The Story of Little Loves
Claire Canning and the “Little Loves”, June 2021.
When I first met my husband to be in 2014, he couldn’t eat chocolate (he still can’t), but he loved it! So I set out to make him some sweet little heart-shaped carob “chocolates” using a few simple ingredients like organic coconut oil and maple syrup. It was fun, and they were delicious. One thing led to another and.. well.. babies began to arrive! As is all too common these days, my first daughter and I developed food sensitivites, too.
Time moved on. My enjoyment of chocolate making did not. But, it did evolve. Soon I was using real chocolate, experimenting with creating original fillings, and exploring professional moulds. I was still using a minimal arsenal of organic ingredients. Then things changed again. When I could no longer eat coconut oil I had a real “uh-oh” turned “ah-ha” moment! Could I come up with recipes and processes that would use even fewer ingredients and still make great chocolates? The answer was YES. In fact, they were even better. My vision was now clear and achievable - if you can eat chocolate (cocoa solids and sugar), you can probably eat Little Loves chocolates. The fillings contain only the same ingredients as are found in the chocolate itself, plus one or two flavouring components like organic fruits, herbs, spices, and essential oils.
And the Zodiac chocolate story… well… my husband is probably to thank for that. One day I said to him “wouldn’t it be so cool to make a chocolate for each of the signs in the Zodiac?”. I quickly let it go as a project that was way too massive, maybe for another lifetime or for someone else to take on. That someone else turned out to be me, in bed for two days with a back injury and a notebook. The zodiac flavours were born and the train left the station!
Finally, this story would not be complete without thanking my two beautiful, spritely daughters who I often referred to as my “Little Loves”.
If you’d like to read more about my background and why I use organic, real food ingredients, you can check out my FAQ page and scroll to the bottom, “Why do you use whole, real foods in your chocolates?”.