We use couverture chocolate in our mousses. This chocolate is made from cocoa bean and liquor and set on cocoa butter. The texture of the chocolate is derived from "conching" (mixing process) and the longer it is conching, the finer the texture of the end product. This differs from substitutes such as compound chocolate that is set on vegetable fats and is usually flavoured and coloured. Compound chocolate usually leaves a fatty residue in your mouth.
Where required we use vanilla bean in our products. Some of our mousses are based on a sauce anglaise that has been cooked with vanilla bean. Vanilla bean is the natural bean that has been cured on the plant for up to eight months. The skin of the bean and the vanilla bean itself are used in the cooking process. There is a lot of flavour in the actual skin of the bean. Vanilla bean tastes very different to vanilla essences, and now that societies tastes are maturing and awareness is increasing it is important to us that you receive what you would expect from food.
All of our products use fresh, natural ingredients. Some times these ingredients are more challenging to use, as they are not as stable as "industry developed" products. This is especially true when it comes to cream. We only use fresh cream in our products. Fresh cream can be over beaten, is affected by heat when making and piping the product and must be stored in the temperature range of 0-4 degrees Celsius. Natural cream has better flavour and texture than imitation cream, vegetable shortenings & mock cream that is all too commonly used items in the cake shops/bakeries in Australia.
All of our pastry is made from unsalted butter. This ingredient provides more flavour, and again does not leave a fatty residue in your mouth, as with manufactured fats. Butter melts at very low temperatures and makes the production of our products more difficult than if we were to use vegetable fats, or margarines with higher melting points. Our products are made in an air-conditioned environment, ensuring a long shelf life for your product and aiding in the production process, using the best ingredients, not the easiest to use ingredients.