Friday, December 7, 2007

Jo’s Peppermint Crunch

Jo's Peppermint CrunchYou know what’s great about the Holiday season? Hostess gifts. People come to my house and for no reason I can tell other than crossing the threshold they feel like they have to give me something. And the gift most often in their hands is some sort of sweet goody.

I should just leave the door unlocked from November on!

My brother-and-sister-in-law brought some wonderful New Mexico goodies for my husband (posole & green chiles) but I got some Jo’s Candies Peppermint Crunch. The box makes it look like a pretty simple confection: dark chocolate over crunched up peppermint candies.

Jo's Peppermint Crunch

Oh, they’re so much more than just chocolate and crushed candy canes. I was worried that the center would just be a mint honeycomb (not that it would be bad that way). Instead The center is a mix of white chocolate/confection with crushed hard candy mints then covered in a dark chocolate.

This makes the center easy to bite but still satisfyingly crunchy, not overwhelmingly minty or tacky/sticky to chew.

They’re also all natural and Kosher. That means that even the little crunchy candies don’t have that dreadful Red #40, instead they use Red Beet Juice. Jo’s Candies are kind of pricey but quality ingredients, good packaging and freshness costs money. I’m deeply curious about their Dark Chocolate Turtles and the Mint Coco Jo’s that sound like a much better Girl Scout Cookie.

The little squares a dang pretty, glossy and dashed with little dark chocolate squiggles. The dark chocolate coating is pretty thick on the top, thicker usually than the photo above shows. So the proportions are pretty equal.

I think they were intended as a gift for me and my husband, but I don’t see myself eating his green chiles, so I’m pretty comfortable eating the whole box on my own to keep things equal in the relationship.

Related Candies

  1. Junior Mints Peppermint Crunch
  2. Recipe: Peppermint Stick Layer Cake
  3. Chocolate Filled Candy Canes
  4. Green and Black’s White Chocolate
Name: Peppermint Crunch (Dark Chocolate)
    RATING:
  • 10 SUPERB
  • 9 YUMMY
  • 8 TASTY
  • 7 WORTH IT
  • 6 TEMPTING
  • 5 PLEASANT
  • 4 BENIGN
  • 3 UNAPPEALING
  • 2 APPALLING
  • 1 INEDIBLE
Brand: Jo's Candies
Place Purchased: gift (but available from Whole Foods & online)
Price: $11.00 retail
Size: 6 ounces
Calories per ounce: 140
Categories: Chocolate, Mint, White Chocolate, United States, Kosher

POSTED BY Cybele AT 11:12 am Tracker Pixel for Entry    

Comments
  1. I’m sure they’re better than the crappy white chocolate mint mocha drink I had at Starbucks yesterday. Green chiles and posole brings me back to my NM vacation I just got back from last week! Great state!

    Comment by Patrick on 12/08/07 at 4:10 am #
  2. so my question is are they vegan all natural? cause that would be too good for words right around christmas candy time…

    Comment by Asmith on 12/09/07 at 1:00 am #
  3. Cybele's avatar

    Asmith - I’m afraid I’ve never met a white chocolate product that doesn’t have dairy in it. So it’s not vegan. Even their dark chocolate coating has some butter oil, so that may mean that all their products are not vegan.

    Comment by Cybele on 12/09/07 at 7:54 am #
  4. Oh, these look SO YUMMY.  WANT.

    Comment by Swistle on 12/09/07 at 2:58 pm #
  5. Overall 7.3 rating for “this week in candy,” thanks to this thoughtful gift!

    Comment by Russ on 12/09/07 at 4:12 pm #
  6. These sound like a pretty good gift to cross the threshold. Whole Foods just made it on my shopping list.

    Comment by jMo on 12/09/07 at 9:54 pm #
  7. I have yet to have anything less than delicious from Jo’s Candies.  The dark chocolate covered graham crackers are my absolute favorite.  I’m pretty sure that Jo’s manufactures the chocolate covered grahams at Starbucks, too.

    Comment by ML on 12/10/07 at 8:55 am #
  8. I was searching your blog for Jo’s candies. I read frequently, and just discovered Jo’s. I have tried the Toffee Nuggets, which are unlike any other toffees I’ve ever had, as they have a strange texture once chewing begins, but I think the flavor is excellent, and the chocolate coating is thick.

    The Mint Coco Jo’s are great if you still haven’t had them. The flavor of a GS thin mint, but with much more (and tastier) coating. Also, Cost Plus often has Jo’s products, or at least the ones in Pasadena and Glendale do.

    Comment by Lib M. on 2/21/10 at 1:20 pm #
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