Ideal Valentine’s Day gifts made with love by Kneals Chocolates


Christmas is over and Easter is a long way yet. But we still have one special celebration to look forward to in the midst of winter: Valentine’s day.  In less than 3 weeks-time, little rascal, Cupid, will be busy throwing his love arrows everywhere. If you already feel the love in the air and are looking for a romantic token for your loved one, we have a small selection of heart-melting and delicious gifts that will make your other half feel special; you can never go wrong with chocolate!

The box of 12 luxury chocolates   

This box is one of our best sellers and contains 12 different hand-crafted chocolates. For dark chocolate purists the double chocolate truffle will hit the spot with its dark chocolate casing filled with an intense 80% ganache.  The rum and raisin, and the amaretto chocolates are simply deliciously boozy. The coconut and lime, lemon, and orange crunch chocolates bring well-balanced zesty aromas while the raspberry chocolate mixes a distinct fruity freshness with a smooth dark ganache. The subtle floral flavours of the rose and the violet chocolates will delight the romantics, while the stem ginger chocolate adds warmth to the selection. Coffee lovers will enjoy the mocha chocolate with its deep dark coffee ganache encased in white chocolate. Last but not least, the salty butterscotch truffle with its comforting toffee-like flavour adds a touch of indulgence to this tasty assortment box.

The ballotin 12 of truffles

A ballotin of chocolate is a lush way to present chocolates; if you walk into a chocolate shop in France (and like me you cannot resist buying most of their stock), you will be leaving with this ornate chocolate-filled box, tied-up with a lovely ribbon. A ballotin is a very  special treat. At Kneals Chocolates we offer the choice of either 12 double chocolate truffles or 12 salty butterscotch truffles.

The Valentine’s hamper

This small hamper contains a box of 12 luxury chocolates, 1 tangy and fruity raspberry dark chocolate mini bar, 1 award-winning butterscotch crunch milk chocolate mini bar, and 2 small heart-shaped candles ready for a romantic Valentine’s dinner.

You can also include a special message that we will happily add to any of your gifts at no extra cost.

Happy Valentine’s Day from Kneals Chocolates!

The countdown to Christmas has already started and the seasonal search for perfect presents is now upon us. Every year, I try to think of something a little original to give to my loved ones, and by the time I have finished thinking, there are only a few days till Christmas, so I end up panic buying naff trinkets that may be remotely suitable (or not), and because I am short of time, I unconvincingly tell myself  “that’ll have to do”. This year is different for obvious reasons. The situation we have found ourselves in 2020 has put limitations on the contacts we enjoy with our family and friends. So, this year, I want to make something special for them myself, in a mere attempt to make up for the missed precious opportunities to be with them.

The ideas I have selected taste good and require no or little cooking. You can have a lot of fun making them look great too (I am sure you can do better than me). You do not need an artistic flare, just a few jars, bottles, and decorations.

1. Flavoured salts

Get good quality salt, preferably sea salt. Himalayan pink salt is also a good choice and has a nice colour. After that, all there is do is mix herbs and spices to your salt, transfer to in airtight jars, et voilà!  Here are 3  versions that I find work well and are simple enough to appeal to anyone.

Lemon salt

Take the zest of 2 washed unwaxed lemons. Bake in a tray in the oven at 140 C for 30 minutes. Leave to cool, chop finely and mix with 100g of salt. This salt works very well with fish and seafood.

Salt and pepper salt

Mix 100g of salt with a tbsp of coarse black pepper. You can use other types of pepper, like pink or mixed peppercorns that you will grind before mixing with the salt. This is a good ‘everyday mix’ with salt and pepper all in one,

Rosemary salt

Mix 100g of salt with 1 tbsp of finely chopped dried rosemary. If you have fresh rosemary from the garden, dry it in the oven first (like the lemon zest in the lemon salt).

2. Infused booze

These are very simple to make and can be consumed (with moderation) with mixers or added to cocktails. Three different small bottles, or a large one make a very attractive gift.

Chilli vodka

Chop 2 large chillies and add to a 1 litre bottle of vodka. Leave to infuse for half a day. Strain the chillies, pour the chilli vodka into a bottle of your choice and  add a whole chilli (not long before you give away your gift as the chilli will discolour with time).

Strawberry gin

Make sure you prepare this one at least a couple of weeks before you intend to create your finished product. Take a punnet of strawberries, wash and dry the fruit well. Pour 1 bottle of gin in a Kilner jar (if you don’t have one you can use a bottle with a wide neck instead)  and add the strawberries. Leave to infuse for 1 to 2 weeks, discard the strawberries then transfer to smaller bottles.

