Nooooooothing compares, nothing compares to you...

I'm talking about chocolate!  Sweet, sometimes bitter, smooth, plain or filled with surprises, glorious chocolate.  After an absolutely dynamite office lunch from Coca Cafe (I recommend the ham and brie on pretzel bread) yesterday courtesy of the bosses, almost everyone enjoyed a brownie for dessert.  Me?  Not so much.  Instead, I wrapped one up to take home and store until Saturday.  I was so proud of myself for resisting temptation!  A pat on the back was deserved before I returned to work. 

As the rest of the day went on, all I could think about was having a little morsel of something sweet.  Anything.  Maybe a few grapes would quell the craving.  (Spoiler alert: They did not.)  Drank an extra glass of water thinking maybe I could trick my brain into thinking I was simply thirsty and no longer needed sugar.  A grueling sweaty workout would surely distract me long enough to send me home craving real foods.  I just had to make a quick stop at CVS to pick up Ziploc bags... and I came away with all of this:

In the mix, we have:

• Special K Sour Cream & Onion Cracker Chips.  I'm not usually a fan of healthy junk food, but they were on sale and I had an intense hankering for sour cream and onion flavor... and they were on sale for $1.99 per box.  Surprisingly, these are AWESOME!  27 chips = 110 calories, and the chips are big, have great flavor, and are super crunchy.  Honestly, I portioned out 27 and ended up putting a few back... it's quite a serving!  I'd give them a 9/10.
• Planter's Honey Roasted Peanuts.  Crunchy, sweet and salty all at the same time.  Heaven, I tell you!  9/10.  This was the star of the CVS haul since it turned out to be exactly what I (didn't know I) wanted.
• Baked Lay's Chips.  My second favorite chip (behind only Sun Chips)... not quite sure why I bought these since I only had a few, but they'll come in handy during stressful hockey games.  Only a 6/10 because this was totally an afterthought to the other two.
• Homemade white bean dip... look for that recipe tomorrow!

I guess that's what happens when one refuses to keep snacks in one's pantry for emergencies like these.  Oops.  For those of you who can satisfy your chocolate 911 desire for chocolate without self-induced guilt, you will absolutely adore these chocolate mice.  (There are penguins, too!)  These would make a great Easter or Mother's Day gift.  Aren't they so sweet? :)

 [available here]

What's your favorite pick-me-up snack?  Something to give you a little burst of energy or satisfy you when the main meal hasn't done enough.  For me, it's definitely nuts and cheese, high in protein... almonds, peanut, or string cheese.  Yum!

One Year Ago: From scratch "box" brownies (aka the best brownies ever)