Oh what a night! A truly terrified Heston Blumenthal gate crashed one of our Goddess of Chocolates nights in Brighton last October and it was a total blast. We’d already spent a few hours making lots of CHOC Chick chocolates, truffles and amazing CHOCtails with the Sumptious Sam from Cocktail in a Box and the Fabulous Fay from Diosa Media. We all even had gorgeous chocolate massages and scrubs from the divine and luscious Zoe and Katie from Into Beauty Hove and were very much enjoying all things chocolate, when Heston Blumenthal walked in.
The atmosphere, that was already pretty hyper before, became totally electric and a slightly startled Heston, the only man in the room, was soon surounded by lovely ladies high on chocolate! (before he arrived, the only male figure was a golden male torso that dispensed CHOCtails from his nether region!)
We treated Heston to a CHOCtail master class with Sam, body scrubs with Zoe and Katie (using CHOC Chick’s amazing cacao butter and cacao powder) and super easy chocolate making with CHOC Chick. It was amazing to have the opportunity to chat with him about chocolate and what it is about chocolate that makes us so happy and everyone got involved in the debate.
It was an incredibly fun night, we all had a blast and Heston was charming and gracious to everyone.
Tis the season to eat chocolate….Easter is nearly upon us and like in most Western countries, this time of year in the UK it’s all about chocolate. We’ve spent two exhausting but wonderful weekends working at the Brighton and London Chocolate Festivals making and sharing chocolate and were visited by hundreds of people. Everyone was full of the joys of chocolate and it was lovely to see so many chocolaty smiles. It was also heartening to speak to so many people as well, who had just watched the BBC’s Panorama programme (http://bit.ly/dif3h6) about the chocolate trade in West Africa and who were concerned about the endemic slavery that still exists in cocoa plantations.
This is a topic that has been very close to my heart as my dissertation and research for my Masters degree was on trafficking of women and young girls to the UK and the effects of current legislation on modern slavery. So having some knowledge of human trafficking, it was clear to me when I set up CHOC Chick that all our ingredients would be ethically sourced and the first questions I would ask of any supplier were about the welfare and conditions of plantation workers. We have a very close relationship with the importers of our raw cacao ingredients, who share the same values as us and work closely with cooperatives in Ecuador and Peru. They are passionate about environmental and ethical practices in agriculture and it is clear that when these go hand in hand, both the welfare of people and our planet are protected. Our importers work directly with the cooperatives to ensure organic farming methods are used and all employees are paid and treated fairly. I myself met last September with one of the cooperative members and hope to go out to Ecuador very soon for a proper visit.
I feel very privileged to live in such an open and liberal society in the UK, where there are many people who genuinely care about the working conditions of others. There is a lot still to be done to eradicate slavery in all forms around the world, but by being aware that modern slavery still exists and asking questions before making purchases, we can start making a difference.
March 8th was International Women’s Day and CHOC Chick attended the brilliantly organised Women Unlimited Conference: Stepping into Success. It was an incredibly inspirational day with amazing speakers including Liz Warom Founder and CEO of Temple Spa, Emma Wimhurst Author of Boom!, Rebecca Harding Founder and MD of Delta Economicsand the incredible awe inspiring Camila Batmanghelidgjh, founder of Kids Company. Not only was it fantastic to meet and mingle with so many wonderful and successful women, but we were also highlighted as “The next company to watch in 2010″ so watch out world, her come the CHOC Chicks!
Alisa and I spent 3 lovely days last week in stunning Stockholm where we met with lots of wonderful delis and whole food shops.
I loved how much Swedish people know about good chocolate and the range of high quality chocolate that is available is truly CHOCtastic. So you can imagine how excited I was to receive 2 orders so far from the amazing Blueberry chain and the super ethical Gryningen in Stockholm.
I want to thank Alisa and her fabulous parents Yuri and Galina Tsykhotsky for being such gracious hosts and all the lovely friends we met for making me me feel so very welcome with lots of delicious food, vodka and interesting conversations. I hope to have the chance to visit them all again very soon.
