Le studio japonais Nendo a réalisé en collaboration avec le chef pâtissier Tsujiguchi Hironobu un superbe coffrets contenant 12 tubes comestibles. Chaque tube de chocolat renferme une liqueur ou une saveur différente, proposant ainsi un objet à la fois raffiné et appétissant. A découvrir en images dans la suite.
Re-imagining traditional candy bars
Herds of experimental chocolate makers have entered the game in recent years, while the crowd championing traditional American candy bars remains much more subdued. Brooklyn-based Liddabit Sweets is one of a few confectionaries aiming to reverse-engineer the classic bar with a heritage touch. While we’ve enjoyed their creative caramels in the past (particularly the “Beer & Pretzel” variety), we were once again impressed by the marriage of classic flavors and natural ingredients in their signature “Snack’r” candy bar.
Founders Liz Gutman and Jen King became friends in culinary school, bonding over their shared vision of taking high-end confectionary beyond classic French bonbons and molded chocolates. Shortly after introducing their sweets to the Brooklyn Flea’s “Smorgasburg“, they were able to quit their day jobs to maintain what remains a small operation making bars cut and dipped by hand. Materials for their creations are sourced locally, with honey from the Tremblay Apiaries, chocolate from Taza, dairy from Ronnybrook and beer from the Brooklyn Brewery.
Mother’s Day marks an expansion in the Liddabits line with the addition of “Lemon Moe-ringue“, a tart and tangy take on a classic meringue with lemon agar jelly candy topped with bruléed lemon-zest marshmallow, named for King’s mom. An ode to Gutman’s mother, the yet-to-be-released “Janberry Shortcake” layers strawberry jelly candy and tarragon shortbread under a coating of white chocolate. Also in the works is the “Vegan Coconut-Ginger Caramel”, which promises a wacky departure from the more traditional fare.
Liddabit Sweets will be offering a “Mamacita Gift Package” for Mother’s Day, and the duo have plans to release a cookbook this coming Fall. All the goods can be found at the Liddabit Sweets online store.
Photos by James Thorne
French-inspired, exotically-flavored caramels handmade in Los Angeles
When Justin Chao of Le Bon Garcon discovered caramels in Paris, he learned that crafting classic handmade French caramels can be a labor of love. I first tasted his buttery confections at Artisanal LA, and was so taken by the mango-passion fruit combination I reached out to Chao to learn more about his process for making such deliciously sweet caramels. To get your hands on some, visit the online shop where they sell in variously sized packages spanning $5-18.
When I lived in Paris, I lived near Rue des Mauvais Garcons, which translates to Street of the Bad Boys. When I started thinking of names for my company, the name “Mauvais Garcon” kept coming to mind, but I wanted something that reflected my personality, and the truth is, I’ve always been more of a good boy than a bad boy. The name also reminds me of my childhood, when my grandma would take me to the Chinese grocery store to buy French pastilles for special occasions or as a reward. When I started thinking about the concept for Le Bon Garcon, I wanted my customers to feel as special as I did when my grandma would take me to buy candy.
When I was in Paris, I discovered what a caramel could be. French caramels were buttery, flavorful and melted in your mouth. When I returned to L.A., I found myself missing those caramels more than almost anything else about Paris. After searching and searching for something similar, I finally decided to make the caramel myself. For months, I spent practically every evening after work in my kitchen, making batch after batch of caramel until I finally found a formula that I was happy with. When I perfected the recipe, I started giving the caramels out to friends and family. As soon as I saw their reaction to my caramels, I knew I had to start a company.
Launching Le Bon Garcon was not an easy process. The logistics of finding a kitchen and getting all the permits for a food business is complex and took me a while to figure out. When I had finally found a kitchen and finished all the administrative and legal paperwork, I still needed to find a place to sell my product. I went to a performance at the Broad Stage with my mom and some family friends. I brought some caramels for our friends who happened to know the director of the Broad Stage, Dale Franzen. Dale liked them so much that she asked me to start selling them at the next show. From there, I was able to slowly expand through word of mouth and participating in the Artisanal LA show this past April really helped propel Le Bon Garcon to the next level.
I make the caramels at Chefs Center of California, which is a communal commercial kitchen located in Pasadena. The manager, Larry Bressler, an instructor at the Cordon Bleu in Pasadena, has given me several pointers about how to improve my caramels.
Absolutely. Each caramel has its own unique process to make the flavor an integral part of the caramel’s essence (rather than something added at the end). For example, to preserve the fresh mango and passion fruit flavors in the caramel, I use a gentler process for heating the caramel. Scorching is an issue with the fruit, so the caramel must be constantly stirred for about an hour in French copper pots. I use real mango and high-quality passion fruit puree to make the flavor of the caramels as close as possible to the flavor of a fresh piece of fruit.
Unfortunately, there is no magic trick to making smooth caramel—it’s just hard, manual labor. The texture of Le Bon Garcon caramels comes from constantly hand-stirring the caramel while it is cooking so that the caramel heats uniformly and does not scorch.
I am constantly experimenting with new recipes. I hope to start releasing limited runs of seasonal flavors in the next few months, but I want to make sure that the new flavors are of the same high standards as my current flavors.
An all natural “supercandy” ups your game with its performance-driven ingredients
Recognizing that most people think about candy first and nutrition second, the just-announced line of Snap Infusion Supercandy seeks to provide snackers with both. Each biodegradable package of candy contains a daily dose of B vitamins, antioxidants and electrolytes delivered via patented “Snap bead” microcapsules.
There’s no pretense that these are “health” food; the creators wanted to make candy, but candy that was healthier than most. Snap’s launching with five classic candy varieties: gum, tarts, caramels, gummies and jelly beans. Each is naturally flavored, colored and sweetened. There’s no high fructose corn syrup and no trans fats. And while they still pack a calorie punch, it’s around half that of most similar treats.
Snap is the latest project of Andover, MA-based husband and wife team Eric and Andrea Stoll, well-known personalities in the athletic industry. Eric previously worked as the Marketing Director of Finnish running brand Karhu, while Andrea had senior roles at both Converse Sport and Vans. This experience helped them form the concept, marketing strategy, design and packaging for the product.
Snap will be available in August 2011 for around $2 a pack at sports stores and natural food markets across the USA. It will also be available online at Amazon and the Snap site.
This is site is run by Sascha Endlicher, M.A., during ungodly late night hours. Wanna know more about him? Connect via Social Media by jumping to about.me/sascha.endlicher.
