Magnum Presents - Drench Your Palate In Gold

I remember in the early 90s, when Magnum first made it appearance in KL, it was around RM1.90 a stick.  A funny conversation transpired with my sister, and my dad in the background.  I said something like, "wah, Magnum price went up to RM2.50" to my sister.  My dad overhears the conversation, and says, WHAT?  You mean the price has dropped so much?  Better buy quickly.  My sister and I give him a puzzled look, then we say, "we're talking about the ice cream ya?" and my father says, "OHHHH, I thought you were talking about the share price" (of the public listed counter, MAGNUM).  Since then, I've always had fond memories of Magnum the ice cream, and have followed their progress with great interest, and still love their Belgian Chocolate range.

Fascinated was I by the idea that they were going to infuse GOLD into the iconic magnum ice cream, and was rather curious to see what it was all about.  Held at Nathalie's Gourmet Studio in Solaris Dutamas (aka Publika), the attendees were also given the opportunity to try their hand at making gold leaf infused desserts, hence theme, Drench (though it was hardly drenching) Your Palate In Gold.  As someone pointed out, it was an ancient form of torture to pour molten gold into the opponent's throat.  These days, given the price of gold, I don't think anyone will resort to that form of torture.

Boxes and boxes stacked as high as a 6'3" tall tree greeted us at the reception table, so there was no doubt I was at the correct location.

Mr Shawn Tan, Category Head (Ice Cream) ...gosh, it must be every kid's dream to have a title like that...CATEGORY HEAD (ICE CREAM)!!! Unilever (M) Holdings Sdn Bhd, addressing the crowd.

Magnum has been around for 46 years, (I'm sure it hasn't been around that long in Malaysia), and in 2011, Magnum introduced the all new Magnum made with Belgian Chocolate.  I was actually at that event, held in KL Hilton, back in 2011.  You can check out the post HERE.

They have gone one notch up, and now Magnum wants to share their expertise and bring it to a whole new level with Belgian Chocolate infused with gold.  And to do that, we had the privilege of award winning Chef Nathalie Arbefeuille instructing and guiding us in making a couple of fine luxury desserts using chocolate (Belgian, of course) and gold leaf.

We were divided into several work stations....

Lovely bits of Callebaut Milk Chocolate ... to make Gold Lava Cakes.  Sounds exotic huh.

I am sure these people are local celebrities, though I am not sure who, because they look so glammed up.

The participants are melting the butter, and chocolate, ...not exactly rocket science.

Nathalie gave a very useful "tip"... you should clip the tip of your pastry bag when filling it with batter, so that it doesn't flow out freely.  Actually, such a simple tip, but it saves a lot of grief when filling the bag.  While she pours the batter into the bag with one fell swish, it proved a bit more challenging for the others....

Then it was time to fill the silicone moulds with the batter.   An excellent recipe, which you can actually make ahead of time, and freeze.

Again, the master fills it with great ease....

While the disciples...not great ease, but managing...

There's that gold leaf, plonked on top of the batter.

The following few pictures are courtesy of Salina & Associates, as I had to leave the event after seeing my team mates pour their fondant into the moulds...

 The parfait looks yummy actually, what a pity I didn't get to try it.  I guess I'll just have to follow the recipe that was in the press kit and try it out myself, sans the gold leaf.  WHERE DOES one buy gold leaf?  Can't be from Poh Yik Tai right..."Hi, I'd like some gold leaf...ha? no, not for my wedding ring la, to eat la woiiii".

 Pouring the parfait mixture into the moulds.

 These celebrity types huh, people all sweating and slaving away in the kitchen, their hair and make up all still intact.  How DO they do it!

There you have it...the parfait and the chocolate fondant.  I didnt see any pictures of the chocolate lava flowing out of the fondant like an erupting Mt Vesuvius, so either.... they overcooked it, and there was no more lava, or everyone was too enthralled by that river of chocolate that they forgot to take pictures.

Back to my own pictures now....

