For those of you who subscribe to my e-mail updates, the last one didn't have the video link - so if you'd like to see it, please visit the blog at http://motivationbychocolate.blogspot.com/

For the rest of you - how funny are these Peep Kabobs?

They are so cute peeking out of their little box!

And this is a Peep Easter parade!!  Love those cuties! 

Since they come on a stick, they are perfect for roasting over a fire.  Yum!

Just Born is going crazy with the chocolate!  Last year they introduced chocolate covered Peeps, this year they've taken it to a whole new level with Peepsters.

Peepsters come in both dark and milk chocolate and Just Born is testing two packaging designs.  One is clearly trying to pattern itself after Dove and their Promises - chocolate as a luxury.  Rich, silky chocolate for grownups:

And then there's this packaging for the Peeps lover - see how big the trademark word Peeps is here?  Much smaller on the other package.

I love the Peep shaped window:

The bags are filled with these individually wrapped dark chocolate marshmallow filled treats:

What took me by surprise was how much more chocolate than marshmallow there was.  These taste way more like chocolate than marshmallow.  And they are really good!

They also come in milk chocolate:

These taste really good - nice chocolate and a slightly sweeter filling.  I couldn't even decide which one I liked the best = both the dark chocolate and the milk chocolate were delish.  Perfect little size - try them!!

Three Musketeers has a marshmallow Easter entry:

Would you believe the Three Musketeers is MORE marshmallowey than the Peepster?  It's a crazy chocolate world - where chocolate bars cross over to marshmallow and Peeps (of all things) go chocolate.

Just goes to show you - your past doesn't have to define your future.  This Easter (and the rest of your life) and be anything you make it. 

Peeps New Easter Treats - Yay!!!

In honor of the new Peeps store online (http://www.peepsandcompany.com/) - here's a preview of all the great goodies Just Born has for us this year!  Autopsy photos, closeups and reviews next!

Enjoy!!

Spring Chocolate

This may be the most anticipated spring in many years. We are all so sick of snow and cold and dreariness. Seeing the budding trees is definitely bringing joy to my heart! And speaking of bringing joy to my heart, look at these adorable babies:

Yes, chocolate covered Peeps!

How cute is that little guy? You can see his little Peep eyeball. And look at his little wing and his tail. Awwwww!!!

Not that that will stop me from hacking him open like all my other chocolate victims. I mean, volunteers. There's the trademark Peep yellow!!

And if milk chocolate Peeps weren't enough, there are also dark chocolate Peeps!

Now I know what most of you are thinking - "I hate Peeps, I don't care if they cover them in chocolate, blah, blah, blah."

I say, "Dear Reader - have you learned NOTHING from this blog?" You must try the thing you think you will not like. You must keep an open mind. You must boldly go where no chocolate lover has gone before! You must have adventures!

These are GOOD! I know, you think because I got to tour the Peeps factory that I am biased. And I will admit that I do love Just Born and think Peeps are hilarious. But I will not lie for anybody. (Maybe if they had let me drive the Peepmobile, but they didn't.)

I do like the dark chocolate Peep much better than the milk chocolate Peep. I think the dark chocolate does a better job of offsetting the sweetness of the marshmallow. Also - the sugar dusting on the regular Peeps is gone, so this is just smooth chocolate and fresh marshmallow. No weird sugar grains.

I have to tell you, I was prepared for these to be terrible. I thought they would be covered with bad, cracking Russell Stoverish chocolate. Instead they are heartbreakingly cute and the marshmallow to chocolate ratio is perfect. You owe it to yourself to at least try one. Hey - if nothing else, he can sit on your desk and be your chocolate mascot. Who could have a bad day with their little chocolate buddy beside them?

Imagine taking him to a meeting and just sitting him right there on the conference table. How great would that be?

Clearly I have spring fever.

I have also decided to make spring resolutions:

1.) Have more chocolate adventures!! I hope you noticed my new Countdown to Candy Expo in the right hand corner of the blog. The name is now the Sweets and Snacks Expo, but I like Candy Expo better so I'm sticking with it. I'm also going to the Fancy Food Show in New York this summer.

The recession is still impacting my business, but I'll be darned if I'll stop having adventures. And if I don't plan them and put them on my calendar - they will never happen. What adventures will you have this spring and summer?

2.) Complete the projects I've been delaying. These are not exciting, but the longer I delay, the more they bug and worry me. One was re-tiling the bathroom. The vinyl flooring in there looked like Hell and every time I went in there it would bug me. I finally went to Lowe's picked out the tile and got it done. Now when I go in there, I admire it. It makes me feel good everyday instead of bad. It was worth the money. The next project? Switching my books from Microsoft Money to Quicken. Money has been discontinued and I figure converting sooner is better than later. As you all know, swithcing software is rarely fun and/or easy.

