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America’s most iconic chocolate, Hershey’s, is slimming down. Hershey announced earlier this week that half of its candy bars and candy products will drop to 200 calories or less. They expect the shift to be fully in place by the year 2022.In a press release, the company stated that it expects to meet the goal in two ways. First of all, they will be reformulating their products. Additionally, they will adjust the size of certain items.The changes will affect standard and king-sized items. We can’t help but wonder if this means they’ll merely be getting smaller, which at first is...

Grocery store aisles are lined with chocolate candy bunnies, jelly beans, and marshmallow Peeps, but one thing is missing--the word "Easter." Hershey's, M&M's, Lindor, Russell Stover, Dove, Rolo, and Twix have all produced Easter themed candy without mentioning the word on the front of their candy, according to a press release from the Liberty Counsel. "Just as companies were trying to profit from Christmas while ignoring the reason for the celebration, now companies are targeting the Christian aspects of Easter and removing them," Mat Staver, Founder, and Chairman of Liberty Counsel said. {..snip..}

Other sculptures at the festival in Istanbul include John Lennon, Nelson Mandela and German Chancellor Angela Merkel. One of the highlights at a Turkish chocolate festival has been U.S. President Donald Trump — made of cake icing. It took Turkish chef Tuba Geckil two days to make the imposing bust of Trump, clad from mid-torso in an edible jacket and striped tie.

Happy Weekend, Everyone! A little birdie in a kilt whispered to me that we should have a cooking for Valentine's Day theme this weekend, and that is a perfect idea. I love chocolate so let's get some tried and true old favorite recipes out, as well as some new challenges if you want. But don't stop at dessert! Lots of our true loves have savory desires on Valentine's Day. Steaks, beef stew, potatoes Anna or Baked with sour cream... what is going to delight your honey, family, or even just yourself this week? Me, I'm thinking of chocolate this week....

Video shows one rodent waiting for coast to be all clear before pouncing on candy and scurrying away. A group of squirrels is driving the owners of one Toronto convenience store nuts, after the rodents have been caught on video stealing chocolate bars from their east-end shop. “I always see them sneaking outside the door, looking in my store, and even right at me!” said Paul Kim, owner of Luke’s Grocery near Gerrard St. E. and Logan Ave. “They come in and take Crunchies, Crispy Crunch, Wonderbar . . . ” And those who are really bold “try to take...

NPR’s Steve Inskeep and President Obama (NPR) Regardless of what President-elect Donald Trump’s plans are for immigration, President Barack Obama says there will be “inevitable” changes to the demographics of the United States. “If you stopped all immigration today, just by virtue of birth rates, this is going to be a browner country,” Obama told NPR’s Steve Inskeep in an interview that aired Monday. “And if we’re not thinking right now about how we make sure that next generation is getting a good education and are instilled with a common creed and the values that make America so special and...

Researchers at Nestle said they have found a new way to drastically cut sugar content in chocolate by up to 40%. Nestle told Bloomberg that the process involves altering the structure of the sugar. Exactly how this works remains strictly secret, the company is still waiting to patent the process. But Nestle’s Chief Technology Officer, Stefan Catsicas, that essentially it creates “hollow” sugar crystals, which dissolve quickly in the mouth.

With all the political ire going on in the United States, it’s sometimes good to put things in perspective. French presidential candidate Jean-Francois Copé has sparked outrage on Twitter after wildly underestimating the cost of a pain au chocolat pastry. For those who don’t know, the sweet chocolate-filled croissants are somewhat of a national treasure and a staple of any French bakery. The political upheaval began Monday during a radio interview with Europe 1, when Copé was asked if he knew the price of the famous French pastry. “I have no clue, I have no idea … maybe 10 to...

High levels of chocolate consumption might be associated with a one third reduction in the risk of developing heart disease, suggests a study published online in the British Medical Journal.... The findings confirm results of existing studies that generally agree on a potential beneficial link between chocolate consumption and heart health. However, the authors stress that further studies are needed to test whether chocolate actually causes this reduction or if it can be explained by some other unmeasured (confounding) factor.... They analysed the results of seven studies, involving over 100,000 participants with and without existing heart disease. For each study,...

When Cadbury’s decided to change the recipe of its creme eggs last year, many fans were less than impressed. Now the firm itself has been left with a nasty taste in its mouth after it was claimed that the move contributed to a £10million loss in sales last Easter - a fall of five per cent. The company switched from using the famous Cadbury Dairy Milk for the shells to a similar alternative in what appeared an attempt to save money.

