A midsummer chocolate workshop with Cocoa Wonderland

Last Thursday was a perfect midsummer evening. The sun came out, and we were
joined by the talented chocolatier Kate of Cocoa Wonderland, a renowned Sheffield-
based chocolate company nestled in the heart of Ecclesall Road. Kate treated us to
an evening of delicious chocolate magic and gave guests the opportunity to get
creative by making their own midsummer-inspired white chocolate bark.

With 22 years of experience in the chocolate world, Kate brought a wealth of
knowledge to this delicious workshop. She talked us through the chocolate making
process from beginning to end, including how cocoa solids and cocoa butter are
separated to create different types of chocolate. During this time, guests were able to
taste a variety of chocolates, ranging from dark Colombian chocolate to milk
chocolate, and ending with white chocolate, which is still technically chocolate
despite being made only from cocoa butter rather than cocoa solids. Each chocolate
revealed surprising flavours and undertones that delighted the taste buds. The
tasting was paired with wonderfully fragrant honey tea that Kate had brought with
her, serving as a lovely palate cleanser between samples.

Once our guests had enjoyed the tasting element of the workshop, it was time to get
creative. Kate began by melting white chocolate using our V-ZUG Combi-Steam and
Microwave Oven in our SieMatic kitchen setting. This appliance is perfect for heating
chocolate in 30-second bursts, helping to prevent it from burning.
Each guest was then given a tray containing a cone of melted white chocolate,
edible flowers, freeze-dried raspberries, and matcha powder to flavour and decorate
their chocolate as they wished.

We then used the fridge section of our V-ZUG CombiCooler, which we had pre-set to
8°C – the perfect temperature for cooling chocolate and allowing the decorated bark
to set. While waiting for the chocolate to solidify guests enjoyed exploring our kitchen
cupboards and discovering the clever SieMatic storage solutions.

Once the chocolate was ready, it was fascinating to see how different each creation
looked, despite everyone working with the same ingredients. Kate carefully wrapped
each bark in cellophane and finished it with Cocoa Wonderland’s beautiful signature
ribbon. Guests left chocolate-happy, taking home their very own handcrafted
chocolate bark. What a perfect midsummer evening!

Thank you to everyone who attended, and to the wonderful Kate from Cocoa
Wonderland. Who knew there was so much to learn about chocolate?

Keep an eye out for our next event, coming soon…