In the meantime, here are some of the photos we took of us and our CHOC Chick Kit pounding the streets of Stockholm.
I am truly sorry for not updating you about the recent news in the Brightest town of Chocs, but both me and Galia have had a very busy schedule with loads of orders, and meetings to arrange for CHOC-Chick.
The latest choc-tastic news this week is that we are finally going to Scandinavia! We are launching our CHOC-chick kits in beautiful Stockholm, Sweden. This weekend both me and Galia are looking forward to indulging into the diverse universe of the choc-world, that of in Sweden. I, Alisa, have been calling many interesting people and companies with an ecological and fair trade standpoint in order to come and demonstrate about our passions. Luckily, we have had so many positive responses! Already around 8 meetings are booked! Companies that are interested are those from a local Christmas market, to the gift shops and furthermore, in eco-friendly food-stores and health-shops. I am looking forward the choco-boom in my hometown soon!
I am leaving to Stockholm for tonight! See you soon!
Simple raw chocolate recipe with whiskey and walnuts
I’ve been making raw chocolate for around 2 years now and always based it on the Simple CHOC Recipe where you melt the cacao butter first and then add the powder and agave. However, as some people have commented that the agave doesn’t always mix well, I decided to see if there was a better way to ensure all the ingredients blend well every time.
So here it is ladies and gents….all you need to do is simply melt every thing together! Doesn’t get any easier than this.
raw chocolate bar with cranberry and macadamia nuts
So here is the Even Simpler Raw CHOC Recipe:
Add all the following ingredients together into a bowl, place over a pan of hot water (Bain Marie or Baño Maria in Spanish) and melt over a low heat. Ensure all utensils and the bowl are dry before the ingredients are added as water can cause the mix to separate.
100g CHOC Chick Raw Cacao Butter
6 level Tablespoons CHOC Chick Raw Cacao Powder
2-3 Tablespoons CHOC Chick Agave Syrup
1 Small pinch of rock salt (good quality sea salt totally lifts the chocolate flavour)
Use a metal balloon whisk to mix the ingredients while they melt (wooden spoons don’t blend as well). Taste the mix once melted and add more Agave if you prefer a sweeter taste.
The CHOC mix tastes delicious plain but there is always room for some CHOCcreativity, so feel free to add some chilli powder for Chilli Chocolates or peppermint essence or vanilla extract, orange peel, coffee or orange liquors are all things that can be added. Our CHOC Chick favourite combination has got to be sprinkling in some crushed cardamom seeds and sea salt (absolutely amazing!!).
Once you have the right taste, pour into ice cube trays, silicone moulds or even take away tubs to make fabulous raw chocolate bars. Place in the freezer and leave to set for 20mins to half an hour.
Keep in the fridge or freezer and eat to your hearts content.
Summertime and the living is easy…..and what could be better than a Chocaliciously chilled Raw CHOCsmoothie or Raw CHOCice Cream?
Super simple to make, the CHOCsmoothie is a great start to your day and a delicious way to boost your antioxidant levels. Or leave in the freezer for a few hours and enjoy as a yummy and healthy CHOCice Cream treat to cool you on a lovely sunny day.
Raw Choclate Ice Cream
Ingredients
3 small or 2 large frozen bananas
3 tbs raw cocoa powder
2 tbs tahini paste or other nut butter (organic peanut butter is delish)
1 tbs agave syrup
2 cups water or water mixed with dairy or soya milk or 2 cups of rice milk
Handful of ice if making a smoothie
Raw Chocolate Smoothie
Directions
Chop the bananas and place all ingredients in blender.
Blend well adding the water/milk mix till smooth
Pour into a plastic tub and freeze for about 2-3 hours, remove and let defrost for about 10 minutes, spoon onto bowls and serve with berries and summer fruits
Or if you are impatient like us, pour into glasses and drink immediately!
Makes 4 large CHOCsmoothies or a big tub of CHOCice Cream.
CHOCcreative Tip: Instead of throwing out over ripe bananas, wrap them in foil and pop them in the freezer, these will then make perfect frozen bananas for this recipe.
