Excerpt from the Introduction

I was born to bake. At least that’s what my mom tells people. And she says that with some authority, sharing a story from her pregnancy with me to back it up. My dad was completing his Master of Business Administration at Western University just as my parents were starting their family. He got involved with a fledgling bakery and decided to buy it and nurture it back to business health, using his newfound knowledge. My mom, who was several months pregnant with me at the time, came in to help him develop a new lineup of baked goods and, as my dad put it, singlehandedly turned the business around. My mom has always loved baking everything from pies to cookies. It’s something she learned from her mom while growing up. Some of my fondest memories are of watching my mom make pies, and to this day I’m still convinced she makes the most amazing pies.

As for many of you reading this book, food has been an important part of my life. It shapes the memories we have made and continue to make as a family, and it inspires the memories I’m making with my own kids, Charlie and Levi, today. Since starting my own chocolate and bakery business, I have loved playing a small role in helping other families make memories too. Whether it’s enjoying an everyday moment with coffee and a croissant or celebrating a more significant event, like a wedding or an anniversary, with a signature cake, I find great joy in helping people spark conversations and spend time together. When it comes to my family, those occasions always feature chocolate, homemade baked goods, ice cream (lots of ice cream!) and, in the Hodge household, some form of alcohol.

But right now let’s focus on chocolate. Chocolate seems to be one of those foods that is universally loved. When chocolate hits your palate, you can’t help but get excited about what you’re about to eat. But working with chocolate can be tricky if you haven’t had specialized training. That’s why I wrote this book. I want to strip away the complexity and teach people that chocolate doesn’t have to be intimidating. I won’t beat around the bush explaining the science behind each creation. I’ll provide simple advice and guidance to give you the confidence to pick the right products and use the proper tools to get the best results. Most chocolate books are geared to professionals, but I wanted to create a book that anyone in the family could pick up and have fun using to create something impressive for the table.

This book includes recipes for all the things I loved eating as a kid and now, as a kid at heart, but with a twist to include chocolate. I’ll show you how to weave this incredible ingredient into every meal and every event. I’ll teach you how to pair chocolate with cocktails, turn it into a garnish and even how to host a chocolate-tasting party, because people are beginning to see chocolate the same way they do wine or coffee—a product with many distinctive flavors influenced by characteristics of the growing region and aspects of the production process. I want to expose you to the different features of chocolate to inspire you to experiment. I also want to give you dependable, showstopping recipes that are designed to support your experimentation, so that you can introduce your family and friends to flavors they didn’t know existed. These recipes and tips will help you create unique memories of your own.

My mom still cooks meals from scratch every day. She loves to make everyone happy and she does it effortlessly through food. She’s inspired me my entire life, and that’s what I’m hoping to do for others—to give you the tools to create your own memories and bond over great meals, holidays, milestones and more. Whether you’re cooking or baking for your family, friends or friends who have become family, I want to help give you the confidence to master the recipes outlined in these chapters. But most of all, I want you to have fun with the people you love. Thank you for taking me along for the ride.

Steven