Neither of these is glory projects. But the sense of accomplishment and the reduction of worry is huge. What projects can you finally knock out this spring?

3.) Savor the season. I'm so glad to see the spring this year - the blue skies, the warmer temps, the trees and flowers coming to life. We take so much beauty and wonder for granted - I think the seasons have to change to keep us appreciating the beauty of the world. Just like the candies have to change to keep us appreciating the deliciousness of the flavors! We live in a world so full of riches - how lucky are we? For God's sake, we have TWO types of chocolate covered Peeps! Life is grand!

Celebrate the spring - try a chocolate covered Peep!!

The Festive Marshmallow

Ah the marshmallow. Used in so many confections, and so often, such a disappointment.

Kraft just can't stop, offering StawberryMallows for Valentine's Day:

They still have the choking warning on the bag, thank God. I almost killed myself with these.

These are pretty much the standard marshmallow with a vague hint of strawberry. ZZZZZZ

They might be okay in hot chocolate or a S'more for something different.

Of course, in my book, Just Born is the King of Marshmallow. And they've pulled all the stops out for Valentine's Day:

The chocolate mousse bears were new last year. They are really good - for marshmallow that is. Way better (and way cheaper) than those Williams- Sonoma marshmallows. and so cute!!! These are chocolate through and through as you can see in the pic below.

These are different - they are strawberry creme flavored:

And let me tell you, these have some SERIOUS strawberry flavor. they are WAY better than the Kraft marshmallows - they are really soft and, well surprisingly good. And you have to love the cute red hearts.

Both of these are just regular marshmallow flavor:

Like the I heart U - very creative! And look at the close uu - its sugar is glittery!!!

Very festive!!!

Here are the autopsy photos:

You can see the strawberry in the smaller red heart.

And there's the cocoa in the bear. Even if you hate Peeps, they are some of the most festive candies out there. And they are low in fat and calories!


This is a whipped creme cherry heart by Georgia Nut Company:

At least this one looks like a heart.. Georgia Nut is notorius for blobs. The cherry flavor is there but fairly subtle. These are soooo rich because of the creme filling, but because it's creme, it's better than marshmallow. I've said it before - it's like Fluff. For some reason I like these. You'll only want one - too rich, but for only 140 calories it tastes pretty darn good!

I can't explain it - it's good!


These surprised me and I have no explanation for it. I tried them at Christmas - they were red and green - and didn't like them:

These I liked! It makes no sense unless they have somehow changed the ingredients. Maybe the green in the crisped rice freaked me out. Maybe I am insane. I dunno. But these were pretty good. Are they the greatest thing ever? Oh hell, no! But if you want a Valentine's Day rice krispy treat - this is for you!

The marshmallow disappoints me more than it delights me, but as long as there are Peeps in the world, it will always make me smile. And I do believe the world would be a lesser place without the marshmallow. It doesn't have a lot of taste, but often marshmallow is the glue that holds the rest of the confection together.

Hey, everybody can't be chocolate.

Marshmallow Show Down

Marshmallows are not all bad - they are great in hot chocolate, in cereal (who didn't like Lucky Charms as a kid?), and roasted over a campfire. They're also low in fat and calories. But not all marshmallows are created equal.

Kraft, creator of the infamous Swirlmallow (which also comes in strawberry - yikes!), has this Halloween entry:

These are supposed to be ghosts. All taste the same - vanilla. I'm not sure the brown color really adds anything to the mix, but it is fall-like. (Think dead leaves.)

Now look at these from our friends at Just Born:

and my favorite - chocolate mousse flavored cats:

Here's what they look like outside their packages:

Aren't they cute? The ghosts and the pumpkins taste the same - they are filled with white marshmallow. But the cats really taste like chocolate (well, as much as marshmallow CAN taste like chocolate). The Peeps really taste a lot better than the Kraft GhostMallows (good grief - I think Kraft needs to fire their creative team) - they are coasted with granular sugar crystals whereas the Kraft ghosts have that dusty powdery sugar coating. And the Peep marshmallow is fluffier, has more give. And there is just no comparing the artistry:

I really think Kraft needs to work on that brown color. It's just not good.

The GhostMallows still have the choking warning (although I can't imagine needing to cut one into bite-sized pieces - they are tiny. Come on, Kraft, lighten up!). No warning on the wild and crazy Peeps. I guess you'll just have to take your chances. Oh, and Peeps have a Halloween costume:

If a kid came to my door in that adorable costume, I would give them ALL my candy.

