From practising law to making chocolates
From labour practice to chocolate business
IT’S a matter of record that a life in law prepares you for anything.
Just ask Shanta Reddy, a Durban labour law attorney with a flourishing practice who — following a stint as an acting judge — did an about-turn and became a certified chocolatier.
You’ll catch her taking the law into her own hands at the Foodie Market in Ballito, insisting that you taste her handmade French chocolates — salted caramels, pecan chilli ganache, or perhaps her sugar-free brazils.
Things changed three years ago when Reddy became pregnant. “To run a successful law practice you can’t do anything else,” she said. “I would go to bed thinking have I done this? Should I do that? And I’d wake up and finish the sentence.”
This was not the way she and her husband — an advocate — wanted to raise their children.
At the same time, wanting her unborn child to have the best start in life, she began researching food and learnt about preservatives and hormones and hydrogenated fats.
“My husband and I already lived a healthy lifestyle — we didn’t eat junk food and we did lots of exercise — but I decided to make as much as possible myself.”
A year-and-a-half later and with a second son on the way, Reddy had honed her baking skills.
Noticing that European cookbooks called for Valrhona chocolate, she ordered a batch and thought she might try her hand at chocolate making.
“I had no idea what tempering was [the process of heating and then cooling chocolate to make it shiny and smooth].
“On the packet it said ‘Agitate the chocolate and let it cool down’, so I thought I’d give it a stir and then leave it to cool. It took research and a chocolatemaking course to discover the correct method.”
It also took a lot of practice and vast quantities of extremely expensive chocolate.
Well worth it, I decided, as I popped an olive caramel chocolate — a tiny work of art — into my mouth.
Reddy’s chocolates are delicate, nuanced and smooth. Mainstream chocolate has had much of its cocoa butter removed and replaced by hydrogenated fat, which is cheaper and has a longer shelf life.
“I don’t want to run a sweet shop,” said Reddy.
“I want a discerning market where people appreciate quality and good
taste. My chocolate is handmade, handcrafted and takes time and a great deal of patience.”
Her flavours are exciting and unique. She has tried chocolate with curry leaf, blue cheese and even green tea. Her pineapple and ginger creates fireworks in your mouth and her coconut and lime is a consistent crowd pleaser.
From her herb garden she has crafted rose-scented pelargonium chocolates and others with a lavender ganache.
“Chocolate is enigmatic,” said Reddy. “It is mysterious and wonderful, beautiful and elegant. It’s something everyone enjoys.
“In the middle of the month you might not be able to celebrate something at a good restaurant, but you can still buy a box of good chocolates and feel special.
“Someone once asked me if I would consider using a machine to temper the chocolate. Never.
“My chocolates will be made by hand because my soul goes into them.”
To find out more about Reddy’s chocolates, phone 084-582-5829 or visit soulicious food on Facebook