Go to this link Chocolate Fudge Cafe for an alternative tortilla made with raw cacao as one of the ingredients. It's on the home page right now, or look for it under recipes on the sidebar in the future.Reonne (aka Choco Mama)

Earth's Sweet Pleasures, the makers of Rich Rainforest Dark and Classic Semisweet fudge are debuting their products for the natural product community at the Natural Product Association's Expo in Las Vegas July 17-19, 2008. The owners, L. Hawk Cargo and Reonne Haslett, said they are very excited about this opportunity to unveil their old-fashioned, USDA organic products at the show. "This will be the very first time that the natural store buyers will get to taste our fudge and decide if they want to carry it," Reonne says. "We couldn't be more happy and excited!"Hawk has been making fudge for over 40 yrs., and when a friend of his suggested that he try making an organic recipe, Hawk took on the challenge, thinking it would take only a few months. In actuality, it took over 18 months to get the creamy, rich recipe that people around Nevada City, California, have come to know and love. The Rich Rainforest Dark, which is 65% bittersweet, fair-trade chocolate from Dominican Republic and Peru is carried in 8 locations in this small No. Calif. town with a gold-mining past. Hawk says, "The folks around here where we live have gotten used to buying our fudge in the local natural food stores and cafes. We get lots of comments on how delicious it is, so know we want to offer it to a broader community."Hawk goes on to say that one of the main reasons he and wife Reonne wanted to take the company is bigger is to help support the rainforest and the farmers who make the effort to go organic. "We give a portion of our proceeds to humanitarian and socially-conscious organizations that we feel benefit the planet. We also want to help transform the African cocoa market because we would like to use chocolate from the Ivory Coast and Ghana as well as South and Central American chocolate. We are always researching which organizations in our field that we can donate to once our company becomes profitable."After the NPA expo in July, begin to look for Earth's Sweet Pleasures Rich Rainforest Dark fudge bars in natural food stores around the country. You can also visit the website www.earthssweetpleasures.com to place an order. Hawk and Reonne are always happy to answer questions about their fudge and their business. To get in touch with them, you can call 530-292-3425.

I don't want to put a "fear" vibe out there, but we have heard from our supplier that with the current events in Ivory Coast and greedy investors buying up cocoa commodities, there may be an increase in prices and a shortage of supply in 2011. His comment was that "the perfect storm" is coming. I would like to do more research on this, but perhaps we could start a discussion group about it.

You can make a difference with your pocket book. I recommend choosing Valentine's Day gifts that are made responsibly and sustainably. Of course I am going to offer up our delicious Rich Rainforest Dark Gourmet Fudge from Earth's Sweet Pleasures , but I would also like to add two gift companies that carry all natural, organic and fair-trade products: It's Only Natural Gifts and Kate's Caring Gifts . There are also many organizations and charities that you can donate to in honor of your loved one. For example, support The Rainforest Alliance , an organization that helps to keep our rainforests alive, and this is where the cacao farmers are. Also, if you are concerned about human welfare, Mercy Corps is one of the best organizations I've found. They are on the ground in Haiti right now. You can also plant a tree for your loved one. Visit the Arbor Day Foundation . The lists go on and on, but these are three of my favorites. You can visit my blog Chocolate Fudge Cafe for more ideas.

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Chocolate! The Best of the Best Organic, Fair Trade Chocolates Find out why organic and fair trade certification really matter when it comes to chocolate, and how our editors ranked the best of these treats.Feb. 26, 2009By Katherine Loeck and Aubrey Vaughn

