Easter Bunny au Chocolat

By MOIRA CHAMBERS in Paris In what may be a sign of universality, the coming together of antipodal world views despite the gulf in beliefs and education that created them, or what have you, it is comforting that the French understand, as we Americans do, the importance of Easter. Call it Pâques, call it some crazy rite of spring: it’s essence is distilled into one searing revelation -- chocolate. We know its manifold forms in the United States -- violently colored foil-wrapped eggs, troops of bunnies, docile farmyard animals -- but how many have experienced the remarkable French menagerie of chocolate Eastertide delicacies? Sold in boulangeries, chocolateries, and upscale department stores, shapes representative of Easter are limited only by the imagination of the brave chocolatier that makes them. Amongst the obligatory eggs and chickens, a variety of iconoclasts have wormed their way into the season’s vocabulary of shapes such as seals, crocodiles, and mixed crustaceans. Move your cotton tail over to one side, Peter, and make way for the bouncing Schnauzer of Easter. And don’t forget the Easter Owl, who every year hoots in the astonishing news of Christ’s passion. Such Gallic innovations to the Easter myth reveal the artisanal origins of many creations, available from many big names such as Mazet and the 2006 gallery of Patrick Roger (click here to see his amazing 2006 Easter collection, in Flash) or Jean-Paul Hevin (whose 2006 wonders include: Seafood Pyramid, Egg Pyramid, Bilboquet, Royal Egg). Of course, France has its share of mass-market chocolates, from the higher grade Lindt gold-foil bunnies and bells (which look curiously like tourist replicas of the Liberty Bell), to more familiar mass-marketers like Kinder Eggs and Easter Surprises manufactured by Ferrero. A few non-chocolate candies exist, jelly beans and nougat eggs, but these are utterly accessory, poor cousins to the chocolate gamut. The reality is that chocolate is a serious matter in France. In fact, it is a highly politicized and strictly regulated arena. Calling oneself an "artisan" (or either of the its two more prestigious titles, maitre artisan and the superlative, meilleur ouvrier de France) requires official approval as does use of the term chocolatier. Unfortunately the vicious debate concerning the use of vegetable oils, rather than traditional, pure cocoa butter, still rages. A 2000 European Union directive (PDF) allowing the use of vegetables oils, followed by the provocative “décret chocolat 2003,” has not appeased chocolate purists and chocolate. One such group, le Club de Croqueurs du Chocolat “deplore(s)…the total libralization of the use of vegetable oils…” This highly reputable band of rabble-rousers does, however, accept that “the law is the law” -- no signs of rioting over chocolate during Easter 2006, though the fact that most chocolates are taxed at the 19.6% luxury rate rather than the 5.5% of most food items, is yet another source of controversy. Please, don't work up any Yankee Dander and employ a word like “elitist” when describing the French attitude towards chocolate, be it Easter or otherwise, despite red flags such as the luxury tax. Not every country has quite the democratic values of ours. Instead, rejoice that France has not usurped America's leading role in the manufacture of Marshmallow Peeps -- and refrain from dwelling upon the terrifying ingredients implied by their line "Always in season"...... Happy Easter! Previous articles: Michel Roux: Eggs Roland Mesnier's Dessert University Easter Special: Super Pastry Chefs Gale Gand's short+sweet Previous article by Moira Chambers: French "Fooding": Young and Hungry Alain Senderens: The Next Revolution? Arrests for Attempted Bombings of Ducasse's Ostape Technorati Tags: superchefblog, Juliette Rossant, super chef, celebrities, chefs, food, restaurants, cooking, branding, cuisine, blogging, food blogging Easter Easter bunny --> back to superchefblog