What does the average European think about the recent EU decision to label Jewish goods from Judea-Samaria? The Lev HaOlam organization set up shop in a central Amsterdam square to find out. Equipped with a tray of chocolates produced in Hevron, they group offered the chocolates to passersby and asked if they'd heard about the EU's controversial decision. Surprisingly, many of the tasters said they had not heard about the decision to label so-called "settlement" products. "If we chanced upon those who'd heard about the decision, we were embraced with a hug and passionate support," said Lev HaOlam chairman Nati...

McDonalds is testing a spin on it's classic French fries, drizzling them with chocolate and calling them McChoco Potato. You can have your fries with two types of chocolate sauces: chocolate with cacao flavor and white milk chocolate. McDonald's hopes this combination will give customers a salty and sweet harmonious taste, so the customer can eat them as a side to a burger, or as a dessert.

"Harry, I'm going to let you in on a little secret: every day, once a day, give yourself a present. Don't plan it; don't wait for it; just let it happen. It could be a new shirt in a men's store, a catnap in your office chair, or two cups of good, hot, black, coffee." Never thought I'd say this but after decades of having a little coffee with my cream and sugar, I started drinking my coffee black as midnight on a new moon. This was no gradual transition. I did it cold turkey and on the spur...

Two brothers behind a popular brand of craft chocolate have apologized for 'misleading' customers after they were accused of 'defrauding the public' by allegedly covering-up how some of their bars used to be made. Rick and Michael Mast, who both sport impressive beards, launched Mast Brothers chocolate in New York in 2007. Their range, which costs up to $23 (£16) a bar, is now on sale at flagship stores in Brooklyn, New York, and London's trendy east end.

Via the IJR, a timewaster while we wait for John Kerry to secure peace in our time in Vienna, the terms of which are reportedly shaping up exactly as you’d expect. This clip is interesting (assuming the interactions are genuine, which I think they are) but not for the reason intended. You’re supposed to conclude, I guess, that Americans are abject morons in assessing the value of precious metals and/or that Americans are big fat fatties in preferring a quick hit of chocolate to something inedible that’s worth much more. I don’t think it proves either. Many people are morons,...

Here's a sweet notion: Eat a little chocolate each day and you could be doing your heart a favor. A new study published in the journal Heart found that habitual chocolate eaters had a lower risk of cardiovascular disease and strokes compared to people who didn't eat chocolate. So, what is it about chocolate that could possibly lead to such a benefit? Well, when you strip out the sugar and milk that's added to chocolate, you're left with the cocoa bean. And it's the compounds in the cocoa that researchers are most interested in. The study is part of a...

“Slim by Chocolate!” the headlines blared. A team of German researchers had found that people on a low-carb diet lost weight 10 percent faster if they ate a chocolate bar every day. It made the front page of Bild, Europe’s largest daily newspaper, just beneath their update about the Germanwings crash. From there, it ricocheted around the internet and beyond, making news in more than 20 countries and half a dozen languages. It was discussed on television news shows. It appeared in glossy print, most recently in the June issue of Shape magazine (“Why You Must Eat Chocolate Daily”, page...

A man charged with second-degree murder in the beating death of a Terrytown woman smeared feces on his face Thursday morning during a status hearing in 24th Judicial District Court in Gretna. Bryan Schwartz, 27, of Henderson, Kentucky, apparently got a handful of his own feces while in court just before 10 a.m. and began rubbing it on his face. One person said he could be heard at one point saying, “Life is like a box of chocolates,” a line from the movie “Forrest Gump.”

If you feel like it is impossible to put certain foods down, there could be a reason. A new report is naming some of the most addictive foods and explaining why they are so hard to resist. According to the Huffington Post, the following foods are among the most addictive: pizza, chocolate, chips, cookies, and ice cream. The report shows foods that cause the most mental distress and physical discomfort are highly processed, as well as high in added fats and sugars. Food is not currently classified as an addiction, but experts say it can impact how you feel.

Walk into a store and you’ll see piles of red and pink in the Clearance box. Everything from heart-shaped cards and boxes of chocolate candy to plastic flowers and teddy bears clutching plush red hearts will be 50 percent off because Valentine’s Day comes but once a year. And Valentine’s Day is over.