Sébastien Gaudard of Pâtisserie des Martyrs has created a succulent strawberry dessert in honour of Mother’s Day, celebrated in France this year on Sunday, May 26.

Chef Gaudard’s “macaronade aux fraises” is a heart-shaped fresh-berry dessert that features a scrumptious macaron base filled with marzipan and pistachio cream and topped with fresh strawberries.

This gorgeous confection comes in a pretty red-ribboned box. It is available at Pâtisserie des Martyrs starting on Tuesday, May 21, 2013.

Continue reading »

La Maison du Chocolat is setting up a pop-up store in the Printemps department store on boulevard Haussmann (9th arr.).

In addition to daily chocolate demonstrations, the 80-square-metre temporary venue, designed as a chocolate “tasting area,” will offer a full range of the company’s gourmet chocolates, pastries, macarons and ice cream, along with hot and cold beverages and a selection of juices and breakfast fare.

The “ephemeral” shop, which features a seating area, will be open from May 16 to August 17, 2013. It is located on Level -1 of the Printemps de la Mode building. (La Maison du Chocolat has a permanent retail store on Level 2 of Printemps de la Maison.)

Two new chocolate pastries have been created exclusively for this seasonal location.

Continue reading »

A Paris institution since 1903, Angelina is mostly known for its thick, luscious hot chocolate and elegant pastries.

But the celebrated tea room also has its own line of gourmet chocolates, available at the company’s flagship location on rue de Rivoli.

Made with single-origin chocolate from Peru, Tanzania, Ecuador and Venezuela, Angelina chocolates incorporate candied chestnuts, Earl Grey tea, Piedmont hazelnuts, roasted coffee beans, almonds, raspberries and honey, among other tasty ingredients.

Continue reading »

A la Mère de Famille head chef Julien Merceron‘s twist on one of the traditional symbols of Easter deliciously combines humour and imagination.

Exquisitely handcrafted, “La poule mouillée” — a playful hen basking in a tub of crispy chocolate spheres — comes in dark chocolate (68 per cent cacao) or milk chocolate (36 per cent cacao). Its crest, beak and barbels are crafted out of marzipan.

The chocolate hen-in-a-tub and assorted goodies — chocolate eggs and “fritures” (tiny chocolate fish) are hidden inside — weigh 350 grams.

Continue reading »

A glittering gold-leaf-covered chocolate egg is the highlight of this year’s Easter chocolate collection at Maison Dalloyau, the Paris luxury pâtisserie and gourmet caterer whose origins date back to the 17th century.

“Œuf ORsérie” is available in either dark chocolate (70 per cent cacao from Venezuela) or milk chocolate (40 per cent cacao from Côte d’Ivoire).

It comes packed with an assortment of chocolate “fritures,” or tiny fish.

Continue reading »

Nicolas Cloiseau, chef and creative director of La Maison du Chocolat, has created a cute little flock of chocolate sheep for this year’s Easter collection, called “A saute-mouton !” 

Inspired by Ouessant sheep, a breed of dark sheep from the island of Ouessant in Brittany, Chef Cloiseau’s curly-coated sheep, Frisoton and Frisette, come in milk and dark chocolate, either alone (250 grams) or as a pair (700 grams).

A  huge limited-edition six-kilogram chocolate centrepiece features chocolate sheep and lambs of different sizes set on a chocolate pasture. Everything, including the “wooden” fences, balls of wool and flowers, is made of chocolate. The daisies, in fact, are slivers of crispy matzo bread covered in white chocolate.

Continue reading »

Centre des Monuments Nationaux will be holding its annual Easter egg hunt at some 53 castles, fortresses, archaeological sites and other national monuments across France on Sunday, March 31, 2013.

The event, called Œufs, énigmes et chocolat (eggs, enigmas and chocolate), is a fun way for children and their families to learn about history and architecture. As in other years, is sponsored in part by Cémoi, one of France’s oldest chocolate manufacturers.

In Paris, the Easter egg hunts will be taking place at the Conciergerie and Tours de la Cathédrale Notre Dame.

Continue reading »

These magical chocolate Easter bunnies are handmade by Paris chocolatier Jean-Charles Rochoux, renowned for his wondrous chocolate sculptures of animals and other figurines.

Rochoux’s “Maître Lapin Chocolatier” (pictured below) is made with 540 grams of either dark, milk or white chocolate and has an additional 150 grams of chocolate surprises tucked inside its hat.

