If you're a chocolate lover, you know that nothing is worse than a big, melty mess. But in the summer months, the heat can be especially tough on your favourite vegan fair trade chocolate treats. To prevent a disaster, follow these six tips on protecting your chocolate and keep it in perfect condition all summer long.
1. Keep Temperatures Below 23°C
Chocolate begins to melt at around 30-32°C but it will start to soften at much lower temperatures, which might affect its ‘mouth feel’. To prevent this from happening, try to store your bean to bar chocolate at temperatures below 23°C. Ideally, you’ll want to keep chocolate at around 14-18°C but, in the height of summer, aiming to keep temperatures below 23°C will be challenging enough.
To find the perfect storage location, use a thermometer and take the temperature inside cupboards, pantries or larders. (Remember to close the door and allow the thermometer to sit for a while so you get a true reading).
While it might be tricky to find anywhere in your home that stays below 23°C in the midst of a heatwave, you will at least know where the coolest storage location is and be able to move your stash of chocolate bars accordingly.
2. Steer Clear of Sunlight
While you might love getting out and enjoying the sun, your chocolate doesn’t. In fact, think of your bean to bar chocolate in the same way as vampires: don’t mix with sunlight (or garlic). Not leaving your favourite healthy snacks chocolate outside in the sun might sound obvious but it isn’t just outdoors that you need to be wary of.
Leaving your chocolate on a kitchen counter can lead to a melty mess if the sun’s strong enough to warm it up through the window. Similarly, conservatories and windowed porches can be real suntraps, so try to avoid storing chocolate in these areas during the summer months.
3. Choose Dark Chocolate
White and milk chocolate tends to melt more quickly than dark chocolate due to its higher milk content, so, when you’re choosing healthy chocolate bars to enjoy in the summer, opt for dark chocolate varieties.
Fortunately, there is a wide range of dark fair trade chocolate to explore, including our Astronauts, Healers, Gladiators and Geniuses Chapters, so you can still savour the taste of exquisite cocoa bean to bar chocolate – no matter how hot it gets this summer.
4. Use the Refrigerator
Generally, the fridge is too cold and too high in moisture to be a good storage place for chocolate. However, if temperatures soar, and cupboards, pantries and larders simply aren’t cool enough, you might be left with no choice but to keep your bean to bar treats in the refrigerator.
If so, be sure to place your chocolate in a sealed container or tin first. This will help to prevent the chocolate from being tainted by strong odours or flavours from other foods and to avoid it absorbing moisture.
5. Allow Chocolate to Return to Room Temperature
If you are storing chocolate in the fridge this summer, be sure to give it some time to adjust back to room temperature before you eat it. We know, every second feels like an eternity when you’re waiting to devour your favourite bar but, trust us, it will be worth the wait.
Allowing the chocolate to return to regular room temperature ensures an optimal flavour profile and ‘mouth feel’, so you’ll get the benefit of enjoying your bean to bar chocolate exactly as our chocolatiers intended.
Pro Tip: Place a paper towel around your chocolate bar when you remove it from the fridge. This will absorb any moisture and prevent it from affecting the chocolate itself.
6. Plan Ahead for Chocolate Deliveries
If online shopping was invented for one thing and one thing only, it’s having bean to bar chocolate delivered straight to your door. No matter where you are in the world, our vegan fair trade chocolate can be whizzing its way to you in an instant via our same day dispatch service.
When you’re arranging a chocolate delivery in the summer months, however, be sure to consider where it will be stored upon arrival. If you usually have parcels delivered to a safe location, such as a porch, it may be too warm to keep the contents in optimal condition until you arrive home.
If possible, arrange for your delivery to arrive on a day that you’ll be in to accept the parcel, so you can find a suitable storage location straight away.
What to Do with Melted Chocolate
If the worst does happen and the summer heat gets to your chocolate stash, there’s no need to panic. After all, melted chocolate is still chocolate; how bad can it be?! Enjoy with a spoon, add to ice cream or dip fresh fruit into the melt and improvise to make your own summer creations.
Alternatively, return the chocolate to a cool, dark cupboard or place it in the refrigerator and wait for it to regain its firmness. While you won’t be able to restore its ‘temper’, you will certainly still be able to enjoy your chocolate post-melt.
What is Bean to Bar Chocolate?
Bean to bar chocolate is high-quality chocolate made from ethically sourced cocoa beans. The term originated from artisans and craft chocolate makers who are more focused on creating outstanding chocolate and setting up fair supply chains than mass-producing inferior quality bars.
With minimal ingredients, our bean to bar chocolate is free from additives and low in sugar, which makes it a healthier choice too. Whether you covet the healing properties of Cordyceps, Reishi and Chaga mushrooms or you want to savour the sweetness of ambrosia and experience the food of the gods, our unique Chapters represent the best bean to bar chocolate.
So, whatever the weather, our vegan fair trade chocolate is the perfect way to celebrate the season and reward yourself with a healthy, sumptuous and luxurious sweet treat.