Our 2011-2012 Catalog and Calendar has been printed and posted and should be arriving in your mailbox any day now.  You may be seeing it for the first time, but I’ve been working on it for the past 11 months!  Of course, like any big project, I didn’t do it alone.  I had help from my family and friends.  It all started with the front cover:  I’m lucky to have a Mom who is a talented seamstress and knitter.  She’s quite accustomed to my crazy requests, so she didn’t bat an eye when I asked her to knit 7 miniature winter hats in colors that matched our bon bon foils.  Did you notice?  Each flavor and it’s signature color foil is represented.  From left to right they are:  Cafe au Lait, Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough, Cookies ‘n Creme, Coconut, Fudge Brownie, Peanut Buttah, and Pistachio.  Those little hats are so cute, don’t you think?  Mom did a fantastic job!

My dear friend, Millie Holloman, is the uber-talented photographer behind all of these gorgeous bon bon vignettes.  I arrived at her photography studio with boxes full of miniature props and materials that we would need during the shoot (an iron, tape, lots of bon bon “models”, knives, towels and more).   Millie spent most of the shoot lying on the floor in order to get the proper perspective on the world of bon bons, as I worked to prep each shot.

The final result may look effortless, but the process is anything but.  Our July centerfold, for example, is featured lying on a hammock.  The hammock sits on top of wheat grass (purchased by Pascal at Tidal Creek co-op).  It is supported by two bamboo chopsticks.  The problem?  Getting a rather plump bon bon to balance in the middle of the hammock without rolling off of the hammock and into the grass.  It took many failed attempts before we got the shot that finally ended up in our catalog.

Another challenging set-up proved to be our December shot of two bon bons sitting around a fireplace.  In this case, “the stockings were hung by the chimney with care” is a huge understatement!  The miniature garland for the fireplace coupled with the two custom-made stockings (did you notice Bon and Bon embroidered on each one?) proved too heavy to stick to the resin fireplace with any of the tapes we had in our supply kit.  I ended up chewing a piece of gum and sticking it into the back of the garland to get it to stay.  Even then, Millie had to work fast to catch a shot that didn’t include drooping garland!

Each month has its own story, its own unique details, and its own “inside messages”.  For example, take a close look at the December scene, and you’ll see a shopping bag from the famous Parisian department store, Galleries Lafayette.  In February, the books on the nightstand are Harlequin romances with actual miniscule text printed on each page!   March (an autobiographical month) features my favorite brand of bottled water, Volvic.  And,  April is a nod to two of my own nicknames–my girlfriends call me “Bon Bon”; my Mom has always called me “chick”.  The miniature vintage refrigerator for November and December 2012 was borrowed from my friend Matt. (It is a part of his extensive Hallmark ornament collection.)

As the year continues, I’ll share more behind the making of our calendar.  Meanwhile, we hope that you appreciate this gift from “our house to yours”.  Like our bon bons, it was a labor of love, made with plenty of thought, heart, humor, and personality. 

Thanks to you for being a part of the extended South ‘n France “family” and thanks to my immediate “family”– Pascal, Mom, Millie, Matt, my brother Chad, and the others–who played a role in making our calendar come to life! 

Coffee and chocolate are a classic flavor combination, so it’s only fitting that we have joined forces with Port City Java! Starting today, Monday August 1st, South ‘n France Bon Bons will be sold at the Barclay Commons Port City Java (2512 Independence Boulevard near Henry’s and Perry’s Emporium).

As if debuting our bon bons in the Barclay Commons Port City Java wasn’t reason enough to celebrate, we’ve got another special occasion coming up this week—Thursday, August 4th is National Chocolate Chip Day. To celebrate, Pascal and I will be onsite on Thursday morning (8/4) from 8 am-12 pm, giving away free Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough bon bons (1 per person) to the first 400 customers at the Barclay Commons Port City Java!

We love that Port City Java is committed to featuring locally made products in its stores, and we are delighted to have the opportunity to be one of their local vendors. For years, our customers in Wilmington have been asking for a venue where they can buy a quick taste of our product. The 2-piece packages we will offer at Port City Java are a great snack and a perfect complement to coffee for one or two people.

You can choose 4 different Doubly Good! chocolate bon bon pairings: nutty (Peanut Buttah and Pistachio); chocolate-y (Fudge Brownie and Cookies ‘n Crème); cookie-based (Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough and Cookies ‘n Crème) and a signature pairing that reflects our personal favorites (Coconut and Café au Lait). Each 2-piece package of bon bons will retail for $3.75.

Yes, I hear what some of you are thinking:  “But my favorite location is the Market Street/Porter’s Neck/17th Street/etc. Port City Java!  Why aren’t you selling bon bons there?” 

