ler ler's chocolate kingdom

i might not have won a golden ticket to willy wonka's chocolate factory but i can still have my chocolate and eat it too with these sweet offerings in town

truffles-named because of its stark resemblance to the exotic french mushroom,a truffle is made of chocolate(ganache),butter,sugar and sometimes liqueur.They are shaped into balls and often coated with cocoa powder.

gianduja-(a filled chocolate is broadly referred to as a 'bon bon') A bon bon filled with finely ground nuts mixed with chocolate.Gianduja was created during the napoleonic blockade in the 19th century,when chocolatiers had to improvise with roasted hazelnuts to make chocolate more affordable due to a shortage of cocoa.

ganaches-a bon bon filled with a mixture of chocolate and cream.The chocolate mixture is silky and creamy,and usually made from chopped semi-sweet chocolate and boiling cream.lt can be flavoured with chocolate,coffee,liqueurs and extracts.

praline-a bon bon filled with nuts,mostly almonds and hazelnuts.Praline(pronounced 'pray-leen') is also the most commonly used term in the chocolate kingdom,and is used loosely to refer to chocolate candies in general.Belgians refer to pralines as filled chocolates,mostly with nuts or chocolate centres.

liqueur filled chocolates-a bon bon filled with alcohol,mostly cognacs,rum and even champagne! The shot of alcohol blends with the chocolate to give it a unique flavour

cream & fondants-filled with sugar or sugar syrup fillings,cremes are great for anyone of us with an extremely sweet tooth!!

A little note for chocolate lover-ideally,chocolates are best stored between 15-18 degrees and in 40-50% humidity,which is quite different from a domestic fridge,which can cause the chocolate to 'bloom' (you notice a powdery white layer) so at home,keep the chocolates well wrapped and stored in a cool air-conditioned room or in an airtight container in a wine fridge