| December 2005 News |
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December 29, 2005 - A nice recipe for chocolate orange pear tart.
December 28, 2005 - Australian weaver and artist Kay Faulkner received a grant from Arts Queensland to create more chocolate themed
art that incorporates chocolate wrappers. Starbucks has announced that they are dropping there Chantico chocolate drink from there
menu and replacing it with two new chocolate drinks come February.
December 27, 2005 - Out of Oregon a recipe for Spicy Chocolate Buttermilk Sheet Cake that looks promising.
December 26, 2005 - Neat little article from Bella Online with a recipe for Pan Pepato , Italian chocolate bread.
December 25, 2005 - A Maine woman started baking whoopie pies three at a time a decade ago and now produces 5,000 - 7,000 of her
Wicked Whoopies everyday. Austria gears up for the 250th birthday of Mozart. Sales are expected to rise on Mozartkugel, that combination
of chocolate, marzipan and pistachios that has always been available here in New York. A few fun Mozartkugel facts gleaned from the
article. It was created in 1891 for the 100th Anniversary of Mozart's death by a Salzburg confectioner Paul Fuerst. It won a Gold Medal at the
1905 Universal Exhibition in Paris and they sell 90 million pieces every year. In England sales of Turkish Delight have been going up since
the release of the film the Chronicles Of Narnia where the White Witch offers Edmund enchanted Turkish Delight. Cadbury makes Fry's
Turkish Delight and many other companies also make there own versions.
December 24, 2005 - Soccer star David Beckham purchased a chocolate fountain from Harrods for his wife Posh Spice. Chocolate malt
truffles soon will be made from a new strain of barley according to Seed Quest news service.
December 23, 2005 - USA Today has a good piece on 10 of the best places to get hot chocolate including Mio Gelato in Portland and City
Bakery here in New York City.
December 21, 2005 - A nice article from CNN.com about the growth of Haut hot chocolate. Information on Jacques Torres, Marie Belle and
Holy Chocolate.
December 20, 2005 - Nestle has announced that they have acquired Delta Ice Cream. For 240,000,000 Euros they now own Delta's four
production facilities in Greece. They operate under brand names such as Boss, Nirvana and Aloma and operate through out Greece,
Romania, Montenegro and Serbia. Hershey Chocolate has objected to the cover of a new book, ''Hershey: Milton S. Hershey's
Extraordinary Life of Wealth, Empire, and Utopian Dreams,". The cover looks like a regular Hershey Bar and Hershey claims it violates there
copyrights. An interesting article from Food Production Daily out of Europe with a roundup of this years discoveries in the world of
chocolate and how chocolate is being recognized as something good for ones health. Zellers out of Canada wins the eChocolateNYC
award for chocolate grinch of the year.
December 19, 2005 - Fonterra a New Zealand firm has been doing a brisk business selling chocolate flavored cheese in Taiwan. Swiss
chocolate maker DeLafee International is selling authentic gold plated chocolate pralines. Chocolate Deities hand painted chocolate
representations of Buddha and Ganeesh are becoming popular. Researchers from the University Hospital of Zurich have just concluded
a study which has found that the consumption of Dark Chocolate cuts the risk of heart failure among smokers. The story of a Michigan
family who purchased a chocolate fountain and went into business setting up fondue like displays at weddings.
December 18, 2005 - The story of a Mandan North Dakota drugstore owner who has also 750,000 chocolate bars of her line celebrating
the Lewis And Clark Bicentennial. The following article is from last year but goes into the legal battle between Debbie Kruger the maker of
the Lewis and Clark bar and the New England Candy Company owners of the Clark Bar over copyright infringement. Neat article about The
Idaho Candy Company a firm that has been in business since 1901 and makes the Idaho Spud Bar which sells 3,000,000 pieces a year.
December 16, 2005 - The South Bend Chocolate Company is looking to buy an adjoining building and launch a $1,200,000 expansion.
Chocolate has six times the anti oxidants as the next closest natural food the blueberry and has some of the same properties as Prozac.
A lawsuit has been settled making DZ Enterprises the sole owner of Endangered Species Chocolate. The Keystone Lodge Ski Resort in
Keystone Colorado has on display until January 2, 2006 a miniature Alpine village constructed entirely of chocolate. 2,500 pounds of
chocolate were used to construct the village. Jacques Torres Chocolate Haven has posted a help wanted ad on Craigs List looking for
workers for his Chocolate Factory. As well as getting paid you will learn tempering, molding and enrobing among other skills. Article on
how more chocolate than ever is going high end in Florida.
