The time has come, and Lent is upon us yet again – that means that we’re called to sacrifice something we love for a dreaded forty days and nights. There are so many naughty things one could forgo during this period; cigarettes, alcohol, and being unkind are things many people could improve upon … When you look at it like that, why would you ever think of giving up something as lovely as chocolate?
Demarquette Fine Chocolates creates some of the greatest tasting chocolates in the world – if you don’t believe us, just ask the judges at the Guild of Fine Food’s Great Taste Awards – Demarquette has been the most awarded Luxury Chocolatier in the UK for the past three years. But the taste is just the beginning! High quality chocolate provides a wide variety of health benefits that have been noticed since the 19th century.
Demarquette 71.1% House Chocolate Squares (50)
Cocoa beans are also rich in a number of essential minerals and vitamins, including magnesium, calcium, iron, zinc, copper, potassium and manganese as well as Vitamins A, B1, B2, B3, C, E and pantothenic acid; what a delicious way to replace your daily multi-vitamin!
Finally, we are often asked whether chocolate truly is an aphrodisiac. In a survey of 143 women published in the Journal of Sexual Medicine, those who ate chocolate every day had more sex drive than those who went without. That means that consuming chocolate doesn’t just benefit yourself, but your partner as well. Who wouldn’t appreciate that?
Let’s all use this information to our benefit and take into consideration just how many advantages chocolate supplies us with … It seems a bit mad to even think about sacrificing such a healthy and luscious food from our diets! If we’ve got you craving a bit, try a bar from our Pure Range Selection which include single origin cocoa in contents from 60-80%. Be smart this spring, and keep chocolate in your diet. You’ll thank us later! 
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Why not use this Shrove Tuesday to indulge yourself with a delectable homemade Praline Spread? Use this topping recipe provided by Demarquette Fine Chocolates to dress up your Pancake Day and truly treat yourself before the start of Lent. This spread is perfect for traditional pancakes or our Irresistable Oatcake Recipe. If you cannot make time to drop into the shop to pick up our very own Chocolate and Hazelnut Praline Spread, you may as well make some at home!
Hazelnut Chocolate Spread 
100 g finely ground hazelnuts
150 ml double cream
100 g chocolate (we recommend our 71.1% Dark Chocolate)
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon powder
1 vanilla pod (seeds only)
2 tablespoons honey
Adult Version: 20 ml brown rum (in case you’re feeling exceptionally decadent)
Gently dry roast the ground hazelnuts in a frying pan; remove from heat and leave to cool.
Split the vanilla pod in two and scrape the seeds from the inside; add seeds and cinnamon to the cream and set aside.
Then, gently melt the chocolate over a Bain Marie. Leave to cool slightly and slowly stir in the double cream mixture, followed by the honey. (Add the rum at this point if you are opting for the ‘adult’ version.) Whisk vigorously for 1-2 minutes. Finally, add the roasted hazelnuts.
Spoon the mixture into a sterilised jar and leave to set in the refrigerator. Be sure to enjoy your spread within two weeks!
If you prefer a sweet and salty spread, pick up our Cornish Clotted Cream and Sea Salt Caramel Spread or check out our Halen Mon Salted Caramel Sauce Recipe as an alternative. (And remember not to do anything crazy for Lent this year, like giving up chocolate!)
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This luxurious Oat Milk Hot Chocolate made its first appearance at Demarquette’s collaboration event with Rude Health. It was such a hit that we decided to share it for you to try at home! Top it off with a splash of whiskey and a dollop of vanilla whipped cream for the perfect ending to your day.
Oat Hot Chocolate 
1 lt of Oat Milk
300 g of dark 71% Chocolate (grated)
3 Tbs Honey (optional)
Best whisky you can afford
Gently heat the milk (do not boil). When it becomes steaming hot, take the pan off the heat and add your grated chocolate. Stir with a whisk for approximately 3 minutes, until the chocolate is fully incorporated and reaches a dark, thick, and glossy texture. Then, add the honey (optional).
Vanilla Whipped Cream
150 ml Double Cream
1 Vanilla Pod
Cut the vanilla pod lengthwise in 2 and scrape out the tiny seeds. Add them to the double cream, then whisk up to form hard peaks.
Finally, spoon a generous amount of cream in a cup, pour over the hot chocolate mix, and add a splash of Scottish Whiskey. Sit back in a comfortable chair and enjoy!
World Chocolate Guide blogger Jennifer Earle was an attendee of our Chocolate and Oatstravaganza, and was inspired by Marc’s recipe to create her own Oatso-Sexy Hot Chocolate. Check out her suggestions here!
