Melt Your Heart

Ma Petite Shoe is proud to announce the addition of several new confectionary drink mixes to the shelves of the chocolate room. From France, Leroux's Instant Chicory Drink Mix, in both caramel and chocolate flavors will warm up a cold winter's morning or evening. A delectable drink, we first encountered it served as part of the petite dejeuner at some of the small Parisian hotels we stayed in, but chicory is also well known in the States as a favorite flavor in the New Orleans' Cafe du Monde coffee.

It is caffeine free, so it's great on its own as a coffee substitute in the later part of the day but also very tasty added to coffee to add another dimension to the flavor. "I like to mix it with milk and have it hot or pour it over ice as a really delicious and refreshing cold drink. I have also used it in baking recipes like I would instant espresso powder" says Amanda, Chocolate Buyer for Ma Petite Shoe, and avid baker.

Ma Petite Shoe staff member Mary enjoys Leroux Chicory with vanilla soy milk, for added sweetness, "It's great with coffee or on its own. Chicory has a certain earthy, organic flavor. I'm already thinking this would make a perfect gift for a friend of mine who likes to go caffeine-free but misses the experience of coffee."

With impeccably designed packaging, intriguing flavors and honest, pure ingredients, Belgian label Barú is sure to deliver a decadently warming treat. In the brand's Swirly Chocolate Powder, cocoa powder and chocolate figurines slowly melt away to release a rich, warm flavor!  For something new, try Barú's Chocolate Chai Latte– a blend of Masala Chai Latte and adorable mustache chocolate figurines, or the Fluffy Marshmallow Chocolate Powder, which has the same deliciously dark cocoa powder and puffy, sweet marshmallows.

Sipping chocolate in the Italian style is Bellagio's specialty, so it's no surprise that all of their decidedly European hot beverage varietites are incredibly sumptuous and flavorful. Ma Petite Shoe is now carrying their cherry drinking chocolate and chocolate truffle cocoa, as well as several varieties of their Epicurean line, products which can be used in baking and cooking. Try adding the freeze dried gourmet espresso to creamy homemade tiramisu, or add unsweetened cocoa powder to create dense, deep chocolate cupcakes.

If you like your hot chocolate with a kick, Lake Champlain's Aztec Spicy Hot Chocolate is the treat for you! Cocoa and cinnamon combine with cayenne and a hint of vanilla to create an luscious, fiery drink. We are also carrying the brand's Old World Drinking Chocolate, in which dark chocolate shavings melt into a velvety texture– the winner of Good Housekeeping's Hot Chocolate Taste Test!

For a new kind of hot chocolate experience, Choc-o-lait's Dark Hot Chocolate sticks are a kid-friendly way to enjoy high quality, adult chocolate. A block of fine Belgian dark chocolate is placed on a wooden stick, and, when swirled in hot milk, produces a luxurious hot chocolate adventure unlike any you've yet had. This is a popular café experience in Europe, we first had Choc-o-lait's Hot Chocolate Sticks in a museum cafe outside of Prague. The steaming milk was served in a tall, elegant, clear beverage glass and it was mesmerizing to watch the chocolate melt as the chocolate pop was swirled round and round!

Be sure to stock up on these fun winter beverages from Ma Petite Shoe while supplies last...and get cozy!