NYC Chocolate Show

The weekend when the Chocolate Show comes to New York is certainly a good weekend.  This is our second trip to the Chocolate Show, and although many vendors and many aspects of the convention are similar, there were certainly some standout things that were Veritasty.

Favorite Guys Ever - Brigadeiro Palace

2012 is the year of the brigadeiro!  The New York Times had an article about it back in February and talked about them again as a grown-up Halloween candy.  But, what is a brigadeiro?  A brigadeiro is a Brazilian candy that's kind of a cross between a bonbon and a truffle and a lump of fudge.  A brigadeiro also happens to be happiness in a bite.  The guys at Brigadeiro Palace have a wide assortment of flavors, including pistachio, passionfruit, and something they call The Matrix (a mix of chocolate, butterscotch, coconut, graham crackers, walnuts, and vanilla, among other things, all packed into a tiny ball).  Unlike regular chocolate truffles, though, brigadeiros also make use of white chocolate, condensed milk, and caramel cream (doce de leite, if you're learning Portuguese) to pair appropriately with whatever the dominant flavor is.  My absolute favorite, the brigadeiro I could eat every day forever, is the passionfruit.  It looks like a harmless little white mochi almost, but the explosion of flavor that hits you when you bite in is insane.  The tangy passionfruit is also mellowed by the creamy sweetness of the white chocolate.  At the Chocolate Show, there were eight flavors, but their website boasts over thirty.  This sounds like the perfect project - gotta try 'em all!

Best Presentation - John & Kira's Chocolates

John & Kira's Chocolates booth was eye-catching, and their chocolate was tasty too!  The collection of bonbons were glossy and hand-painted like little bumblebees, ladybugs, pumpkins, and oranges.  I'm guessing the chocolates weren't bee- or bug-flavored, but I did try one of their unadorned bergamot chocolates and it tasted strongly and deliciously like a fragrant mug of Earl Grey!  Although I didn't taste the little shiny critters, they were beautiful and unique.

Best Reminder Why I Love London - Prestat

Queen Elizabeth probably eats Prestat chocolates.  It is definitely appropriate, too, since the flavors are sensational. Their dark chocolate with mint was especially memorable; I love the combination of chocolate and mint and have had it in various forms to the thing you get on your hotel pillow to York Peppermint Patties, but Prestat's is truly delicious.  Neither flavor overpowers the other, and they linger pleasantly on the tongue even after the chocolate has disappeared.

 


Best in Show - Salt of the Earth

Salt of the Earth is a baked goods company that focuses, ironically, on salt.  I think the concept of sweet and savory is finally becoming more accepted and more prevalent.  The samples that Salt of the Earth doled out were cookies topped with salt crystals and brownies dusted with salt flakes.  Chocolate chip cookies, chocolate cookies, oatmeal cookies, espresso brownies...and even the OMG brownie!  I literally uttered "Oh, my God!" when I had the little bite: the brownie had a one-to-one ratio of chocolate brownie to caramel.  The one bite was just enough, otherwise it would have been cloying.  The salt on top paired with the caramel perfectly.  The cookies were just warm and delectably soft.  I was won over.