I Heart Sen Cha Green Tea Bars

I've found the love of my life. I saw this item initially at Garden of Eden on 14th Street and became infatuated. Eventually I met my delicious companion right in my neighborhood and upon our first kiss it was love at first bite. Ok, we didn't kiss but I did bite it. I'm talking about my new favorite bar, the Sen Cha Green Tea Bars. These bars come in three flavors: Original, Lively Lemongrass, and Delicate Pear. Honestly, you cannot go wrong with any of the choices. If I had to choose a favorite, I'd go with the Pear and they've appropriately named the bar because the flavor is quite "delicate." Each bar is a blend of roasted organic brown rice, antioxidant rich goji berries, nuts and seeds, and is equal to three cups of green tea. Additionally, the bars are gluten and wheat-free/vegan. I've found these Sen Cha bars fill me up when I'm on the go, which is another benefit. I thought I would have to stock up on these bars when I find them but I've noticed that they are now readily available at the Vitamin Shoppe, as well as some gourmet shops, coffee shops and hotels. More than likely these bars will run you a bit more than you'll pay for a Balance or Luna Bar but in my humble opinion there's no comparison. As much as I love you, Luna, we're done. We'll stay friends but I'm going steady with Sen Cha now. See ya later.

www.senchanaturals.com/

Red Fire In The Freezer: Vosges Does It Again

Anyone who reads this blog knows that I am a big fan of Vosges Haut Chocolat, the exotic chocolatier. I've even turned my dad into a Mo's Bacon Bar-eating fellow, quite a feat considering he usually doesn't eat anything "weird." On occasion I've noticed containers of Vosges ice creams in some gourmet shops in the area over the past month or so but I finally took the plunge today. Tempted by the thought of Mexican ancho and chipotle chillies in my ice cream, I picked up Vosges' Red Fire, which is one of four available flavors. Upon closer inspection Red Fire is also comprised of Ceylon cinnamon and dark chocolate ice cream, so to quote the Barefoot Contessa, "What's not to like?" The answer is, nothing. It's an amazingly layering taste with first the dark chocolate, then a little bit of cinnamon and finally the heat, hits you. For those who don't love spicy food, the heat is very subtle. It's definitely more of a dessert product rather than, say, Ben & Jerry's where you'd actually sit down and eat the pint at one sitting. And that's a good thing because, trust me, the Vosges ice cream would be gone before I sat down to write this post. I wasn't as curious before about the other flavors before I tried Red Fire, but now I think I'll give them a try sometime soon. The other interesting Vosges ice cream flavors include Naga, a sweet Indian curry with fresh coconut and custard ice cream; Pandan, an Asian-inspired ice cream made from the pandan leaf (notes of pine nut, vanilla wafer and tree nuts) with dark chocolate; and Wattleseed, which is edible seeds from the Australian acacia, plus roasted macadamia nuts and custard ice cream. Fancy! Vosges is one of the few companies that, when I'm looking at their ingredients I actually have to Google some of the contents because they're that exotic. Note that Vosges ice cream will cost you a couple of dollars more than your usual dessert but I think you'll agree it is money well spent. In the New York City area, I've seen this ice cream in Citarella (6th Avenue and 9th Street) and Dean & DeLuca in SoHo.

www.vosgeschocolate.com/product/exotic_ice_cream/exotic_ice_creams