December 15, 2005 - Lake Champlain Chocolates has announced they are now making available over the Internet the following products
which were previously only available in there retail locations - Dark Chocolate Orange Peels , Dark Chocolate Apricots , Vanilla Caramels
, Marzipan , Coconut Delight and Ginger coated in Dark Chocolate. Ghiradelli is currently running a "sweetstakes" where a lucky
purchaser can win a luxury trip to San Francisco among other prizes. Interesting piece from National Public Radio on the flavanol content of
chocolate and the factory that produces Dove bars. Jacques Torres on the Today Show. See a video clip and learn how to temper
chocolate. An excellent article from the Miami Herald about Mexican chocolate and its uses. The Fernbank Museum Of Natural History of
Atlanta Georgia has a current show Chocolate the Exhibition. Also they will have a special Valentine's Day event February 14, 2006.
December 14, 2005 - A nice recipe for Chocolate Crackles. A recipe for Honey-drizzled chocolate cheese fritters. A small piece about New
Tree chocolate. A good article from the Motley Fool on Hershey's Chocolate and there plans for the future. Interesting article about Maine
chocolatier Rebecca Potter and her Raspberry Wine flavored Truffles.
December 13, 2005 - The Minister Of Tourism of Ghana has challenged restaurants in Ghana to create chocolate recipes and serve them
on there menus to promote the chocolate industry. "I want our industry to take chocolate and own it. Today, if you say chocolate, people
think Belgium and Switzerland. I want them to also think Ghana," he stated. Prizes will be awarded at next years tourism awards ceremony.
Swiss chef Max Huber created 17 foot tall 400 pound Christmas Tree which is currently on display in the lobby of a Bangkok Thailand
Hotel. An interesting article about Bedre Fine Chocolate a chocolate company out of Oklahoma owned by the Chickasaw Nation. They
have been in business since 1986 and last year sales topped $2,000,000.
December 12, 2005 - Noka announced today there chocolate was named the number 1 gourmet chocolate in the world by the editors of the
television show TASTE which is broadcast on SKY TV in the United Kingdom. Dean & DeLuca is currently carrying Hammonds candy
canes which are made in Denver and pretty hard to find here in New York. These are special candy canes hand pulled and flavored with
cloves, peppermint, cinnamon, green apple and cherry. They make excellent stocking stuffers. Coke and Godiva announce that they are
working on a joint venture a bottled chocolate flavored coffee to compete with the Starbucks/Pepsi Double Shot.
December 11, 2005 - How cocoa production affects events in the Ivory Coast and the threat of possible war in a nation where 40% of the
worlds cocoa beans are produced. Springfield Illinois chocolate makers Pease's open there factory doors to the general public for the
first time in 75 years and hold a holliday open house. Interview with Sarasota Ritz-Carlton pastry chef Daniel Mangione who along with
partner Marina Sousa took first place in the Food Network's Wedding Cake challenge. They put together a 6 tier 165 lb cake and took home
the $10,000 prize. The contest will be televised in June. The Hershey Chocolate Board OKs Additional $500M Stock Buyback Program and
forecasts 3 - 4% growth next year.
December 9, 2005- Godiva has announced they will be giving out samples from there Pop Chocolate Collection through December 10th. A
recipe for Chocolate Peppermint Puffs. Dark chocolate sales in England are starting to catch up to the sales of milk chocolate for the first
time.
December 8, 2005 - A P.R. release from Cocoamill Chocolate announcing there holiday sales are way ahead of last year. An article on
CocoaVia from the Mars Company that claims that the purported health benefits from CocoaVia, the healthy chocolate, might be
exaggerated. A few nice recipes for chocolate martinis. Some recipes for hot chocolate from the National Confectioners Association. A
recipe for chocolate pinwheel cookies.
December 7, 2005 - A nice article about the history of the chocolate chip cookie. An interesting piece on the ongoing conflicts in the Ivory
Coast and how the cocoa industry is affected. An article out of California on what cocoa percentages on chocolate bars mean. A recipe for
Chocolate Peppermint Bark. A recipe from the Seattle Times for Chocolate Almond Thumbprint Cookies with Sour Cherry Filling.
Fascinating article on how the FDA is exploring new labeling rules for ice cream and some of the more bizarre proposals for ingredieints
to make ice cream.