Easter in the Tropics

What the hell was I thinking when I suggested orange as an Easter flavor? It apparently already IS an Easter flavor. How little I know. And I gotta tell you all, I am going to be biased here - I'm not a huge fan of orange. I like orange as a jelly bean, but so far, not much else. Well - I mean, I like orange juice, but we're talking candy here.

I was even at the Just Born factory when they told us the new flavor for this year was orange. I was covered in orange sugar dust - how could I have forgotten???

One of the things I like most about these is the multicolored sprinkles - how festive is that? And, now this is kind of weird - the inner marshmallow is pink. I don't know how that happened - I saw them made - orange blobs - solid orange goo. It's an Easter miracle!!! (I'm not going to say anything about Just Born and Resurrection - I'm already headed for the tropics as it is.)

Miracles aside - the taste is definitely orangey. If you like orange, marshmallow and sugar, these are custom designed for you. Having eaten them hot off the line, however, I am ruined forever and nothing less will do.

Even Hershey has orange Kisses!

Okay - that bag design is totally boring - I'd go so far as to say - it's ugly. And the Kisses - not so good. If you are into orange you might like these - kind of like a creamsicle. Too orange, too sweet, too gross.

Even Cadbury has an orange egg!! What rock have I been living under??? There's an orange rabbit on there for God's sake! Orange is an Easter staple! Orange is the backbone of Easter!

Of all the orange things, Cadbury was by far the best. I even sliced open my finger performing the autopsy on this baby (I BLEED for you all!). And it was worth it - check this out:

Wow - how cool is that? They still have the yoke! I was sure it would just be solid boring orange cream. Go Cadbury - you rock! These are worth trying, but I really prefer the traditional Cadbury Egg. These are just sooooo orangy! But Cadbury chocolate is so delicious it makes a nice combination. I still don't know why orange for Easter, but some things may never be understood. It's good that there are still some mysteries in the world.

And I missed some eggs for the Eggstravanza! There is a white Reese's Egg:

And a fudge Reese's Egg:

And a Mound's Egg! Will the possibilities never end???

I still think the original Reese's Egg is the best. White is good, but it's terribly sweet. It's my second choice. Fudge is last in my book - the fudge almost overpowers the peanut butter. And you know how I feel about peanut butter. I adore peanut butter. I would join the peanut butter cult if I knew how to find them. I could fall in love with Mr. Peanut - well. he might need to lose the monocle. Wait - back to Easter.

The Mounds Eggs has no weird aftertaste like the Almond Joy - the coconut was good and moist. No weird cream. But I still like Bounty best in the coconut category.

Orange you glad they didn't pick banana?

I am a Marshmallow Brain

I bought myself a flat screen TV for Christmas. I figured they are much cheaper than they have been (I got a 50 inch for under $1,000) and hey, they are cool! (Heidi and Brent - thanks for showing me the light! Seeing Spider Man at your house in high def made me realize how crummy my TV was.)

Anyway, this seemingly simple task required a global effort. It was probably manufactured in China, the guys that delivered it were from Kenya, and the satellite guys were from Vietnam. The problem was the satellite. The guys spent three hours trying to get my two sets to work. They got one to work, but not the other. Now you know how this goes, right? They say they will be there between 12 and 5, so you are stuck. These guys were with me from 3 until after 6. They promised to come back around 2:00 the next day. At 3:00 I called, they said they would be here soon. At 4:30 I called again, they promised 5:15. At 6:00 pm I called again! At 6:30 they show up.

Apparently I have a hard time understanding Vietnamese. And it was starting to piss me off.

They show up, they seem to fix the second set. They take off. I even tip them!

I wish I had that $20 back.

The first set starts rebooting at random intervals, in the middle of shows. This process takes approximately 10 minutes. I curse the entire nation of Vietnam. And Jane Fonda. Bitch.

Now I have to stay at my house for a third day. The time frame this time is 8 to 12. The guy (a manager this time and from the United States) arrives just after 12. Now he was a nice guy, I liked him, until he proceed to talk on his Blue Tooth the entire time he was at my house. I wanted to say, "Dude! Focus! This will go so much faster if you just fix my set!" Plus I think it was rude. You're in my house, if I'm talking to you, don't start talking to some one else! I have to be at home while his guy routes all his drivers? An hour and a half later, he leaves. All he did was replace a faulty box. If he had gotten off the phone it would have taken about 15 minutes. Maybe Vietnamese isn't so bad.

I'm thinking I'm done - I had ordered an HD DVD player that was recommended by reviews on online, I got it all set up and I was ready to rock and roll! Merry Christmas to me!!

Today I swing by Target and notice they have DVDs on sale. Great - I'll get one to watch on Christmas! I see all the BlueRay disks. A sign says if you have a high definition TV, you are wasting your time with anything less than Blue Ray. I see a lot of Blue Ray. It's Target, not some electronics store. Blue Ray is obviously the standard. I'm not sure my player is Blue Ray. CRAP!

