I got sent this heart of 625g of Thorntons Valentine’s chocolates specifically to give away and so I shall.  But here was the problem – how do I give it away in a fair way without automated entries getting in the way of genuine people who genuinely read the blog and the Facebook page getting a fair chance so here is what I’ll do:

Post a poem in the comments to enter. It has to be a unique poem and as such I will not approve any comments until the competition is over. I will accept any form of poetry but I will be judging on originality so I will be checking to see if it is original. It should be about love since these are Valentine’s Day chocolates.

What about the chocolates? Well, the Thorntons site says: “Say ‘I love you’ with this beautiful chocolate gift. Hand-selected by our Master Chocolatier, this pretty chocolate gift box features only the finest luxury chocolates from our favourite Continental, Milan and Paris chocolate ranges. This stunning gift box is filled with 50 of the most popular Thorntons Continental chocolates, including scrumptious pralines, yummy chocolate truffles and delicious mousses covered in milk, white and dark chocolate.” YUM.

But since it is Valentine’s Day I will also give away some lovely Green & Blacks bars as a second prize!

To enter:
1)    Leave an original poem in the comments for me to judge
2)    Share this post on Facebook by clicking “share” on the wall post about this blog post on the MostlyAboutChocolate Facebook page (I’m not asking for “likes” as I understand that is frowned upon by Facebook – just share this specific blog post)

The rules:
1.Random.org will be used to determine if Facebook (1) or blog comments (2) will be chosen from to win the Thorntons chocolates. Once the Thorntons chocolates have been awarded, the Green & Blacks bars will be.
2.The competition will finish at noon GMT on Monday 13th February 2012.
3.The selection of winner will be based on originality of poem for blog comments, and by using random.org for Facebook shares.
4.Only available to UK mainland addresses.
5.No cash alternative available.
6.I reserve the right to exclude entries that I feel are inappropriate or not in the spirit of the competition. No pornographic poems please.
7.Your details won’t be passed onto anyone else and will not be kept in any way.
8.I reserve the right to remove entries that I believe aren’t human created or are an attempt to gain an unfair advantage such as automated entries.
Thanks to Loquax for the guidance on competitions!

Tis the season to get baking and there’s no better way to get baking than with Dr Oetker. If you remember, husband preferred the Dr Oetker brownies and your family may as well so why not find out by entering to win these yummy goodies from the lovely folk at Dr Oetker!

I have to admit, I’ve started buying Dr Oetker to havein the house. A bit of oil, an egg, etc. and voila you have chocolate chunk cookies or chocolate chunk brownies or cake or more. It is just a whole lot of awesomeness in a box or a bag and in this lovely box of bountiful goodness is your key to holiday success.

Besides the great brownies I’ve already made and the white chocolate chunk brownies, you’ll also get some awesome goodies – chocolate and fudge chunks to use in cookies or on cakes or in cupcakes, some amazing sprinkles and mini marshmallows and chocolate beans plus some easy cupcake icing.

This is *EXACTLY* what you’ll need for the holidays and Dr Oetker are bringing it your way in a lovely hamper of baking goodness.  In fact, I’m so jealous I’m going to buy some cookie mix and make myself some cookies! You’ll get everything you see in the image and let me tell you it is a whole lot of awesomeness.  Why not try the earl grey tea cupcakes or the toblerone shortbread with the goodies you have? How about even more brownies or maybe chocolate cupcakes.

Whatever you try, make sure you pick up your extra baking supplies from the supermarket and take it from someone who has both been given and bought Dr Oetker baking supplies – they are a name I trust along with Betty Crocker

How to WIN these awesome goodies! You can enter one of 3 ways:
Leave a comment with your favourite recipe on this blog and why you like it (you don’t have to leave the whole thing)
Tweet “I’m baking with Dr Oetker and @mostlyaboutchoc this holiday & you could too – check out http://bit.ly/s3LNQY”
Comment on this post on Mostly About Chocolate on Facebook and tell me about a baking disaster you want to avoid by using these Dr Oetker goodies!

I will use Random.org to choose between these 3 entry methods then I will use Random.org to select the winner.
GOOD LUCK EVERYONE!

