Sweet Like Chocolate

My name is Fiona Bramley and I’m a chocoholic. Well, perhaps that’s exaggerating it a bit – it’s not like any old bar will do and for most of the week I am capable of abstaining, but put me within arm’s reach of a single origin truffle on a Friday night and you’ll have to wrestle the rest of the box away. This week is officially Chocolate Week 2012, so book yourself some extra sessions in the gym and indulge guilt-free.

All in the name of research, I selflessly headed down to Festival Place to pick 5 great purchases that celebrate what is surely one of the best weeks of the year:

Top of the Chocs

The Squirrel’s Stash – If you’re nutty for praline, you’ll love this super cute range (£4.50 from Hotel Chocolat). Squirrel it away for lone enjoyment later.

Auberge du Chocolat: the secrets of fine chocolate making – If you want to make your own chocolates (or just want to drool over some irresistible photography) this book is a great place to start (currently £16.99 at Waterstones).

No added sugar assortment – Not only are these chocolates sugar-free, they’re also gluten-free and suitable for vegetarians too (£14.99 from Thorntons). Great for guests on special diets, but tasty enough for everyone to enjoy.

Chocolate baking – If home-made chocolates sound a bit advanced, try your hand at chocolate cupcakes instead. This easy-release silicone mould (reduced to £10.40 at Debenhams) will help you get perfect results every time.

Entertaining with chocolate – Become a chocolate expert with this amazing chocolate tasting and pairing selection from Hotel Chocolat (£45 for 80 pieces plus pairing nibbles and tasting guides). All you need for a memorable night in with the girls.





While I was out chocolate hunting, I spoke to Senior Sales Advisor at Hotel Chocolat, Chloe Blakblock to find out what’s hot in the world of chocolate:

“In terms of flavours, salted caramel is the big thing at the moment though our most popular purchase is the ‘Everything Selection’, a box of 30 chocolates from across the whole range. My favourite has got to be the lemon truffle though – it’s really rich and citrusy whilst still being nice and mellow”.

Thrifty shoppers should also look out for their ‘Selectors’, a huge range of slabs, truffles and nibbles. Usually priced at £3.50, they drop to £2.95 each when you buy 3 or more packs: Pick and mix, grown-up style!

***

Review of Gourmet Burger Kitchen

I was joined on my research mission by chocolate-loving friend Angela. With the children ensconced in after-school clubs and husbands on collection duty, we found ourselves with a rare afternoon and early-evening run of freedom on our hands. To bridge the gap between the afternoon’s retail therapy and the early screening of Hope Springs at Vue, Angela suggested a trip to her favourite Festival Place restaurant, Gourmet Burger Kitchen.

The restaurant has a really relaxed atmosphere with panels of dark wood and a rather fabulous array of pendant lights (something of an obsession in our house at the moment!). I liked the casual attitude of the place: help yourself to monkey nuts and jugs of iced water garnished with fresh citrus and mint; order at the bar when you’re ready.

Although the chain was started by 3 friends from New Zealand, the company seems to champion British and local influences. The Festival Place branch is no exception, recently hosting the first Lauren’s Live lounge, featuring Britain’s Got Talent star, Lauren Thalia (watch the video here and keep your eyes peeled for tickets to her next event at www.festivalplace.co.uk).

The main focus of the menu is on good quality beef burgers made with West Country Beef, cooked medium as standard unless you‘re preference is for something a little more ‘done’. There are also chicken and lamb choices, but the part of the menu I was most interested in were the two speciality burgers produced by Laverstoke Park, just down the road in Overton. Having bought some of their products before I know that this is seriously good quality organic meat and though I was tempted by their wild boar and bacon burger, I decided to go with the buffalo.

Angela opted for “The Frenchie”, a rather elaborate concoction of beef burger in a brioche bun with crispy bacon, onion jam and blue cheese (I should point out at this point that Angela is one of those slightly distressing people that can eat like a horse and always slip comfortably into their size 10 skinny jeans…). We decided to share rosemary fries and ‘homeslaw’, a sort of healthy Antipodean version of coleslaw, then couldn’t resist ordering a portion of onion rings to share with our drinks while our burgers were cooked to order.

Well, I’d have liked to have seen the size of the onion that those rings came off! The monster rings were coated in a fabulously crispy panko crumb coating, the giant onion still retaining a bit of bite inside but with a nice mellow flavour.

Our burgers were soon to follow and though I looked on with a twinge of envy at Angela’s glossily bronzed brioche bun, one bite of the buffalo was enough to convince me that I’d made the right decision. Buffalo is like a more flavoursome, slightly gamey version of beef and works brilliantly in burger form, particularly when chargrilled on the outside and left a tiny bit pink in the middle, a la GBK. The ‘homeslaw’ gave a welcome burst of freshness (much better in this situation than the mayo-heavy traditional version).

Then there were the fries!  Whoever came up with the idea of throwing a handful of fresh rosemary needles into the fryer with the shoestring fries quite frankly deserves a medal (though I will take all the credit for choosing to order the splendidly garlicky garlic mayonnaise to dip them in!).

Instead of dessert we decided to share one of their epic banana milkshakes, made with Yeo Valley organic ice cream – one of those guilty pleasures made a little less guilty by using great quality ingredients. Come to think of it, that sums up GBK pretty well…

***

So how will you be celebrating Chocolate Week? When it comes to the sweet stuff is it quality or quantity that speaks loudest to you? Is your favourite truffle filling a timeless classic or is there room for something more exotic in your chocolate box?

Happy nibbling!
Fiona B x