You would think, the weekend after Easter, I would be fed up of chocolate by now. Well, the truth is, I am. But, something caught my eye at the market today – I just had to have a little taste. Then, I was converted 🙂
It was the lovely stall of Pure Origin, who hand-make a lovely range of milk, dark and white chocolates in Congleton, Cheshire. The company have 2 brands, their Pure Origin flavours, and the Tree Frog Chocolate range. We sampled a few flavours, but two stood out and we really couldn’t resist buying them (despite having 3 Easter eggs at home still uneaten!)
The two we chose were both milk chocolate, Sea Salt & Caramel and Hickory Smoked Almonds. The almonds are smoked by The Cheshire Smokehouse too, which makes it all the more special and it’s great to see the local collaboration. The hickory smoked nuts are delicate against the only slightly sweet milk chocolate, and the crunchy texture is the perfect match for the smooth chocolate too.
The Sea Salt & Caramel flavour is also so gorgeous, it literally melts in your mouth and has the perfect amount of bite in its texture. So much better than any Easter egg!
The second highlight of the market was The Great Northern Pie Co. Even though these guys have a permanent spot at Altrincham Market House, I have still yet to try one of their Award winning pastry delights.
There were 4 flavours on offer from their lovely seasonal ‘Spring Menu’ but honestly, it was a no brainer. We chose the Ham, Stornoway Black Pudding & Mustard Cream. And boy oh boy, did we choose good. The perfectly seasoned, firm yet crumbly pastry is filled with slow-roast ham, Charles MacLeod’d black pudding, English mustard cream, carrots, tarragon, lemon, paxo ‘stuffing’ breadcrumbs and mustard seeds. It really was the nicest pie I’ve ever tasted!!
Other flavours they had on offer were Meats & Potatoes, Lancashire Cheese & Onion and Goats Cheese, Peas, Lemon & Mint. All sound delicious!
So there is a little insight to mine & boyfriend Bradley’s trip to the Artisan Market in Northwich, Cheshire today. We were on a slight budget, so didn’t go too mad buying loads of different foods, however, we could have spent more as almost all of the stalls had something lovely to offer. We will certainly be returning!