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A short clip showing luxury chocolatier Marc Demarquette travel to Vietnam in search of the perfect (three star award winning!) cocoa. See how cocoa is grown & harvested and how the beans are then extracted, sorted, fermented & dried before the next stages in transforming cocoa into chocolate (next video… )
Irresistable Oatcakes
Photo Courtesey of Swamibu on Flickr.com
640 g Medium Coarse Oatmeal (we recommend Rude Health Daily Oats Porridge)
340 g Strong Plain White Flour
3 Tbsp Dried Skimmed Milk
4 tsp Quick-Act Dried Yeast
2 tsp Unrefined Sugar
500 ml – 1 lt Warm Water
Pinch of Halen Mon White Flakes Salt
Place all the dry ingredients (except salt) in a mixing bowl and add 500 ml of warm water. Mix until you have a thick custard texture. (You may need to add a bit more warm water to achieve the texture.) Cover the mixture with a damp towel and leave in a warm place for 2 hrs.
After two hours, mix the batter again and add a little more warm water to gain the consistency of a thick custard. Add the salt and mix well.
Next, heat a pan with a drop of oil and pour a ladle of the mixture to cook. Tap the side of the pan to get the bubbles out of the cake and spread the mix thinly. Loosen and flip the cake after approximately 1 minute.
Serve like a pancake with sweet or a savoury topping. The cakes can also be served as a fantastic dessert by adding vanilla ice cream and some moorish salted caramel. Try Demarquette’s Cornish Clotted Cream and Sea Salt Caramel Spread for a one of a kind treat.
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Here, we have a recipe developed by Marc Demarquette for an absolutely divine sea salt caramel. It’s perfect to use as an ice cream topping, pancake syrup, or (if you’re like us) just eat it by the spoonful.
Best Sea Salt Caramel in the World
Courtesy of Swamibu on Flickr.com
20 ml water
100 g unrefined sugar
100 g unsalted butter (room temp)
250 g double cream
1 Tbsp honey (optional)
1 tsp Halen Mon Vanilla Salt
Pour water in the pan and then add sugar. Heat up gently till you get small champagne-like bubbles (approx. 5 mins), then take off heat and add half the butter. Leave for 30 seconds and then stir very gently until mixed and the colour has changed from clear to opaque. Turn up the heat and bring back to boiling point, then add cream in 3 stages – each stage leave for 30 seconds before stirring (we mean it… be patient!).
Lastly, add the Halen Mon Vanilla Sea Salt. When fully incorporated, remove from the heat, add the remaining butter, and blend carefully. Leave to rest for 5 mins before serving.
Click on the picture below to watch a step-by-step video of Marc concocting the caramel.
Recently, Demarquette Fine Chocolates paired with Rude Health to recreate their World Porridge Championship (unfairly deemed) second-place dish for a select group of the food blogging community. The crowd overwhelmingly ranted that the dish should have taken the first place title. “The entry that didn’t make it is probably the best porridge I have ever eaten…” said Judith Lewis of MostlyAboutChocolate.com. Regardless, the team of Marc Demarquette and Nick Barnard created a dish described as nothing less than moreish. 
Nick’s vision was to bin the idea of porridge being something your granny force-fed you as a child, and make it sexy. How to do that, you ask? Pair it with Demarquette chocolate and a mouth-watering salted caramel sauce infused with Halen Mon Anglesey Sea Salt. It is no wonder the judges awarded it second – they had been so accustomed to tasting the plain boiled oats that they must have been in a state of shock while marking the dish!
The collaboration began at the Abergavenny Food Festival in Wales where Marc decided he could help to make Nick’s vision of sexy porridge come to life. According to Marc, they “smiled and smirked like little children for days” when they finally landed on the perfect combination. Check out this video by ImplausibleBlog.com which sums up the combination fabulously.
The night consisted of a porridge demo by Nick and caramel demo by Marc (followed by tasting, of course). The salted caramel presentation was captured by World Chocolate Guide in this video (recipes to come soon). LondonEats mentioned, “I’m pretty sure that chocolate and salted caramel have never been enjoyed in such a healthy way!”
Marc even created an oat milk-based hot chocolate spiked with a shot of Old Pulteney Whiskey for good measure. Jennifer Earle of World Chocolate Guide was inspired by the delectable drink and created her own (non-alcoholic) recipe for a breakfast indulgence that you can view here.
The union of chocolate and oats was so divine that Demarquette created a Puffed Oats and Praline Chocolate Heart just in time for Valentine’s Day.
