Two to Try: Recchiuti Chocolates and 479° Popcorn

Now that bathing suit season is officially over, let’s ditch the rice cakes and carrot sticks for some decidedly more decadent and delicous treats. Namely, it’s time to try Recchiuti Chocolates and 479° Popcorn.

Recchiuti Chocolates I have long been a fan of this San Francisco-based chocolate company. Their peanut butter pucks are among my most favorite chocolates on the planet. However, I just got to try Recchiuti’s delicious and unique pairing kits. Basically, whatever poison you pick, the company has a chocolate-pairing kit to go along with it: Beer, red wine, spirits and whiskey. Each specially selected box of chocolates has tasting notes and pairing suggestions. For example, the salt from the fleur de sel caramel pulls out the vanilla notes in a Bourbon. And the dark chocolate ganache with Kona coffee mellows outs a Scotch whiskey. All the pairing kits are $25. www.recchiuti.com.

479° Popcorn Butter just doesn’t cut it anymore when it comes to popcorn. The organic line offered by 479° Popcorn includes flavors that span far beyond cheddar or caramel. (The company’s name came to be, by the way, because 479 degrees Fahrenheit is the optimal temperature for popping corn.) Among the unique flavors of 479° Popcorn are black truffle and white cheddar, curry coconut and cashews, ginger-sesame caramel and Vietnamese cinnamon sugar. Each delicious option–some spicy, some sweet–are made is small batches with spices that were ground by hand. I recommend getting your hands on a popcorn sampler (the Sweet Tooth collection, $35, is a fave) to try several of 479° Popcorn’s flavors. Plus, I adore the sleek design of the boxes and logo. www.479popcorn.com.