ZIMT RAW CHOCOLATE IS AMAZING

Vancouverite Emma Smith first started selling chocolate out of a barn.

Now, the self-taught chocolatier's raw, vegan, coconut-sugar-sweetened fair-trade treats are carried at many local health-minded local retailers (Whole Foods, Sprout Organics, Drive Organics) as well as online. Smith's product line, Zimt, which means "cinnamon" in German, her native tongue, features wholesome incarnations of indulgences like chocolate bars, truffles, super-dense and fudgey coconut brownies and even little "cookie dough" cups in flavours like triple chocolate and aztec spice perfect for digging into while sweatpant-clad on the sofa catching up on Netflix. She's even got a blog stocked with recipes on how to whip up raw vegan caramel banana cream pie and avocado mousse bites.

Forget carrot sticks and sashimi; chocolate's our new favourite raw snack. —Adrienne Matei

www.zimtchocolates.com