December 6, 2005 - An interesting recipe for chocolate pudding cake from a Canadian newspaper. Kelly (daughter of Ozzy and reality TV
star) claims she's losing weight on a chocolate diet. A nice article from Stars And Stripes about a cookie bake off to produce a tray of
cookies for every single or unattached service person on the Misawa Air Base in Japan. They call it the Annual Cookie Caper.
December 1, 2005 - Hello. Sorry about the dearth of news lately we were on hiatus for the Thanksgiving holidays and are just getting back
up to speed. There is a lot to report starting with the biggest news from a New York chocolate perspective. Finally Michel Cluizel has
established a retail branch here in the city, although his chocolate bars have been readily available. It is located in the ABC Carpet & Home
building at 888 Broadway. Neuhaus occupied space there a few years back but closed down, here's hoping Cluizel fares better. He has a
nice size room towards the back of the ground floor. The showcases are jammed with his full line and the staff was quite helpful. We
sampled the hot chocolate which was amazing. They also are the first chocolate store in Manhattan to have a full liquor license and are
offering a $100 per person 10 chocolate and 8 spirits tasting. If that doesn't fortify you against the winter cold I don't know what else would.
You can reach the store at 212 477 - 7335 for more information about the tastings and store hours. This is a must see shop for the
chocolate lover. As an added bonus they are open until midnight Thursday - Saturday, if ABC Carpet is closed go around the corner and
enter through Lucy Latin Kitchen. We recently sampled some of the new Vintage line from NOKA and it was quite good , deep dark and very
complex. A full review will be posted in a few days but I mention it here to congratulate NOKA and Dean & DeLuca for joining forces to make
NOKA product available here in the city. You can check it out at both the Dean & DeLuca on Broadway and Prince and the Madison Avenue
and 85th Street branch. It has come to our attention that like many retailers New York's chocolate ships are expanding there staffs for the
holiday season. This is a great way to learn about chocolate and maybe make a few extra dollars. The following are links to recent job
postings we've come across. Chocolate Bar is looking for people who can make coffee, tea and package chocolates nicely, bow making
is a big plus. Christopher Norman is looking for a server who can learn a lot about there chocolates and aid customers in making the
right chocolate selection Jacques Torres Chocolate Haven is seeking a team player with strong customer service skills. If you check
upcoming events you'll find that French Alliance is working in conjunction with Cafe Fauchon to hold two upcoming tasting events.Rocky
Mountain Chocolate Factory profits up
December 28, 2005 - Australian weaver and artist Kay Faulkner received a grant from Arts Queensland to create more chocolate themed
art that incorporates chocolate wrappers. Starbucks has announced that they are dropping there Chantico chocolate drink from there
menu and replacing it with two new chocolate drinks come February.
December 27, 2005 - Out of Oregon a recipe for Spicy Chocolate Buttermilk Sheet Cake that looks promising.
December 26, 2005 - Neat little article from Bella Online with a recipe for Pan Pepato , Italian chocolate bread.
December 25, 2005 - A Maine woman started baking whoopie pies three at a time a decade ago and now produces 5,000 - 7,000 of her
Wicked Whoopies everyday. Austria gears up for the 250th birthday of Mozart. Sales are expected to rise on Mozartkugel, that combination
of chocolate, marzipan and pistachios that has always been available here in New York. A few fun Mozartkugel facts gleaned from the
article. It was created in 1891 for the 100th Anniversary of Mozart's death by a Salzburg confectioner Paul Fuerst. It won a Gold Medal at the
1905 Universal Exhibition in Paris and they sell 90 million pieces every year. In England sales of Turkish Delight have been going up since
the release of the film the Chronicles Of Narnia where the White Witch offers Edmund enchanted Turkish Delight. Cadbury makes Fry's
Turkish Delight and many other companies also make there own versions.
December 24, 2005 - Soccer star David Beckham purchased a chocolate fountain from Harrods for his wife Posh Spice. Chocolate malt
truffles soon will be made from a new strain of barley according to Seed Quest news service.
December 23, 2005 - USA Today has a good piece on 10 of the best places to get hot chocolate including Mio Gelato in Portland and City
Bakery here in New York City.
December 21, 2005 - A nice article from CNN.com about the growth of Haut hot chocolate. Information on Jacques Torres, Marie Belle and
Holy Chocolate.