If you want to see bon bons in your neighborhood PCJ, be extra sure to go just a little bit out of your way and make a trip to Barclay Commons in August or September!  If our bon bons prove to be a successful seller in the Barclay Commons store, hopefully you’ll be able to find bon bons soon at all PCJ locations!

So what you waiting for?  Whether you’re addicted to java, bon bons, or both, Barclay Commons Port City Java is the place to get your fix!  As always, we are grateful to you for loving our product and supporting us–merci!

Happy March! Have you turned the page in your South ‘n France calendar yet? If so, you’ve seen this photo along with the quote “Waiter, I’d like to order the Death By Chocolate, but just enough to put me in critical condition!” But did you know death by chocolate has actually happened?

In the 17th century in Chiapas, Mexico the church dictated a chocolate ban that forbade anyone from eating or drinking the food during church services. Upper class Spainards were so addicted to the sweet that they refused to adhere to the ban and started attending worship services in convents. In addition, the Bishop who passed the law was consequently found dead due to poison being mixed into his daily cup of chocolate.

Lucky for you chocolate is not only legal but delicious, and to our knowledge no one has actually died from too much chocolate. So in the spirit of defiance, be sure to treat yourself to some of our bon bons this month!

One of my very best friends is here visiting from Michigan. It’s always a treat to have visitors, in part because they allow me to view my own life with fresh eyes–and a fresh nose.

After years of smelling warm chocolate sauce and baking brownies, I’m practically immune to the smells. But each time  my friend walks through our front door, she exclaims: “It smells deeee-licious in here!”  Her enthusiasm for the tantalizing odors that emanate from the bon bon factory reminded me of an old joke:

A man goes into an ice cream parlor and says, “I’d like two scoops
of chocolate ice cream, please.”

The girl behind the counter says, “I’m very sorry, sir, but our
delivery truck broke down this morning, so we’re out of chocolate.”

“In that case,” the man says, “I’ll have two scoops of chocolate
ice cream.”

“You don’t understand, sir,” the girl says. “We have NO chocolate.”

“Then just give me some chocolate,” he says.

Getting angrier by the second, the girl says, “Sir, will you spell
VAN, as in vanilla?” The man says, “Sure. V-A-N.”

“Now spell STRAW, as in strawberry.” “OK. S-T-R-A-W.”

“Very good. Now,” the girl says, “spell STINK, as in chocolate.”

The man hesitates. Then he says, “There is no stink in chocolate.”

“THAT’S WHAT I’VE BEEN TRYING TO TELL YOU!” she screams.

It’s true.  Chocolate smells good.  I’ve heard that Americans list bananas and vanilla as their favorite odors, but I’m sure that the aroma of hot chocolate isn’t far behind on the list!  What’s your favorite smell?

Linus was not the only one waiting for The Great Pumpkin to appear.  For years, South ‘n France has searched for the perfect Pumpkin Bon Bon recipe and we’ve finally found it. Introducing our newest and first seasonal flavor, Pumpkin Bon Bons!  They will be available from now until Thanksgiving. Perfect for the fall season, we take a velvety pumpkin filling (not too sweet with just a hint of cinnamon and nutmeg) and mix it with a buttery-sugar cookie crust. Rolled into bite-sized bon bons and dipped in our special blend of rich, semi-sweet chocolate, they are pumpkin pie perfection!  

Pumpkin Bon Bons are currently available for order by going to our website. Select your tin and fill it with all Pumpkin Bon Bons, or customize your order with any combination of our many delectable flavors. To paraphrase a great exchange from this classic cartoon movie:

Linus:  [to Charlie Brown after Sally just told him off] You’ve heard of the fury of a woman scorned, haven’t you?

Charlie Brown: Yeah, I guess I have.

Linus: Well, that’s nothing compared to the fury of a woman who has been cheated out of Pumpkin Bon Bons!

Photographing food is a fascinating art.  For years, food stylists have used all sorts of “tools” like glue, hairspray, Vaseline and corn syrup to make food look great for the camera.   The hot lights in a camera studio aren’t very food-friendly, so to achieve the illusion of the perfect cake, cookie or chicken cacciatori, stylists use a lot of tricks.  They under-cook food to help it keep its shape, use hair products to add luster to grains of rice, and apply powdered deodorant spray to grapes to produce a frosty bloom.

All of these techniques are still in use, but not at South ‘n France!  When we photograph our bon bons, we use the real deal.  We grab a few bon bons at random from our regular stock, unwrap them, cut them in half, and put them in front of the camera.  Are there little imperfections that show?  Yes, absolutely!  But since our product is handmade, those variations and slight imperfections are part of their charm.  What you see when you look at our photos, is exactly what you get.

