Thoughtful snacking to renew life -
from grower communities to you.

INTRODUCING GOOD KING

 
 
“Every time I think I have settled on my favorite flavor, I taste another one and think, ‘hmmm... maybe this one is actually my favorite.’”
 
 

FEATURED ARTICLE

 
 
“Good King has changed the landscape of chocolate in the most wonderful way. The texture is of a nut that has a hint of sweetness coupled with spices.”
 
 

FEATURED PRODUCT

 
 
“It’s a great food to put out at parties pairing with wine, cheese, or beer - it’s a relatively new food concept to most people making it fun for guests to try and a good conversation starter”
 

INSTAGRAM

Happy Memorial Day weekend! Wishing you (and especially service members and their families) a wonderful weekend full of blue skies, beautiful scenery and dry, sunny weather! If you’re wondering what that has to do with #cocoabeans, fine #flavor #cacao needs about a week of drying in this idyllic #environment to taste its best. Well, maybe minus the beautiful scenery – but it makes our coworkers happy! Pictured: Drying area for our #snackingcacao beans @coagricsal in #Honduras. #nofilter #directtrade, #singleorigin, #vegan, #plantbased, #GMOfree, #handcrafted
#Comfortfood – So many people notice banana #flavornotes in our #Harmony #cacao. What better way to enjoy them than in #bananabread? Just substitute #snackingcacao for #chocolatechips or #nuts in your favorite recipe for a #healthy, #nutfree, #chocolatey #crunch for your #weekendtreat. Why do our #cacaobeans taste like bananas? Like #wine grapes, #cocoa expresses countless flavor notes depending on the type, where it’s grown and what grows nearby. Banana trees are often used for shade when growing #finecacao. Thus, our banana flavor notes! Myth – Cacao is also #fermented in banana leaves, but we haven’t noticed this influence the flavor the same way as cacao intercropped with bananas. #vegan, #plantbased, #healthysnacks
This #cacaotree gives new meaning to the word #tripod. #Cacao can cross pollinate with nearby trees creating a beautiful #diversity of genetically unique #cacaopods – each with a different #color and #flavor – all on the same tree! #honduras #directtrade #singleorigin #GMOfree #snackingcacao #wholecacaobeans #vegan #plantbased #nature
To my mom, our mom co-workers and all of our mom friends & family – thank you for expending every ounce of #strength for us, for finding #joy and laughter in all circumstances and creating #peace and #harmony in the midst of chaos. No word or gift can thank you enough for your sacrificial #love. Happy Mother’s Day! #snackingcacao, #wholecacaobeans made *mostly* by moms.
Hooray! It’s #harvest time @coagricsal in #Honduras! This rainbow of #cacaopods will be opened using the wooden mallets (to keep both hands and #cacaobeans safer than using the ever-present machete). The #cacaofruit and #cacaoseeds are then emptied into the white bucket to be transferred from the #farm to the #fermentation center. The pods are left at the farm to be used for #compost - to ensure equally beautiful future harvests! #snackingcacao #organic #fairtrade #plantbased #directtrade #singleorigin #handcrafted #healthysnacks
You give me fever... Did your #cacao have a fever? Let’s hope so! Fermentation is extremely important in #flavor development for #wholecacaobeans because we can’t hide it in a blend - you taste EVERY bean! And since #fermentation is an #organic process, each lot behaves a little differently based on outside temperatures, humidity, genetics, time of harvest... So, our partners take time, watch #temperature (ambient and beans) and perform physical cut tests to determine when to stir and rotate the beans for optimum taste. This #cocoa is only on day 2 – just after its first turn. It might naturally reach temperatures as high as 125°F (51°C) before fermentation is complete! #snackingcacao, #directtrade, #singleorigin, #handcrafted, #plantbased
There are over 30 #Love sculptures by Robert Indiana around the world! It has special meaning not only because of our #flavor name, but because the first one the five of us ever saw was in Philadelphia 25+ years ago when we met at college. Love these girls!! #girlsweekend, #snackingcacao, #eating, #talking, #purejoy,
30+ years of friendship! That’s #love. Taking a day to play in a surprisingly warm #Minneapolis with one of my favorite Kings, Shloe (King) Donoghue. ❤️ #friendsforever, #snackingcacao
#latergram finally a bright and #sunny day in #Seattle! Whether here or in #Honduras, there is an art to #drying. If you think it’s easy to turn #cacaobeans every 15 minutes and spread them evenly (see Carlos’ drying video from March 16 for explanation), I had been working on this [not yet evenly spread] tray for about 5 minutes and there were eight more… 😂💪🏼 Needless to say, we’re glad our beautiful #cacao #flavor relies on the #hardwork of our #expert partners – you can #taste the difference in every #cocoabean! #directtrade, #singleorigin, #plantbased, #GMOfree, #womenownedbusiness, #seattlemade, #snackingcacao, #wholecacaobeans, #handcrafted
#trailmix has been on our wishlist since before we even sold our first bag of #snacking #cacaobeans. With a #directtrade, #sustainable commitment, it has seemed like a distant dream. But, we’re getting closer! Our first step - finding #growers who are equally passionate as our #cacao growers about creating beautiful #driedfruits and #nuts in their local community. We can’t wait to introduce you!! Today’s tasting - #pnw #sourcherry - #pairing with love (#cinnamon, #vanilla, #nutmeg, #clove, #cardamom) #snackingcacao, #blueberries and #almonds. Which #driedcherries to choose? The #mellow ones from #oregon with #wine-like, deep jammy flavors and spice notes or the ones from #Washington that almost tastes #juicy with more #fresh and #tart notes?
So excited to be a guest on @welltemperedpodcast - my favorite #podcast that features the smart, crafty and creative #womeninchocolate. I have listened to EVERY episode. If you ❤️ #craftchocolate, #entrepreneur stories and #womeninbusiness - #subscribe on iTunes (https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/well-tempered/id1214726212?mt=2) or visit the link in our bio. Lauren Heineck, #chocolate maker and founder of @wkndchocolate, is a super-insightful and gracious host. I don’t know how she does it, but each episode feels as if you’re part of the conversation. We were the first guest in her new #innovation series and I cannot wait to hear more! Thanks so much, Lauren, for including us. #snackingcacao, #originstory, #welltemperedpodcast, #directtrade, #womenownedbusiness, #seattlemade, #wholecacaobeans, #handcrafted, #healthysnacks
The tools of #cacao #fermentation. Fermentation is said to be one of the most important steps in #cocoabean #flavor development. While the tools may seem #primitive – researchers have attempted to improve results in more modern machinery and keep coming back to the efficacy of this #traditional method. 1. A series of #wooden boxes, ideally in a tiered “stadium” style with removable slats, 2. A wooden paddle to #stir and rotate within and between boxes so each #wholecacaobean can be evenly #fermented, 3. #bananaleaves to line the wooden box. Do you see one peaking out the bottom center? The leaves serve several purposes: a) as an insulative blanket (along with the burlap bag on top) to keep the natural heat from fermentation inside the box, b) they prevent the juice from the cacao fruit from draining too quickly, and c) they introduce additional microbiota that are beneficial for a more complete fermentation. #snackingcacao, #directtrade, #singleorigin, #handcrafted, #fairtrade, #honduras
 

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