Today I'll be discussing two Czech foods--wholegrain chocolate rice squares and wholegrain rice checkers (mini rice cakes covered in chocolate). I wasn't really sure what to call these, as the rice part would typically indicate a snack, while the chocolate part suggests a dessert type concoction. Hence the title. Both of these came from the sublime Wegman's supermarket once again.
Both of these products were made by Paskesz. Paskesz bills itself as the "premier brand in the kosher food market," and I for one can't dispute this. A look at their product line on their website showed cookies, crackers, pasta, snacks, cereals, chocolate, gum, canned veggies (mostly cucumbers, olives, and peppers), and, oddly, candles. They also are licensed to distribute some other major companies' products, such as Pez candy, Orbit gum, and Haribo candy (see May 18, 2015 post for more on Haribo). The company history was a little peculiar in that it didn't give exact dates. So I can report that Paskesz originated in Mako, Hungary, in the early 20th century, and that it's been family owned and operated for over 60 years. Anshel Paskesz started a store that sold hard candy and citrus fruit, and the company took off from there. After surviving the horrors of the Holocaust Paskesz moved to the U.S. in 1954 and cornered the market on kosher cookies, and then kosher gum in the 1960's. While the company's corporate offices are located in Brooklyn, NY, the rice products I bought were made in the Czech Republic. (They also used authentic Belgian chocolate, to increase the whole scenario's cosmopolitanism.)
After seeing all that Paskesz manufactures, I was disappointed that the two foods I could locate were extremely similar to each other. But, I went with what I could. The rice squares were about 8 cm. (about 3 inches) on a side, and about .5 cm. (about .2 inches) thick, and had a chocolate coating on top. They tasted pretty much exactly like I expected. The rice cakes were bland, as are all rice cakes, in my opinion, but the addition of chocolate made it okay. Not great, but alright. I occasionally eat regular rice cakes, but they're always flavored (usually with cheese powder), or else I put a condiment on them (mustard, taco sauce, ketchup, etc.) to make them more palatable. These were kind of the same situation, only with chocolate instead of a savory type condiment. They were made from 55% dark chocolate, which surprised me when I read it after eating them. Normally I don't like dark chocolate much (see September 20, 2015 post for more detail on that) but the dark chocolate on these rice cakes was quite good.
The mini rice cake "checkers" were essentially the same thing as their rice square sibling. They were smaller and round--about 5 cm. in diameter (about 2 inches), but were once again a white rice cake with a chocolate coating, which this time was 50% dark chocolate. And yet again I liked them, but didn't love them. A rather "meh" reaction.
Therefore, to sum up, I don't think I'll buy these particular Paskesz products again, as I wasn't very dazzled by them. I would, though, try other Paskesz foods if/when I get the opportunity.
I'll end with a couple of tidbits about kosher foods. I grew up in a mostly Christian town, and the Jewish friends I've made since haven't been very strictly observant of their dietary laws. So much of this is a new concept for me. From what I read, there is a ban on flying animals that creep on the earth, with four exceptions--2 kinds of locust, grasshoppers, and beetles/crickets (the former is from an older translation of ancient writings, while the latter is a 19th century translation). Also, it is forbidden to eat hyraxes. These are the wonderfully weird and obscure Middle Eastern and African animals which appear to be rodents, but are actually most closely related to manatees and elephants. (Like their larger cousins, they have unusually-placed teats, and males lack a scrotum.) I don't think a lot of people, whatever their religious beliefs are, eat hyraxes much, but be that as it may.
No comments:
Post a Comment