A box of chocolates is more than a sweet treat—the amount of thought and creativity that goes into each one of the luscious morsels is often extreme.
A brand new Kansas City chocolate maker’s efforts caught the eye of The Washington Post. Writer G. Daniela Galarza compiled a list of notable chocolate makers after trying dozens of boxes of chocolates across the nation, she says.
“All of them came with an origin story, the name and location of the farm where the cacao was grown, or the brand of sustainable and fair trade chocolate used to make the candies and bonbons tucked into the tidy little box. Some were vegan, most made use of local ingredients and all of them demonstrated a mastery of the unique and time-consuming skill of making molded or enrobed chocolates.”
On Galarza’s list is new Blue Springs sweets shop, Bliss Chocolatier.
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“The mother-daughter team of Jessica Washburn and Pat Jarstad run this Kansas City, Mo., operation,” Galarza writes. “Standouts include the Sea Turtle, a blue milk chocolate shell filled with salted caramel and pecan praline; vegan raspberry, with a supremely fruity filling; and key lime cheesecake, with layers of sweet lime, creamy cheesecake and crunchy graham cracker.”
Kansas City magazine covered Bliss in our February issue, where we highlighted local chocolates to gift this Valentine’s Day. Washburn, who is a formal professional photographer, told Kansas City that she believes that flavor and texture are paramount in confections and that she has learned to make art-like creations by taking online chocolate courses and training with pastry chefs across the nation. “I always loved food and science,” she told us. “I fell in love with the precision, the artistry and the challenge of it.”
Bliss opened in December and sold out twice before Christmas.
