A TASTY CHOCOLATIER

1. You are considered to be a maverick in the chocolate industry. I have to ask…how has the bacon and chocolate bar been received?

It’s been a shockingly huge hit.  We have had people order them by the 60. Really, what doesn’t work with bacon?

2. You are a woman entrepreneur. What advice do you have for women wanting to start their own business? 

Don’t let fear hold you back.  You can’t think about what you have to lose, but rather think of all the great things that could happen. It is the rare person who is 95% dreamer and 5% activist that creates change in the world.

3. You have five Chocolate Boutiques in Chicago, New York and Vegas. What are your plans for expansion…any chance you will be coming to the west coast?

Funny you should ask Los Angeles is the next stop. I am debating between Beverly Drive and Robertson. What do you think?

4. You and Shannan met while you were going to cooking school in Paris. What is your fondest memory of living there?

That is a very difficult question to answer!! It was probably the best time of my life.  All I can say it was filled with Berthillion ice cream, Bordeaux wines, a swirling Wurlitzer juke box playing Patsy Kline and Elvis, Sunday drive-byes  to pick falafel du l”As and so many card games and laughs.  Tere was taking the metro to Le Cordon Bleu everyday, and Shannan stopping to sneak a crepe in on the way to class. And of course Chef Cliché and Chef Patrick! I can go on and on but of course you are all probably falling asleep by now…

5. Now that you are a working woman, do you have time to cook?  What is your ideal meal?

I actually cook all the time now. But I have toned down the prep time from Le Cordon Bleu days, now I can cook spinach with olive oil in a flash in the pan plus a nice, seared fish.  But I am working on my cookbook recipes and I have been making a great savory chocolate risotto which is soooooooooo good. Of course, I only cook with organic ingredients! I have a box of organic produce delivered to my house every week from a local farmer coop.

6. You and your husband Jason work together….how do you keep the romance alive?

Our ships often pass in the night as I travel so much and I am a night owl while he is an early bird. The key to our romantic life is secret love letters tucked under our pillows, in his pants pocket or tacked onto the bathroom mirrors.

7. What changes have you made in your life and your business that are planet-friendly?

At Vosges : We have been extremely proactive on this front. We operate our entire business on 100% renewable energy, all of our boxes are made from recycled post consumer board, we are now a certified organic manufacturer.

At home: I traded in my Mercedes for a Prius, we only by organic produce, use long life bulbs, organic cleaning supplies, and prefer to snuggle over turning up the heat above 65. To read more http://www.vosgeschocolate.com/green

8.  On what occasions are you “wasty " (NOT hip, green, planet-friendly)

I get impulsive about clothing and hope more stores will carry organic textile clothing to make it easier to shop green."?  

9. Ok the question we always ask…what makes you tasty?

Feathers in the hair and chocolate in the purse.

Interested in learning more about Vosges Haut-Chocolat?

Founder Katrina speaks at the TASTE³ conference in Napa, California about her inspiration and the creative process.