Breaking the Fast: Truffles vs Chocolates

As shared here and here, I abstained from chocolates for 40 days. On Easter Sunday, I broke the fast with these:

Tim Tam - ang pambansang chocnut ng Australia. 



I got dizzy after my second piece due to its strong chocolatey taste. I consider it a case of system shock.


Ang arte.

And chocolate truffles from the Margaret River Chocolate Factory.



Despite of its relatively poor packaging, the truffles are actually good. It has a delicate and subtle taste.

What's the difference between chocolates and truffles?

Chocolates are plain solid blocks made from cocoa solids, cocoa butter, milk and other good stuff. Truffles on the other are chocolate with ganache fillings or any cream/chocolate/nut/fruit/liqeur filling. It resembles the truffle fungus, hence the name. The French invented it but I believe Belgians do it best.

I prefer truffles over chocolates because of its texture and the taste isn't overpowering. My favorite is Godiva Truffes.



It is Belgian and easy to obtain while in transit in most airports.

Locally, Mandarin Deli has a good truffle and chocolate selection while Patchi puts a lot of effort in their lovely, hand-crafted wrapping. You can also visit Chocolate Fire in Legazpi Village.

Home Stretch

I am on the last few days of my 40-day chocolate fast.

That's 40 days of zero chocolates, na-da dark mocha frappe and nil champorado.

So this is what I got for myself for Easter Sunday.

Para lang akong mauubusan ng tsokolate sa mundo.

Never mind the calories.

Chocolate, Tea or Chuvaness

This will be my first try to go on a 40-day fast for the Lenten season.

To instill in me the value of discipline (not to sin), I was able to narrow my list to top 3 indulgence that would be a challenge to let go. Facebook and water should be on the list but FB is used to contact friends while water is definitely a necessity, hence I am left with 3 choices to abstain from.

1. Chocolate





I have a sweet tooth. Para akong si Vicki Belo, parating may tsokolate sa ref at kailangan makakain ng tsokolate araw-araw. Seriously, I blame my 5 lbs on too much chocolate.


2. Tea

Photo from http://www.cebuwoman.com/

It is not surprising for someone who chugs in at least 3L of water a day to love a cup of tea. Average consumption is 700mL of tea a day. I like it brewed and no, I don't drink powdered iced tea. Loose or in a bag, personal favorite is green then black. I also like teh tarik, Person A's influence. I don't like Earl Grey and I find white tea too delicate that it doesn't impart any flavor to warm water.

I like warm tea with any meal (best paired with fried chicken!),  dessert and even with my bar of chocolate.

Trust me, I really love my tea.

So if you open my bag of pasalubong from Person A, it usually looks like this:



Teas from any local grocery store and some truffles from a trusted chocolatier.

3. Chuvaness

Then there's Chuvaness.



I find her entertaining bordering witty. I may not agree with her personal style but she cracks me up. A little less than the way Tina Tagle makes me laugh but Mrs. Tagle is of epic proportion so, yeah, if I am only allowed to read one blog a day, that's got to be Chuvaness.

My criteria for choosing which among the 3 to abstain from is: the one with the highest chance of success. Meaning, the easier to give up.

Hence, I gave up C-H-O-C-O-L-A-T-E.

I haven't had a bar in 8 days. Woot woot! But it does get tricky. I did not define if I should abstain from anything chocolate-flavored. Nonetheless, I decided not to have anything chocolate-flavored, especially if it's a want (read: dessert and champorado).

While Person A and I were discussing whether I was to have my favorite Dark Mocha frappuccino because of its chocolate content:

Person A: Dapat talaga si Chuvaness na lang f-nast mo


Had I chose that, most likely, I won't make it on the 40th day mark.

But we'll get there.