Mint liqueur

Take the leaves of a couple of large bunches of mint (app. 250g) , wash and dry well. Put them in a Kilner jar cover with the vodka. Leave to infuse for a week. After a week, pass the liquid through a sieve and discard the leaves. Prepare a syrup, heating 800 g of sugar with 400 ml of water. Add the syrup (when lukewarm) to the mint vodka and leave for 3 to 4 days away from light, then transfer into bottles.

3. Spiced nuts

Savoury Cocoa and Spice

For 250 of mixed nuts, you will need 2 tbsp honey (or maple syrup for a vegan version), 1 tsp olive oil, salt pepper and any spices or herbs you fancy. One of my favourite combo is salt and pepper with chilli flakes. I also like the Kneals Cocoa and Spice savoury powder. A little goes a long way, but it’s entirely up to you. Some recipes suggest mixing everything before baking, but I did not have a resounding success with that method.  I found that the honey congealed with the oil which resulted in dark lumps of caramelised spicy honey (my oven may have been too hot). So, this is my version:

Mix the nuts and the oil in a bowl and transfer to a baking tray lined with baking parchment. Bake the nut mix for 10 minutes in the oven preheated to 180C/160C fan/ Gas mark 4, stirring half-way through. Toasting them in the oven really enhances the nutty taste. Add  the honey, mix well and bake for a further 5 minutes.  Take out of the oven and sprinkle on the salt and spices and mix through making sure the nuts are evenly coated (before the honey hardens). Once cold, break up the mixture and put in pretty jars, label, and decorate.

4. Granola mix

The process is the same as for the spiced nuts. You will need:

  • 2 tbsp of cooking oil
  • 3 tbsp of honey ( or maple syrup for a vegan version)
  • 2 tsp of vanilla
  • 100g of oats
  • 30 g of mix seeds
  • 30g of whole almonds (or other nuts)
  • 30 g of dried fruit
  • A good pinch of salt
  • ¼ tsp of ground ginger
  • ¼ tsp of cinnamon

Preheated to 180C/160C fan/ Gas mark 4, mix all the ingredients except for the almonds and the dried fruits. Bake on a tray lined with baking parchment for 20-25 minutes, stirring half-way through. Take out of the oven and add the almonds (or nuts) and the dried fruit before cooling down. Mix well and transfer to a jar.

Again, the choice of nuts, fruit and seeds is entirely up to you and your personal taste  (or that of the person who will receive the gift). I personally prefer to leave out the cinnamon as I am not a great fan of the stuff in sweet food.

5. Flavoured oils

The key to flavoured oils is to make sure that your have sterilised your bottles before hand and that the ingredients added to the oil are as dry as possible. If you add herbs, I recommend you dry them in a low oven before to get rid of any moisture. The quality of the oil will also affect the end result, but overall, the principle is simple: pour oil in a bottle,  add flavouring ingredients and leave to infuse for at least 2 weeks away from direct light. Here are two of my favourite:

  • Vanilla oil (use 2 vanilla pods cut in half) : very tasty drizzled on fish.
  • Italian mix oil : add to the oil, 2 cloves of garlic (peeled), 4 or 5 bird eye chillies, 1 bay leaf, 1 sprig of thyme, 1 sprig of rosemary, ½ tsp of dry oregano. I love the kick of this oil drizzled on pizza.

6. Flavoured vinegars

I like to use a range of vinegars.  Traditional malt vinegar, sherry vinegar, white wine vinegar, not forgetting balsamic vinegar will give a distinctive lift to any dressing. Making your own flavoured vinegar could not be simpler: put flavourings of your choice in a bottle, cover with vinegar and wait for it to infuse (usually for about 1 month but less is fine).

Shallot vinegar: in a light vinegar (e.g. white wine) add peeled and quarter shallots (100g per litre). Leave to infuse for at least a month (2 ideally). You do not need to discard the shallots or filter your vinegar.

Tarragon vinegar: blanch (dip for 30 seconds in boiling water), dry (very well) a couple of sprigs of tarragon and put into a bottle. Cover with a light vinegar. Wait for 1 month. Ideal for use in a béarnaise sauce.  

7. Chocolate cookie-making kit

You could of course make a batch of cookies and put them in a jar. However, I have a nice alternative. The only thing you have to do, is measure all the dry ingredients from a recipe, place them ‘artistically’ in a jar and include cooking instructions. The only thing that the person receiving this gift will need to do for the cookies to materialise, is mixing the rest of the ingredients (the wet ingredients) and bake.

