Kosher Chocolate

[marissaj]

I am from England and am desperately searching for a good chocolate bar thats kosher and american made. Hersheys is gross and I don't like nestle either- any ideas of local small-scale chocolate thats really good??

[Lissy63]

I agree that Shmerling is great for pareve baking (and eating). In my opinion, the best for eating is Lake Champlain- they are star K- dairy.

[koshergourmetmart]

actually they are star-d-star k's non chalav yisrael hasgacha

[ahuvas]

Does anyone have advice about white chocolate for baking? Milchig is OK.

[queenscook]

I guess it depends what you want to bake, but I believe that generally white and milk chocolate are not used for baking (other than in chip form in cookies and the like). Since this is not really a kashrut question, I'd suggest posting the question on the Home Cooking board.

[DeisCane]

Ghirardelli makes white chocolate for baking.

[ravenport]

Trader joes has really good white chocolate chips that I've used for my black and white cheese cake. (I melt them to add to the white part of the cake). It's really good, though I'm not a huge white chocolate fan. From what I understand it should have cocoa butter as one of the first ingredients.

[cappucino]

Shmerlings is great for eating. Can't seem to find one for baking that is superior. You probably won't find Shmerling outside of NY.

[ShlomoDovid]

BS"D

Callebaut is only about 5/lb plus shipping. And they have a pareve version. So does Valrhonna. But if you want great chocolate you need to spend a bit.

[shmulibaby]

Does anybody know where to get Callebaut in the NYC area?

[GilaB]

Fairway definitely has it (I just saw it by the checkouts in the 74th St. one). Note that it doesn't have a hechsher on the package - it's big blocks of chocolate that have been broken up into 1 pound, irregular chunks, then labeled with the brand and price. The blocks themselves are imprinted with 'Callebaut,' so I am comfortable buying them even though I can't see a hechsher per se, because it's not something that happened to get mislabeled. I also bought similarly packaged chunks once at Buon Italia in the Chelsea Marketplace.

[Lissy63]

Are the blocks pareve?

[GilaB]

Yes, the unsweetened and bittersweet blocks are pareve. I am not sure about the chips, which I haven't bought anyway as I've only ever seen them packaged in the store's own packaging. (Unlike the blocks, there's no sign on the chocolate itself to say that it is what the store says it is.)

[sharonlebewohl]

Scharffen Berger is expensive and there is no getting around it. I mostly use it when the chocolate in the recipe is the main ingredient. For some recipes, a cheaper chocolate will suffice. I buy enough that I buy it wholesale, and Scharffen Berger does have a store on Amsterdam Ave in Manhattan. Buy the 10 pound boxes of broken chocolate and just weigh out what you need. This comes out cheaper. They just put out a Scharffen Berger cookbook which has a recipe of mine. I've loved whatever I've tried from the book, but I cook mostly dairy these days, so I was able to use butter.

[hanistor]

Where can one buy inexpensive (or at least reasonably priced) parve scharffen berger im NYC or northern NJ?

[Bugg Superstar]

i like the endangered species chocolate brand for both milk and dark. they offer many varieties. the quality can be inconsistent and sometimes it has a dry texture, but usually it is really good. the mixed white and dark bar is one of the few ways i'll eat white chocolate.

[alyssa]

I have to agree that scharffen berger is the best pareve chocolate I've had along with Callebaut. Guittard also makes chocolate that is great; unfortunately it is not pareve. I've also had great chocolate treats by Tumbador

[marissaj]

atlanta*

[DeisCane]

Since Ghirardelli is pretty mass market--ie available in most "normal" markets, that's a very good recommendation.

[marissaj]

hi- yup i am in the States, soon to be in atlanat, and just missing my british goods i guess! hopefully these will be good alternativs- thanks!

[Silverbrow]

I'll add to the praise for Scharffen Berger. You can get it at places like Selfridges, or go straight to the UK importers if you're buying in bulk http://www.ganache.co.uk/

[Clarissa]

I don't think the person who posted this question said she is in England, she said "from England." Judging by the brands mentioned, she's here. I also love Scharffen Berger. Ghirardelli is also good for eating. When I'm baking, I often use a blend of chocolates -- Callebaut, Ghirardelli and Scharffen Berger. I don't use the Ghirardelli alone because it has a distinctive taste and I don't want my baked goods to taste like a particular brand. Scharffen Berger has a rich, almost fruity taste, I think. Callebaut is great but pretty expensive, as is Scharffen Berger.

[sharonlebewohl]

I agree with DeisCane. Scharffen Berger is definitely the best and the cost of the chocolate can be justified by the taste and quality. They just had a wonderful cookbook published which has my chocolate chunk challah recipe using their chocolate. The book describes everything you always wanted to know about chocolate, and even things you didn't know that you wanted to know.
An additional plus is that with the exception of the milk chocolate, the rest is all parve. That's difficult to find, especially with a good quality chocolate.

[DeisCane]

There are dozens of options. Scharffen Berger is one of the best.

[ravenport]

I agree with DeisCane too. We usually like dark chocolate but on a whim got a bunch of 41% milk + cocoa nibs and I almost fell down when I tasted it. So so so good.