<Not only is organic, fair trade chocolate better for everyone - from planting the cacao trees to popping a morsel into your mouth - the flavor trumps that of conventional chocolate every time.Sweet, bitter, spicy, smooth these are just a few of the dozens of ways to describe chocolate.But if you want really great chocolate, chocolate that makes you feel as good about buying it as it makes your tastebuds feel about meeting it, there are more decisions involved than simply what flavor makes your mouth water. To make the best decisions (and discover the best quality), consider a few questions such as: Where is it grown, how it is grown, and by whom? Does the farmer earn a living wage? Are pesticides used on the cacao trees?These are tough, but important questions. The good news is weve made answering them easier for you.Most of the chocolate on grocery store shelves isnt anything like pure, real unadulterated chocolate. Filled with high fructose corn syrup (and, therefore, possibly mercury), grown with pesticides, and sometimes including wax and other decidedly unappetizing ingredients, common chocolate pales in comparison to that made with real food ingredients. If Big Name chocolate is the only chocolate youve tried, Im sorry to inform you that youve not really had chocolate. Not the kind thats worth its weight in silver (or even gold) or that Aztec emperor Moctezuma would offer to Spanish Conquistador Hernan Cortes. And certainly not the kind that merits its own diety, the Myan god of cacao farmers, Ekchuah.So how do you find such chocolate and find answers to all those questions? Fortunately, there a couple of qualified certification logos you can look for that quickly and easily separate the bean from the husk: Fair Trade and Certified Organic. What is Fair Trade chocolate, and why is it important? According to Reonne Haslett, co-owner of Earths Sweet Pleasures chocolate company, Fair Trade means that farmers receive a guaranteed fair price and good labor conditions, including safe working conditions and fair living wages. Plus, middlemen are eliminated, which allows farmers to strengthen their organizations and be competitive in the global economy.Also, the farmers decide democratically how to use their revenues, investing in social and business development projects like scholarship programs, quality improvement training and organic certification. As for the crops themselves, the Fair Trade certification system prohibits using genetically modified organisms (GMOs), promotes integrated farm management systems that improve soil fertility, and limits the use of harmful agrochemicals in favor of environmentally sustainable farming methods that protect farmers health and preserve ecosystems. When it comes to chocolate, what does Certified Organic really mean? Jessica Holten-Casper, in charge of sales and also daughter of founders Jacques and Pam Holten at Sjaaks Organic Chocolates, explains that organic cocoa is grown using sustainable methods, which means not using chemical fertilizers, herbicides or pesticides whereas conventionally grown cocoa is one if the highest pesticide-using crops. By choosing organic chocolate, consumers help prevent the use of massive amounts of chemicals, which is good for both the consumer and the farm workers who would otherwise be exposed to these toxins. Plus, the environment is spared contamination from the chemicals. The USDA National Organic Program regulations also prohibit the use of artificial flavors, artificial colors, preservatives and GMOs. Who makes Certified Organic, Fair Trade chocolate, and who does it best? Though youve already got a great head start on recognizing great chocolate, we know you want to get right to the best chocolate you can find. So, we managed to summon our collective determination, dedication and will to do the dirty work, so you dont have to. After many, many tastings and much debate, here are our favorite brands and flavors.1. Lake Champlain Chocolates. Hands down, this was our all-around favorite. While the Lemon Ginger Dark, straight-up 70 percent Dark, and Cayenne and Cinnamon were all delectable, the fabulous little squares of Sea Salt & Almond Milk chocolate disappeared at an astonishing speed, and inspired the only (known) instance of lust-induced chocolate thievery from the sample table.2. Newmans Own. Yumm. Good thing they sent a lot, lest we resorted to arm wrestling over Dark Chocolate Caramel Cups. Those creamy delights were seconded closely by the perfect pairing of chocolate and peanut butter in their Peanut Butter Cups.3. And the going gets tough: Theres a three-way tie between Earths Sweet Pleasures, Ithaca Fine Chocolates and Divine Chocolate, in which the favorite flavors are the Gourmet Fudge Bar, Exquisite Swiss Milk, and the White Chocolate and Mint Dark Chocolate, respectively. Try them all, you wont regret it.4. Rapunzel Chocolate. If milk chocolate is your favorite, Rapunzel is the way to go. Creamy, perfectly sweet, but not too, this chocolate was universally enjoyed.Thank you to all of companies that sent generous samples for our taste test we pretty much liked them all, really. Unfortunately, theres only room for so many in a Top 5, and weve already gone over by one. If you really love chocolate and are interested in sampling the short list above and then some, you cant go wrong with any of these (in no particular order):Sweet Earth Chocolates, the Vegan Ultimate Turtle, Dark Chocolate Coconut or the Peppermint CupTheo Chocolate, the Ginger chocolate, Scotch chocolate, and absolutely try the Burnt Sugar Truffle.Dagoba Chocolate* Sjaaks Organic ChocolatesCocoa VinoShaman ChocolatesSweet RiotUliManaYou can find out more about each of these companies, their health, environment and production policies at their websites. Youre bound to be impressed.