And to the rules:

1.Only one entry per method per household.
2.The competition closes on 15th December 2011 at 12 noon.
3.Only open to those 14 or over on 5th December 2011.
4.I’ll choose 1 winner randomly
5.Only available to UK addresses.
6.No cash alternative available.
7.Your details won’t be passed onto anyone else except the Dr Oetker folk who will be sending you the prize!

Right – I have a MASS of Green and Blacks delicious chocolate to give away.  I know I gave away their brand new flavours earlier this week but today I’m giving away a mass of amazing chocolate – YUM! Not in a basket or box or anything but it might as well be a hamper for the huge amount you’ll be getting

There is an element of skill in this competition.  No simple entry.  I want to know you actually know what contest you entered when I email you as the winner and no longer get people asking what it is they won when the name of the blog is even in the email.  I want this massive prize to go to a reader who cares   The prize is awesome and worth at least £40 (I believe) and I don’t expect many entries because this requires effort

What you’ll be putting some effort in to win is the following:

One box of The Tasting Collection: For foodies everywhere, giving the new Tasting Collection will be a gift that creates the centre piece of any dinner party. The kit contains a mix of twelve miniature bars of Green & Black’s signature flavours, as well as tasting note cards featuring interesting facts, recipe suggestions and flavour combination ideas.  The kit also includes a map showing the origins of the bars’ different organic ingredients, allowing you to taste your way ‘Around the World’ from the comfort of your home.

One of each box -  a Mint and a Mixed: An equally perfect present for any social occasion, especially a party or group event, is the ‘Conversations’ collection.  Available in either Mint flavour or a selection of Milk, White, Dark and Butterscotch, each box contains individually wrapped Green & Black’s organic chocolates with fun, conversation-sparking questions printed on each wrapper.  It’s the perfect ice breaker and party staple for entertaining your guests.

One box of Ultimate Collection:  For true Green & Black’s aficionados or chocolate lovers who think they have tried it all, the Ultimate Collection is a must-buy gift.  Open the box to discover a mouth-watering puzzle of Green & Black’s bars in a variety of sizes and flavours, with favourites such as Butterscotch, Milk, Cherry and Dark 70% alongside the exclusive new Dark Hazelnut flavour, only available in miniature.

The competition is this: What new flavour bar would you invest for Green & Blacks and WHY?  I want to know what type of chocolate you’d use (milk, creamy milk, dark, Maya Gold flavour, darker shade of milk, 70%, 85%, or what?), the added element you’d include (spices, fruits, nuts, insanity, or what?) and why you think that flavour would work.

Since this requires some thinking and lots of writing and since your recipes will be judged on the basis of the bar you have created, the winner will be drawn on December 5th. You can post your recipe here or on Facebook and I will gather all entries (which you can also mail directly through to me using the “contact me” button) and they will be judged by myself and probably another chocolate expert and the winner will be the person who creates something unique, different but also palatable and you would want to see in the shops as a new G&B flavour.

Jo McGawley has WON!

Good luck everyone and I can’t wait to see your flavour creations!
Da rules:

1.You must be subscribed to the blog to win.

2.Only one entry per household.
3.The competition closes on 5th December 2011 at 12 noon.
4.Only open to those 14 or over on 25th November 2011.
5.I’ll choose 1 winner based on the thoughtfulness, completeness and liklihood that the bar and flavours would work
6.Only available to UK addresses.
7.No cash alternative available.
8.Your details won’t be passed onto anyone else

Ever fancied being a Chocolatier? You know I wish I could be but instead of going on this most super fantastic thing I’m giving it away.  I’m doing it now while I’m still on a chocolate high from my Paris trip (or I’m assuming I am – I pre-scheduled this blog post)

So you’re totally going to get the chance at mucking about in some chocolate with the awesome folk at Green & Blacks and I’m TOTALLY envious of you.  The lovely gift experiences folk at Wish.co.uk have generously donated this prize to the Mostly About Chocolate blog for you to enjoy!  I’m so jealous of whoever wins and I’ve included a bit more about Wish.co.uk below if you’d like to buy yourself (or someone you love who blogs… maybe… you know…) a treat.

This is a package worth £55 meaning it is one heck of a prize.  I totally envy whoever wins!

You are going to get to do some awesome things like:
* Learn to make and decorate chocolate, truffles and praline with Green and Black’s experts.

