Father’s Day 2010: Chocolate covered bacon and much more.

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Boxes of Chocolate Covered Bacon on Display.

Boxes of Chocolate Covered Bacon on Display.

Making the Chocolate Covered Bacon
Making the Chocolate Covered Bacon

Father’s Day falls on June 20th this year, and to celebrate Dad’s this year we are bringing back our very popular Chocolate Covered Bacon again. Once again we are using locally made Bacon, this year from the Sandy Lane team on the West End. The chocolate we use is the same Venezuela 49% Dark Milk chocolate that we use for our Fleur de Sel bar, and we even put a few grains of sea salt on the outside!

Just to make things interesting, we also have created some original confections to make Dad’s extra happy. As you can see in the photo on right, we have some Pina Colada White Chocolate Golf Balls, which pair very well with the bacon.

Bacon Brittle Peanut Butter Truffles

Bacon Brittle Peanut Butter Truffles covered in chopped peanuts.

Bacon Brittle Peanut Butter Cups

Bacon Brittle Peanut Butter Cups

We also wanted to try to incorporate Bacon in other ways this year, so we made Bacon Brittle, and then we created some cups and truffles that include Bacon Brittle Bits and Peanut Butter. What a combination! The Bacon Brittle paired very well with the Peanut Butter and the chocolate.

Finally, if your Dad wants to have something to nibble on while he watches the game, why not give him some of our new organic dark chocolate covered almonds make by Taza. They are delicious and healthy too. The chocolate covered bacon was really popular last year, so come in soon and don’t miss out!

Taza Organic Chocolate Covered Almonds

Taza Organic Chocolate Covered Almonds

Creating an ice cream sandwich

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I’ve been doing some tests with meringues to create an ice cream sandwich for the summer. I want to make something light and that’s why I chose a meringue based cookie as opposed to a chocolate chip cookie or an oatmeal cookie. In the first test I used pure melted chocolate which I folded into the meringue at the stiff peak stage. The taste was delicious but it looked bad and with all that expensive chocolate, the cost would be too high. I tried another one the other day and used cocoa powder this time but the meringue collapsed and it tasted super sweet. The search for the perfect meringue recipe continues.

In the meantime, Leva made a batch of gelato for us using the Valrhona Guanaja 80% we gave them. So good! The chocolate really added a certain depth that I’ve never tasted before in chocolate ice cream. Super chocolatey with a nice acidity and a long finish. Who would have thought that ice cream could have a long finish!

Is it possible to have chocolate without the sugar?

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Absolutely! Francois Pralus’s 100% sugar free chocolate has just arrived at our store – straight from France! According to the American Medical Association, “Today’s findings are interesting because they suggest it takes only a 6.3 gram serving of dark chocolate per day – only 30 calories worth – to lower blood pressure.” (That’s about a square a day.) So enjoy an intense and decadent chocolate experience – without the guilt!

Study for your own personal interest or for chocolate education:

http://www.ctv.ca/servlet/ArticleNews/story/CTVNews/20070704/dark_chocolate_070704/20070704/

“Chocoholics Beware” says Metro News. Amedei bars covered in the Tomato.

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Photo by Christopher Thrall for Metro Edmonton

Photo by Christopher Thrall for Metro Edmonton

Our local Edmonton daily free paper, Metro News, had an article in it today about Kerstin’s Chocolates. Writer Christopher Thrall said some very nice things! To quote: “It is amazing what a difference it makes to buy Kerstin’s over Cadbury.” and “The care and hand-picked ingredients add so much weight and power that gluttony seems gauche.” as well as “Pot of Gold just doesn’t cut it any more.”

Check out the full article on the Metro News website.

We were also mentioned in May/June issue of The Tomato in the Pantry Section. (the articles in The Tomato are online!). They wrote about the Amedei chocolates from Italy that we carry in the shop. If you haven’t tried the Amedei bars yet, you are missing out!

A return of a favorite flavour in the bark bouquets!

