Hop to it – It’s Easter Weekend Very Soon – With the recent cost of living increases, and the manufacturers need to cut costs, I’d like to give you a word of caution regarding your chocolate Easter egg shopping. There are a lot of well-known brands that are now cutting back on ingredients and offering a very substandard product, basically one that is often made with all sorts of rubbish ingredients. The simple answer is to check the ingredients list on the product – sometimes the cheaper own label products are, in fact, far superior to the branded ones and have no ‘nasties. Here are a few Easter gift suggestions, but of course the supermarkets are also full of suggestions with a wide range of own label and branded products.
Generally, the darker the chocolate, the higher the cacao content. But as Easter is such a special occasion in our Christian calendar, it’s worth splashing out a bit, and going for quality, rather than quantity.
Companies such as Chococo source the chocolate ethically, and don’t use any plastic in the packaging. From £16.50 with Chococo, you are assured a fabulous chocolate Easter egg – and if you really want to splash out you can pay £50 for a giant 50/50 half 47% Colombia origin milk chocolate, and half 72% Ecuador origin dark chocolate, for the family to share. Have a look at the whole range here
If, like my daughter, you’re a fan of those quirky shell-shaped chocolates, then look no further than this 240g Guylian Seashells Egg. Now available for a reduced price of £11 (from £14) the egg is embossed with the iconic seahorse and comes complete with six individually wrapped praline seahorse chocolates. Fairtrade cacao, natural ingredients and no palm oil, this is also in fully recyclable paper packaging. Available from major retailers include Waitrose, Ocado and Morrisons.
For youngsters, how about these cute Easter treats from London-based indie brand Ask Mummy & Daddy. Known for creating gourmet confectionery with a playful twist I thought these pouches of ‘carrots’ and ‘bunny poo’ are a great gift for children or adults. Best of all, every treat in the collection contains only natural flavourings, as well as being palm oil free and carbon neutral friendly, allowing you to indulge guilt-free and sustainably. Another great idea from Ask Mummy & Daddy is a jar of sweets that are ideal either as an Easter table centrepiece, or for popping into paper bags and hiding them in the garden for little ones to seek. Packed with speckled chocolate eggs, sour jellies, bunny-shaped mallows and more. £12.99/569g and both of the above are also available from Selfridges.
Tony’s Chocolonely has this rather cute egg box of mini-Belgian chocolate eggs filled with a range of flavours like milk chocolate almond honey nougat and dark chocolate almond sea salt. Excellent value at £4.75 from Waitrose, John Lewis and Ocado. With a mission to make all chocolate production slave-free, the pack is unequally divided to illustrate inequality in the wider chocolate industry.
For a touch of luxury, Belgian chocolatier Pierre Marcolini stepped onto the catwalk, highlighting what goes on behind the scenes of the great fashion houses and the passionate labour of artisan chocolatiers. Every egg displays the details of meticulous workmanship: pleats, scissors, buttons, tape measures, and thimbles. To splash out, consider Œufs Couture: a genuine chocolate work of art, embellished with delicate haberdashery items made of solid chocolate. (from £29 to a highly indulgent £185). Or perhaps these sewing boxes, inspired by the workshops of the great fashion houses. They contain solid chocolates, a reinvented Easter surprise transformed into delicate haberdashery items (small buttons and thimbles) in three shades of chocolate: dark, hazelnut milk and caramel white.
If you want to treat someone with a fabulous surprise, you could always send them a hamper packed with all sorts of Easter treats. I love this one from hampers.com. It’s The Easter Egg Gift Box, at £42: The centrepiece of this gift is a beautifully crafted honeycomb milk chocolate Easter egg from Kernow Chocolate. A family-run Cornish business, Kernow Chocolate one of Cornwall’s largest and highly celebrated artisan chocolate makers. Hampers.com also includes a varied and interesting assortment of chocolates and sweet treats, from classic mini eggs, a millionaire slice to an indulgent mini chocolate loaf cake. There’s something for all the family to enjoy over the Easter weekend. And it arrives hand-packed into a sturdy gift box, The full range of Easter gift hampers is online and there’s still time to organise a special surprise treat.
The Seasoned Gastronome