I was thrilled to read an article in the Wall Street Journal reporting that some of the old-school methods for achieving ‘perfect food’ photography are falling out of favor.  Gone are the days when stylists used Vaseline to glue crumbs into the holes in a slice of cake to hold them in place.  These days, food photography is going ‘au naturel’ and those crumbs are encouraged to stay!

The change is attributed to the growing interest in artisanal local food, farmer’s markets, and casual dining.  Natural lighting is replacing studio lights, and even those foods that melt are allowed in front of the camera.  It used to be that shortening was always used in place of ice cream; now real ice cream is the way to go!  One food stylist tells how she took bites out of hundreds of Häagen Dazs ice cream bars to get the chocolate coating to crack in just the right way. She ended up cheating with a cookie cutter.

As our photographer, Millie Holloman, and her staff will attest, bon bon photography shoots mean lots of chocolate bon bons to eat.  Every bon bon we cut ends up on a platter, with a bon bon feast for everyone at the end of the shoot.  It’s just one more reason why shooting the real, unaltered product is the way to go!

I first learned about Celiac Disease a few years ago, when a client who suffers from the disease came to a South ‘n France party.  Prior to his arrival, I checked all of our bon bon flavors and their ingredients to determine which ones he could enjoy during the evening.  Our gluten-free bon bon flavors are:  Café au Lait, Coconut, Pistachio, and Peanut Buttah.

According to The Today Show, 5% of Americans have a gluten intolerance, and one in 33 Americans has Celiac Disease — that’s not to mention the fact that 95% of Celiacs go undiagnosed. As a result, the gluten-free market is exploding.  Restaurants are offering gluten-free menus; food manufacturers are developing gluten-free products; gluten-free bakeries are popping up around the country; celebrities are converting to a gluten-free diet.  First Daughter Chelsea Clinton even served gluten-free cake at her recent wedding!  Now that all of the wedding planning is over, we’d like to suggest that Chelsea take a break.  She can sit around eating our gluten-free bon bons:  Café au Lait, Coconut, Pistachio, and Peanut Buttah.  I bet her dad would willing scarf up our other three flavors:  Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough, Cookies ‘n Creme, and Fudge Brownie!

I know that I just posted a blog about my nephew, but I couldn’t resist doing it again.  You see, Carter and his parents paid us a visit last week.  And now that he is old enough to chew (he’s got at least five or six teeth), his Mom said that he was ready to try his first bon bon.

We gave him a Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Bon Bon (still in its pink wrapper) and let him go at it with no interference from the adults.  They say a picture is worth a thousand words, so I really don’t think I need to say anything more about what Carter thought of his first taste of Uncle Pascal’s handmade, hand-dipped gourmet chocolate confections:

Trump Towers has nothing on us.  South ‘n France has ventured into the worlds of architecture and real estate.  Chocolate architecture, that is.  And coveted real estate at wedding dessert bars.  Recently, Jennifer of Salt Harbor Design asked us to create Bon Bon Towers for a creative and sophisticated bride with a unique vision for her special day.  To communicate what she was after, Jennifer sent over a mood board, a collection of inspirational photos that illustrate the look and tone the event should convey.

The mood board included a photo of a croquembouche, the traditional French wedding “cake”.  Not a cake at all, the croquembouche, (which comes from the French words croque-en-bouche, meaning ‘crunch in the mouth’) is a conically shaped tower of  cream puffs or profiteroles.  It can be decorated with spun sugar, caramel, or chocolates, flowers and ribbons.  You can also find croquembouches made of macaroons.  In addition to weddings, these show-stopping dessert towers can also be found at baptisms, and first communions.

 A croquembouche can also be referred to as a pièce montée (which means “assembled” or “mounted piece”.  What’s the difference?  Croquembouches are always inteded to be eaten.  Their counterparts, pièces montées, are often are merely decorative.  Although made of edible components (like marizpan, confectioner’s paste and spun sugar), a  pièce montée is meant to serve as a visual centerpiece, a type of food architecture. 

Here are our bon bons towers, which pay homage to the French croquembouche.  I wouldn’t classify them as pièces montées since they were definitely meant to be consumed.  In fact, photographer Millie Holloman assures us that not a single bon bon was left at the end of the night!  Look closely at this photo, and you will see that at least one bon bon has already been removed.

Want your own bon bon tower for an upcoming party?  It takes approximately 120-150 bon bons to create one tower.  Pricing starts at $275.  Call us for more details:  910-762-6882.