Tasteful Bites

I started working outside the home and that's why you haven't seen as much of me lately. Funny thing cuz a few weeks ago I was working w/ a girl and she had only known me for 2 days. She turned to me and said, "One thing I've learned about you is that you love to eat!" Did she peg me or what? ~wink~ One of my fave things to eat is ChOcOlAtE! So when I was asked to review some tasties from Tasteful Bites you know what my response was!

Yvonne Janowski is the Cake Goddess behind Tasteful Bites. She makes Cake Truffles and Cake Pops in assorted flavors. This is the inspiration behind Tasteful Bites:
"I grew up in Houston Texas, went to college there studying art and art history. When I graduated I went to live in Paris, where I studied fashion design and got into fashion photography. I also learned to appreciate food and where it comes from.
I came back to the US to further my career in photography and worked as a freelance fashion photographer in NYC, where I met my husband. We moved to London for his career and well long story short- I was pregnant. I became a stay at home mom for the next 9 years or so. Really having the itch to do something fulfilling outside of the house , but I had to wait until the kids grew up a bit. While they were young it was really important to me that I be there to guide and nurture them. We moved back to the states after about 10 years in London and I decided to go to culinary school and pursue my passion for delicious, healthy food. After graduating, I started my own personal chef business, but found the hours it entailed were not the best for my family. I tried to figure out something I could do for my own fulfillment, yet still be there for my family's needs. I happened upon cake pops and truffles purely by accident. I was trying to find something fun for Andrew's birthday and saw the Bakerella site. Cake pops looked so fun and less messy than cupcakes, so I decided to try them. The only thing that really bothered me was that the recipes called for boxed cake mix and canned frosting. Just the thought of all these processed sugars and chemicals really turned my stomach, so I decided to make my own cake from scratch and my own Italian buttercream, then follow her directions for assembly. They turned out so delicious and everyone was telling me I should make these for grownups to as they were not a sweet, so I decided to give it a try. I went through alot of trial and error finding the right suppliers, since I try and source everything local and organic. The presence of red food coloring for the red velvet cake really bothered me, so I had to develop a natural way to get the color, but not use the food coloring. I really want to deliver a product that not only looks elegant, but tastes incredible and have people know that they are eating only the most pure and natural ingredients as god intended. That is why each cake pop is made by hand with no added chemicals. "Respect the food"

Here are the flavors I received to try:

Death by chocolate - if you are going to go this is the way to do it! Chocolate cake blended with chocolate ganache, enrobed in dark chocolate and garnished with milk chocolate vermicelli.

Salty dawg - perfect balance of sweet and salty. Vanilla cake blended with caramel buttercream, enrobed in milk chocolate and garnished with sea salt.

Midnight soiree - sophisticated and elegant. Chocolate cake blended with chocolate orange ganache, enrobed in dark chocolate and garnished with candied orange peel and gold sugar.

24 Carrot - chunks of real carrots and raisins. Carrot cake blended with cream cheese frosting, enrobed in white chocolate and garnished with gold and orange sugar.

What I like about these cake pops:

1. I was impressed that they all arrived in great shape! Not crushed or melted in any way!!

2. Packing is cute and simple tied w/ a pretty ribbon around each pop and labeled w/ a sticker to tell you the flavor.

3. Gorgeous and fun! I have always loved the look of the cake pops!!

4. Not too sweet. Actually, the Salty Dawg was one of my faves. A cool combo of salty and chocolate.

I LOVE that Yvonne strives to use only pure and natural ingredients. So rare, especially in sweets!

What I didnt' like:

1. I like things super sweet & rich. These are not too sweet, so if that's your preference, then these babies are sure to satisfy!

Want It? Click here to visit Tasteful Bites. Yvonne is generously offering this "sweet deal" to Gift Closet readers: With every dozen you buy- she will include 3 extra in assorted flavors for you to try! Enjoy!