Destination Kohler properties will hold a three-day Celebration of Chocolate from February 6-8, and the French Lick (Ind.) Resort will have a Chocolate Festival on Valentine’s Day
Special chocolate-themed events being planned for February by two Midwestern resort properties include ideas that other clubs and resorts can apply to their own festivities throughout the year.
In Kohler, Wis., the three-day In Celebration of Chocolate event that will be hosted from February 6 to 8 by Destination Kohler, home to the five-star The American Club resort hotel and the Kohler Waters Spa, will highlight “sweet and savory [chocolate] and everything in between.”
The event will be headlined by Johnny Iuzzini, the James Beard Award-winning pastry chef and judge of Bravo’s Top Chef: Just Dessert. Other featured presenters during the three-day In Celebration of Chocolate event will include:
- Anette Righi DeFendi, Kohler Original Recipe Chocolates Chocolatier
- Scott Green‚ pastry chef of top Chicago restaurants Travelle and The Langham
- Josh Johnson, 2011 National Pastry Champion, instructor from the French Pastry School, and member of the 2015 Pastry Team USA
- featured chefs from The Kitchens of Kohler culinary team.
The cocoa-infused schedule begins on Friday evening, February 6, with an inventive Chocolate & Wine Dinner, at which The Kitchens of Kohler chefs will serve up inventive, chocolate-infused dishes for a four-course dinner that will be matched with expert wine pairings. Iuzzini will provide a special dessert for the occasion.
Saturday, February 7, will offer an abundance of educational chocolate pairing and cooking sessions throughout the day. Specific sessions will include:
– Chocolate for Breakfast, during which The American Club’s pastry expert, Molly Glackin, will demonstrate how to sweeten up breakfast and start the day off with a delicious dose of chocolate.
– Coffee and Chocolate, a pairing demonstration with Kohler Original Recipe Chocolates Chocolatier, Anette Righi DeFendi.
– Pastry Demonstration with Josh Johnson, where “the champion of desserts” will teach the techniques needed to make first-place creations.
– An Introduction to Ballast Point Brewing Company, showing how to pair chocolate with a quality-crafted beer from this California brewery.
– Chocolate and Liqueurs, where Kohler Original Recipe Chocolates Chocolatier Anette Righi DeFendi and Infinium Spirits Beverage Specialist Jim Mulhall will team up to show how to use liqueuers to add flavoring to chocolate, in both solid and liquid form.
– Sugar Rush Pastry Demonstration, during which Johnny Iuzzini will share recipes from his new cookbook, Sugar Rush, and show how to make traditional desserts with ease.
– Cooking Demonstration with Marco Rossi, during which Rossi, Chef of The Blind Horse Restaurant & Winery in Kohler, will bring together Napa-style food and wine with an old Wisconsin farmhouse to create a delightful setting of rustic elegance, and demonstrate savory dishes that feature chocolate, proving that chocolate isn’t just for dessert.
– The Ultimate Love Story: Wine and Chocolate, during which Kohler Original Recipe Chocolates Chocolatier Anette Righi DeFendi will walk through a selection of pairings to demonstrate the powerful and positive attractions that can be achieved when combining wine and chocolate.
– Pastry Demonstration with Scott Green, during which the pastry chef at The Langham and Travelle, two top restaurants in Chicago, will share how his passion for art transformed into a career as a pastry chef and demonstrate great chocolate recipes.
– Sugar High, the evening celebration that will showcase dynamic desserts from Iuzzini’s recent cookbook, “Sugar Rush,” along with specialty dishes from The Kitchens of Kohler and an expansive fondue station. Guests will also have the opportunity to taste the signature and newest creations from KOHLER Original Recipe Chocolates, along with specialty dishes from the various Kitchens of Kohler restaurants.
Sunday morning, February 8, will bring one last chocolate feast, when the traditional Sunday brunch gets a chocolate-themed makeover at the Chocolate Lovers Brunch.
The following weekend, Valentine’s Day will get a chocolate coating at the French Lick (Ind.) Resort, during a Chocolate Festival that will let adults ($35) and children under 12 ($20) indulge themselves with all of the traditional Valentine’s favorites—milk chocolate, dark chocolate and chocolate drinks—plus a few surprises along the way.
Treats that will be available for sampling will include Taza® stone-ground chocolate brownies, death-by-chocolate-chip cookies, chocolate peanut butter tarts, chocolate hummus, chocolate fudge soda, and chocolate-covered beef jerky, bacon, sweet potatoes, shrimp and Oreos. Featured recipes will include Chocolate-dipped Banana Bread Truffles, Buffalo Chicken Dip Truffles, Cream Cheese Surprise Chocolate Cupcakes, and Chocolate Dipped Roses.
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