“Chapeau Lapin” (following photos), modelled after a magician’s rabbit, is also available in dark, milk or white chocolate. Slightly smaller at 320 grams, it comes with a hidden stash of yummy handmade praliné Easter eggs.

Continue reading »

For its first Easter chocolate collection, Les Marquis de Ladurée has created a set of elegant, beautifully garnished chocolate eggs.

L’Œuf Trésor is a limited-edition chocolate egg containing a pyramid of miniature yuzu-chocolate macarons. It comes in milk chocolate or dark chocolate and is available in two sizes (40 cm or 70 cm).

Also on offer is a collection of cameo eggs decorated with medallions featuring “Le Marquis” or “La Marquise,” emblems of Ladurée’s new chocolate shop in Paris.

The cameo eggs (also offered in two sizes) are made of either dark, milk or white chocolate and are available individually or in a classic Ladurée gift box.

Continue reading »

With spring just around the corner, so is Jour du Macaron!

On Wednesday, March 20 macaron lovers in Paris and throughout France are invited to indulge in the tasty treat while supporting a worthy cause.

Here’s how it works: participating pâtisseries are offering visitors free macarons on March 20. In turn, the stores will be accepting donations for Vaincre la mucoviscidose, a non-profit association that helps those who suffer from cystic fibrosis.

Continue reading »

Legendary chef Alain Ducasse, known for his Michelin-starred restaurants, cooking schools and cookbooks, has embarked on another tasty adventure, this time with chocolate.

Le Chocolat Alain Ducasse, Paris’s newest chocolate shop, officially opened in February in the heart of the trendy Bastille neighbourhood.

Located at the back of a small courtyard at 40, rue de la Roquette, the workshop and boutique is a complete bean-to-bar operation, with all of the chocolate used for making the bonbons, bars and other goodies on display handcrafted from raw cocoa beans right on the premises.

© Pierre Monneta

Continue reading »

Ladurée‘s new chocolate shop in Paris, Les Marquis de Ladurée, quietly opened its doors in December, in the midst of the holiday season.

Located just a few steps away from the upscale place Vendôme, the new shop is the company’s first store devoted entirely to chocolate. (Ladurée previously operated a small chocolate shop next door to its pâtisserie and tea room on rue Bonaparte, a space today filled by Ladurée Secrets & Beauté.)

Les Marquis de Ladurée, whose gorgeous décor combines 18th-century refinements and contemporary design, sells a full range of hand-crafted chocolates bonbons and truffles, as well as chocolate pastries and chocolate macarons.

Continue reading »

Paris chocolatier Jean-Charles Rochoux‘s shop on rue d’Assas (6th arr.) resembles something of a cabinet of (chocolate) curiosities, with its shelves full of chocolate animals, bas-reliefs, statuettes and other edible figurines.

In addition to the amazing array of chocolate sculptures, the shop also sells a full range of delicious ganaches, pralinés and chocolate-dipped fresh fruit pieces.

For Valentine’s Day 2013, Jean-Charles Rochoux has sculpted a striking chocolate hand and heart.

“Le cœur sur la main” features nearly a pound of chocolate in the form of a sculpted dark chocolate hand holding a brilliant red, praliné-filled chocolate heart.

Continue reading »

At Sébastien Gaudard’s Pâtisserie des Martyrs (9th arr.), the focus is always on classic French pâtisserie and traditional recipes.

For Chef Gaudard, Valentine’s Day and classic desserts go hand in hand, especially when it comes to chocolate!

This year’s Valentine’s Day desserts include three heart-shaped cakes: Rose Noire (pictured), which features a chocolate-almond cake and chocolate mousse covered with a layer of dark chocolate and topped with a dark chocolate rose; Cœur Mussipontain, an almond fondant cake with a vanilla and caramelised almond centre; and Cœur Mont Blanc, made with soft vanilla meringue, chestnut cream and whipped cream.

Continue reading »

In the run-up to the 2013 edition of the World Chocolate Masters, national pre-selections are now well underway.

The French national finals were held in Lyon on January 26 and 27, alongside the World Hospitality & Food Service Event (SIRHA), which wrapped up on January 30.

Twelve young chocolatiers and pastry chefs from across the country competed for a chance to represent France in this year’s World Chocolate Masters, which will take place from October 28 to 30, 2013 at the Salon du Chocolat (professional edition) in Paris.

The winner of the French finals is Yvan Chevalier, a 23-year-old chocolatier from Nantes who works at Chocolaterie Guerlais.

Yvan Chevalier (centre) is the winner of the French finals in the lead-up to the 2013 World Chocolate Masters.

Continue reading »