Remembering the Holidays

I'm back! Ugg, sorry late in posting again :) But it's been a fun week reflecting on the holidays and also moving forward with 2009, including participating in Teresa's Bridal Show (a post on that later next week...) gearing up for Valentine's Day and making arrangements for our participation in Durham Museum's newest attraction "Chocolate, The Exhibition" beginning January 31-April 6.
Back to the subject at hand...the holidays. Omigoodness...what fun :) I love the holidays because there are certain clients I only get to work with on a seasonal basis, and it's such a joy to reconnect with them and see how their businesses have grown, and how that reflects in the growth of The Chocolate Season. For example, the 4-6 weeks that made up our holiday season looked something like this: 32 lbs of butter, 878 truffles, 26 lbs of fudge, 168 ounces of caramel corn, 82 pounds of couveture chocolate and hundreds of hours of love and dedication! :) And that's just a taste of what our kitchen was producing!But I also love the holidays because they bring opportunities to revel in family traditions, make new memories and enjoy each moment as it comes. One of the best parts about the holidays is looking around at your family, making "Christmas Pizza" or catching someone laughing a joke...and it brings me such a sense of peace and happiness at how simple life can be.

And as family time was winding down, work started up again with a catering job in Algona. Ed and Becky Berg were throwing their annunal Pharmacists Mutual Holiday Party, and asked me to prepare an assortment of appetizers and desserts, with some finishing touches like homemade sangria and apple cider, several wine choices and a freshly cut floral arrangement (by yours truly!)

Oh...you want to know what was on the menu? :P Well, we had a 5-cheese platter, veggie tray, several types of crackers and toasted baguettes, spinach-feta-bacon stuffed mushrooms, prosciutto purses (melon, wrapped in prosciutto, tied together with a chive), toasted baguette slices topped with honey goat cheese, sugared strawberries and balsamic glaze, baked puff pastry filled with brie and apple compote, funnemark fudge, assorted truffles and a several chocolate raspberry-ginger mousse tortes. *yum*

Yes, the holidays are a time of planning, prep work and lots of production, but in the end, the relationships I get to renew with customers, new friends and clients I meet (some here in NE...some in London!) and time spent with family make it all worthwhile in the end!

So I hope your holidays were full of fun, love and insane amounts of chocolate :) as well as an eager anticipation for all that 2009 will bring!

Best wishes always-

*Tick Tock* How Time Flies!

Oh no, has it been over a month since my last post?! Well, with the holiday season in full swing, it has been quite busy, so I will divide the last month into two posts. First, we'll start in November, which was a month of prep work and correspondence with corporate orders. But mostly I had some quality family time starting with Thanksgiving at the Jensens, then Thanksgiving with the Rasmussens, Thanksgiving with the Bergs and lastly, "family night" with my sorority family.

It was wonderful spending lots of time with all my families, and with those holiday celebrations, came a celebration of my birthday with twin sister Sara, as well as a celebration of Sara's engagement to her wonderful catch of a man- Scott! These two have had a whirlwind romance but they are so good together I know that they will have a long and happy marriage! The date to save is June 14th, with a lakeside ceremony in Okoboji! (and as a bridesmaid, i am sure i will be busy in the upcoming months)

Actually, one of my first tasks was to help her ask her personal attendant, bridesmaids and flower girl to be a part of the wedding, so I made some chocolate cupcakes, cut out a hole from the top, and placed "laminated" (ok, actually, it was tape on two sides of a note) pieces of paper asking each girl to be a part of the wedding. It was covered in vanilla bean buttercream and then fondant, showcasing Sara's "jewel toned" colors that will be in her wedding bouquet.