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We have introduced a flavour in our bark bouquets – just in time for the summer! We are featuring our Green Tea bark in our bark bouquets. In each individually wrapped bouquet includes our Green Tea bark, our very own Chai Crunch bark, and also our Dark chocolate bark with pistachios and dried cherries. Our bark bouquets are beautifully hand wrapped and make amazing gifts for any chocolate lover. Now you can have your tea, and eat it too!

Mendiants, Gianduja and Mushrooms

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We’ve been working on some new things in the Shop lately, so here’s a peek at some of our newest creations now out in the shop:

Packages of milk, white and dark Mendiants are now sitting pretty next to the Meltaways. Flavours are fleur de sel, vanilla bean and fruit and nut.

Outside of our Mothers’ Day collection, we also have two brand new truffles out – Pistachio Gianduja and Hazelnut Gianduja. These are rich and intense truffles, with the smoothness of the ganache provided by the ground nuts themselves.

Finally, we are now selling the Michel Cluizel nougat mushrooms in singles out of the truffle case, so you can purchase just one to munch on… or this entire plate.

Happy Mother’s Day to all those moms out there! Have a great weekend.

Mother’s Day News

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Are you still looking for a great gift that will show Mom how grateful you are for all of her efforts? Why not give her some very delicious and original chocolates that she will enjoy and appreciate.

Our Mother’s Day Ganache Collection includes five new ganaches that are guaranteed to inspire her senses. Here’s what we are offering:

Stimulate: Thyme and Honey (top photo)

Refresh: Mint and Lemon

Soothe: Thai Basil and Yuzu fruit

Relax : Lavender

Harmonize: Rose and Raspberry (bottom photo)

(The 8 piece box to the right is $12.)

We also have our ever popular Bark Bouquets available for Mother’s Day. These contain 3 sheets (one dark, one milk and one white chocolate) and are great for sharing.
The Mother’s Day Bark Bouquets contain the following 3 flavors:

* Chai Crunch (chai milk chocolate with caramelized rice crispies)
* Vanilla Spice (white chocolate with vanilla beans and pink and green peppercorns)
* Dark and Stormy (Chocolate from Madagascar with praline nuts and apricots)

Finally, we have many assorted gift bags and gift totes (see picture below) that contain a variety of Kerstin’s chocolates as well as a other great chocolates that we sell in the shop.

New and returning bars plus potatoes

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We’ve got some great new bars in the shop right now, as well as some old favourites…

The popular Zotter bars have returned in fun new flavours, like Olive and Lemon, Candied Ginger, and Celery, Truffle and Port Wine. The Strawberry and ever popular Bacon versions are out as well.

There are more dark-milk Bonnat bars for those of you (like me!) who crave a rich, flavourful milk chocolate once in awhile. Java and Surabaya are on the shelves right now.

Madécasse also sent us a great new flavoured bar – sea salt and cacao nib. A big hit of sea salt with the crunch of cacao nibs, sitting in their 63% chocolate. Amazing!

Bags of Francois Pralus’ multi-coloured potatoes are also back! Not to ruin the surprise, but these are actually hazelnut praline wrapped with a chocolate shell, not potatoes. But they are incredibly fun and yummy.

Look for Mothers’ Day items coming soon!

Amano – Guayas

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Compared to the likes of Amedei, Pralus and Cluizel, Amano is a relatively new chocolatier, who started up in 2006 in the Rocky Mountains of Utah. Although only four years old, Amano has come out of the gate strong, picking up more than a few awards from the Academy of Chocolate in 2009.

Opening any Amano bar is always special, and this one is no different, with a rich, almost milky, brown colour reflected throughout the surface. Immediately there is a lovely, sweet floral note, along with the essential vanilla, and maybe a few hints of coffee for good measure. The attention to quality is seen in the bar’s shiny finish, and a refreshing snap notes the good temper.

As with their other ‘single origin’ bars, Amano has really allowed the flavour of the bean to shine here. Lots of florals as hinted at by the initial aroma, along with some brightness from something like raspberries or blackberries. Also, there is a big hit of cinnamon in this one that went all the way through for me. Just at the end, a slight bit of smokiness to balance everything out (this is the perfect amount for those of us who find Ocumare’s smokiness too overpowering). With a nice, long lasting finish, this bar is a definite winner.

