I had the pleasure of interviewing Lauren Klein about her business Handcrafted Chocolate. She specializes in handcrafted artisanal hand-painted chocolate bonbons which are created in small batches with love and care in Monmouth County. It’s where culinary artistry and inventive flavor combinations come together in one delicious bite. Let’s see what she has to say about her craft and undeniable talent.
Q: Tell me more about the chocolate you use and the various flavor combinations. Do you use locally sourced ingredients? What inspires your flavor combinations? Are your chocolates gluten-free or allergy friendly?
Lauren uses dark chocolate which is sourced from sustainable fair-trade companies. She then creates the hard shell which acts as a vessel for her incredible flavor combinations.
She uses molds which are food-safe polycarbonate and then hand paints designs onto them in colored cocoa butter which she first melts. The chocolate is then melted and laid over the designs which quickly adhere to the chocolate shell or dome as she referred to it. She then fills the chocolate dome with various flavor combinations. And lastly places on the bottom to create beautifully handcrafted chocolate that tastes great and looks amazing.
Some traditional flavor combinations: Lavender Honey, Salted Caramel, and Peaches & Cream. Salted Caramel is her most popular flavor. She uses locally grown lavender and local honey and is known for using locally sourced ingredients. She visits her favorite orchard, Battleview Orchards, where she went as a child to pick fresh peaches with her dad. She picks peaches, strawberries, and sour cherries. All of which she purees and freezes to use in her bonbons throughout the year.
Sidebar: Battleview Orchards is a family owned and operated farm, located in Freehold, which harvests locally grown fruits and invites the public to “pick your own” New Jersey strawberries, sour cherries, peaches, nectarines, apples and pumpkins.
Some non-traditional flavor combinations: Chili is infused into caramel along with miso and is layered on top of crunchy peanut praline to create Chili Crunch. It has a sweet and spicy taste. Calamansi is a fruit found in the Philippines. This Calamansi Meringue bonbon flavor is bright and akin to eating a mini key lime pie. The Vietnamese Coffee bonbon is made with white chocolate ganache and coffee-flavored ganache. She uses only the highest quality ingredients which are always authentic.
Lauren Klein’s Handcrafted Chocolate specializes in handcrafted artisanal hand-painted chocolate bon bons which are created in small batches with love and care in Monmouth County.
Lauren offers nine-piece year-round chocolate bonbons which is her signature line. She also has a 12-piece and up box that includes her signature line plus some seasonal chocolates like: Mint Cookie and Whiskey Caramel Pretzel offered around St. Patty’s Day. In May for Mother’s Day, she offers Ube which is a Southeast Asian Purple Yam which she infuses into marshmallow on top of a toasted coconut layer. Sour Cherry is a holiday classic and there are others. And for summer she uses fresh Jersey corn!
She was inspired from her work experience seeing and working with flavors in action. She got a good sense of different flavor combinations and pairings through this hands-on experience, and it transferred over into her own business creating handcrafted chocolates.
It is noted on her website if her chocolates contain allergens. She offers some vegan, gluten-free and nut-free options. Cross contamination is always a possibility if there is a severe allergy as she uses a commercial kitchen. She shares space with Tatchen’s Kitchen which is a delicious soup and sandwich shop she recommends for lunch. It was named the “Best of the Best” fast food restaurant in Monmouth County.
Q: When did you fall in love with baking? At what age? Who influenced you?
Lauren’s grandma taught her how to cook. That influenced her love of being in the kitchen. While at Freehold High School, she was required to take a culinary class, Introduction to Commercial Baking, and that changed her life she tells me. Her teacher was Chef M. who she highly regards as a great influence on her love of baking. They made pastries, banana bread, quick breads, cookies, brownies and more. It was what propelled her into focusing on all things pastry. She credits the cooking class with Chef M. as a contributing factor in developing her passion.
Q: How were you influenced by pastry chef Johnny Luzzini at Jean Georges restaurant in New York City? What skills did he teach you during your internship there?
In 2010, Lauren was lucky to land an internship in high school at the renowned Jean Georges Restaurant working under Chef Johnny Luzzini. She worked behind the scenes picking stems off fruit, doing garnish work, and boxing the handmade chocolates. It was a great experience that further encouraged her to attend culinary school. She learned that finishing touches and details make a difference.
After graduating high school, she attended Johnson & Wales in Providence, Rhode Island, a school for culinary arts. She graduated with a degree in baking and pastry.
Q: Tell me about being an executive pastry chef at Heirloom at the St. Laurent in Asbury Park?
Lauren made and plated desserts like beet sorbet and strawberries, a sweet and savory combination. She made a chocolate dessert with chili caramel which inspired her Chili Crunch bonbons. This was merely a stepping stone into what would soon launch her career as a business owner where she hoped to be more creative and offer a wide variety of options to keep it things fresh and interesting.
Q: When did you decide to open your own business? How many years have you been in business?
She opened her business in 2021 and made it an e-commerce business due to the COVID pandemic. She can ship anywhere nationwide. She has no store front, but pick-ups can be made at Tatchen’s Kitchen located in Freehold.
Q: Tell me about the National Pastry Conference Chocolatier Competition where you won first place in your category.
The competition was in Charlotte, North Carolina. There were six competitors in her category. She focused on what she was good at making. She made peppermint patties, for novelty confections and a goo candy bar which is a knock off from a Goo Goo Cluster from Nashville. Her creative talents landed her in first place in her category.
She was also a competitor on the Food Network Spring Baking Championship.
Q: If people want to order what should they do? Tell me about some of your custom orders you’ve done in the past.
Go to her website for orders. She does custom orders. For instance, for wedding favors, she can do custom colors and you can choose the inside flavors based on what she offers. Favors come in 1-, 2- or 4-piece boxes.
Looking for gifts for party favors, client gifts, holiday gifts, wedding favors, shower favors, and more? Lauren’s website will guide you to the best choices.
Business name: Handcrafted Chocolate
Website: handcraftedbylauren.com
Email for orders: info@handcraftedbylauren.com
