July 30, 2007 at 3:52 am (Uncategorized)
Tags: children, chocolate.cafe, cute, funny, outing
Today was a lazy Sunday afternoon and after a long day of doling about the house, I decided to send three of the most discerning chocolate experts to our local chocolate cafe. My experts were elated to find that their favorite table was vacant.
Ahhh, if only there was table service! After a long 45 seconds of being seated, the experts decided to get up for a thorough inspection of the facility. Expert #1 loved the bright colors of the furniture and the walls. Experts #2 and #3 complained that the display cases were a bit too high and needed to be carried to see all of the delectables behind the counter. After much debate on which treats to order, expert #2 finally settled on one of the hot chocolate drinks.
‘You have child-size seats, so how about some child-size cups!”, complained expert #2! All in all, the three experts loved their experience at the cafe and gives this place three pairs of clapping hands! Great job, Seneca Klassen and the other masterminds of Bittersweet!
(p.s. The chocolate cafe does carry a kid’s hot chocolate, just to clarify) Yay!
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July 7, 2007 at 4:54 am (Uncategorized)
Tags: Guittard, real.chocolate
Here at Jade Chocolates, we believe that there’s always room for more chocolate on the chocolate shelf. From time to time, we’ll blog about other chocolate makers as our friends and let you know what’s happening in the chocolate world. The Guittard Company has created a website informing the public on the FDA’s proposal to change the identity of chocolate to include fat substitutes for cocoa butter.
During the chocolate making process, the cocoa bean is manipulated and it’s two components, cocoa butter and chocolate liquor, are separated. The two components are then put back into the ‘chocolate recipe’ in various amounts depending on whether bittersweet or milk chocolate is created. It is combined with sugar, vanilla, lecithin and milk if making milk chocolate. (This is why white chocolate is technically not chocolate since it contains only cocoa butter and not chocolate liquor.)
Cocoa butter is the oil of the cacao bean and has unique qualities that makes chocolate so wonderful. One very important quality is that is has a melting point close to that of our body temperature. Once you put chocolate in your mouth, it immediately starts to melt. This quality will be lost when using fat substitutes. Taste, mouth-feel and smoothness will also be affected. So why is there a proposal to change the definition of chocolate? Cocoa butter is expensive. If manufacturers are allowed to use less expensive fats, it will drive the cost of chocolate down. Consumers would also have a more difficult time distinguishing between chocolate made with 100% cocoa butter and ones with other vegetable fats.
Consumers are not the only people to be affected by this proposal. Small cocoa bean farmers who rely on selling cocoa butter maybe driven out of the market. This can have devastating affects on communities who rely on selling cocoa butter. If you have an opinion on this subject, write to the FDA. Each opinion counts. www.dontmesswithourchocolate.com
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July 7, 2007 at 2:35 am (Uncategorized)
Tags: anni.minuzzo, food.consultant, SBA, SBDC
Whenever I greet Joseph Schmidt with a ‘How are you?’, without fail he always responds with ‘I’m lucky!’. He has constantly reminded me that he’s been lucky in the chocolate business and that he’s got a chocolate angel to help. I’ve looked over his shoulder plenty of times and never seen anything resembling divine help from above.
I don’t have a chocolate angel, maybe I’ll inherit it one day when Joe Schmidt retires. I do have the next best thing and her name is Anni Minuzzo. I first met Anni while taking a class at the SBA (Small Business Administration) entitled, ‘From Kitchen to Market’. It was a class catering to people who want to produce food items. She is a food specialist consultant, who thanks to tax payers dollars, consults for free. She just sold her successful biscotti business, ‘Biscotti Nucci’, and has taken her experiences over the years from her biscotti business and helps others learn from her successes as well as mistakes. We meet at least once a month and she’s helped with identity branding and packaging, to sourcing ingredients to cost analysis. We also establish timelines and goals for my company which has helped me stay focused.
Our meetings are relaxed and informal, often sipping coffee or hot milk at a local cafe. I saw whatever’s on my mind, and she does the same. It’s like talking to an old friend with solid reason and advice about my business. She’s got a great personality and loves to give her personal input. Starting this business has been extremely overwhelming, it’s nice to know that I have a little help on my side.
Thanks Anni.
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