Ingredients (this will make about 20 cookies):

  • 125g plain flour, mixed with ½ tsp salt and ½ tsp bicarbonate soda (or baking powder)
  • 60g of cocoa powder
  • 55g of caster sugar
  • 55g of light brown sugar
  • 50g of chocolate chips
  • 50g of coloured chocolate buttons (you know the ones I mean).

Simply layer all the ingredients in a fairly large jar.

Improved version with distinct layers

Tip! Watch in which order you place the ingredients in your jar for well-defined, distinct layers. On my first attempt I ignored the laws of physics and my chocolate chips vanished, buried below the sugar. I would advise to layer ingredients in the same order as mentioned in the list (flour at the bottom, and chocolate buttons last, on top). Do not forget to include cooking instructions.

I hope this has inspired you to have a go at homemade presents, but if it has not, you can always get stocking fillers from our Christmas collection; chocolate never disappoints.

Follow this link for our Christmas collection https://knealschocolates.com/product-category/christmas/

Delicious chocolate as we know it today, is in fact a relatively recent invention. It is the Fry’s chocolate factory from Bristol, that in 1847, first made chocolate in its modern solid form by adding cacao butter. Since, the addition of milk powder and flavourings, has turned chocolate into the favourite sweet treat enjoyed by millions of people across the world.

The truth is that cocoa in its raw form is very bitter. A lot of time and many transformations were needed to achieve our beloved pleasant and sweet confection. Historians claim that the history of chocolate began in Mesoamerica, with fermented drinks made from chocolate as early as 450 BC. It was used by the Aztecs who prepared it as a bitter liquid mixed with spices or corn puree. Not the most appetising prospect you might think, but at that time it was considered as a gift from Quetzalcoatl, the god of wisdom, and was believed to have aphrodisiac properties and give strength.

Although I love chocolate, I would not describe myself as having a sweet tooth. I have a passion for cooking and discovering new cuisines, experimenting with unfamiliar ingredients and new tastes. I think this is in my DNA. I learnt to cook with my mum; after years of careful observation, getting to know ingredients, peeling (a lot of that for some reason), cutting, prepping, stirring sauces and licking the bowl, I eventually earned my stripes, and she promoted me as her ‘sous-chef’. To be fair, at the age of 9, this usually consisted in putting a chicken in the oven, or cooking a bit of pasta, but I learnt to do it right, and it gave me the buzz that I still feel today every time I cook.

Since we set up Kneals, our chocolate business 9 years ago, I have had to help Neil (the chocolatier) with the strenuous task of tasting various types of chocolates, different products and mouth-watering creations; a tough job I know, but someone had to do it.😉 It is the omnipresence of chocolate in our life that got me thinking about other possible uses for chocolate. South Americans use chocolate in numerous savoury dishes like chicken mole or chilli con carne. I have always added a little of cocoa powder to my chilli con carne, and am still amazed of how only a couple of teaspoons can change the nature of the dish and improve the final result. You cannot actually taste the cocoa but it brings another layer of flavour, some richness (I would almost say some umami), and certainly some oomph!

So, I started mixing cocoa powder with different blends of herbs and spices. I wanted to combine the enriching qualities of cocoa with a range of aromas that would enhance savoury dishes, a little like a good stock or a bouquet garni with a bit of character.

BBQ rotisserie chicken
Duck brochettes

It took a few attempts to perfect the original mix. I tried it first as a simple rub on chicken breasts that we barbecued. I simply massaged the powder mix into the chicken and left it a couple of hours in the fridge. The result was astonishing: the meat was incredibly moist and tender, the seasoning was tasty and complemented the barbecue flavour beautifully. I had another go with chicken, but that time, I kept one of the breasts ‘powder-free’ so that I could compare it with the seasoned meat after cooking. The second time was even more striking: there was a distinctive difference in texture; the plain chicken was a lot drier and slightly tougher than the meat that had been coated in the cocoa and spice mix.  I was on a roll, so I made the same experiment with a range of meats.

I am not making any scientific claims, and I would not pass off the cocoa and spice mix as a meat tenderiser, but every time, the texture of the meat was, in my opinion, enhanced. I am not sure how it works; some of the ingredients may have a chemical action on the meat fibres? Who knows? What I know is that, now, when I grill or pan-fry meat, I tend to treat it to a bit of the mix. A little sprinkle on fish works really well too.

But I must tell you that my highest accolade so far came from my harshest critic: my mum! I had given her a little sample to try out, but I was far from expecting the feedback I had from her. She called me one day and said: ‘that powder that you gave me, I added some to my sauce when I cooked lobster yesterday, it was delicious! really subtle.’ I was very surprised she took the risk to trial the mix with an ingredient as expensive and delicate as lobster, but she did. And well, if the mix is good enough for my cooking-obsessed French mum, then it must be really good.