You’ll get to do it in some awesome locations like:
* London, Manchester or Brighton

On the plus side the workshops run on selected weekends and weekday evenings so you won’t have to take time off work and the maximum group size is 22 people.

You’ll need to set aside about 2.5 hours of your life and I’m afraid you do have to be over 14 years old but otherwise this competition is open to anyone.

Oh my oh my – you’ve got an amazing gift experience here from wish.co.uk – it looks as though not only will you learn all about the making of chocolate, tempering, moulding, etc but you’ll also get the chance to create your very own chocolate bar or enormous chocolate button!  Oh I’m starting to swoon!  Not only this but you’ll get a chance to learn al about making your own truffles.,  Good grief!  Chocolate, chocolate, chocolate and all YOURS!

Now I’m getting jealous – on the day you select to participate in your prize, you’ll be met by a chocolatier who will introduce you to the totally cool and kitchy London kitchen (if that’s where you go – I’m obviously visualising myself in here) where the workshop is going to happen.  If you’ve chosen a more northern or southern location, you’ll actually be in a hotel room (for cooking – not sleeping!).  You’ll get to make your own chocolate bar, create flavours in chocolate, use popping candy in your chocolate if you wish and at the end of it all you’ll get a special personalised wrapper for your chocolate bar creation.

You’ll also make a whole slew of truffles.  I was on another chocolate course once as a gift and I did get to make so many truffles I had to share.  I know – shocking but true – I shared chocolate.  This is made even more fun by there being a bit of a competition at the end and you will even get to take your creations home with you in ribbon-tied bags, along with the recipes, so there is plenty to share with family and friends when you get home! Or scoff it all yourself.

JOY!

If you’re looking for the ultimate place to shop for experience days, then http://Wish.co.uk is the place to go! Offering everything from driving experiences and flying days to relaxing spa days, Wish has something for all ages and budgets. Each order also comes with free delivery.

So whether you’re looking for a unique gift, a treat for yourself or even a fun team-building day for your place of work, Wish will definitely have an experience that fits the bill!

To Enter the competition, you much be subscribed to the blog and simply answer the following question using the form below:

In what city is the kitchy kitchen located?

ENTRIES CLOSED – Congrats to Julia Rhead!!

1.You must be subscribed to the blog to win.

2.Only one entry per household.
3.The competition closes on 8th November 2011 at 12 noon.
4.Only open to those 14 or over on 25th October 2011.
5.I’ll choose 1 lucky winner at random from the right answers
6.Only available to UK addresses.
7.No cash alternative available.
8.Your details won’t be passed onto anyone else, unless you’re the winner and then I’ll send it to Wish.co.uk’s representatives.

I’m always unsure when I buy a ton of crap errrr… chocolate… whether I should review themes in a single blog post or multiple. I was tempted to break this up but I’ve decided to keep it as a single due to the recent events in my offline life.

Milk & Crisp Chocolate Eggs – small just like you remember them from your Easter egg hunting days, these are the perfect size to hide around *and* they have the added benefit of being pretty much solid (as you can see by my awful hack job on cutting them). This means accidental squishes do not result in leakages and that’s a plus for me on the egg hunt as who really watches where they are running? I still don’t… Anyway, these are solid and so you’re in for a chew and it has the typical Ghirardelli chocolate which is better than Nestle so really, every reason to buy some!
 

Milk & Peanut Butter – my years in the UK mean I am often chocolate and peanut butter bereft. I know, I can accidentally smash into someone eating peanut butter while eating chocolate and decry “hey, you got peanut butter all over my chocolate” but this is way easier. The filling isn’t quite solid but it isn’t too squidgy as you can see by the generous chocolate shell and the peanut butter is lovely and delicious with a proper peanut butter flavour and not one of oil and sugar. All in all, I love that they got some chocolate in my peanut butter
 

Milk & Caramel – I was possibly most critical of this in my own mind because of my love for this taste combination. I think the chocolate is lovely and the caramel is mellower than I would have expected with a molasses flavour that comes through and is nicely balanced with the chocolate. It isn’t top end but it is lovely and mine… or is it?

I’ve got an extra bag of these little darlings to give away so if you’d like to win one, just leave a comment about your fondest Easter egg hunt memory. I love hearing about all your adventures and I just love reading through the comments during a competition when I get to hear all about your adventures.

