Escapism in Chocolate: Gorgeous Easter Creations by Paris Chocolatiers

1 April 2020 by Margaret Kemp    2370  
Escapism in Chocolate: Gorgeous Easter Creations by Paris Chocolatiers
Margaret Kemp
By Margaret Kemp
Every year Paris chocolatiers get creative with wonderful Easter chocolates. They’ve been planning these beautiful treats for months, so we wanted to share a showcase despite the current lockdown. Some of these will be available to order for delivery; it’s best to check the individual websites below. At this difficult time, the hospitality industry is gathering together to show solidarity. For example, the Dolfi family of À La Mere de Famille is donating the stock from their beautiful boutiques to hospitals such as the Reanimation and Maternity departments at Pitié-Salpêtrière, Reanimation Service at Lariboisière and the Pediatric Department at Robert Debré. Sunday April 12th, 2020. We’re putting all our (Easter) eggs in one basket – they rock! Alain Ducasse Alain Ducasse & The Manufacture’s bean-to-bar 2020 Easter story is animal-centric. Colin crab (€39) hides under his shell surrounded with delicious praline treats. State of the art sardines (€16 per tin/box) are geometrically arranged in cardboard tins. Chocolate praline, almond and coconut Easter rabbits (€34) await adoption. Choose from dark or light chocolate. “Take the best cocoa beans, process in the traditional way – that’s how to make the best chocolate”, reflects AD. Dalloyau It’s Jurassic Easter chez Dalloyau! Eggs, desserts and chocolate delicacies; play with shapes and different types of chocolate. Jérémy Del Val, French dessert champion and the team of house chocolate and pastry chefs, offer a fun and gourmet “dinosaur” collection/theme. Choco-duo Charlie and Mario enhance the celebrations with electric guitar and yellow or red sax, star glasses on their nose and backpacks! Price €39. Yann Menguy For Easter, pastry chef Yann Menguy invites you down to his bucolic farmyard where chocolate carrots (€19) flourish and deliciously garnished hens are raised (€19). So when are we going? Hôtel Plaza Athénée Award winning duo Angelo Musa, World Pastry Champion and Best Craftsman of France, with Alexandre Dufeu create this jewel of an egg dividing into eight generous portions, alternating dark and milk chocolate. Coated in royal red, the signature color of Hôtel Plaza Athénée, each piece is hand painted with gold leaf, the interior reveals hazelnut praline sprinkled with dried fruit. The Easter Egg – Limited edition – €90 Available at the Gallery of the Plaza Athénée Hotel from April 6. Tel: 01 53 67 65 97 Lenôtre Creative director & Executive chef Guy Krenzer, chocolate maker Marc Sibold and MOF pastry chef Jean-Christophe Jeanson reinvent Easter tradition “kawaii” style. Their milk, dark chocolate farm consists of five adorable animals, chocolate eggs and a box packed with sweet surprises. Price on demand. À la Mère de Famille (since 1761) The flagship boutique, on the corner of rue du Faubourg Montmartre and rue de Richer (9th) with its historic listed boutique window, is alone worth a visit. These renowned chocolate makers not only make delicious treats, they also have a sense of humor. Here’s their irresistible spin on Eggs Benedict for your consideration. 65% dark chocolate or 36% for the milk version (€56). Note that the brand’s 14 boutiques are closed during the pandemic but you can order the collection online. Pierre Hermé With a seashell theme, Maison Pierre Hermé Paris and artisan decorator “shell maven” Thomas Boog interpret a fantasy marine universe. The passion for working raw ingredients unite the two men. Boog selects, sculpts, polishes, whitens, cuts shells to reveal their splendor. Pierre Hermé chooses, chisels, sublimates the best ingredients. It’s all about contrasts, combining caramelized blond and milk chocolate or pure dark Belize chocolate. €150 for The Face of the Egg. Nautilus Avarum fossil €29-€43-€65. Poseidon Egg €43-€65 and undulating hazelnut praline/cedar pine nut praline shell bars €10. Park Hyatt Vendôme Chef-Pâtissier artisan Jimmy Mornet highlights his favorite wild flower la marguerite. Mornet’s fab flower power egg (€90) is 70% dark chocolate, with crunchy hazelnut praline interior, the edible flowers delight eye and palate. And, lockdown permitting, taste Jimmy’s signature desserts Easter Sunday when Brunch at Restaurant Sens by chef Jean-François Rouquette is €135 (children 6-12 €60). Reserve by Tel: 01 58 71 12 34 Café Pouchkine Patrick Pailler, chef pâtissier, sends out “Paska” with artistically hand carved, “cracked” 68% choco egg shell, inside, a golden truffle garnished with hazelnut almond praline, add crispy praline and creamy dark chocolate ganache covered in gold leaf (€32). Available until April 20th at Café Pouchkine Madeleine and at Café Pouchkine Printemps Haussmann. Four Seasons Hotel George V Michael Bartocetti, Palace executive pastry chef, sculpts an elegant egg worthy of the Museum of Modern Art. Choose the dark choco version 62% (Dominican Republic) with Piedmont hazelnuts, praline and salty caramel butter (€65). Or 40% milk chocolate adding crunchy caramelized pumpkin seeds and praline (€69) making a sensational in-mouth explosion. Bartocetti’s tea-time at FSGV (€95) includes flaky pastry “brioche” eggs filled with chocolate ganache. “These bring out the little boy in me, easter egg hunts with my sister,” recalls Bartocetti. Barrière Le Fouquet’s Inspired by the peaceful interior garden of the Le Joy restaurant, located in the heart of the hotel, pastry chef Nicolas…
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Lead photo credit : courtesy of Ducasse

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By Margaret Kemp

Born in Hampton, Middlesex, UK, Margaret Kemp is a lifestyle journalist, based between London, Paris and the world. Intensive cookery courses at The Cordon Bleu, London, a wedding gift from a very astute ex-husband, gave her the base that would take her travelling (leaving the astute one behind) in search of rare food and wine experiences, such as the vineyards of Thailand, 'gator hunting in South Florida, learning to make eye-watering spicy food in Kerala;pasta making in a tiny Tuscany trattoria. She has contributed to The Guardian, The Financial Times Weekend and FT. How To Spend It.com, The Spectator, Condé Nast Traveller, Food & Travel, and Luxos Magazine. She also advises as consultant to luxury hotels and restaurants. Over the years, Kemp has amassed a faithful following on BonjourParis. If she were a dish she'd be Alain Passard's Millefeuille “Caprice d'Enfant”, as a painting: Manet’s Dejeuner sur l’herbe !