Outlet Find #1

On your Chocolate Priestess' 2010 Spring Trip she found an outlet mall, to be specific, Tanger Outlets in Williamsburg, Iowa. In that mall she found two chocolate/candy shops: Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory, which I'll look at later, and Harry & David where I bought something and they very generously gave us several samples to try. Which means, that some time later this year they will be in at least two Sacraments.

The store was fairly big so I'll share a few photos now and in the future Sacramental Reviews.  It was late at night when we got there and the mall had only an hour left so I focused on the two shops I knew would have chocolate.  Chocolate isn't all that Harry & David have by far but in the past when we've sent their gifts to family it has been the sweeter products we've sent.  One of these has been the hard chocolate shell covered fruit but we'd never tried it ourselves.  This time we bought a bag which is what fit in our trip budget for trying out different candy and chocolate shops.

This 8oz bag has 6 servings of cherries, strawberries and blueberries covered in milk chocolate dyed red, white and blue -- you could use this for a few different national holidays in a few different countries with this color scheme.  Each serving has 180 calories, 7g saturated fat, <5mg cholesterol, 25mg sodium, 1g fiber, 22g sugars, 1g protein, 8% Vitamin C and 4% of both calcium and iron in it.

The blueberry pieces are indeed blue and measure about 0.5 inches across.  They taste like rather tart blueberries with a solid milk chocolate taste and a crunch because of the hard shell.  The strawberry pieces are red and also have a tart bordering on sour taste and these are much bigger between 0.75 and over an inch across.  The white pieces then are the cherries and they are around 0.75 inches across with some variation as well in shape and have a slightly sweet taste.  My favorite has to be the blueberries without a doubt -- they taste most like that fruit at it's best and the milk chocolate is a great match with them.  These taste pretty good and if you want a chocolate fruit gift that will last then these are the sort of product you are looking for.

Let's be honest.  The prices are a bit high, this is why we've given Harry & David as gifts.  Coupled with shipping costs they can be very expensive presents.  But if you get them in the outlet then you can save on the shipping and you might find special deals.  The trick is finding those outlets.  So try this LINK to help you out.  For example in Indiana there are two listed and in New York there is one.  So search by state or even my country to see what you can find.  These stores get ready for major holidays weeks and weeks in advance so plan wisely and visit them and stock up on your gifts.

Sisters and Brothers, may you, too, take the time to slowly appreciate what the Divine and human ingenuity have offered you in chocolate.

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