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Easter showpiece: The handmade Nougatine Egg |
BELGIUM. Neuhaus has unwrapped a wide range of Easter novelties, including an Easter version of its signature ballotin.
The ballotin is the original gift wrapping for pralines, invented by Neuhaus in 1915, and for Easter 2010 this authentic packaging has received a fresh Spring design.
Aimed at those who love tradition and authenticity, the Easter-themed ballotin is filled with a choice of pralines or mini-eggs.
Neuhaus is offering a wide variety of mini Easter eggs, in 15 flavours, including a new arrival – a milk chocolate mini-egg with a crème brûlée filling.
Milk versions consist of crème brûlée, almond praline, gianduja, spiced speculoos biscuit, fine sea salted caramel and solid.
Dark lines include a biscuit praline, gianduja, wild strawberry, sugared nougat, vanilla cream, brésilienne nut praline and solid.
Solid white mini eggs are also available.
Hand-made Nougatine Egg
An exclusive artisanal Nougatine Egg is the other star item of the Neuhaus collection. Exclusively available in kiosks, the product is made by hand and has a nougatine shell coated with a layer of gianduja, decorated with dark chocolate and gianduja. The showpiece of the collection is filled with mini-eggs and pralines.
To make the handmade egg, the company’s master chocolatier goes through several stages:
First he makes the nougatine, made using only sugar and crushed hazelnuts. The mixture is caramelised using the traditional cooking technique in copper tanks. Monitoring the temperature and cooking time is crucial.
Then the nougatine is moulded. As soon as it has finished cooking, the piping hot nougatine is poured onto the worktop, where it is levelled out and allowed to cool slightly. The chocolatier then moulds it into the shape of an egg, using traditional moulds. Careful, brisk movements are key to this traditional technique.
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Fresh Spring look: This Easter-themed ballotin is filled with pralines or mini-eggs in a wide range of flavours |
Once the inside of the shell has cooled and solidified, it is lined with dark chocolate. Meanwhile, the outside is covered with gianduja (a creamy mixture of hazelnuts, sugar and chocolate) and then hand-decorated with dark chocolate.
The final touch is a gianduja decoration added to the rim of the egg’s shell using a piping bag.
This egg can be decorated with a wide selection of pralines and filled mini Easter eggs.
Chocolate treats
This Easter, Neuhaus is offering chocolate connoisseurs the chance to enjoy many other chocolate treats. They inclue small gift boxes filled with mini-eggs; a Neuhaus selection box; and a metal egg containing 18 eggs or hollow chocolate figurines for children.
About Neuhaus
The history of Neuhaus goes back to 1857, when Jean Neuhaus, a Swiss apothecary set up shop in Brussels with his brother-in-law in Galerie de la Reine. In the cellars below his premises he started to make bonbons, a confectionery that took off to such an extent that the pharmacy gradually became the leading chocolate and patisserie business. In 1912, his grandson became the first to launch a chocolate coated bonbon, which he named the “praline”. But it was not until after World War One that the praline gift box – the ballotin – was introduced. Having grown over the years, the Neuhaus Group has become an independent manufacturer of chocolate pralines, chocolate and biscuits. The company enjoys a worldwide reputation, operating mainly in the high-class praline market under the Neuhaus brand name. Neuhaus is a supplier By Appointment to the Court of Belgium.
For details, contact Véronique De Clercq, Retail Product Manager, Neuhaus, tel: +32 2 568 22 79 or e-mail veronique.declercq@neuhaus.be