And with my husband Bradley as the photographer (www.bradleyjensen.com) this is sure to be a beautiful and very family-oriented affair! :)

Besides prepping for the Christmas rush, I also had the opportunity for inventing new creations, and with that came a Thanksgiving tart of sweet tart dough, cranberries, honey roasted apples, candied almonds, frangipane and golden raisins! *yum*
I also had my first attempt at French macarons, which was successful, and produced some vanilla almond and nutella treats! Lastly, for the twin birthday, I asked Sara what she would like for our birthday cake, and made a yummy chocolate ginger mousse and raspberry torte!

All in all, November was a time for family togetherness and family traditions (like Berg Kumlas), lots of food and fun and many, many photos!

Well, that should take care of last month...I will post a tad later about our adventures in December!

Tis' the Season...

Tis' the season for holiday parties, sweets, treats and so much more! Our holiday season is in full swing, and it kicked off with a dessert buffet for Sergeant's Pet Care of Omaha. This is Sergeant's second year with us, and this year we had a buffet focused on cakes, bite-size desserts and of course, Karen's favorite treat, the Berry Bark!





After Sergeant's, my assistant set up "shop" at the Bellbrook Boutique, a unique gift show for women small business owners, and that show went beautifully!
Then is was time to start nailing down all the details for our many corporate holiday gift orders, updating our homepage with the new seasonal special, Funnemark Fudge, and promoting our Christmas deadline, December 12. (check the homepage for details on the deadline and why it is necessary for a made-to-order confisserie and bake shop like us)So, right now, I hear some of you saying..."Funnemark Fudge? What in the world is that?" It is a dual-layer Peanut Butter/Chocolate Fudge that was inspired by one of our very own customers, the Funnemark family of Algona.

Carol, a very loyal friend and customer, had bought some sweets for her son's family, two of which were the chocolate and peanut butter fudge. After eating them separately, Chad started putting two pieces together and eating them at the same time and thought "hey...this is good." After returning home, Carol called up and told me I needed to make a 2-in-1 fudge..so I did...and it's fabulous! It seemed only fitting to name it after them!

But life is not all work and no play, the last couple weeks have also brought me much joy from the birth of my new nephew, Strummer William Paul Grout, who is an absolute cutie and I adore him to pieces!

Bradley and I also attended the Legacy Ball, a fabulous dinner/dance/auction fundraiser for Algona's cutting edge hospital, and a "night out" with my parents and friends from town.
And just lately, an extended weekend trip to Georgia, a surprise from my best friend Amanda, and her husband, Nathaniel Roper. They wined and dined me, took me shopping and bowling and it was a much needed break to clear my head before the holiday rush!
Lots going on, and much to look forward to with the holiday season! So don't hesitate to contact us for any special holiday gift requests, browse our selection of Keepsake Boxes and Gift Baskets, or be creative and make your own! Let the Chocolate Season help you create that perfect, personalized gift for anyone on your list!

Happy Holidays...and let the fun begin!!!! :P

Sweet (sugar plum) Dreams!!

Happy Memories

As a chocolatier, I get the opportunity to be a part of so many happy memories. Nothing is more fun than delivering a bag of hand-selected sweets or surprising someone with a "thank you" gift basket. A person's expression when they see receive a chocolate gift or cake really makes this profession more rewarding than anything I have ever encountered :)

In the last month, deliveries have gotten very popular, as well as requests for custom cakes. I've been able to decorate cupcakes for my sister's baby shower, (and I'm actually at the Ames hospital writing this, as I wait for baby Strummer to be born...pics will be up later!!!) make an armadillo wedding cake for a fabulous hair dresser, Shauna; do wedding favors for one of my favorite post office workers, Sylvia; as well as 2 celebration cakes for Michelle, an employee at Woodhouse Auto Family. (and while at Woodhouse, I also got to visit some of my favorite customers...one of which was Kim who ordered some Gourmet Apples! *hi kim*!)

