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Few things drum up as much fantastical imagination as unicorns...and when they're made of chocolate and cherries there's even more magic! If you're on social media at all, especially Instagram, you've probably seen any number of sweet unicorn fantasies. You name it...Unicorn Cupcakes, Unicorn Cake Pops, Unicorn Popsicle Pops, Unicorn Lattes, Unicorn Chocolate Bark, Unicorn EVERYTHING! But, there's only one place you'll find Unicorn Cordial Cherries....right here at The Cordial Cherry!
It's an interesting story how our Unicorn Cordial Cherries came to be...it all started one day when I was brainstorming ideas for a new Polar Animals Cordial Cherry collection for this next holiday season. We had a Polar Bear Cordial Cherry and a Penguin Cordial Cherry already and just needed one more design to complete the set. Arctic foxes, walruses, those fluffy white bunnies...we tried all sorts of things, but were just discouraged with the way they were turning out. Then it hit me! How about a Narwhal! They're polar, and cute, and the shape was workable, so we got to work straight away...experimenting with paint, and horns, and sculpting. Eventually we had the first ever Narwhal Cordial Cherry and I couldn't be more pleased...they're absolutely adorable...just look at these little guys...
The problem is that most people have no idea what a Narwhal is. If you've ever watched the movie "Elf" starring Will Ferrell, you might remember this scene? Buddy the Elf (played by Will Ferrell) begins his adventure to New York City to find his dad and Mr. Narwhal says, "Bye Buddy, I hope you find your dad."
So for those of you who aren't Will Ferrell/Buddy the Elf fans or marine biology geeks, narwhals are in fact REAL animals unlike unicorns. They're adorable Arctic whales with a horn that resembles that of a unicorn. But, as cute as they are, I was concerned that people might think that we tried to make a unicorn and well...missed the mark. I reasoned that if we designed a Unicorn Cordial Cherry also then people could see clearly the the difference between the two.
I gave Maria Kirwin, chocolatier and artist, the task of designing a Unicorn Cordial Cherry and boy did she knock it out of the park! She begins each unicorn by hand-sculpting beneath the chocolate to achieve a shape consistent with the body of a unicorn. She uses rolled fondant, which is a perfect medium for creating nearly any desired shape.
She then prepares the miniature golden horns...each one is twisted and measured and then hand-painted with a shimmery edible golden paint. A toothpick eliminates the need to try to handle these tiny pieces.
Maria pipes each Unicorn's delicate little ears and attaches their hand-made and hand-painted candy horns. A few carefully placed dollops of pastel colored white chocolate to create a mane and tail nearly complete this tiny work of art.
Unicorn eyelashes are the finishing touch on these magical chocolates...and there you have it...the first and only Unicorn Cordial Cherries, inspired by our Narwhal Cordial Cherries!
Click HERE to watch Maria make our Unicorn Cordial Cherries...
We're declaring this next week "Half Off Caramel Week" at The Cordial Cherry! From now till Saturday, August 19, 2017....everything caramel is HALF OFF! That includes our Sea Salt Caramel pieces and loaves, our chocolate sea salt truffles, our caramel bonbons, and our Tiramisu, Espresso, and Dark Chocolate Caramel Gifts...EVERYTHING CARAMEL is HALF OFF!
For online purchases use discount code: HALFCARAMELS
Limited supply in-store...please call 402-679-3011 to place orders.
Chocolate bunnies, colored eggs, baskets of fake grass, and jellybeans galore...these are all signs that Easter is fast approaching. The beautiful pastel dresses and tiny sweater vests in the department store tug at my heartstrings as I remember all the fuss over sewing Easter dresses for my daughter and dressing my boys in short pants and newsboy hats. I LOVE making this day memorable...the special clothes, the Easter service, the symbolic table settings, fancy desserts...EVERYTHING! With all the hubbub though, it's no wonder that the true message of Easter can get lost, especially for children.
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I couldn't resist the opportunity to share a couple pictures of my boys wearing their short pants and newsboy hats...
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Anyway...a few years ago, Max, my oldest son who was eight at the time, asked me a question that I'm embarrassed to say I never really thought about prior to his inquiry. He said, "Mom, what do bunnies and eggs have to do with Easter?" We were at the shop when he asked...I was making our sweet little bunny cordial cherries...and his question caused me to pause for a moment. After, thinking for a bit, and having done no Googling or other investigation, I responded with, "Nothing, I suppose." In typical Max fashion, there was most certainly a follow-up question...which I knew was coming and for which I had no good answer. "Well, why do we have bunnies and eggs at Easter then?" he asked. I was stumped...I should know this...but I didn't. And, what bothered me most is that I was preparing and selling chocolate cordial cherry bunnies and eggs and therefore perpetuating this holiday tradition for which I had no idea why.
I have since investigated the answers to Max's questions and it turns out that bunnies and eggs in fact have nothing to do with Easter. And, while chocolate bunnies and eggs are a fun a tasty tradition, they do little to help children reflect on the Easter story. I decided that year to design a collection of cordial cherries that would tell the Easter story...I call it our "He is Risen" collection.
The He is Risen collection includes four cordial cherry pieces...
~ The Crown of Thorns ~ Matthew 27:29 And after twisting together a crown of thorns, they placed it on His head.
~ The Cross ~ Mathew 27:37 Above his head they placed the written charge against him: This is Jesus, the King of the Jews.
~ The Tomb with Stone Rolled Away ~ Mathew 27:2 There was a violent earthquake, for an angel of the Lord came down from heaven and, going to the tomb, rolled back the stone and sat on it.
Matthew 27:5 and 6 ~ The Angel ~ The angel said to the women, “Do not be afraid, for I know that you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. He is not here; he has risen, just as he said. Come and see the place where he lay.
Our cordial cherry baby rattles are one my favorite designs...I love the elegant white on white details paired with satin ribbon. I get excited anytime I can mix chocolate and fabric, so dainty little fabric bows make my heart smile. This design is actually double-dipped and requires "sculpting" under the final chocolate layer to achieve the center ridge and the ball-like ends. The final touches include the carefully placed tiny chocolate dots and the hand-tied bow around the rattle's handle.
While these chocolate cherry rattles don't actually "rattle," they make an equally appreciated gift to congratulate new parents at the hospital or to welcome baby at a shower or brunch. We're happy to customize colors to coordinate with nursery or party themes and can package them for individual gifting. Please feel free to call us at 402-679-3011 to discuss design options.
