1 At first glance, Lindt's 'a touch of sea salt' Excellence chocolate sounds enticing and trendy; many fashionable chefs use sea salt in their desserts. But this has a minimum cacao content of only 47 per cent so it lacks that crisp 'snap'. For those used to darker chocolate, it is a little too sweet, although the subtle sea-salt flavour makes it more interesting. It's also expensive, at HK$29.90 for a 100 gram bar from Park'n'Shop.
2 If you check the labels, you'll see that many almond extracts are made with artificial flavours. Simply Organic almond extract is made with purified water, organic alcohol, glycerine and natural bitter almond oil. It costs HK$72 for a 118ml bottle from Oliver's (tel: 2810 7710).
3 Raclette is delicious rib-sticking food that is especially good when it's cold. It used to be made by heating a large piece of cheese in front of a fire then scraping off the melted outside. PanHandler (tel: 2523 1672) in the Prince's Building, Central, has a tabletop device (HK$1,845) which melts pieces of cheese in small pans while cooking accompaniments on a grill.
