Degusta Box November 2018

Yikes, I'm really late on this one, which is crazy because these were so easy to sample. Heh.

Anyway, as you probably already know, I get a box from Degusta Box every month so I can tell you about the goodies in the box. After getting these for ... oh, a long time ... there are always some surprises, along with some familiar items.

So here we go!

Popcorn Indiana Black and White Drizzlecorn
This is kettlecorn drizzled with dark and white chocolate. It's sweet and a little salty and crunchy, too, so it hits all the right craving notes. They've sent other flavors before, but I think this is the first time this one showed up.

Pearson Candy Company
I got mint patties, which I'm really familiar with. I recall buying these one at a time from a drugstore when I was a kid. Now I have a whole bag of 'em. These are nice as an after-meal snack, although I'm tempted to chop a few up and mix them into home made ice cream. They also sent coconut patties, but coconut and I don't get along, so I passed these along.

Bauducco Panettone
I know this is traditional, but it's not my favorite cake, so I found a new home for it. The size they sent would be a perfect stocking stuffer without it being a commitment to a whole giant cake.

Grand Belgian Specialties
Hey, come on! It's a box of chocolates. There's absolutely nothing that could be wrong with this. Yum, chocolate. And it's in a box, so it would be a nice little gift. Not that I'm giving this away. Nuh uh. This box is for me.

Popcorners
I got these a while back in a box and went out and bought them afterwards. They taste like popcorn but are in a triangular chip shape. And they don't have the husks that get caught in your teeth. Yummy stuff.

Chickapea Mac and Cheese
If you love mac and cheese but you're avoiding gluten, this one's for you. The pasta is made from chickpeas and lentils, which also adds to the protein content. It's certainly an interesting idea.

Wholesome Goodness Tuxedo Mix
This is a little snack-sized pack of yogurt covered raisins and peanuts along with soy nuts covered with dark chocolate and roasted peanuts. Raisins happen to be the other food that I'm not fond of, so these found a new home. This looked tasty, though.

Bush's Best bean dip
I've been buying all kinds of Bush's products for a long time. If it's beans, they seem to know what they're doing. So, now there's bean dip.

Nutiva oils
These were little packets of cooking oils. Mmm. Coconut oil. Good sample sizes for people who want to try them out.

In case you didn't notice, I got this free from Degusta Box.

Davidson's Organic Tea: Chai

Want chai?

Davidson's Organic Tea recently sent me samples of three of their chai teas, along with a sweet mug. Yes, that's a ginormous mug. And there's a fox inside. Yup.

But back to the chai.

To be honest, I'm not sure what makes tea chai or not chai, but I'm okay with that. They called these chai. I drank. Job done.

They sent Cardamom Macchiato, S'mores Chai, and Pumpkin Chai. All three were quite different from the usual teas that are, well, tea leaves or "tea" that is actually herbs and stuff.

The Cardamom Macciato included coffee beans, among other things; the S'mores Chai included marshmallow and chocolate, and the Pumpkin Chai included pumpkin flakes and caramel.

Which was the best? Yeah, that's personal taste, but I think the S'mores might have been the winner for me, although I wouldn't turn down any of 'em.

These would be great stocking stuffers for anyone you know who likes tea and who has already tried all the ones at the grocery store. Or, you know, grab yourself a ginormous mug and settle in on a cool evening to enjoy some chai.

Why, yes, I did get these from Davidson't Tea at no cost to me.

American Heritage Chocolate

Seriously, if someone asks me if I want samples of their chocolate, there's only one sane answer.

Yes, I want to sample your chocolate. Send it now.

I'm not exactly sure why this chocolate is historic or heritage, but the website says it's made from authentic heritage recipes. So there you go.

This wasn't just plain chocolate, there was a bit of a spice component - maybe cinnamon? Some kind of warm spices were in there, for sure.

While these are great as-is, if you want to cook with them, I think they'd work well in Mexican recipes where you want the earthy spices but not the chile flavors. Or, you know, just snack on them. Or chop them up and use them like chocolate chips in cookies. Or use the drink mix as a substitute for cocoa in recipes.

These would also be nice stocking stuffers for people who like to try different types of chocolate. Yup, it's that time of year. Stuff the stockings!

Did I mention that I got these at no cost? Yup.