Monday, December 31, 2012

Happy New Year!



As 2012 ends we'd like to reflect on this year's exhilarating journey and recount all the wonderful moments of joy, excitement, laughter, discovery, hard work and yes, aches and pains, as well as frustrations we've experienced together that shaped our experience as artisan chocolatiers.

During the year we have turned 400 lb of chocolate into 200 bars, 270 barks, 160 solid chocolate cakes, over 1500 truffles and over 130 lb of dipped dry fruit.

 
In the process we have consumed countless cases of wine, truckload of assorted cheeses and charcuterie, tens of dozens poached eggs, fine crops yielded from a few acres of coffee and tea plantations from around the world, nearby bakeries' collective half year supply of baguettes and pastries, and of course all the unaccounted chocolate products called "snacks" in the Culinary Institute's jargon. If it weren't for innumerable hours spent in the kitchen and all the energy put into tempering and keeping the 400 lb of chocolate in temper, and incessant venting and laughter, the residual calories would have put a far greater toll on us today. 

 













It was an incredible journey of understanding the properties of one extraordinary fruit called cacao and combining our culinary savvy and creativity to create chocolate products that our customers enjoyed and appreciated. With deepest gratitude we thank all our family, friends, customers and business partners for your support, feedback and trust.

                                May your New Year be as sweet and enjoyable as fine chocolates.










Friday, December 28, 2012

Reflecting on our CIA Anniversary


First things 1st!

Oh,  where should we begin? One week spent in the glorious Napa Valley in the quaint Spanish Villa Inn, a short scenic drive away from the legendary CIA, the Culinary Institute of America, attending a professional chocolate making course. 
Of course we rarely got a chance to experience the 2.2 mile scenic road to and from our enchanting B&B in the broad daylight because we sneaked out in our chef's attire in the pitch dark of the early dawn, tiptoeing our way out so we wouldn't miss our abundant breakfast freshly prepared by the CIA students in their, how-should-we-say? grand, action packed, state of the art, blow-your-mind-aromas-infused culinary masterpiece of a kitchen before the start of each class.  

So we regretfully missed our quiet innkeeper Roy's daily home-made breakfast served in the inn's period dining room, set ahead of time with fancy china and flatware. We did enjoy the lovely balcony where we created a home ambiance with candles we found in the inn's foyer and fresh flowers we picked from Roy's garden, placed in a made-up vase. Our late-night let's-call-it-snack-in-bed after each day of culinary adventure in some renown Napa Valley restaurant included -depending on the digestive needs dictated by that night's dinner menu - Earl Gray tea prepared using the tea kettle fetched from Roy's kitchen at the wee hours of the night, served in Roy's best china with assortment of chocolates made by our fellow students or a large glass of port wine poured from Roy's crystal decanter and generously made available to the inn's guest (other guests didn't seem to show any interest).

  
On occasional nights when the 6-course lunch provided by the CIA after each day of class wasn't enough, we would indulge our senses with a bottle of local wine, decadent figs picked from Roy's lovely fig tree growing in his manicured courtyard right next to our car (illuminated by the aid of a flashlight app on Lili's i-phone) and assortment of cheeses and a fresh baguette bought from a local market to bring our sugar level down. 
Bouchon Bistro, Yountville
 Speaking of sugar, to keep it at bay we gravitated towards salty and savory foods such as 1st course: oysters and champaign followed by 2nd course: mussels with fries and, oh, more champaign at the Bouchon Bistro in Yountville; the plat' d'jour baked trout stuffed with fingerling potatoes and side order of fried jalapeno peppers at the Cook restaurant on Main street, St. Helena; and eggplant fries and fried baby artichoke hearts with fig and gorgonzola pizza topped with walnuts and arugula at the Brassica of St. Helena. In one week we consumed about a barrel of red wine, a ton of dark chocolate, Roy's carafe of port wine, and gourmet meals with just about every ingredient imaginable, collectively gaining 10 lbs of weight. In other words we practiced incessant chewing during our waking hours for which we paid a hefty price upon return.
Bouchon Bistro, Yountville

Cooks,  St. Helena
Brassica, St. Helena
 Our PPP (patient, pleasant and personable - due to genetics or regular chocolate consumption?) instructor, Chef John DiFilippo divided us into 4 groups of two, with each group following a different recipe using the day's technique in the every-woman's-dream all stainless steel kitchen, the kind equipped with every imaginable tool and gadget, endless supply of fresh ingredients, and All-Clad pots and pans of all sizes, the kind of kitchen where all the used stuff gets magically cleaned, all the towels tossed in a dirty pile washed and sterilized, where the CIA visitors peek in from the adjacent gift store window in absolute awe and envy watching all 8 of us in our white torques, coats and aprons covered in chocolate work our magic, transferring melted chocolate into mouth-watering truffles of all shapes and forms, filled with freshly made ganache in assorted flavors or creating all sorts of confections from marshmallows and candies to nougats and pate de fruit. The rejects and scraps were thrown on a "snack" table so we could sample each other's work. At the end of each day a full box of sweets went home with us to be added to our daily calories washed down with the wine of the day, Roy's endless supply of port not coveted by the other guests, and a pot of hot tea. Yes, it took a variety of liquids, often consumed in conjunction to cleanse our palates from the day's doze of sugar. Thank God the hotel bathrooms are built just steps away from the bed.
On the last day all the week's work was carefully arranged on a huge mirrored display and carefully carried two flights of stairs to the CIA kitchen by the most daring students and placed on the dessert table next to the fancy cakes and desserts produced by the students of the Pastry class. But no matter how beautiful and impressive were the various cakes with their fancy decorations, pedestals, and hand crafted sugar sculptures professionally prepared by the would-be Pastry Chefs, our dainty jewel-like truffles in assorted colors and shapes immediately brought smile to everyone's faces. It's true that no matter how full one gets from all the food consumed, there's always room for one small truffle. We proudly posed by our display, then went back to our chocolate kitchen to pack boxes and boxes full of chocolates to take with us home. What a memorable week it had been!                
- Elizabeth



Chef John DiFilippo

Truffles collectively made by the team.