Cocoa Nymph | Chocolate Apprentice

Pâte for Pride

I am making a rainbow flag – in jelly.

It’s Pride Week in Vancouver, culminating in the huge, colourful, float and fun filled Pride Parade on August 4^th, through Vancouver’s West End, which is now sporting the world’s first permanent Rainbow Crosswalk, at Davie and Bute Street.

There are rainbows everywhere, including the one I saw this morning – after our first day of rain in over 31 days (nearly a record for Vancouver).

And because it’s fun, colourful and relatively easy to do in this hot weather, I am going to make six different flavours and colours of pâte de fruits, using the bounty of fresh fruit now in season. [Read more…]

Bean to Bar Beginnings

I visited my pal Rachel Sawatzky, the Cocoa Nymph, this week. She has a fabulous chocolate shop on the west side of Vancouver. I got to work there for a day, last year, and my respect for the artisans who dip and decorate beautiful chocolate truffles and bonbons increased tenfold by the end of the day, when my back and legs were cramped and my fingers permanently (or so it felt) curled, as though around a metal dipping fork.

And I loved it. It was great to spend a day in a vibrant, active, delicious smelling business, immersed in chocolate and friendly people. [Read more…]

Edible “Artwork” – Fun with homemade transfer sheets

After spending a lovely afternoon talking to Adam Chandler, at Beta 5 Chocolates, last week, and thinking again how much their chocolates, topped with in house crafted transfer sheets, look like beautiful mosaic tiles, I am ready to have another go at making my own transfer sheets.

And because I want something safe and sturdy to enrobe, I am going to make homemade malt balls (turned into cubes) as the centres. That would be Maltesers to those of us from Canada and many other countries, Whoppers to those who hail from the USA. [Read more…]

My New Toy

It is amazing to me how the right tool for the job can make a heap o’ difference to the outcome. And that tool doesn’t have to be super-fancy or expensive – just well thought out, sturdy and adaptable. These are exactly the qualities (among many others) that my partner possesses.

So it is no surprise that this post is dedicated to him and the new toy he made for me: a brand new, custom built chocolate dipping “Cheatar”. I really don’t know the proper name for it, and don’t think this does it justice, but essentially, this is what it is: [Read more…]

Apprentice Nymph for a Day

I am very lucky. I got the opportunity last week, in the hectic run-up to Valentine’s Day, to spend a day at Cocoa Nymph, Rachel Sawatzky’s gem of a boutique chocolate shoppe, on Vancouver’s west side.

But, I was not there as a customer – oh no – I had the chance to go “backstage” and actually BE a chocolate apprentice for the day. For those of you who have been following this blog, and my trials and tribulations involving enrobing, this day was a chance to “get it right”.

My intrepid photographer partner and I set off last Friday morning, and arrive just before opening hour. [Read more…]