One of the great things about Amano is the obvious passion that goes not only into their bars, but also into the relationship between their company and the farmers and communities who cultivate the cacao used for their chocolate. You can read the stories behind Guayas and Amano’s other bars here.

Their website also features a fairly extensive and useful write up on tasting chocolate here.

We’ve got a wide range of Amano’s bars stocked in the Shop, so come in and test one (or two, or three…) out – you won’t be disappointed.

Chocophilia products available this year in the Good Food Box.

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Have you heard of a local project called Eat Local First? It is a very cool idea, and we are supporting it this year by putting some of our products in their distribution center. This means that you can get local chocolate delivered along with local fruits and vegetables! A few of our products now show up in their catalog. If you are interested in the local food economy, check out Eat Local First, and learn more. The order desk opens today!

Two part-time job openings at Kerstin’s Chocolates

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We are looking for two new part-timers at the shop. If you are interested in interviewing for these positions, please send your resume and a cover letter to info@kerstinschocolates.com (and PLEASE list contact info for your references in your resume.)

1) Enthusiastic Part-Time Retail Sales Assistant Required

Some retail sales experience preferred. Passion for chocolate is mandatory. 3 days/week (Shifts currently required are: Thursday 11-6, Friday 11-6, Saturday 10-4), totaling approximately 20 hours/week.
Starting as soon as possible.

2) Reliable Part-Time Chocolate Production Assistant Required

Attention to detail and a passion for quality is a must. Candidates must be eager to learn how to work with chocolate. Culinary experience a plus. 2-3 days/week max, approximately 15-20 hours/week. Starting May 15th.

If you are interested in either of these positions, contact us soon for more details!

New Corallo and other ‘warm’ things

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At least we had some warm weather over the long weekend, but obviously spring is more elusive than many of us thought. In the mean time, we’ve got some perfect treats to last you until the warm weather re-appears.

We had some fun new Claudio Corallo selections arrive in the Shop this past week. More of the chocolate dipped coffee beans have come in, as well as two new items – chocolate covered ginger and pear infused raisins dipped in chocolate. Also, Corallo’s Seattle store opened in December, so be sure to check it out if you’re in the area. You can read an article on their Shop, and all their fun offerings here.

Chai Spiced Walnuts, Chili Lime Cashews, and chocolate dipped lemon peels are also out in the Shop, as well as new Kusmi Tea flavours, including one green tea with rose petals… fresh enough to remind of the warm weather to come, but still soothing enough to sip on a cool, windy, April day.

And of course, if you stop by the Shop, we are always happy to make you a warm cup of drinking chocolate.

Enjoy your weekend, and keep warm!

More Chocolate Education Dates

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If you love organic chocolate, there are still some tickets left for our organic chocolate tasting on Wednesday, April 14th.

We’ve added a new tasting on Wednesday, April 28th, that will feature 10 different milk and dark chocolates. As always, the essential bit of history and information on T. cacao will be included.

In addition to tastings, we still have one spot left in our April 11th Chocolate Making Class, and we’ve added a new session for May 25th. Tempering and ganache will be covered, and best of all, you get to create your very own confections to take home and enjoy!

Tickets for both tastings and making classes can be found here, or give us a call (780.990.0011) to book a spot.

Digital Easter Egg Hunt!

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We are having another Easter Egg Hunt this year! Although last year’s event was a huge success, we have decided to make the 2010 hunt digital! Here’s how you can get some ganaches on us:

Pictures of Kerstin and Angie’s chocolate tour around Paris have recently been posted on our blog. There are four eggs hidden throughout the photos in Kerstin’s posts below on Paris (click on the photos to get a closer look). Each egg has a letter on it, and together make a four letter word… in French.

Come tell us the correct answer at the Shop between March 30th and April 3rd, and you will win a box of Michel Cluizel’s Les Criolles ganache cacao pods (retail value $12; while supplies last).

Good luck, and have fun! See you soon!

A summary of our tour of the Paris chocolate world.

