Originally published on Green Man Review!

I’m iffy on Stevia. On the one hand, it’s a plant-based sweetener that’s super low calorie, so it’s a great swap for the chemical packets I typically put in my latte. On the other hand, it’s got a weird aftertaste that grosses me out whenever I overdo it. But Lily’s seems to have a knack with getting that perfect proportion of sweetness without aftertaste with these Stevia-sweetened cups. Pair that with Fair Trade and non-GMO ingredients, and this is about as guilt-free as you can get when you’re digging into a cheat day treat. Or an “I deserve this” treat. Or a “screw it I’m doing this” treat. You get the idea.

Full disclosure; I’m a huge fan of high-octane level dark chocolate (the folks who’ve been around for a while now know this), so when I saw these at the store I was predisposed to like them. I liked them even more when I opened the packet and notice each cup was individually packaged. In today’s Keep Everything Even Cleaner Than You’d Normally Do pandemic world? That’s a nice bonus. Plus, it’s easy to grab a few and shove them into my bag for an on-the-go treat. The individual packets are kind of tough to open, but I do concede that I’m an absolute klutz when it comes to opening candy packets. So it might just be a me thing that won’t affect you in the slightest.

Now, about the candy itself. The dark chocolate coating is thick, smooth, and was easy to sink my teeth into. The package says that they’ve made their peanut butter filling creamier, and though I have no comparison, I like that it straddles the fence between from-the-jar peanut butter and the crumbly filling you’d find in a Reese’s. But…there’s no gritty sugar, because there’s no sugar here at all. That gives this filling a satisfying feel on the tongue, and a peanut-forward taste. Though there’s a whole lot of dark chocolate in each cup, the peanut butter never gets overshadowed by it; the creamy, smooth dark chocolate (said smoothness no doubt helped along by palm and coconut oil) has just the right amount of dark cacao flavor that plays well with the filling. 

What really surprised me about these cups was the fiber content. Each serving (two pieces) has a whopping seven grams of fiber. Normally there’s little to no fiber in candy, as sugar takes center stage and is typically lacking in the fiber department. Now I’m not saying you can substitute your breakfast cereal for a package of peanut butter cups, though I know I’m not the boss of you….but it’s nice to know that even when I was pigging out on candy (#RESEARCH) that I was getting a small bit of healthy living along with each bite. (Each serving also has a Daily Value of 10% iron, and a whiff of potassium and calcium.) 

I’d say these are great to snack on by themselves, and the fiber content will leave you pleasantly full after a few pieces, making portion control a whole lot easier. Pair these with any beverage you like, though I’d probably steer clear of chocolate-based drinks in order to let these candies shine. As the chocolate and peanut butter are rather filling, I went with hot green tea to wash it all down, and that made for a satisfying tea time treat.