Relax and Spread on Some Cocoa

Even though the costs of all things related to chocolate is going up, The Chocolate Cult is blessed that brands, companies, and individual makers are still reaching out to us so we can help all of you readers find the world's best chocolate products. Today I'm going to share my experiences with an almond chocolate spread called CocoZen. This is the first almond spread that we've tested on this blog, though if you've been reading us you know we've covered so many things with almonds. We were sent this free jar of CocoZen by the KG Food Company for us to test and then write about; no other form of compensation was received for sharing our honest experiences with you all today.

The first thing I noted about the jar we were sent is that it didn't look like the photo on the company website. I actually like the jar we were sent better because it emphasises the fact that this is made with Almonds. In fact, almonds are the first ingredient, while cocoa powder is the fourth. There are two non-cane sugar sweeteners that may be of concern for some of you such as erythritol and Monk Fruit Extract; I don't have problems with either in terms of my health, but I find they can quickly overpower chocolate's flavor if not use sparingly. Two servings of CocoZen is 2T (like peanut butter and other types of chocolate spreads) but it only has 150 calories. But let's get into our senses to learn more about this product.

CocoZen is thick and yet is easily spreads out; this is one serving of it covering two English muffins which as you know have a bumpy and absorbent texture. The color is a nice deep brown with reddish highlights just as I want from my chocolate spreads. The scents of cocoa and almond are easily detected as soon as I open the jar. Of course, as a spread, it makes no sound when used or eaten. It is not sticky but smooth unlike peanut butter can be. The dominant flavor is almond followed quickly by sweetness. That taste did not change as I continued to eat the full serving which was disappointing to me.

I want to point out that getting this jar open was a challenge. The type of inside cover is common to spreads but somehow even though it had been sitting for a week in my house, the spread stuck to that cover as you will see below, making it more difficult to remove.

While I'm all for products having fewer calories by cutting down on fats or sugars, I do believe that should ever decrease the chocolate or cocoa flavor that you get when you use it. Without a strong chocolate essence delivered to my taste buds, I won't crave a product. However, if CocoZen sounds like a product you'd like to try, you can buy them directly from KG Food Company.