An enduring classic you won't need a time machine to enjoy

Imagine, for a minute, that you have a time machine. Now pop back to the 1920s, drop into Bettys Café Tea Rooms in Harrogate and pick yourself up a box of Lady Betty Peppermint Creams. When you arrive back in the present, you may be surprised by how little your chocolates differ from those we sell today.

There’s something about the simplicity of a crisp, dark chocolate shell filled with smooth, flowing fondant that makes it an enduring classic. Our chocolatiers have been crafting fondant chocolates since the earliest days of Bettys, but fondant’s use in confectionery and cakes dates back centuries, taking off in a big way after sugar became widely available in the 18th and 19th centuries.

Named after the French word fondre, which means ‘to melt’, like many other delights of the confectioner’s art, fondant is made by boiling sugar mixture. The syrup is agitated to prevent large crystals forming as it cools, giving it a wonderfully smooth and creamy texture.

Without wanting to offend the impeccable Lady Betty, if you’re looking for fondant chocolates as a Mother’s Day gift, there’s no need to stick to peppermint. A whole range of flavours work so well with the combination of sweet fondant and cocoa’s hint of bitterness.

For a start, our Spring Flower Fondant Chocolates are flavoured with fragrant stem vanilla, fruity raspberry preserve and tangy lemon curd. The fondant is encased in our finest dark Swiss Grand Cru, and each chocolate is decorated with a delicate hand-cut sugar flower – perfect for spring, yet timelessly delicious.

Order some Spring Flower Fondant Chocolates and give mum a timeless treat this Mother's Day