THAT’S
A SPICY
TRUFFLE!
EUPHORIA
CHOCOLATE'S
SPICED
TRUFFLES
Chilies in your chocolate and
other winter warmers BY SARAH DECKER
W
CHAIN
REACTION
Portland-based Little Big Burger brings
hot ketchup to Eugene
BY SARAH DECKER & SHANNON FINNELL
L
ittle Big Burger, which opened its doors in Portland
in 2010, has finally descended upon Eugene. With
its wallet-friendly prices and loyalty to local and
sustainable foods, it’s no wonder LBB won a cult
following in Portland, and its location right next to Knight Arena
will add to the Eugene eatery’s appeal for sportsgoers.
LBB uses all-natural Cascade beef in its burgers, sea salt
and truffle oil on its fries, and buys local veggie burger patties
from Marie at Chez Gourmet. The menu is basic, with four
food items, soda and floats, though its beer menu does pack
a more complex punch. We counted 29 options — but that
was after a couple bottles, so someone might need to recount
for us. Hopefully they’ll add some local brews like Ninkasi
or Oakshire to the menu.
All of this creates a fabulous dining experience, but the
real cherry on the sundae is the ketchup on the french fries.
LBB uses — and sells — its own variation on ketchup. And
this ketchup has a kick. Veering away from the corn syrup
industry standard, LBB serves up Camden’s Catsup, which
gets its sweetness from honey and its kick from Sriracha. If
the tasty, filling food isn’t reason enough to stop in this joint,
this ketchup is a powerful motivator.
Co-owner Katie Poppe told EW that ketchup for purchase
in Eugene should be available right around publication of this
issue. ■
Little Big Burger is located at 1404 Orchard St., 357-4771, littlebigburger.com
inter is upon us. The air is crisp, the breeze is brisk and the days are short. This season
inspires in me a desire for warmth in any way possible, right down to the foods I eat. And
where temperature leaves off, spices kick in. I want spicy and flavorful, as well as
something to bring the heat.
Right off the bat I’ll admit I’m more or less a wimp when it comes to spices. I like my Thai food mild
and have been known to order medium salsa when I’m feeling particularly adventurous, but that’s about as
far as I go. Because of this, I have been amazed lately to find that many of my favorite haunts for chocolate
— a food I consume with voracious regularity — have started to add a wide variety of spices in their
sweets. Naturally, I had to give this a try.
My first spiced chocolates came in the form of Euphoria Chocolate’s spiced truffles. I bought these in
a three pack because, as everyone knows, one truffle is never enough. The candies themselves are divine,
and the spices (cinnamon, paprika, chipotle and cardamom) are evident, but I would hardly label them
“spicy.” The flavor is rich and warm and a definite welcome sensation on a cold winter’s day.
Next I hit up Divine Cupcake for a double dose of spiciness. The first cupcake I sampled, the Thai Me Up,
was incredible. Instead of being set in chocolate, the cupcake itself is a peanut
curry cake topped off with peanut buttercream frosting and sprinkled with
ground chili peppers. Again, the overall taste of the cake is less heat,
more spice. But the ground chili peppers resting atop add just the
right kick.
The other cupcake was the Swizzle Stick. This is a South
American chocolate cinnamon cake with a hint of cayenne
pepper and a slathering of chocolate ganache. Now we were
nearing the neighborhood of actual heat. Mild and flavorful,
the chocolate cake is finished with a small jolt of spice. I
was leery of the combination at first, though once I’d
experienced the sweet of the chocolate meeting the spice
of the pepper, I immediately understood why these
combinations are so widely available.
Now I was on a roll, so I headed to Sweet Life, where I
sampled two entirely different desserts. The first taste came
from their rather new case of handmade chocolates: the chili
pepper chocolate. These are far more delicate than a truffle,
deriving their kick from dried red chilies. The head in these
little babies is more of a sting than a lingering heat, and it moved
quickly through my mouth, finishing warm. Caution: These things
DIVINE CUPCAKE'S
go down real
THAI ME UP
smooth and your
stash will be gone before long.
Also at Sweet Life, for the time being, is Red
Hot Chocolate Cheesecake — the February dessert
of the month. Sweet Life certainly doesn’t hold
back on the spice. The cheesecake was by far the
spiciest thing I’d bitten into during this survey and
has proven to be my favorite of the bunch. Its heat
comes from cayenne and cinnamon, but the kick is
undeniable.
In the end, I’ve learned two things: “Spicy,” in
this case, can mean either loaded with the flavor of
spices, or downright hot. And spiciness mixed
with chocolate, although foreign and strange
sounding, can bring you some of the best desserts
you’ll eat this long winter season. If chocolate
isn’t your bag, the Thai Me Up is the way to go.
But if you’re a chocoholic like me, you’ll find that
the chocolate mellows the chilies just enough to
make them tolerable, though their kick provides a
keen balance to the smooth and sweet cocoa.
If you’re looking for a way to warm up your
winter, indulge in all the culinary delights this
season has to offer. And don’t skip the dessert. ■
SWEET LIFE'S RED HOT CHOCOLATE CHEESECAKE
PHOTO BY TRASK BEDORTHA
8 CHOW! Winter 2012
chow.eugeneweekly.com