Neil’s carbonnade

I have been using the cocoa blend for years now. I add it to sauces; it works particularly well in gutsy stews like beef bourguignon or carbonnade (Neil’s signature dish). A little teaspoon in a tomato sauce works a treat too or even in a hearty bean casserole. What I like about it is that it is versatile and adds a little ‘je ne sais quoi’ to my dishes.

More recently, I created a new blend for barbecue cooking because Neil and I are real grill fantatics. I was a little heavy-handed with the chilli powder in my first batch, but the final version is well-balanced with aromas of smoked paprika that marry very well with grilled food on hot coals. It also makes wonderful and flavoursome burgers when mixed with minced meat.

So, to the question ‘cocoa in savoury dishes?’, the answer is, yes, really! I am planning to create more mixes in the future; watch this space!

Find the Cocoa and Spice Mix: https://knealschocolates.com/product-category/deli/





This time of year, when the days are getting shorter and colder, nothing is more comforting than a soothing cup of hot chocolate. In fact, cocoa was initially consumed as a drink by the Aztecs who mixed it with spices and corn. Today this heart-warming nectar is enjoyed world-wide with some regional variations.                  

French Style ‘Chocolat Chaud’ (no milk)

This water based hot chocolate has a more intense cocoa flavour than a milk based one (cow or plant based). You can, however, replace the water with milk if you prefer a little more richness (like my mum used to do), but if you are a cocoa daredevil and like a strong cocoa taste this is the recipe for you. It is also perfect for the vegan diet.

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Spanish Style Hot ‘Chocolate’

This is a really indulgent form of hot chocolate traditionally served with churros (little batter fritters sprinkled with sugar and cinnamon). The chocolate is slightly thickened to a dipping sauce consistency for dunking in your churros.

Viennese Style Hot Chocolate

This is the ultimate cocoa cappuccino. The hot chocolate is quite light in texture, but the velvety layer of whipped cream brings decadence to this yummy cocoa variant. A word of advice: if you are on a date, beware of the ‘milk moustache.’

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Mexican ‘Champurrado’

If you think of the origins of cocoa, this recipe is the most authentic. However, some of the ingredients may not be readily available, so I have adapted the recipe to a more ‘stock cupboard friendly’ version that should bring you a very nice Champurrado, should you have a sudden urge for it.

* Masa harina is the flour used to make tortillas

** Cone of sugar made from boiled sugar cane

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Express Hot Chocolate à la KNEALS

You might say I am a little biased, but this is my favourite recipe because it is a faff-free recipe with only two ingredients, giving you a delicious result and real hit of cocoa in a couple of minutes. .

The key, as always, is the quality of the chocolate.

Chocolate was brought back from the Americas by the Spanish conquistadors at the end of the 16th century but was only officially introduced to the French royal court by Anne of Austria, daughter of the king of Spain, in 1615 when she married King Louis XIII of France. Chocolate at that time was served as a drink and was reserved for the elite, the rich and the powerful.

In 1660, another queen, Marie-Thérèse of Austria, King Louis XIV’s wife, develops a passion for the drink that she drinks all day long. She is neglected by her husband and finds comfort in the hot beverage. It is said that her quarters were filled with the delicious waft of cocoa.

This passion for cocoa is soon shared by her rival, Madame de Maintenon, the King’s mistress, who turns it into a fashion. In Versailles it is served every Monday, Wednesday, and Thursday at the Court, and in 1680 the word ‘chocolat’ makes its entry in the dictionary.

The craze for cocoa becomes greater with King Louis XV; he is a real cocoa enthusiast and even prepares it himself (yes, himself!) in his own apartments following his own recipe. And here it is in its original French:




For those of you who find that their 18th century French is a little rusty, here is a rough translation:

Put as many bars of chocolate as cups of water in coffee pot and let them simmer gently; when you are ready to serve, add an egg yolk for 4 cups and stir with a stick on a gentle heat without bringing to the boil. If it is prepared the day before, it is better, those who have it everyday reserve a leaven for the one they will make the next day ; you can, instead of the egg yolk add the whisked egg white, after the first lather has been removed, mix it in a little chocolate from the coffee pot, and add it to the pot and finish as for the egg yolk.”

Yummy! I hope this recipe is as clear for you as it is for me. I am not entirely certain I am going to rush and try it, but if you do, please let me know what it tastes like. If it’s fit for a king, designed by a king and made by a king himself (yes, himself!), it can’t be that bad.