When you eat too much chocolate

The weekend of Jan. 22-24 brought the ChocolateFest to the Portland Convention Center. ChocolateFest showed off the work of a large number of bakeries, wine and beer companies, and chocolate makers. The event was basically a PMS-ing girl’s dream.

Walking into the event, our group went straight for a stand called Decadent Creations.

“Immediately we tried their free samples of deliciously chocolate-y cake. The spongy cake mixed so well with the melting chocolate in my mouth that I went for a second free sample. At this stand they had more than just chocolate and cake, though; they had a plethora of baked goods and priced at 6-for-$12 which was way too good of an offer. Deciding between brownies, bars, pies, and doughnuts was hard but in the end I came up with two macaroons and a bacon mole hand pie, which was the same combo my friend and Advocate editor Quincy got. The only differences we made in our purchases was that I got one passion fruit macaroon, while she got a mint one. Biting into the macaroons was weird, as per usual. Macaroons look similar in form to an Oreo – two cookies sandwiched together with goop in the middle. The cookies look solid but once you bite into them they become almost liquid-y and soft. My passion fruit macaroon exploded with flavor. If not for the texture, I would’ve thought I was eating the real fruit. As for the bacon pie – I will pay anyone who can bring me 50 more of them. I give them a 4/5 for their perfect pies and macaroons!” – Ivy Davis

We had to move on after buying our treats. We swerved back and forth through the rows of chocolates. Our next stop
(that had me coming back for more) was Cocotutti.

“When offered a strawberry balsamic chocolate, I was all in. My mind first went to Salt & Straw’s famous Strawberry Honey Balsamic with Black Pepper ice cream (one of my favorites). This chocolate was the Fourth of July in my mouth. I have never had a chocolate so rich and fruity in flavor. At this point I had to eat more of their flavors. Ginger Caramel with Thai Chili Peanuts, Blood Orange, and Lavender Lemon were among the other chocolates I ate from here.” – Ivy Davis

At one point we had eaten so many chocolates and rich in flavors food that we needed something salty. So, we ate crepes.

“Because I am a carbon copy of my father, I don’t have much of a sweet tooth. But, because I am a woman, I do love chocolate. After a swarm of free chocolate samples, macaroons, and red velvet cakes, I was ready for something savory. Crepe Chalet was tucked away in the corner of the large room, with a ham and cheese crepe option on the menu that was calling my name. I shared it with one other person, and it was the perfect amount of food to fill me up and offset the onslaught of sweetness that attacked my palatte all day. This crepe, covered in sriracha (sauce), gave me the strength I needed to eat about 30 more kinds of chocolate after that.”  – Quincy Smith

After our crepes, we scoped the room for more delights. Our stomachs grumbled as we stuffed more chocolate into them. We ended up trying out chip dips, tea, coffee, potpourri, and caramels.

“I cautiously held the caramel that was carefully wrapped as it softly squished between my light touch. The vanilla cream-flavored caramel burst with flavor as I let it melt in my mouth – it had a buttery, light flavor, with a hint of vanilla. This caramel is the softest caramel I’ve probably ever had and honestly, it surprised me. The wrapper was even a bit oily – most likely to prevent the candy from sticking to the wrapper. The flavor reminds me of caramel popcorn, except for the crunchiness. The softness may drive people away from the candy, but plenty of people said it was great when I was at ChocolateFest. Would I recommend this? Definitely. If only Goldfinch Caramel had a website and shipped this stuff, but they don’t (they’re on Facebook, though). I’m going to give the vanilla cream caramel a 4 out of 5, because while it’s good, I can only eat a little at a time (due to the sweetness).” – Gloria Saepharn