One of the beautiful things about writing about chocolate is the suggestions people – friends and readers – send you. My friend John C sent me a photo of some chocolate a client had given him that he pronounced so amazing he ate it in one go. It was Slitti Tortina (a plate-sized creamy milk chocolate disc with whole hazelnuts, below left) and I’ve been hunting it down ever since. I even asked my cousin Maurizio to bring it from Italy when he came to England, but when he arrived he said, ‘What was it you asked me to bring?’ Italian men.
So imagine my surprise when, visiting the streets of London of my youth, I found a new, big, proper Italian deli/supermarket called Prezzemolo & Vitale. It had everything in it I remember from my childhood: bustle, drama, mozzarella, mortadellas, sfogliatelle, and little cakes and biscuits by Mulino Bianco. And a whole wall of chocolate in among which was the Slitti Tortina.
But the real surprise for me was the Novi chocolate I also found. A reader had written lamenting the passing of her Novi bars from M&S. They used to be available from the world cuisine aisle (not any more, big mistake M&S). I lazily selected a bar I thought I’d like, the Nocciolato: milk chocolate, gianduja, whole nuts.
Well. It was about as close to perfection as I’ve found in a bar. Chunky, nutty, rich with hazelnut paste. I usually take one bite of a bar for testing and then pass it on. Not this one. It’s available in independent shops and worth hunting out; but, if you struggle, Prezzemolo does mail order.