December 20, 2005 - Nestle has announced that they have acquired Delta Ice Cream. For 240,000,000 Euros they now own Delta's four
production facilities in Greece. They operate under brand names such as Boss, Nirvana and Aloma and operate through out Greece,
Romania, Montenegro and Serbia. Hershey Chocolate has objected to the cover of a new book, ''Hershey: Milton S. Hershey's
Extraordinary Life of Wealth, Empire, and Utopian Dreams,". The cover looks like a regular Hershey Bar and Hershey claims it violates there
copyrights. An interesting article from Food Production Daily out of Europe with a roundup of this years discoveries in the world of
chocolate and how chocolate is being recognized as something good for ones health. Zellers out of Canada wins the eChocolateNYC
award for chocolate grinch of the year.
December 19, 2005 - Fonterra a New Zealand firm has been doing a brisk business selling chocolate flavored cheese in Taiwan. Swiss
chocolate maker DeLafee International is selling authentic gold plated chocolate pralines. Chocolate Deities hand painted chocolate
representations of Buddha and Ganeesh are becoming popular. Researchers from the University Hospital of Zurich have just concluded
a study which has found that the consumption of Dark Chocolate cuts the risk of heart failure among smokers. The story of a Michigan
family who purchased a chocolate fountain and went into business setting up fondue like displays at weddings.
December 18, 2005 - The story of a Mandan North Dakota drugstore owner who has also 750,000 chocolate bars of her line celebrating
the Lewis And Clark Bicentennial. The following article is from last year but goes into the legal battle between Debbie Kruger the maker of
the Lewis and Clark bar and the New England Candy Company owners of the Clark Bar over copyright infringement. Neat article about The
Idaho Candy Company a firm that has been in business since 1901 and makes the Idaho Spud Bar which sells 3,000,000 pieces a year.
December 16, 2005 - The South Bend Chocolate Company is looking to buy an adjoining building and launch a $1,200,000 expansion.
Chocolate has six times the anti oxidants as the next closest natural food the blueberry and has some of the same properties as Prozac.
A lawsuit has been settled making DZ Enterprises the sole owner of Endangered Species Chocolate. The Keystone Lodge Ski Resort in
Keystone Colorado has on display until January 2, 2006 a miniature Alpine village constructed entirely of chocolate. 2,500 pounds of
chocolate were used to construct the village. Jacques Torres Chocolate Haven has posted a help wanted ad on Craigs List looking for
workers for his Chocolate Factory. As well as getting paid you will learn tempering, molding and enrobing among other skills. Article on
how more chocolate than ever is going high end in Florida.
December 15, 2005 - Lake Champlain Chocolates has announced they are now making available over the Internet the following products
which were previously only available in there retail locations - Dark Chocolate Orange Peels , Dark Chocolate Apricots , Vanilla Caramels
, Marzipan , Coconut Delight and Ginger coated in Dark Chocolate. Ghiradelli is currently running a "sweetstakes" where a lucky
purchaser can win a luxury trip to San Francisco among other prizes. Interesting piece from National Public Radio on the flavanol content of
chocolate and the factory that produces Dove bars. Jacques Torres on the Today Show. See a video clip and learn how to temper
chocolate. An excellent article from the Miami Herald about Mexican chocolate and its uses. The Fernbank Museum Of Natural History of
Atlanta Georgia has a current show Chocolate the Exhibition. Also they will have a special Valentine's Day event February 14, 2006.
December 14, 2005 - A nice recipe for Chocolate Crackles. A recipe for Honey-drizzled chocolate cheese fritters. A small piece about New
Tree chocolate. A good article from the Motley Fool on Hershey's Chocolate and there plans for the future. Interesting article about Maine
chocolatier Rebecca Potter and her Raspberry Wine flavored Truffles.
December 13, 2005 - The Minister Of Tourism of Ghana has challenged restaurants in Ghana to create chocolate recipes and serve them
on there menus to promote the chocolate industry. "I want our industry to take chocolate and own it. Today, if you say chocolate, people
think Belgium and Switzerland. I want them to also think Ghana," he stated. Prizes will be awarded at next years tourism awards ceremony.
Swiss chef Max Huber created 17 foot tall 400 pound Christmas Tree which is currently on display in the lobby of a Bangkok Thailand
Hotel. An interesting article about Bedre Fine Chocolate a chocolate company out of Oklahoma owned by the Chickasaw Nation. They
have been in business since 1986 and last year sales topped $2,000,000.
December 12, 2005 - Noka announced today there chocolate was named the number 1 gourmet chocolate in the world by the editors of the
television show TASTE which is broadcast on SKY TV in the United Kingdom. Dean & DeLuca is currently carrying Hammonds candy
canes which are made in Denver and pretty hard to find here in New York. These are special candy canes hand pulled and flavored with
cloves, peppermint, cinnamon, green apple and cherry. They make excellent stocking stuffers. Coke and Godiva announce that they are
working on a joint venture a bottled chocolate flavored coffee to compete with the Starbucks/Pepsi Double Shot.