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(For the previous installments about Kerstin’s trip, and lots more photos, please see Part 1, Part 2 and Part 3 of the series.)

Debauve and Galais

Debauve and Galais

Now that my stash is nearly all gone and I have had time to reflect and compare all the different chocolate from each chocolatier, it’s time to share my overall impressions(since I can’t share the chocolate). There is no way that I can chose a favorite chocolate shop because the good ones were so good in their own way.

I loved La Maison du Chocolat for it’s quality, simplicity and purity. I loved Pierre Marcolini for his ability to surprise me by layering flavors and textures in his bon bons. I loved Patric Roger for his boldness and authenticity-everything I had of his exploded with flavor in my mouth.

There were some surprise winners among the stash that I brought home. I had absentmindedly picked up a couple of bars and some marron glace (candied chestnuts) at Debauve and Galais not expecting too much since my experience in their New York shop had underwhelmed me. Their milk chocolate and sesame bar, however was probably one of the best milk chocolate bars I’ve ever tasted; so simple with just a hint of crunchy sesame. The marron glace too were a revelation- sweet, creamy, and unbelievably delicate in flavor and texture.

Posing with Jacques Genin.

Posing with Jacques Genin.

Tasting the drinking chocolate at Genin.

Tasting the drinking chocolate at Genin.

The drinking chocolate....
The drinking chocolate….

And the winner of the best drinking chocolate is….Jacques Genin.

Oh my God! It was so good!

The spoils ready for the trip back to Edmonton.

The spoils ready for the trip back to Edmonton.

Three things I learned:

1. Chocolate tastes better in Paris(I’ve been to some of these chocolatiers in their New York shops, but they weren’t as good). Which leads me to my second point:

2. Freshness is key, so always buy one piece to try before buying a whole box.

3. Just because you walk off all the calories you consume in Paris doesn’t mean you’ll do the same when you get back home. So the best way to keep off the weight when you return from a chocolate tour is to hit the gym big time, or to share your spoils-which is the best way to enjoy chocolate anyway.

Easter!

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The Shop is full of all sorts of colourful Easter treats right now!

We have three types of Easter eggs – a small, house made marshmallow filled egg, a medium sized, hand painted hollow egg, and a large egg filled with crunchy Valrhona pearls. All the eggs come in white, milk, and dark, and the medium sized ones are flavoured. The essential hollow Easter bunnies are sitting neatly on a shelf too, in milk and dark, waiting for owners.

Also for Easter, are Dulce de leche filled eggs, lots of fun solid shapes, and white, milk and dark bunny lollipops!

We have also received bright blue ‘Robins’ Eggs’ from Michel Cluizel – milk chocolate and praline ganache, wrapped in a milk chocolate shell… these ones are certainly great for ‘the hunt’!

And finally, there are assorted Easter ‘baskets’ filled with Valrhona Pearls, a small solid bunny, a Theo flavoured bar, a bunny lollipop and a few of the ‘Robins’ Eggs’. This is a great, seasonal switch up for the chocolate lover in your life!

Happy Easter!

New bars, truffles and treats

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In addition to all the Easter chocolate, new truffle flavours are packing the confection case – Banoffee Pie, Vanilla Caramel, Orange Blossom, Peanut Butter & Saskatoon Berry Jam and Cherry Blossom.

We’ve received new Madagascar bars from Madécasse – a 63% ‘mellow’ and a 67% ‘smooth’ – as well as a brand new batch of Pralus bars, including some new Single Origins – Djakarta, Trinidad and Caracas. The Amano shelf is packed again too, with more Guayas, Ocumare Milk and Jembrana Milk.

More of the Zotter truffle bars have already arrived, with lots of fresh flavours for spring – Almond with Raisins, ‘Chocolate Bee’ with Honey Crisps, Lemon Polenta, Coffee Plum and Bacon, Pineapple and Paprika, Butter Caramel, Maracuja (Passion), Mango, and Goji Berries with Sesame Nougat.

And finally, Liz has decorated the Shop with these fun butterflies for Spring. So even if the weather outside is not the best, it feels like spring as soon as you step through the door.