Looking for a gorgeous chocolate gift? Whether you’re treating yourself or someone else, Edward Marc has some lovely goodies to share with you. I recently received of a box of Edward Marc gourmet assorted chocolates and a box of chocolate peanut butter pretzels to review.

The first thing I noticed was the packaging. It’s very classy and elegant, without being stuffy. My immediate thought was “Ooh, this would make a nice gift!” When I opened the box of chocolates, I was delighted to see that the inside was even prettier than the outside.

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Another box of filled chocolates to sample! You guys have no idea how hard I work for you. Derry Church Artisan Chocolates have a schtick which is kind of cute, where each one is named after a city and is flavored with stuff that at least sort of has something to do with the place they are named after. They also have some flavors that I can pretty much guarantee you have never encountered, which is sometimes a good thing and sometimes very much not so good at all.

San Fran – black mission figs. Good dark chocolate. Just a hint of figs really but it’s enough. It’s a good combination.

London – butter toffee and crushed almonds. I picked this up and said to my assistant “I don’t like toffee, you can have this one,” and took a little bite. And then finished the whole piece. (Don’t worry, there were two, he got the other.) Nice and buttery and not the kind that sticks in your teeth. They need to make a whole big bar of this.

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Aequare chocolates have an interesting story about the chef who started the company and how they’re single origin Ecuadorian chocolate and ingredients and blah blah. You can read their website for all that. What you came here to read is how they taste, right?

When asked if I wanted a sample of these to review, I checked them out and the answer was an immediate HECK YES. This is definitely my kind of thing. On the other hand, that means I’m a tough customer. Like, to start, I was not all that excited about the Dark Chocolate Cocoa Beans, because I don’t really see any reason to eat cocoa beans. I mean, there must be a reason that humanity invented the elaborate processes that turn them into chocolate, right?

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I seriously love marshmallows. Maybe it’s their association with summer and autumn campfires, hot cocoa, and Rice Krispie squares. Or maybe it’s just their incredibly light, fluffy, gooey texture and delicious vanilla flavor. (Though “vanilla” is often used as a shorthand for “boring,” is there honestly anyone who doesn’t like the flavor?)

So I was totally jazzed to discover Mitchell Sweets All Natural Chocolate and Vanilla caramel-coated marshmallows at Hammond’s Candies’ All Candy Expo booth – one of the nicest-looking booths at the show, I might add – alongside an array of gorgeous handmade candy canes and lollipops. Because if there’s one thing I love more than marshmallows, it’s caramel. And chocolate. (OK, that’s two things.)

Individually wrapped in waxed paper, the rectangular marshmallows have a chunky, rustic look, bearing borders of vanilla and chocolate-flavored caramel respectively. They have the appearance of having been cut from a big log of caramel-coated marshmallow (and if you can think of a stickier, messier job than coating a log of gooey marshmallow in hot, sticky caramel, I’d like to hear it). The ingredient list is pretty simple, but not as simple as you’d expect from something bearing the name “all natural” (which, admittedly, doesn’t mean an awful lot these days). Are coconut oil, corn syrup, and invert sugar “natural” products? For that matter, is gelatin? Regular sugar? Who knows?

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I had the distinct pleasure of sampling Amella’s Artisan Cocoa Butter Caramels and OMG they are decadent and scrumptious. These caramels have an incredible texture – just a bit chewy and so creamy and buttery that they just melt in your mouth.

Passion Fruit: Out of the three flavors I tried, the passion fruit was my least favorite and it was still excellent. The caramels include real passion fruit, cocoa butter, and Tahitian vanilla and are hand dipped in milk chocolate. The passion fruit flavor is really strong and tangy – if you’re into passion fruit these will make you do the happy dance. Since I think passion fruit is just ok, I’d have preferred more caramel flavor. But even so, yum!

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