So I could easily spend a day chatting with — and just plain ogling — the Meeteetse Chocolatier – but I want to know what you would ask him if you get the chance.
It’s difficult to believe my first season at Wyoming Chronicle is coming to an end –time really does fly when you’re having fun – but I am filming my last two episodes of the season at the end of this month. (I’ll be filming in Cody.) Chocolate visionary — because what else can you call a man who thought to make Coors truffles?? — Tim Kellogg will be one and Sheridan vet Dr. Ted Vlahos will be the other. I’m starting to prepare for both now.
So, if you had the chance to sit down with Tim or Ted, what would you ask them? And what would you like to ask me about chocolate truffles or the use of prostheses in animals? As nice as it would be to just sit down and chat with the guests we have on Wyoming Chronicle, all of us hosts do quite a bit of behind-the-scenes research. Although Mayans were drinking chocolate drinks 2000 years ago, it wasn’t until the 1840s that it was discovered how to make solid chocolate. And then in 1879 Swiss entrepreneur Henri Nestlé developed an exclusive recipe known as “milk chocolate” by combining the solid chocolate with a powder made of dehydrated milk and sugar? The French took Nestle’s invention and ran with it. Their experimentation led to the development of ganache, which is the center core of the modern truffle. Ganache was, and remains, an ultra-smooth combination of solid chocolate and cream that has a velvety, liquid-like texture. Chocolate truffles began to be made using this confection, and were often flavored with other ingredients such as dark or white chocolate, cocoa powder, or almonds or other chopped nuts. Or, in Kellogg’s case, Coors.
If you’re interested in doing some truffle research of your own, I highly recommend Paul Richardson’s book Indulgence, One man’s selfless search for the best chocolate in the world.
But agian, it’s my job to do the research, so if there’s anything you’re dying to know about truffles, or about Tim Kellogg, let me know.
–Dina Mishev
Some of my favorite TV shows might be calling it quits for the season, but Wyoming Chronicle is still going strong. Just today I filmed two episodes with two Wyoming originals.