Entry is free, I’ll draw a random winner April 15th, UK only, you can enter with an Easter memory comment in Facebook and/or the blog here and/or you can tweet “Easter memories of chocolate eggs are sweeter right now at the Mostly About Chocolate Blog http://bit.ly/mac-easter” so there are 3 ways to enter for a total of 3 entries per person. Random.org will be used to choose the winner. My decision final. No substitutions. It’s a blog, not a company, yadda yadda yadda.

YAY! Joanne B Has WON the eggs! These aren’t available here yet but I’ll be giving away Soma chocolate soon!

Ooooo – crobinsonayres has won! Check this lovely chocolate blog for more competitions later…

Holy cow – how is it that I’m giving these away?  I’m pretty sure I should just keep these beauties for myself *especially* since I’m starving as I’m writing this and the location where I’m at is lacking in chocolate… oh wait! I have some in my handbag… *nomnomnom*

Oh wait… ya, so for THIS COMPETITION you *MUST* be on the mailing list to win.  What does that mean?  It means that once a day, sometimes even at weekends, you get an automatic email from the system which contains the blogpost.  That’s it.  No blog post, no email (sorry).  No ads, no spam, no nothing else. So… what do you have to do to win I hear you ask?

SUBSCRIBE TO THE MAILING LIST TO WIN!  Here ya go:

You want to let the world know you have entered this somewhat exclusive competition?  Want an extra chance to win (you do have to be on the mailing list though)? Well, tweet “RT @mostlyaboutchoc We’re giving away over a KILO of @greenandblacks CHOCOLATE! To enter, check here: http://bit.ly/ftM6Gk ”

That’s it.  Already on the mailing list? A tweet gets you one extra entry. But wait – you don’t tweet? OK… Post something about the competition to your profile as a status update and tag Mostly About Chocolate in it.  How? You need to “like” the page then when typing your status update type “@mostly” and you should see a drop down lost with our page.  Select that and voila – that tags us! Maybe something like “I’ve entered the Mostly About Chocolate chocolate competition!”.

Wait… you don’t facebook or tweet but you do blog?  OK… uuuummmm…. maybe a blog post about your favourite chocolate, chocolate producing region, chocolate memory – I dunno, something to do with chocolate and in the blog post, mention the competition and link back to us.  You might need to email me to let me know you’ve done it though (decabbit –at- hotmail dotco dotuk).

Is that OK?  Have I covered everything off?  I think so… I mean… Livejournal is free so that’s a blog platform (as is wordpress I think) and twitter is free and facebook is free so it’s totally free to enter!

Rules?  I guess UK residential addresses only please as 1.5kgs of chocolate is going to cost a small fortune to post.  My decision is final. You get one extra entry per social media outlet only so 20 blog posts doesn’t mean 20 entries… just 1 but a blog post and a Facebook means 2. Please don’t spam. You *must* be on the mailing list to win. Contest closes at 2pm Sunday January 16, 2011. Void where prohibited. Do not taunt happy fun ball.

I’ve been down the shops and LOOK at what I found to give away!  HALF A KILO OF CHOCOLATE!  Well, there’s nothing like a STACK of Thorntons chocolate to delight and warm and make you want to share.

Funnily enough, that’s just what I did with my large box of Thorntons Classic flavours – I shared it.  Yep – I shared chocolate and I’m going to be sharing even more with you all and I’ll be starting with this hamper of milk chocolate!

To WIN this hamper, leave a comment of a new years resolution, leave a facebook comment of a new years resolution or tweet “My New Year’s Resolution is to read the @mostlyaboutchoc blog more http://bit.ly/hFyW1I ” and I’ll draw a random winner on Sunday!

Once this hamper is gone, I’ll be starting a different contest each week for people following me on different systems.  For example, I’ll be giving away the ENTIRE Green and Blacks range of 15 chocolate bars – 1.5 KILOS of CHOCOLATE – to someone who is on the mailing list.  Not on it yet?  Just sign up here before the contest:

I’ll also be giving away a rare Chuao bar, some crazy flavours and more to people following on YouTube, Facebook and Twitter.  Just make sure you’re following the blog there and you’ll get the details to win!  The mailing list is keyed to the blog so that’s all you’ll get there (no spam), Facebook I’m a little more chatty on, Twitter I’m very chatty on and YouTube I’m pretty silent on so you can pick your level of chattiness and the chocolate you want to win!

