As promised, here is your rundown of the glorious vendors at the Chili Pepper Fiesta. From the silly to the serious, they all had a distinctive take on the craft of chocolate. I first encountered Vere’s Certified Organic Dark Chocolate bars which proudly boasts of their partners in Ecuador and the fact they use less sugar, their product is less sweet, and has less packaging. The chili spiked chocolate sample that I munched on was ridiculously flaming hot. Hoo boy. It literally made my eyes pop open and my nose run. I’ve never had such an intense burn from chocolate before. It was too intense for my mild palate, but it was perfect for the festival.
You need a fire extinguisher for Vere Chocolate
I chatted with always friendly Mark Sopchak and Jenna Park from Whimsey & Spice, who looked familiar to me. Duh! I wandered past them a few times the prior weekend at Brooklyn Flea. They offered samples of sweet and crunchy chili brittle and a mild chili spiced chocolate biscotti. In business for about a year and half, they do big sales online. I regretted not buying one of their gorgeous looking (and sounding) Hazelnut Chocolate Whisky Cookies. But I was saving my money for something out of the ordinary. It didn’t take me long to find it!
The wild card vendor of the day was Roni-Sue’s Chocolates located in Essex Street Market right near my butcher God Jeffrey Ruhalter. I almost wandered away seeing nothing terribly out of the ordinary. But I randomly asked “what’s good” and I learned of their wildly popular Pig Candy. What’s Pig Candy you say?
Its chocolate covered crispy bacon.
What? WHAT?
I smiled and promptly pulled out $5.0o to sample a bag. More for the fact that I recognized a unique blogging experience and risked an unsettled stomach for you my dear reader.
Pig Candy
Coated with milk or dark chocolate, the candy pieces were wavy and curvy like bacon. Shocking, I know, since it is bacon after all.
I shoved a piece in my mouth and my brain malfunctioned trying to register the bizarre flavor combination. It wasn’t good or bad. Just, to be polite, I’ll say it was “interesting.” The chocolate flavor melts away and you are chomping on some very tasty and perfectly crunchy bacon. The woman behind the table raved about the high quality slab bacon they use. However, I think I would have preferred the bacon with a side of scrambled eggs.
A group of chocolate buzzing middle aged women stood gawking at the Pig Candy and I leaned over and extended my wax paper bag for them to sample. Sharing was easy, since my stomach was feeling queasy from the three pieces I already ate. I warned the ladies about the unusual flavor and as they all chomped away, they were silent and making funny faces. Surely the were trying to wrap their brains around what they were eating, just as I had done. It was a bonding moment for us all standing in a circle pondering chocolate and bacon silently. Then there was a burst of laughter about how odd it was.
My favorite vendor (who I didn’t even taste their product) was uber hip Mast Brother’s Chocolate, who are New York City’s only bean to chocolate bar makers. I was intrigued by this claim as much by Rick and Michael’s ample beards and suspenders. What drew me to their booth, was the beautiful wrapping paper that lovingly covered their chocolate bars. They used reproductions of old medical drawings and vintage wall paper patterns. Of course it was Rick’s beaming wife, who came up with that idea, which is a step above the often seen brown wrapping paper. Rick and Michael are featured in a great article about Brooklyn’s burgeoning artisan food scene which you can read here.
Mighty fine packaging Mast Brothers
Oh I didn’t try the beer, but judging by the line, it was good.
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