Alma Chocolate
140 NE 28th Ave – Portland
$1
Alma Chocolate, a tiny shop in Northeast Portland, is known mainly for their signature (edible) gold leaf-painted molded chocolate icons, bon bons, barks, toffees and cocoa-dusted candied nuts. The array of unexpected confections, all made from one deep, dark single-origin chocolate or another, is stunning. But what I want to tell you about is the shop’s more off-the-radar (at least to me) bakery items.
I seem to forget about Alma as a bakery, per se, but the fact is that they are kickin’ out some of Portland’s better cookies, brownies and cake. And this, natch, is what I want to tell you about – a cookie.
This one:
This is a very simple and honest chocolate coconut macaroon – made, I can only assume, from the same top-shelf chocolate as the above-mentioned delights. What I mean to say is: this is not the Manischewitz macaroon that your grandmother so thoughtfully plucked from the kosher aisle at Albertson’s and arranged artfully on a platter around the Passover sponge cake – to be served at your seder table . Not by a long shot.
Relatively small in size, soft and chewy (yet not sticky), the diminutive coconut hunk packs easily 3 times the flavor wallop as any chocolate macaroon I have ever met. A little goes a long way, making the $1 price tag a more-than-fair price.
P.S. if you are one of those who moan about the “weird, cuticle-like texture” of sweet, delicious shredded coconut (and are actually still reading this post), Alma’s chocolate chip cookies and espresso brownies will shut you right up. Check ’em out.
I haven’t tried these–next time. But here’s a vote for those espresso shortbread. Or any of the shortbread. Oh…and the ice cream. But that’s off-topic.
Alma has ice cream… what?! When are we going?
Giovanna: I’ll try the shortbread next time. Thanks for the tip. As if I was afraid it wouldn’t be great.
Jenny: Yes. I noticed the ice cream the last time I was there, but I was on bike – on my way to your house – toting cake and cookies. So ice cream didn’t make the cut. Let’s go this week! Giovanna, you in?