This winter I had the opportunity to hang out in a handmade candy bar kitchen… I know, right?  When I first saw the word ‘handmade’ I thought that perhaps Kelly did indeed mix all the ingredients from a handmade recipe.  Once I spent a bit of time with her I realized quickly just HOW handmade these artisan candy bars really were.

The most impressive part of her business is truly the locally sourced and organic everything! Kelly literally ate her way through pounds of organic chocolate and cocoa to find just the right flavor and consistency she now calls her own. The following are The Chocolate Lab’s local source list: Southern Swiss Dairy – eggs, milk, heavy cream, butter // B&G Honey – honey // PERC Coffee Roasters – coffee // Stone Mountain Pecan – pecans // Verdant Kitchen – ground ginger // The Chocolate Lab – coffee extract using PERC coffee. If Kelly can’t find an ingredient locally, she does her best to source it organically or fair-trade and so uses the following products:  Organic & Fair-Trade Sugar – Wholesome Sweeteners // Organic Corn Syrup (non-gmo) – Wholesome Sweeteners // Organic & Fair-Trade Chocolate – TCHO // Direct-Trade Cocoa Powder – Askinosie Chocolate.  It’s impressive to say the least.

Once we made our way through the process of actually making the candy bars it was time to package them to ensure they arrive safe and sound to their homes. Again… HANDmade was the emphasis here. Using a boning tool, Kelly scores each and every label, individually hand cuts each box, folds, glues and seals each and every one. People, that is love and that is what an artisan does for you.

So the next time you’re looking for a hand crafted anything and it cost a bit more than a big box brand consider what’s behind the process and support your local (or non-local ) artisans. Together they make a huge impact on your community and more times than non will have your best interest for a happy and healthy lifestyle in mind.

Mother’s Day is just around the corner and I know as a mom myself I would LOVE to get a gift of The Chocolate Lab. Check it out. Spread the love. And trust me… once you try one of Kelly’s artisan candy bars you will need to keep a small stock at all times.

P.S. She will make custom labels for your wedding favors, too! Lear more on the Custom Gifts page.

This is the Goat Milk Caramel. When I ate this one I thought it was my favorite and then I tried the PERK Coffee and thought the same.  So… I guess they’re all my favorite but I do like the little crunch of Georgia pecans in this one 😉

This was batch number two; the Chocolate Nougat Caramel. It’s creamy and buttery and so good.

This was my favorite part to photograph. So pretty!

Kelly inspects each bar and carefully patches up any little booboos it may have undergone in the dip process.

And THIS my friends is the ‘seconds’ pile.  You know what happens to ‘seconds’, right 😉