SCARBOROUGH, Maine — Continuing with the festive spirit here on Myler Makes It, we're featuring a sweet treat that makes for an ideal gift or simply a delicious way to celebrate the season.
The Pastry Pair is based in Scarborough. They specialize in chocolate bonbons, and they make a lot of them this time of year.
What's a bonbon?
Bonbons are elegant little chocolates often filled with layers of delectable fillings and presented in a beautiful box. Think luxury in bite-sized form.
Jon and Olivia form The Pastry Pair, which is based in Scarborough. They operate out of their home kitchen, a licensed space where they handcraft all their confections with. They're known for their wide variety of baked goods—pastries, breads, cookies, and much more.
How they're made
I thought I knew how bonbons were made, but this experience proved me wrong. We started with the colorful cocoa butter layers that give bonbons their shiny, vibrant exterior.
I worked alongside co-owner Jon Nardell, who introduced me to the airbrush gun technique for applying cocoa butter to the molds. To achieve the perfect effect, we applied two layers.
Next, we poured tempered chocolate into the molds to form the exterior shell of the bonbons. Once the shells had hardened, we filled them with a homemade vanilla ganache, leaving room for a second layer. This second layer consisted of a cookie crunch filling, made from crumbled homemade chocolate chip cookies combined with a milk chocolate ganache.
After the fillings were set, we sealed the bonbons with a final layer of chocolate and pressed a cocoa butter logo onto the bottom. Watching the logo come to life on the bonbons was truly fascinating.
Taste test
With a quick flip of the tray, our bonbons were ready for tasting. Jon's partner, Olivia, joined us for the tasting session. Interestingly, she’s a mutual friend of my friend and former co-anchor, Chloe Teboe. Small world!
First up? Tasting the milk-and-cookies bonbon. It. Was. Delicious. The flavors and textures were spot-on, and it truly felt like a special treat, just as the name promised.
I then moved on to sample the other five varieties. Some featured gingerbread, others had brown butter, and a few even included candy cane. There was even a larger bonbon decorated like Rudolph! Each one was exceptional, and I was in chocolate heaven.
Where can you find them?
You can order their bonbons online at ThePastryPair.com. They also sell the treats at local markets. Be sure to check out their website for more details. Jon mentioned many people buy their bonbons as gifts. They make for a unique and thoughtful present. But sometimes you deserve to treat yourself, too, right?
A huge thank you to Jon and Olivia for having me out! I had a wonderful time and am already looking forward to hearing those embarrassing childhood stories about Chloe. Lifelong friends always have the best ones!