December 11, 2005 - How cocoa production affects events in the Ivory Coast and the threat of possible war in a nation where 40% of the
worlds cocoa beans are produced. Springfield Illinois chocolate makers Pease's open there factory doors to the general public for the
first time in 75 years and hold a holliday open house. Interview with Sarasota Ritz-Carlton pastry chef Daniel Mangione who along with
partner Marina Sousa took first place in the Food Network's Wedding Cake challenge. They put together a 6 tier 165 lb cake and took home
the $10,000 prize. The contest will be televised in June. The Hershey Chocolate Board OKs Additional $500M Stock Buyback Program and
forecasts 3 - 4% growth next year.
December 9, 2005- Godiva has announced they will be giving out samples from there Pop Chocolate Collection through December 10th. A
recipe for Chocolate Peppermint Puffs. Dark chocolate sales in England are starting to catch up to the sales of milk chocolate for the first
time.
December 8, 2005 - A P.R. release from Cocoamill Chocolate announcing there holiday sales are way ahead of last year. An article on
CocoaVia from the Mars Company that claims that the purported health benefits from CocoaVia, the healthy chocolate, might be
exaggerated. A few nice recipes for chocolate martinis. Some recipes for hot chocolate from the National Confectioners Association. A
recipe for chocolate pinwheel cookies.
December 7, 2005 - A nice article about the history of the chocolate chip cookie. An interesting piece on the ongoing conflicts in the Ivory
Coast and how the cocoa industry is affected. An article out of California on what cocoa percentages on chocolate bars mean. A recipe for
Chocolate Peppermint Bark. A recipe from the Seattle Times for Chocolate Almond Thumbprint Cookies with Sour Cherry Filling.
Fascinating article on how the FDA is exploring new labeling rules for ice cream and some of the more bizarre proposals for ingredieints
to make ice cream.
December 6, 2005 - An interesting recipe for chocolate pudding cake from a Canadian newspaper. Kelly (daughter of Ozzy and reality TV
star) claims she's losing weight on a chocolate diet. A nice article from Stars And Stripes about a cookie bake off to produce a tray of
cookies for every single or unattached service person on the Misawa Air Base in Japan. They call it the Annual Cookie Caper.
December 1, 2005 - Hello. Sorry about the dearth of news lately we were on hiatus for the Thanksgiving holidays and are just getting back
up to speed. There is a lot to report starting with the biggest news from a New York chocolate perspective. Finally Michel Cluizel has
established a retail branch here in the city, although his chocolate bars have been readily available. It is located in the ABC Carpet & Home
building at 888 Broadway. Neuhaus occupied space there a few years back but closed down, here's hoping Cluizel fares better. He has a
nice size room towards the back of the ground floor. The showcases are jammed with his full line and the staff was quite helpful. We
sampled the hot chocolate which was amazing. They also are the first chocolate store in Manhattan to have a full liquor license and are
offering a $100 per person 10 chocolate and 8 spirits tasting. If that doesn't fortify you against the winter cold I don't know what else would.
You can reach the store at 212 477 - 7335 for more information about the tastings and store hours. This is a must see shop for the
chocolate lover. As an added bonus they are open until midnight Thursday - Saturday, if ABC Carpet is closed go around the corner and
enter through Lucy Latin Kitchen. We recently sampled some of the new Vintage line from NOKA and it was quite good , deep dark and very
complex. A full review will be posted in a few days but I mention it here to congratulate NOKA and Dean & DeLuca for joining forces to make
NOKA product available here in the city. You can check it out at both the Dean & DeLuca on Broadway and Prince and the Madison Avenue
and 85th Street branch. It has come to our attention that like many retailers New York's chocolate ships are expanding there staffs for the
holiday season. This is a great way to learn about chocolate and maybe make a few extra dollars. The following are links to recent job
postings we've come across. Chocolate Bar is looking for people who can make coffee, tea and package chocolates nicely, bow making
is a big plus. Christopher Norman is looking for a server who can learn a lot about there chocolates and aid customers in making the
right chocolate selection Jacques Torres Chocolate Haven is seeking a team player with strong customer service skills. If you check
upcoming events you'll find that French Alliance is working in conjunction with Cafe Fauchon to hold two upcoming tasting events.Rocky
Mountain Chocolate Factory profits up