On-line orders have a life of their own as well, since I usually don't get to meet the person who orders, and sometimes don't get to meet the recipient, but I love the little side notes written to me about why this gift needs to be extra special :) or if they need advice to make a unique assortment..... and sometimes the destinations are just as exciting as the present being sent, like when we shipped to Nigeria, Alaska, France or even just across the border to Iowa!
Events I'm looking forward to in the next couple weeks are a dessert bar/employee party for Sergeants Pet Care, a silent auction donation and thank you gifts to Legacy Ball (a hospital fundraiser in Algona) a women's business only holiday gift boutique show, and of course, the upcoming holiday season!

So I just wanted to say "thank you" for letting me be a part of your lives, and making my life more worthwhile because of it.

A Whole Lotta Livin' Going On....

Oops! It's been a long time since I've posted...sorry about that! (i think someone just needs to send me a reminder email every once in awhile!) :)
Well, there has been a lot going on at The Chocolate Season and on the homefront. Custom cakes are becoming a big hit. Just lately, we created a vanilla cake with ganache filling and Italian buttercream for Kaylee's 1-yr old birthday party as well as catered an assortment of birthday treats, which featured a classic carrot cake with not-so-classic garnishing (including a naughty bunny made out of fondant!) for Diane's Pharmacists Mutual friends in Algona.

At home we've been having fun with family time at Lake Okoboji as well as keeping up with my sister's rapidly progressing pregnancy and very rapidly expanding belly! Little Strummer just might come out early, which would be a relief for my sister. But last weekend Sara, Crystal and I threw her a baby shower full of fun games, and a chance to decorate onesies for my new nephew. The shower featured Amanda's favorite food, hot wings, some yummy cupcakes (courtesy of, well, me!), a jungle-theme with a bunch of balloons (talk to sara about how fun that was...) and was held at Crystal's beautiful home in Urbandale.

My husband has also been super busy with senior photos (a new service he's offering) and I think they are so fantastic! I didn't think I could love anything more than his wedding photos, but lately, his senior and family photos are just so exciting to me! http://www.bradleyjensen.com

And even though we've lived in our school house for over a year now, we threw our first official dinner party...aka: taco night at our home with some wonderful couples, and had a grand ol' time. So fun in fact, that Brad has already announced the 2nd Annual Jensen Pancake Feed to be following shortly. Oh dear. :P

More to post later, but look forward to our fall caramels to be officially released in just a short time (less than a week?!) and get ready to indulge in some nostalgic yumminess!

"Custom"er Cake!

Last week I had the fun opportunity to bake a cake for a very special customer. This customer has been a true joy with his with word of mouth advertising, repeat orders and has the honor of being my first customer....ever! (with an order of Rocky Road popcorn and Marbled Cheesecake brownies)! Ben is not only one of my most loyal customers, but he's just one of those guys that is a true friend to those around him, has great work ethic, and is a "stand-up" kind of person.

His need last week was for an anniversary cake for his parents, and after prompting him for some wedding details, we came up with this: a classic white wedding cake, filled with chocolate ganache, topped with a sour cream fudge frosting and accented with daisies, blue detailing and a pearl border. (wedding color was blue and daisies were the flowers). Verdict on the cake? Parents loved it! That is something I always love to here :) So thank you Ben for being a wonderful customer and for making my first order EVER such a great experience, it truly means so much to me!!!!
Other news...A new Reason for the Season is here! http://www.thechocolateseason.com
Now you don't have to choose between Bejeweled and Hand-dipped truffles, because for a limited time only, The Chocolate Season 8-piece truffle box will feature both types of chocolates as well as a one or two special "sneak peak" caramels! (which will not officially release till this fall)
To even "sweeten" deal, we will be giving you the opportunity to purchase this box of chocolates with a 20% discount, making it only $7.75! So now is the perfect time to give that special someone (even if it's yourself)...something special :0)I hope this week gives you time to make memories, or to contribute in the making of someone else's (like Ben!) And just like Ben, if you ever are in need of a special birthday, anniversary, or "just for fun" cake...the sky is the limit... so don't be shy! Just ask! contact@thechocolateseason.com