I have a kind aunt who sends us a box of chocolates every Christmas, and they are much appreciated. But as I munched away tonight (with a reckless disregard for my waistline) I was troubled again by a question which has bothered me before. It’s this:
Why are there so many nutty ones in the box?
Now, don’t get me wrong. I like nuts. I like chocolate. I even quite like the combination. But the chocolates with almonds, walnuts, hazelnut praline or whatever are so clearly inferior to those based on fruit, caramel, coffee or liqueurs that I wonder why they always seem to form such a large part of the selection on offer. I would simply put this down to personal preference except that everybody else I’ve ever asked about this feels the same way!
So who is it who decides that so many of the chocolates in the average box should be nutty at the core? Are there hordes of secretive chocolate-nut lovers out there? Those who, on opening a new box, spurn the strawberries, but quiver with anticipation when contemplating the myriad delights that praline has bestowed upon us? Come out of the closet and let us know! You’re among friends here. Or are nutty chocolates much cheaper to manufacture? Perhaps it’s a conspiracy of nut-producers to dispose of nuts which for seem reason don’t make the grade elsewhere in unsweetened form?
Until this mystery is solved, I shall have to continue to be the noble husband, consuming chiefly those nut-based chocolates discarded by my beloved. It’s a tough job. All, however, is not lost, because I’ve discovered that Waitrose sell small tubs of delicious dark-chocolate-covered apricots, which go a long way to helping restore the balance of my carefully-controlled chocolate-based diet.
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I like nutty ones; particularly if the chocolate is very dark, or there are crispy/crunchy bits. I do like fruit, coffee and other things too though. I don’t usually like caramels, so you are welcome to those! I think it depends hugely on the chocolates in question though; in Roses, I prefer the fruity ones, perhaps because the nutty ones are inferior in this case? If you took me to a good chocolate shop, and asked me to pick a selection, I’d go for mainly, but not exclusively, nuts. I think. But I’m not usually very decisive, so you would have to be very patient.
In our household only one of us eats nuts, so for nut-dominant boxes we can usually consume most of the chocs without dispute.