We were strolling through the Union Square Holiday Market today in Manhattan, NYC checking out all the holiday treats and gifts. Today is the first day of the market and it has so many great things for holiday gift ideas. But one thing in particular caught our attention: the ever so CLEAN and refined taste of Raaka Chocolate.
From a bit of research, it appears that the word Raaka is of Finnish origin and means, raw: possibly pertaining to the chocolate's quality. This awesome, grassroots chocolate company got their start in September of 2010 straight out of Brooklyn, New York. In such a short time, this company has gained handsome and respectable notoriety within the world of chocolate; and it is easy to see why. As we sat down for lunch and delicately opened the wrapping of this beauty, the amazingly pure essences and fragrances hit us instantaneously (a big plus with chocolate)! We were enjoying one of their bars known as the Dark with Sea Salt. The taste is so fresh and so pure; every essential ingredient of this chocolate can be picked up just by letting a small piece of it sit in your mouth. And as it begins to melt in your mouth, it is almost as if you get a rush of all the amazing flavors in one shot: yummy goodness at its best! There are also hints of ripe raspberry, clove and citrus in this tasty little treat. It is easy to see why many people of the world have also used chocolate as a--sort of a--super healthy aphrodisiac and intoxicant (as pure, CLEAN chocolate is filled with many nutritional benefits across the board).
According to its founder, Ryan Cheney, they secure their cocoa beans from a co-op and from an organic farm in the Dominican Republic, as well as from a co-op in Boliva. Their Virgin Chocolate is unroasted and stone-ground in small batches. It is made with a low temperature, bean-to-bar process designed to preserve the delicate flavors of raw cocoa (some of which are usually lost if raw chocolate goes through any sort of heavy processing).
So if you are in New York City this holiday season, make sure you check out Raaka Chocolate. They are facing south in the Union Square Holiday Market (about three rows in). And if we're not mistaken, you can find them nicely tucked in their kiosk next to some warm apple cider! Great combo, ya? Get down there and enjoy while you can. If you are not able to make it down there, go to their website and see all the stores that sell their chocolate: or just simply buy it online!
Raw Chocolate, always great!