In spite of of a second-place standing, we are now convinced porridge is sexy! Can you think of a better way to end your Monday than with a combination of chocolate, oats, caramel and whiskey? We can’t.
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We recently hosted a small gathering in our boutique to unveil our Festive window which features chocolate reindeers and a huge tower made entirely out of chocolate with sparkly lights to decorate it. Anyway, of course we had a feast of chocolates for everyone to taste but Marc also created a delicious Mulled Cider. Everyone loved it and so we thought we’d share our recipe for you to recreate it and serve it at your own parties and festive celebrations - or even just to warm up!
Ingredients
- 1Ltr fresh apple juice
- 3ltr dry apple cider from pure and not concentrated juice
- 100ml calvados
- Pinch of dried roses
- Cardamom x 6 pods
- Cloves x 4
- Cinnamon 1tsp
- Star anis x 3
- Tasmanian Pepper x 10 corns
- 1 Orange and 1 Lemon Peel with a little rind
- Vanilla bean (use an empty pod)
- 3 heaped tbp of honey (1/2 jar ish)
Method
Gently dry roast all the spices then add the apple juice add the peels (not candied), roses and vanilla, bring to boil.
Cover with clingfilm and let it cool.
When cold (after approx. 2hrs) add cider, calvados and honey and film again and leave for 1 – 2hrs)
Then reheat gently and it’s ready to serve. So simple!
Lights sparkling. Cider mulling. The scent of cinnamon in the air. Christmas is in full swing in our Chelsea Chocolate boutique! 
Assisting in the magical mood of the festive season is our chocolate shop window display, featuring a solid chocolate magical White Hart and glimmering chocolate fairytale tower. Sprinkled around the room are sprigs of fresh holly and evergreen, twinkling lights, and sparkling baubles, and nestled amongst these Christmas staples are our delightful chocolates! The array of ganaches perfectly
captures the taste of Christmas- Pistachio Praline and Cardamom, Spiced Cider, Fig and Cinnamon Port, and Ginger and Eastern Spices. But don’t let the festively delicate prints (including the magical leaping reindeer) on the chocolates fool you- these chocolates are as flavourful as they are beautiful!!
The tantalizing treats our Reindeer caramel collection. These domed caramel-chocolates look like sparkling Christmas baubles all on their own, but the true magic lies inside! The flavours- Cranberry, Mixed Citrus, and Spiced Apple (a 2011 Great Taste Award Winner)- use only the freshest festive spices and ripe winter fruit. To fill these tiny wonders, Marc creates a luxuriously creamy caramel filling using British Beet Sugar and deliciously rich Jersey herd cream from Cornwall. Each beautifully hand moulded milk chocolate is hand decorated in a festively snow-scene inspired pattern, as well.
The centerpiece of the shop is a tall table, marvelously overflowing with a bounty of Christmas inspired creations. From milk chocolate Santas and boxed sets of St. Nicholas Chocolate Choirs, to Santa’s Sack of Solid Chocolate Marbles and Milk Chocolate Nutcrackers, the assortment is seemingly never ending. Atop the center of the table you will find beautifully decorated and packaged Chocolate Christmas t
rees, each tier of the tree topped with hand molded and painted solid chocolate baubles.
The excitement of Christmas magic in the store along with the delight of the glorious chocolate creations make for a must-visit to stock up on all your festive treats!
Here are our Festive & New Year’s Opening Times:
Sun 4th Dec 12pm – 4pm
Mon 5th Dec CLOSED
Tues 6th – Thu 8th 11am – 6pm
Fri 9th – Sat 10th 11am – 7pm
Sun 11th Dec 12pm – 4pm
Mon 12th – Thu 15th 10am – 6pm
Fri 16th – Sat 17th 10am – 7pm
Sun 18th Dec 11am – 6pm
Mon 19th Dec 10am – 6pm
Tue 20th Dec 10am – 7pm
Wed 21st – Fri 23rd 10am – 8pm
Christmas Eve 10am – 7pm
Christmas Day 10am – 12pm
Mon 26th – Thu 29th CLOSED
Fri 30th Dec 11am – 7pm
New Year’s Eve 11am – 6pm
Sun 1st Jan – Tue 3rd CLOSED
Normal opening times resume from 4th January.
Please check out more information on these must-have chocolates at www.demarquette.co.uk. Also take note of our “last order” dates- by 11am on 20 December for First Class Recorded delivery, or by 11am on 23 December for Special Delivery.
