February 2012

TASTING NM
The Truffles I've Seen

Fine chocolate has become so popular in New Mexico that someone might guess we have cacao trees growing along the Río Grande. In my dreams! Our state is nonetheless blessed with a disproportionate number of creative chocolatiers. Check out their sweet indulgences and share them with your special someone on Valentine’s Day—or any day at all.

Roadmap for Romance
Start your enchanted journey by following Santa Fe’s Chocolate Trail, a cooperative venture of four top chocolatiers. At C.G. Higgins Confection, opt for the raspberry chipotle fudge, or perhaps the chocolate-covered strawberries that Chuck Higgins makes by the hundreds for Valentine’s Day. On the other side of downtown, the Kakawa Chocolate House specializes in historic and contemporary chocolate drinks, which for Valentine’s include an elixir flavored with damiana, a Mexican herb thought to be an aphrodisiac. If that doesn’t get your heart racing, try an arbol chile dipped in caramel and chocolate.

At ChocolateSmith, I recommend a selection of the rustic shards of chocolate bark, perhaps those with New Mexico red- or green-chile pistachios. For another kind of treat, check out the intense dark-chocolate sauce that the staff stashes inside the retro corner fridge. Made of little more than chocolate liquor (the pressed liquid essence of the cacao bean), bittersweet chocolate, and butter, it’s wicked good. At home, I eat it standing in the kitchen, simply dipping a spoon into the jar, sometimes with a smear of peanut butter.

Tucked into Sena Plaza near the center of town, Todos Santos [(505) 982-3855] is a wee Wonka wonderland. Owner and chocolatier Heyward Simoneaux first came to the world of cacao as a collector of antique French chocolate molds, some of which are always on display in the shop. His Parsons School of Design background is evident in the fanciful displays and ornate packaging, as well as in the artistry of the chocolates themselves. Heyward’s work as a picture framer inspired his imaginative use of edible gold and silver leaf as gilding for many of the confections, including his signature milagros: religious charms of good fortune. This year he’ll also be molding anatomically correct hearts, as well as milagro-style heart boxes that can be filled with a mix of his creations.

Fantasy in Silver
On the Saturday closest to Valentine’s Day (February 11, 2012), Silver City hosts its annual Chocolate Fantasia celebration. With tickets purchased in advance, some 300 lucky folks enjoy a feast of chocolates offered by businesses throughout the charming downtown. Many restaurants feature sweet specials, but The Curious Kumquat [(575) 534-0337] goes for the gold medal when Chef Rob Connoley whips up a 10-course choco-banquet. Expect chocolate sculptures made from local artists’ molds, and dishes such as mini pâte choux sandwiches stuffed with bacon, gorgonzola, and chocolate ganache; savory chocolate ravioli with orange-black pepper sauce; cacao-encrusted pork tenderloin; and six-layer chocolate cake with goat-cheese ganache and sour-cherry syrup. Book early.

Truffles and Lovely Trifles
Cocopotamus. Doesn’t the name make you smile? Albuquerque-based husband-and-wife team Ally and Max Sinclair produce a line of exotically flavored truffles. The bergamot-scented Earl Grey Jones truffles take their name from a Los Angeles incident, when actor James Earl Jones pulled up in a car beside the Sinclairs. In Max’s excitement, he blurted out, “There’s Earl Grey Jones!” (Master chocolatier Ally generously shares her sultry spiced hot chocolate recipe below.)

Also in Albuquerque, Chuck and Heidi Weck operate Theobroma Chocolatier. Pick up one, or even a dozen, of their solid-chocolate roses or some Chocolate y Maiz, their milk chocolate with a corn crunch. The Chocolate Cartel, run by the Van Rixel family, makes its Choco Canyon Artisan Chocolates using local ingredients like Rasband Dairy’s cream and Heidi’s raspberry red-chile jam. I find the Cartel’s dark chocolate bar with toffee bits and sea salt absolutely addictive.

If you like the idea of chocolate-covered cherries but have found that most smack of cough syrup, here’s a final fillip to cheer you. The Chocolate Lady [(575) 526-1110], with a shop on Mesilla’s plaza, makes luscious white, milk, or dark chocolate-covered maraschino cherries, not just for Valentine’s Day but all year round. 

Read more on Cheryl's blog. See more of Douglas Merriam’s work at www.douglasmerriam.com.