Chocolate is that irresistible temptation we all love. Each day we steal a minute or two of our precious time in order to immerse ourselves into the cocoa magic. However, there are some people who cannot enjoy chocolate because of allergies to some of its ingredients. It is the allergy of milk and gluten that is the basis of this story, focusing on Ivan and IvelinaIlchevs from Plovdiv, who decided to stay in their home city and create their own chocolate kingdom there. What made them start this adventure?

“All started with a medical condition. Our son has serious allergy to milk and dairy products and for a long time we had been looking for chocolate without any impurities. After my wife gave birth to our second, child she became allergic to gluten. We could not find chocolate products that contained no milk and gluten. That is why we bought cocoa beans and started trying out recipes. My father contributed a lot as he is engineer specialized in food technology. We gradually started producing more chocolate and that is how we decided this is something we could do full-time”

The family currently offers 8 different types of chocolate as production goes along ancient technology and cocoa beans are ground by hand in a stone mill. Cocoa is imported from Ecuador, as according to Ivan studies showed Ecuador produced the best cocoa for chocolate making.

Other family recipe products include cocoa beans tea.

“Our tea is unique not only in Bulgaria. A year ago I was at an exhibition in Germany where a German told me they would start producing innovative cocoa bean tea. He was surprised when I showed him that we already offered a similar product on the market. The Montezuma drink is made from cocoa beans. They are crushed and put together with spices in a sachet. In hot water some of the oil in the cocoa is extracted and the drink becomes extremely fragrant. We also offer cold tea.Chocolate in South America used to be prepared as a liquid. Until 1847, even in Europe chocolate was prepared this way and there were no chocolate bars.The ancients did not use any sweeteners in it and chocolate contained only cocoa beans, cinnamon, chili and spices andEuropeansdid not like it much. When the Spanish conquistadors brought the drink to Europe, people started sweetening it.”

In spite of their busy schedule, the Ilchevs family continues to refine their products and participate in various exhibitions and competitions. Since its start in 2016, the company has won two awards and recognitionat exhibitions in Bulgaria and the United Kingdom. In the UK they grabbed the prize for best chocolate for Central and Eastern Europe in competition with producers from Ukraine, Hungary and Czechia. The most unique chocolate Ivan has eaten came from Ukraine and tasted like bacon.

English: Alexander Markov