WINNER!!!  @kohsamuirosie from Twitter has WON the chocolate!

Well, it’s a bit late to get these in time for Christmas but in honour of Christmas and to celebrate the upcoming ONE HUNDREDTH YEAR ANNIVERSARY of Thorntons, I’m giving away this lush, lovely box of 350g of dark, milk and white chocolates! This box of Thorntons Continentals is full of lovely chocolate promise.

According to their site, it is worth it!  This box has two layers of luxury chocolates that’ll put a smile on the face of any chocoholic (or really anyone for that matter).  Full of dark, white and milk chocolate truffles, pralines and mousses and with Swiss, Belgian, Spanish, Italian and French influences, this perfect chocolate gift has something for everyone inside.

There are some exciting things coming up from Thorntons for 2011 and so let’s start the centenary off right with some Thorntons chocolates

TO WIN these chocolates, leave a comment below about your fondest Christmas memory, and/or leave a comment on Facebook letting us know about the best Christmas gift you got and/or follow and tweet “I’d like to win this box of Continentals http://bit.ly/feyVqj  from @mostlyaboutchoc” and I’ll draw someone out of the hat on Boxing Day!

WAHEY! ***WINNER*** Jo – jochrisbryan has WON!

Today I decided to just give away chocolate instead of review and give away chocolate.  This means I can select a few random chocolates and send them off to people.

So this week, in honour of the impending week of Thorntons (or so it seems from the list of Thorntons chocolates and cookies I have to review) I am giving away a few blocks of Thorntons chocolates.

Now, you may have read the review I did of the Apricot chocolate block and the Banana chocolate block.  Both quite different and weird but will appeal to a lot of people.  Well guess what?  Yep – that’s right!  I’m giving TWO pairs of these away.  Yes, that’s right, one apricot and one banana bar will be sent off to two lucky winners!

To enter: just leave a comment here about your first or best Thorntons chocolate memory.  You can get an extra entry by also leaving a comment about what you like best about Thorntons on this post on Facebook.  For three entries, just tweet about this contest on Twitter by RTing my tweet!

Winners will be chosen at random and this is for folk in the UK only (postage is expensive). I’ll choose the winners on Sunday.  My decision is final. Blah blah blah

***WINNERS!*** Jools Brum (faceboo) and Jay/cheekydaze (comments) have both WON! YAY!

Galia Orme of Choc Chick Kits was introduced to me through a mutual friend.  I tried her initial kit which had the same lovely ingredients but with agave syrup and I just couldn’t make it work for me.  I kept in touch and to my delight and pleasure she switched sweeteners from agave to fruit sugar.

Now, the thing you *need* to know about Choc Chick Kits is that this is all about making healthier chocolate yourself.  No artificial anything in this chocolate – just the goodness you put in.  What also makes this the perfect kit is that everything bar the mould in there and since the mould can be a takeaway dish it gave me the perfect excuse to order another byriani from my local.

The chocolate is really easy to make.  As with all chocolate, you do have to have a pot of water simmering and a mixing bowl but these are in almost every kitchen (well, perhaps not the actual simmering water – I’m guessing that isn’t in every kitchen to hand all the time).  You break the cocoa butter up a bit, add the right amount of powder and fruit syrup and mix and melt.  Then once it has combined, simply pour it in an ice cube tray (not recommended by me who struggled to get them out) or a tub of some kind (*Tip* line with cling film to help with extraction) and voila! You have made your own raw chocolate.

Galia makes it better than I ever could.  This is raw chocolate and so not a personal favourite but I do appreciate the way you can do anything you want with it.  I think the fact you can make truffles and bars and whatnot will appeal greatly to families and anyone trying to remove all the bad stuff from their diets.

***FREEBIE FRIDAY*** Thanks to the lovely Galia from Choc Chick I’m giving away one Chock Chick Starter Kit! Just leave a comment here and/or on Facebook letting me know what you’d add to your raw chocolate bar and/or tweet “I’d love to bag this great Choc Chick Kit from @mostlyaboutchoc and @goChocChick http://bit.ly/eEBgP7” & I’ll choose the winner Sunday.

+++ WINNER+++ Kavey wins the Choc Chick Kit!