Shoppers strolling through the ground level of Industry City in Sunset Park often do a double take at a window display that features a 16-pound chocolate egg.
Li-Lac Chocolates has been crafting delectable sweets for New York City residents for over 100 years and since 2014 in Brooklyn. The factory, which is connected to the Brooklyn store, features a glass wall that gives passersby and customers a rare glimpse of the chocolate-making process. Every spring, Li-Lac also features a display of their specialty Easter items in the factory storefront, including the “Ultimate Bodacious Gourmet Chocolate Easter Egg,” a 16-pound, 25-inch-tall, 18-inch-wide chocolate egg.
“It takes about two hours to make a single egg,” said Connor Bahnsen, director of production at Li-Lac Chocolates.
While the signature colored lines engraved on the egg may seem like an added flair tacked on to the end of the egg-making, the process actually begins with them. “Every time we make one of these eggs, we start by taking white chocolate, adding food dye, and painting it directly onto the mold,” Bahnsen explained. “That’s the first step and painting the lines, it’s really time-consuming.”
Once the paint dries, the mold is filled with chocolate. “We pour milk or dark chocolate into each half of the mold, then empty it out so it’s not solid but leaves a nice, about one-inch-thick coating,” Bahnsen said. The mold is then placed into a freezer to cool, and once it’s ready, it takes two or three people to carefully place the egg onto a surface that retains its shape.
Every step of the process, like all of Li-Lac’s products, is done on site. For example, any item with a chocolate coating, like the mocha rolls or dark chocolate graham crackers, is attentively placed by hand on a conveyor belt that enrobes it in chocolate. There are a total of 23 employees that make these hand-crafted treats every day.
The packaging is also a trademark part of the Li-Lac aesthetic as each box is assembled by employees and many are adorned with hand-tied ribbons. “There is a difference between a pre-tied ribbon and a hand-tied ribbon. It makes it a lot more special,” Bahnsen noted.
Other Easter products include the Vintage Chocolate Easter Egg, an egg shell mold filled with truffles, and the 17-Piece Chocolate Easter Box.
As the holiday approaches, the Li-Lac team is busier than ever. “This is sort of our Super Bowl right now,” Bahnsen said.
And if Easter is Li-Lac’s Super Bowl, the bodacious egg is their trophy. Serving up to 125 people, the giant egg can be the center-piece of a large gathering. One customer who purchased the egg even asked how to cut into the egg to carve out a space for an Easter-themed display.
The Ultimate Bodacious Gourmet Chocolate Easter Egg is available for special order on the Li-Lac website for $325.
