One of my favorite things to do in Paris is just wander around, often in neighborhoods that aren’t really known for anything special. There’s always something interesting to find; shops specializing in vintage hairbrushes and combs, or locksmiths for doors installed only during the reign of Napoléan III. And of course, I’m usually on the lookout for food, and am especially keen when I come…
The other night I was having dinner in a restaurant, and struck up a conversation with the fellow dining at the next table, who turned out to be Swiss. As we talked, the conversation turned to what I did and when I replied that I wrote cookbooks on baking and chocolate. His curiosity was piqued, as well as that of the two Belgian women at…
I’m fortunate to live in Paris, a city where there’s an unusually large amount of very good chocolate shops. With so many to choose from, it’s hard to whittle it down to just the few, most perfect ones. But I must. And one of them is John-Charles Rochoux. His jewel box of a shop is located just off the bustling rue de Rennes. It’s not just…
Gale Gand is a terrific baker and her book, Chocolate & Vanilla, is a double-sided treat that’ll have you flipping the book over and over almost as much as you’ll flip over the chocolate and vanilla desserts inside! Last weekend I was invited to a birthday party, and as I flipped through the pages of her book, I was intrigued by the delicious-looking recipe for…
That’s the new one meter box of chocolates from Patrick Roger, over three feet of pralines, caramels, nougats, and creamy-smooth ganache-filled bonbons, all enrobed in ultra-dark bittersweet chocolate. I don’t know how someone would brave getting one of those home on the métro, but I’d surely appreciate their efforts if I found one under my tree! Patrick Roger 108, Boulevard St. Germain (6th) Tel: 01…
During my recent trip to Italy, I joined an Italian friend of mine at a trattoria for a late night supper. As we hungrily ate our overfilled plates of pasta Carbonara and Cacio e Pepe, a local specialty made with pecorino cheese and lots of spicy, freshly-ground black pepper, and pondered our day spent searching down the best coffee and chocolate in Rome. Chocolate in…
For those of you whose interest has been picqued by my interview with Frederick Schilling of Dagoba chocolate, Frederick sent me the scoop on his new partnership with Artisan Confections, a division of Hershey’s chocolate. Here’s an except from that message: “So, what’s in store for Dagoba now? Well, for the most part, nothing is going to change. Dagoba will remain in Ashland doing what…
People come from all over the world to sip le chocolat chaud in the busy and cozy cafés in Paris. And there’s a reason for that – it’s excellent! But you can’t just walk into any café and be assured of a great cup. Thankfully you’ll find a number of places in Paris that take the time to pour an excellent cup of hot chocolate….
The hardest of all foods to photograph, I’ve learned, are chocolate-covered marshmallows. The bright, fluffy, vanilla-flecked cubes of sweet, airy marshmallow in contrast to the thin, intensely-flavored coating of bittersweet chocolate certainly presents a challenge. I futzed around a bit, trying to figure out how to show the lofty-white cubes in juxtaposition to the coating of pure, dark chocolate. They’re such diverse colors and textures…
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