It’s been a while since I posted something on the CHOC Chat Blog, but I had to write a little bit today about the lovely morning I spent at Portslade Community College.
I was invited to attend the “What’s My Line?” Enterprise Challenge Day for year 9 students which was organised by The Brighton and Hove Education Business Partnership. They arranged for a group of local business people to meet with groups of year 9 students and the challenge for the students was to ask a range of questions and identify each business person’s job.
The questions ranged from the hysterical to the brilliant, I was asked by one group if I worked in a chip shop and if I worked in hair and beauty by another. Once they finally guessed, they were amazed to hear that I worked in something I love and am passionate about. I feel really fortunate to be in this position and particularly lucky to have met so many fantastically entertaining and inspiring young people.
Here’s to the Portslade Massive, hope to see you all again very soon!
This is honestly THE most amazing chocolate cake ever! And it’s sugar and gluten free and full of goodness. I tried this recipe out yesterday and still can’t believe how easy and absolutely delicious it is. So CHOCalicious (my daughter Ella named it) is this cake that I had to put half of it in the freezer so I didn’t eat it all up myself.
Here is the recipe, hope you enjoy it as much as I did!
CHOCalicious Raw Chocolate Cake
Ingredients
240g walnuts or mixed nuts (I used 2 packets, 120g each, of mixed nuts that included almonds, hazelnuts, brazil nuts with walnuts)
Dash salt
12 pitted medjool dates, un-soaked
6 tablespoons raw cacao powder
2 tablespoons agave syrup
1 teaspoon vanilla bean extract
3 teaspoons water
Optional – fresh fruit to garnish (strawberries and or raspberries)
Blend nuts and salt in a food processor until finely ground. Add dates, raw cacao powder, agave and vanilla, process until mixture begins to stick together. Add the water and process briefly.
Line a dinner plate with greaseproof paper. Add the mix and form into a 5-inch round cake. Wrap the cake in the greaseproof paper and place in the freezer for around half an hour or chill for 2 hours in the fridge.
While it sets happily, you can make this delicious icing or CHOCfrosting or if you prefer it without any icing and are slightly impatient (like me), simply cut up into squares and eat as brownies!
CHOCfrosting
25g raw cacao butter
2 table spoons raw cacao powder
1-2 tablespoons agave (to taste)
½ teaspoon vanilla bean extract
2 tablespoons cream
Melt the raw cacao butter in a bowl over a pan of boiling water. Once melted, remove from heat and add the cacao powder, agave syrup, vanilla and mix well. Once blended add the cream and mix again. The consistency will become thicker as the cream is added. Leave for a few moments to thicken.
Remove the cake from the freezer/fridge. Place on a serving place. Ice the cake with the CHOCfrosting mix and place back in the fridge to set for around 1 hour. You can also garnish with fresh fruits of the forest, raspberries or strawberries, serve and enjoy!
Here come the girls…or CHOC Chicks really! Last Wednesday we spent a glorious evening, meeting old friends, making new friends, drinking champagne, eating raw chocolate strawberries, chatting and learning to make decadently healthy raw chocolates and amazing chocolate cocktails. The absolute perfect evening and only girls were allowed!
It was genuinely fantastic to meet so many beautiful and likeminded women and I’m always amazed and how wonderfully supportive women can be. All my networking and best business contacts has been through other women. The best thing I did when I set up CHOC CHick was join Mums in Biz networking group, run by Nicky Chisholm. I’m sometimes overwhelmed by the amazing women I’ve met through this group and the wonderful opportunities and support that have resulted.
I’ve managed to find a wonderful Virtual Assistant in the marvellous Trude Thomas, who has become a right hand person and an endless source of practical and emotional support. I met the glorious Fay MacDonald, who invited me to run a raw chocolate making session at her Diosa Delicious Goddess of Chocolate event on Wednesday and has now connected me with many more supportive women all interested in the goodness of raw chocolate.
So in today’s post, I just want to raise a glass to all women and especially to those who love chocolate! Gx
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