The cute PR team from Salina & Associates.  Unfortunately, I had to leave the event early, so I did not get to see or taste the final products of the desserts class.  But, ...I did get to take home with me TWO (I know, only TWO, in that huge ass ice box right!) special preview Magnum Gold Bars. ...

...which I opened immediately to try once I was out of sight from the event...

Selfie of the Magnum Gold...

Verdict? Well, belgian chocolate, gold, and magnum, you can't really go wrong can you???  I liked it, although I thought it tasted a bit sweeter than normal, or maybe gold is sweet...

Watch out for the launch of MAGNUM GOLD, which should be hitting the shelves pretty soon. The official launch is on 27th February, so I am guessing it will be available to the yearning public after that. 

A Royal Dessert Experience with MAGNUM

The press release says: (It's nice when you don't have to crack your head on what to write)

"Belgian chocolate (yummmm) is appreciated as the finest and most premium chocolate (amen to that sistah), born to indulge the royalties. (and plebians alike). To give that touch of luxury and even MORE pleasure for ice cream lovers, MAGNUM (the Ice Cream, not the 4D fellas), will be introducing premium ice cream later this year which will feature Belgian chocolate in every bite. We wanted our guests to experience the wonders and quality of Belgian chocolate, and thought what better way than to experience it through this royal dessert class", explained Hugo Verkuil, Foods Director of Unilever (Malaysia) Holdings Sdn Bhd.

It's strange, in all my years as a food blogger and after numerous invitations, chocolate events hardly ever came by, but that particular week, I had TWO invitations to chocolate events. I felt like Johnny Depp...well, okay, I know the resemblance is startling.

On top of the promise of an afternoon of indulgence, an added bonus was the dessert making session at SENSES, under award winning Chef De Cuisine ....drum rolll......CHEF MICHAEL ELFWING. (Who? I think I may have met him somewhere before).



I'm not sure what chocolate the current Magnums use, but to me, its pretty good as it is, so I can't wait for when they coat it with BELGIAN chocolate.


Welcome remarks by Mr Hugo Verkuil, Foods Director of Unilever (M) Holdings Sdn Bhd.



We are given samples of Belgian chocolate to try, from milk, to dark to very dark, (above 75% cocoa solids)


The many faces of Lil Chef.... contrary to initial impressions, he's quite the joker!


The kitchen is abuzz with activity as we're split into various groups, making "My (his, as in Michael Elfwing) One Minute Chocolate Tart...misleading, coz it actually goes into the oven for a minute, it doesnt take 1 minute to prepare, Belgian Chocolate Truffles, Dark Chocolate Parfait and Chocolate Leather. My group was tasked with the One Minute Chocolate Tart, which we did pretty fast, to the surprise of Michael, who gave this look of disbelief when we were done. Actually, I have newfound admiration for chefs who slog away in the kitchen. It is definitely not all cosy and cool as it would seem. Perhaps the hordes of people added to the temperature, but it sure felt like a sauna in there, I am surprised the chocolates didnt just melt from all the body heat.



After the dessert making thing, we were treated to more ice cream, together with a rarely seen naked magnum, to be dipped into freshly melted Belgian chocolate, and topped with topping of choice.





You gotta get your hands dirty if you want to make them Belgian Chocolate Truffles.


Lovely ladies showing off their truffling skills.


Michael & Hugo weaving in and out of the chocolate sauce to make their own creations.


Can there be a more decadent sight.



That's what a naked virgin looks like. (the ice cream, I mean. These white untainted popsicles were specially made for this occasion. You cannot buy them retail).


Pure, dressed in white, like a bride waiting for makeup.


I had to rush off before the proceedings ended, but here is a half finished plate of the dessert. The blotches of chocolate are meant as an adhesive to stick the finished tart and truffles onto the plate.



Michael Eflwing's One minute chocolate tart.

I have to thank AWhiffoflemongrass for reminding Carole of Salina & Associates PR SB that I love chocolate, and hence scoring me an invite to this lovely afternoon soiree.

Can't wait for Magnum to unveil their Belgian Chocolate range!