Chocolate Festival raises money for Planned Parenthood
Children ran through a crowded room amidst a sea of red and white tables Saturday night at the the 20th annual Planned Parenthood Chocolate Festival, a fund-raiser to help the organization serve Cache Valley.
Chocolate weighed down the tables as some of the desserts were as simple as cookies or brownies while others took dessert to the next level.
Nadra Haffar was one of the innovative chefs this year as she spiced up some brownies. She calls them the Secret of Fort Knox and decorates them with a 24-carat gold leaf on the surface.
Haffar has entered 11 of the 12 years she has lived in Cache Valley with some interesting entries. Some of her most memorable, she said, were a chocolate vegetarian chili and a chocolate skating scene.
“A lot of people have common misconceptions about Planned Parenthood, and we need Planned Parenthood in Cache Valley,” said Haffar.
But desserts did not have to be coated in gold to get attention at the event. In the professional division, a dessert called Basic Instinct grabbed attention from the crowd. It was a chocolate log with scrutinizing detail of tiny lady bugs, crickets and even little chocolate frogs.
Both adults and children can participate, and there is a separate division for desserts made by teenagers.
Anna Perez, 8, entered the contest for the second time this year. Her grandmother and sister also entered.
“I feel bad though ’cause my cookies were gone in like two seconds, and my sisters aren’t gone yet,” Anna said. “My grandmother entered the professional division. She entered a orange chocolate tort.”
Jan Memmott, Anna’s grandmother, has worked all over the world from Europe to Nevada and has lived in Logan for nine years.
She has donated her time and talents to Planned Parenthood because she said it is an organization she fully supports.
Her dessert this was a success, but in the past, she said things have not always been perfect.
“This year or maybe last year I made a chocolate shell and filled it full of ganache, and in the heat of the lights you just watched it,” Memmot said while pressing her palms together to show the dessert’s slow collapse.
A silent auction took place at the same time as tasting, so people could try the desserts before buying them.
The Chocolate Festival was one that had some innovative concepts such as selling gift packages with chocolate so people didn’t have to wait for the silent auction.
“This year it is kind of a bake sale idea, so you can grab your chocolate and go,” said volunteer Beth Booton.
-skjohnson@cc.usu.edu