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Product Reviews / Main Nibbles / ChocolateMartine’s ChocolatesWhipped Cream-Filled Chocolates Charm With Freshness & Simplicity
In today’s creatively explosive chocolate world, chocolatiers are finding new flavor combinations to excite their customers, such as Christopher Norman’s bonbons of espresso and cardamom or Pierre Marcolini’s sesame seeds, anise, and caramel. At the same time, however, others are perfecting the classics, such as Robert Linxe’s mastery of pure ganache or Martine Leventer’s reinvention of timeless classics. As some raise the bar by venturing into new territory, others remain true to a more traditional art, where the freshness of the ingredients speaks most deliciously in a simpler form. Such is the case for Martine Leventer of Martine’s Chocolates. Instead of attempting to awe the taste buds through complexity and exoticism, Martine believes that freshness speaks for itself, and that high quality ingredients should not hide beneath a whirlwind of flavor complexity. Using French butter and Callebaut chocolate, she delivers the purest flavors possible. Martine’s chocolates come in a variety of fanciful shapes and delicious flavors that reflect her charming personality. The Heart, for example contains a layer of cappuccino flavored ganache nestled under a feathery layer of freshly whipped cream. The Shell possesses a simple, yet extraordinary, chocolate mousse.
Upon setting foot in the door of one of Martine’s shops, the heavenly aroma alone is enough to make one demand permanent residency. Within plain view is a small-scale kitchen inhabited by chocolatiers working swiftly and seemingly effortlessly to execute their craft. Tempering machines churn, swirling chocolate in a glistening stream as they emit aromas of sheer bliss. Chocolate-lined molds are piped with fillings, then sealed with a thin layer of chocolate and stored in a cooler to harden. Previously formed chocolates are gently tapped and released from their molded confines to land softly on the counter, where they sparkle with the radiance that only freshly-made chocolate possesses. Witnessing the chocolates being made, seeing the ingredients being transformed into ganaches, creams, and pralines makes a visit to a Martine’s boutique not only a gastronomic delight, but a visual treat that creates a personal attachment to the chocolate. Now that one has been captivated by the sights and scents, the next decision is which piece to taste first. Martine recommends her favorite, the Cherry, a brandy-macerated cherry surrounded by ganache and enclosed in a dark chocolate shell. She also suggests the Piano, a semi-liquid butterscotch caramel that evokes the flavors of sweet butter. Do not miss the Pyramid, with its interior of butterscotch caramel, hazelnut praline, and freshly whipped cream. While the towering piece might look intimidating, the light and fresh flavors elevate one high above the Great Pyramids of Giza. But perhaps my favorite is the aptly molded Butterfly, a piece that will send you fluttering away with its layers of dense hazelnut praline and fluffy whipped cream.
Overall, Martine’s flavors are clean, easily recognizable, and markedly fresh. Pieces containing layers of fresh cream provide a special lightness, while pralines echo of freshly harvested hazelnuts. Caramel is teeming with buttery richness, and the chocolate ganaches are redolent of chocolate. Without much to stand in the way of the base ingredients’ flavors, Martine has successfully unlocked their full potential. Chocolates are made fresh in the store each day. For those chocophiles who are unable to personally visit one of Martine’s shops, she delivers worldwide. Selections containing fresh cream pieces require overnight shipping to ensure the freshest flavor possible. But the exquisite flavor of these chocolates more than compensates for the additional cost in shipping. The chocolates are preservative-free, so the fresh cream pieces should be consumed within five days of purchase (and ideally within a day for peak flavor), while other pieces—pralines, ganaches, et al—can withstand a life of two weeks. Storing these chocolates should not be a problem, however: upon first bite, much of the box will not even last one day.
Prices and flavors are verified at publication but are subject to change.
Martine has two retail boutiques in New York City, both open 7 days (call for hours): Martine’s Chocolates Martine’s Chocolates too © Copyright 2005-2008 Lifestyle Direct, Inc. All rights reserved. Images are the copyright of their respective owners.
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