I immediately leave Target, go home and look at my player. No Blue Ray. This is such a nightmare - what a time-sucking black hole!! Why don't the sites online help Marshmallow Brains like me? Tell me Blue Ray is the standard! I dig the box out of the trash, pack up the player, print the return labels and research Blue Ray players. I find one - the low price is at Best Buy.

I box up the old DVD player (which I now have to take to a UPS drop off point). I go to Best Buy. The good news? The Blue Ray player is on sale! The bad news? I have to go to Knightdale to get it. (This was after I dragged one of the four register people who were standing around talking to each other to the Home Theater section. The guy there was swamped. They had to help me figure out where the player was.) You would think in this economy customer service would be a priority. Hello Best Buy? If you go out of business, it might be because you deserve to!!! (Hello, Chrysler, can you hear me now?)

Oh hell, I'm on a mission now - I WILL get this TV project finished if it kills me so I can watch a freakin' High Definition DVD on Christmas. I WILL EXECUTE!! I drive to Knightdale. I have already paid for this at the first store - no way was I driving all the way to Knightdale just to find out they sold them all! (According to guy at the first store, the Knightdale store had five.)

Let me also say that traffic everywhere was getting to be crazy and people were looking a little manic. As was I!

I walk in the Knightdale store. There's a guy stationed in the front of Best Buy to stop you from stealing (that must be the only reason because this guy was not the brightest bulb on the tree). I walked up to him and said, "Can I ask you a question?" He looked as if I just said, "Will you adopt me?" I continued past his stupefied look and said, "If I have already paid for something at another Best Buy, where would I pick it up?" He pointed at the customer service desk a few feet away. Apparently he is from neither Kenya nor Vietnam, but the Land of the Nonspeaking Idiots.

I go over to customer service. Someone has pulled my Blue Ray player! The guy at the first store said it would be waiting up front for me. I am pleasantly surprised. But this is one that has been opened and returned. Luckily the customer service woman sees this and calls someone up to get another. This person mumbles something like "I tried to find one..." I say, "The other store said you had FIVE!" I am starting to think about Jane Fonda again.

I wait. And wait some more. The store is big, but not that big. I start to wonder if the guy has gone on break or to Kenya, China, or Vietnam. I am wondering if I will have to raise a little hell about this. My body language has gone from hopeful to irritated.

Luckily for all of us, the guy shows up with a nice new Blue Ray player. I head out.

But I don't get out. The man at the door (from the Land of the Nonspeaking Idiots) who I have been in sight of the entire time, stops me and asks to see my receipt. (I think, "You have got to be kidding - you've been watching me for all this time! I've been five feet away!") The receipt is in my hand - I give it to him. He gives the receipt the same look he gave me earlier. He looks like a caveman who has discovered fire. I have just about had it. I say (apparently in Vietnamese), "Is there a problem?" He says "Um, uh, no, okay..." I walk out. I want to Napalm Best Buy.

I drive to the UPS drop off place and leave the old DVD player for return. All the time cursing my Marshmallow Brain. If I had just paid more attention, researched more carefully, grrr, grr, grrr. I, too, am an Idiot.

I get home. This player is by Panasonic. My new TV is also by Panasonic. The set up is easy. It looks great. I am happy. Until I find the remote for the first DVD player. I want to Napalm myself.

In celebration of my Marshmallow Brain, let's talk Christmas Marshmallow:


There are very festive - and a great low cal snack - you can have 14 for only 100 calories!! Woo Wee! I think these would rock in hot chocolate. Here they are outside of the bag:





Aww - how sweet they are. Not perfect, but not bad. There are fairly small - about the size of a quarter. For that size the shape is pretty good.

Now you can't talk about marshmallow and not talk about Peeps!! Look at these babies!!!


Look at that green! Wow! I tried both of these. The stars were amazingly fresh - nice and soft. That's the way I like my Peeps. But the taste - ugh. Now remember, mint is not my favorite, but these tasted like toothpaste. I ate one bite only. (And that's saying something! And not something good!)

The trees taste better, but the ones I got were stale. I don't like stale Peeps, especially since I've been ruined by eating hot Peeps off the line.

But here's the funny shot:



Ha, ha, ha!! Who would have thought both companies would basically do the same thing? And comparing the two just cracks me up! Look how little that Kraft tree looks in comparison to the Peep tree! It's like Reese Witherspoon and Ru Paul!


Advice - skip the Peep stars, get some of those little Kraft guys for your coffee or hot cocoa. Because who doesn't love the smell of coffee in the morning?