This doesn’t, essentially mean that any concrete link between the two has been established, so don’t go getting no fax loans to lobby the FDA to ban chocolate just yet.

What this all means

People are known to eat chocolate when depressed. Eating sweets releases endorphins which counteract depression.  In other words, the study determined that people who ate more chocolate were likely to be more depressed. In other words, people that are more depressed try to do more about it.  Currently, the mainline treatments for depression are SSRI medications.

Huh?

SSRI stands for Selective Serotonin Re-uptake Inhibitor. The quick version: nerves have gaps between their ends.  Chemicals are fired into them to send certain signals, and a portion of these chemicals are re-absorbed after firing.  An imbalance can be corrected (in theory) by people taking medication that limits the amount withdrawn, thus boosting the serotonin levels and thus, lifting depression. Chocolate is one of the many things that naturally works in the same capacity.

Image from Flickr.

When I think of Kraft, the first thing I think of is cheese. Kraft Singles, macaroni and cheese and all kinds of savory, cheesy things come to mind when I hear “Kraft.” So it came as no surprise to me to find out that Kraft owns frozen pizza brands DiGiorno and Tombstone as well the California Pizza Kitchen trademark license.

It did, however, come as a surprise that Kraft sold the whole lot today to Nestle. Of course, when I think Nestle, I think chocolate chips. Why would Kraft do such a thing? According to MarketWatch, to raise money for orchestrating a hostile takeover of Cadbury, another big name in chocolate.

Pizza profits

It might have been smarter for Kraft to hit up a loan company to get the funds for the Cadbury takeover. Their pizza business pulled in an estimated $1.6 billion last year. So it makes sense that Nestle would snap it up. DiGiorno sales alone have jumped 20 percent in the last two quarters. I don’t have to remind you that the last two quarters have been a financial catastrophe for the majority of companies.

I can understand Nestle wanting to add pizza to its repertoire of goods as it continues to sell chocolate, but why would any individual or company of sound mind give up pizza? I wouldn’t even do that for a week.

No sweet surrender

I am sure Kraft has its reasons for wanting to orchestrate a hostile takeover of Cadbury, but so far it hasn’t explained itself. Also, ditching its pizza business may turn out to be all for naught, as the attempt has already hit a roadblock today. MarketWatch says:

Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway Inc. voted against a proposal to fund the deal by issuing millions of new shares. Berkshire controls 9.4% of Kraft’s shares.

All I can say is “enjoy your awesome new profits, Nestle,” and “good luck, Kraft. Don’t sell your pre-sliced cheese division or stop making spiral macaroni.”

Check out a recipe for Molten Chocolate Cake below. Image from Flickr.

People celebrate holidays for many reasons. Religion, tradition, family, patriotism and sometime just for fun. Everyone has their favorite small, unexplainable holiday. Mine is National Punctuation Day. However, I think many of you might adopt today as your new favorite holiday, if you haven’t already.

It’s National Chocolate Day, a perfect excuse to cheat on your diet or have dessert with breakfast or give gifts of chocolate to loved ones. Better yet, today would be a good day to discover opportunities to get free chocolate, and guess what! I have the answer.

Godiva Chocolate Rewards

You don’t have to take out a cash advance to enjoy Godiva Chocolate Rewards. In fact, all you have to do is sign up, and you get a free piece of chocolate every month. You can join the club any time, but what better time than National Chocolate Day?

Members of Godiva Chocolate Rewards also get a gift any time they spend $10 in one month. So, if you’re a chocolate lover, your chocolate buying habits will be rewarded with more chocolate! Joining Godiva Chocolate Rewards also gets you free shipping on an order and access to exclusive online specials.

Asher’s Chocolates

If you’re the type who doesn’t mind filling out online surveys and loves the thrill of winning, check out Asher’s Chocolates. Asher’s gives out free chocolate each month to one random person who participates in a survey. So if you’re delighted by the idea of National Chocolate Day, you might be a good candidate for the position of chocolate winner.

For more opportunities to get free chocolate, check All Free Samples regularly. Right now the site is offering free samples of Nestle’s (at http://www.nestle-abuelita.com/EN/Granulado/) latest hot chocolate concoction.

Molten Chocolate Cake recipe

You knew I wouldn’t leave you on National Chocolate Day without a delicious recipe for chocolaty goodness. I don’t know about you, but I think molten chocolate cake is one of the best inventions for fully enjoying chocolate. Here’s a recipe from Joy of Baking.

half a cup of unsalted butter, cut in pieces

6 oz. semi-sweet or bittersweet chocolate, cut into small pieces

3 large eggs, separate yolks and whites

one-third cup of granulated sugar, plus 2 TB sugar, separate

1 tsp. pure vanilla extract

one-eighth tsp. cream of tartar

Instructions

Preheat oven to 400 degrees and place rack in center of oven. Butter four three-quarter cup molds, ramekins, or custard cups. (I recommend using large muffin tins.) Use some 1 TB sugar to dust the insides of the molds. Place  prepared molds on a baking sheet and set aside.

Use a stainless steel bowl suspended over a saucepan of simmering water to melt the butter and chocolate. Remove from heat; set aside.

With an electric mixer, beat the egg yolks and the sugar until thick, pale, and fluffy. (When you slowly raise the beaters the batter will fall back into the bowl in slow ribbons.) Beat in the vanilla extract. Fold in the melted chocolate mixture.

In a separate bowl, whip the egg whites until frothy. Add cream of tartar and whip until soft peaks form. Gradually add the other TB of granulated white sugar and whip until stiff peaks form. With a rubber spatula or wire whisk, gently fold the beaten whites into the chocolate mixture. Don’t mix too much, or the batter will deflate. Divide the batter between the molds, filling about three-fourths of the way. Bake 10 to 15 minutes.

When outside edges of cakes look set but centers still look wet, remove from oven and let them rest for a couple of minutes. Run a sharp knife around the edge of each cake and invert each onto the center of a serving plate. For topping, you can sprinkle powdered sugar or add a dollop of whipped cream or creme fraiche.

Note: If you prepare the chocolate mixture several hours ahead of time, pour it into the prepared molds, cover with plastic wrap, and refrigerate. Bake just before serving. When the batter is cold, it may take a couple of extra minutes to bake.