Good baking chocolate in d/t Montreal?

[Vincci]

Hi everyone,
I'm planning to make a chocolate cake this weekend and I'm looking to find some nice baking chocolate. I live in the Atwater area and was wondering if there were any places nearby. I'm still a student, so I'm not looking for super high-end stuff, but something that's nicer than the usual grocery store fare. Any suggestions?

I know that there is a Premiere Moisson close to la Musee des Beaux Arts that sells chocolate--is that any good?

[rillettes]

You can also try Loblaw's chocolate. Before voices are raised in protest by all those who get their panties in a bunch, this was actually suggested to me by a chef who teaches at l'Academie Culinaire.

[cherylmtl]

Except they don't have the bars in stock regularly. I have used their dark chocolate in baking and ice creams, and it does work quite well.

[Vincci]

Thanks for the Aubut recommendation! I went there today and picked up a 1 kg bag of pastilles. It's still a LOT more than I need (my recipe calls for 150 g) but maybe it'll be motivation to try other chocolate recipes! (Or just to eat it all and gain 50 lb, who knows)

[maisonbistro]

I have a killer recipe for a flourless chocolate cake that is to die for, and uses 18 oz of chocolate. I've tweaked it a little bit in that I add a fruit of some kind to it. I started with sour cherries in the first and the last one I made I used fresh lychees.
I serve it drizzled with some creme fraiche mixed with honey.

If you want, let me know, I'll post it.

[Vincci]

Oh, that sounds like a fun experiment! Please post!

[maisonbistro]

I promise I haven't forgotten. I will post it. Soon, vewy vewy soon.

[morebubbles]

Great, I'm curious about it too so I'm looking forward to the post!

[jellybelly25]

Hey maisonbistro, did you post the recipe? Can you provide the link if chowhound moved it to another page?

[maisonbistro]

I did and it was yanked. email me and I'll happily send it along

[e-mail]

[spankyhorowitz]

When you say "good", are you referring to the taste or the fair (or unfair) way that the people who grew and picked the beans were treated?
You say you are poor and do not want to spend much....the think of the farmers and try to buy fair-trade chocolate.

[SnackHappy]

Spanky, where can I find fair-trade chocolate that doesn't suck? I've tried the Equita stuff and was not impressed.

[Venusia]

www.Chocodirect.com has a fair trade chocolate that is imported from France, and they also have organic chocolate and candies. They specialise in European imports and ship out of Ville La Salle. I have never tried them, but they have been highly recommended on another board. Apparently they always throw extras in with any order. Their clearance section has really good deals, especially on short dated items (eg 2kg of Valrhona chocolate for 20$). I keep thinking of them whenever I have friends over and I want to have a variety of imported candies, just never took action on it.

[Venusia]

Just want to give a head's up to anyone interested: chocodirect.com has a special right now on organic Valrhona milk chocolate (2$/100g bar) http://www.chocodirect.com/site_en/sh...

Ordered 10 bars yesterday, and received package today via Canada Post along with a freebie box of Dolfin lemongrass scented chocolate petals. Pretty good deal for 28$.

[carswell]

Valrhona it ain't but it doesn't suck: the Cocoa Camino line from Ottawa's Lasiembra Cooperative. www.lasiembra.com

[SnackHappy]

Thanks Carswell. I didn't know Camino made chocolate for baking. All I ever saw of theirs was the cocoa powder. I'll check it out next time I go to Merci Vrac or some other hippie store.

[spankyhorowitz]

I like Cocoa Camino. I get mine at Segal's, where it is still expensive, but less than any other store. I think it's $3 a bar.

[Arktik]

The best place for that is just west of Atwater Market at Aubut. They have TONS of chocolate -big slabs of high end stuff for really really cheap. Or you can buy small packages of chips (Valrhona or Callebaut) for really really cheap. A lot less expensive than bulk stuff at the maket.

[morebubbles]

Aubut, that's the place I was thinking about, I recommend it as well.
(didn't even notice the smaller packages because I need & use the larger packages for baking.)

[kpzoo]

Is that the bulk store that is (or used to be) at the north end?

[morebubbles]

It's this one:
Distribution Alimentaire Aubut
3975 Rue Saint-ambroise, Montreal QC, H4C 2E1
Phone: [phone], Grocers-wholesale
This is also where I get big jars of the small nonpareille capers in brine.

[Campofiorin]

Trek down to Atwater market and you'll find that for sure.

[C70]

not downtown, but Milano in Little Italy sells Callebaut in approx. 1-lb. squares.

[morebubbles]

I have a question: are you looking for baking chocolate for this one time only, or are you going to be using the chocolate for more baking later on? The place I know near Atwater market has good (Belgian) baking chocolate & cocoa powder, but they come in large blocks/bags, so it depends on how much baking you do.