What's Valentine's Day without chocolate?
Chocolate and Valentine’s Day have been inextricably intertwined since Richard Cadbury introduced Victorian lovers to ‘eating chocolates’ in decorative boxes. A box of chocolates has become a fundamental romantic gift, and over the decades, chocolatiers have come up with new products to delight us with on Valentine’s Day. In the 1990s, the introduction of chocolate fountains made things a lot more fun. Dipping strawberries in a continuous stream of melted chocolate has never failed to please!
Chocolate is healthy!
The antioxidants in cocoa - the main ingredient in chocolate - even have potential health benefits. These include lowering cholesterol levels, improving the blood flow, reducing the risk of heart problems, and preventing cognitive decline. However, before you reach for the nearest bar of milk chocolate, it’s important to remember to check the ingredients first, as there will also be sugars and fats in it. The basic rule of thumb is the darker the chocolate, the higher the concentration of cocoa, which means you’ll get more of those valuable antioxidants.
How does a chocolate fountain work?
Inside every chocolate fountain, there’s a heater and a motor. The heater melts the chocolate to make it liquid enough to run through the fountain, and the motor runs the mechanism that pulls the melted chocolate up through the middle of the fountain so it can flow smoothly over the tiers. That’s what gives you the continuous flow of deliciousness!
What chocolate works best in chocolate fountains?
You can buy chocolate pieces that are made specifically for chocolate fountains, which will make your life a lot easier! Otherwise, we recommend Belgian chocolate with an additional 2-3 tablespoons of vegetable oil for every 400g-500g of chocolate as it will help the chocolate to flow better. All our fountains come with full instructions.
What are the most romantic foods to use with your chocolate fountain?
There are many different foods that can be used to dip into the chocolate fountain. There’s something deliciously tempting about a chocolate-coated strawberry that’s exceptionally well suited to a romantic get together. In fact, many fruits would work well with chocolate fountains, for example, pineapples, mangos, kiwis or oranges. But if you want something sweeter, try marshmallows, profiteroles, brownies, waffle pieces or even ice cream.
The world’s biggest chocolate fountains
Our chocolate fountains are plenty big enough when catering for two people, but some chocolate fountains are designed on a much larger scale. At the time of writing, the chocolate fountain at the Confiserie Wenschitz’s Chocolate World in Austria is in the Guinness Book of Records as the tallest chocolate fountain in the world - standing at 12.27 metres. If you’re on a chocolate-themed tour of Europe, then drop into the Lindt Home of Chocolate in Switzerland. The chocolate fountain there is an impressive 9.3 metres tall and holds 1,500 litres of chocolate at any one time! Alternatively, if you’re visiting Las Vegas, nip into the Bellagio to have a look at the Bellagio Patisserie Chocolate Fountain. There’s no dipping allowed (shame!), but it looks like it was designed by Willy Wonka - it actually took two years to design and build, and it has separate fountains for dark, milk and white chocolate.