Portobello West Ayala Moriel Parfums Display 29.07.2007, originally uploaded by Ayala Moriel.

Here is a little glimpse into the spectacular adventure of Portobello West this weekend. It was a vibrant and lively day at the market, with hundreds of Vancouvererites experiencing innovative local art, fashion and design, and discovering new concepts and cutting edge products.

I had a fantastic time meeting new perfume enthusiasts and witnessing their facial expressions as they experienced my perfumes. It never ceases to amaze me how a perfume can be new and at the same time feel familiar... One doesn't often see that mixture of emotions and double-takes in reaction to what is seemingly just a still-life object...

Portobello West Ayala Moriel Parfums Display 29.07.2007, originally uploaded by Ayala Moriel.

The chocolate truffles were consumed with much delight and I came home with nearly none left. We made two flavours the night before, with organic whipping cream and premium chocolates:

Dark chocolate truffles with nutmeg and lavender - which is the most exotic flavour resulting from rather familiar essences.

White chocolate truffles with specs of vanilla, litsea cubeba and neroli - rolled in lemon peel and coconut (pictured below).

Lemon Vanilla Truffles, originally uploaded by Ayala Moriel.

Jalapeno Chocolate, originally uploaded by Ayala Moriel.

On the hottest day of the year, I've made the crucial mistake of making chocolate truffles. And not just any truffles, truffles that are stuffed into hot peppers! Where did I get this idea? I've wintessed, in some crazy birthday party of a friend, people pouring tequila into halved jalapenos and after drinking the burning liquor, chewing up on the entire pepper! Being neither a fan of jalapenos nor tequila, I've decided to adopt the idea and make something that is not for a faint-of-heart like me. And I've decided to add some mojito flavours to the mix...

The biggest problem is that the truffles melt in your fingers before even going through 1/4 way into the batch...

Well, aside from the meltage factor, the crucial mistake turned out quite good, actually. I've made two experimental batches - both with dark chocolate. I've split the ganache into half, so I can make two flavours and not have too many truffles at hand... This proves to be quite detrimental to the balanced diet I try to maintain on a daily basis - unless I make sure I have company every single evening...

Both batches had a bit of vanilla extract and rum added to them:

Jalapeno Truffles:
First batch was flavoured with lime and spearmint essential oils. Some of it I've stuffed into those green hot peppers (these are actually not jalapenos, because I couldn't find small enough jalapenos. Instead, I've used the hotter than fire serano peppers... Ouch!). They are topped with very thinly sliced fresh and sweet lime.
The result?
If you're like me (meaning: don't mind some spiciness but don't seek the fire-hot sensation on your tongue), you may not want to bite into the pepper itself (unless you belong to the other kind of people). You may just want to scoop out the chocolate. After chilling in the fridge for several hours, the chocolate have absorbed enough hotness to satisfy me. The strange (in a good way) thing is: this combination, along with the pepper, tastes a lot like fig! I don't know why, but it certainly does.

The remaining of the batch, I've turned into "normal" truffles, which were very minty and quite delightful. Espeically if you love mint. The lime was in the background, quite quiet...

Lavender & Nutmeg Truffles
The second batch was where the real surprise was. This is the first time I'm making truffles with no perfume inspiration behind them, yet the result was immensely perfumey! Some kind of mysterious alchemy is going on there. The nutmeg I've used is nutmeg absolute, which is well-rounded and full bodied, smoother and sweeter than the nutmeg essential oil. The lavender is lavender Mailette from France, which is very floral and light. The two notes, along with chocolate, clash to create a very peculiar flavour that feels so familiar... I'm transported to the Wadi where my friend Zohar used to live, yet I can't say if it's her house that I'm smelling or if its a particular wild herb that I can't recognize, in the midst of the wadi... Either way, I'm enjoying these immensely. They are floral, exotic, unusual, strange, yet the flavour is very harmonious. I can't believe I'm saying it, but think these are my favourite truffles so far!

Ayala Moriel @ Portobello West, originally uploaded by Ayala Moriel.

Here is a glimpse of my table at Portobello West. I had very little time to take photos (snapped only two shots of my own table, and none of the market itself). It was plenty of fun and a busy, busy day at the market, even though it was raining cats and dogs outside.

It was fun meeting fashion-savvy Vancouverites who love to support local art and feed them my scented chocolate truffles... My Blood Truffles (dark chocolate, rose otto and chilli) were a hit. The Charisma truffles (matcha & jasmine white chocolate with hints of osmanthus, spearmint and litsea cubeba) were admired too... Of course you have to love matcha to truly appreciate them. I will be definitely bringing truffles to the next market - with flavours you won't even imagine... This time they will be for sale.

The next market is July 29th, 2007. Hope to see you there!