I’m not sure if it’s because the supermarket shelves are packed with Easter bunnies and delightful chocolate treats, or because my sugar levels are too high, but chocolate has been on my mind this week.

A handful of chocolate-covered malted puffs in the middle of the night is quite comforting, but not as good as the gooey molten chocolate pudding served at 95 Keerom in Cape Town. You should try it sometime.

One of the biggest fans of chocolate has to be Marcus from Île de Pain in Knysna. His love affair with it, and the Felchlin variety from Switzerland in particular, is plain to see at his restaurant on Thesen Island, where he sells bars of it and uses it liberally in his baked delights. One of the most glorious of these is a coconut and chocolate slice. Sticky coconut and soft chocolate mousse; it’s a marriage made in heaven. The bean used in this variety comes from a single source and Marcus believes that it is the finest available. Just as wine and coffee have different tasting notes, so too does chocolate. Sometimes you can taste honey, vanilla and blackcurrant. Different percentages of cocoa butter also affect the taste, from a mild 35 per cent to a pure 100 per cent, which takes a little getting used to. Well, it does for me, anyway.

Another unforgettable chocolate dessert that is high on my list of favourites is Bizerca’s chocolate fondant, which has just the right flavour and texture, perfectly set off against a tart raspberry sorbet. Yet another is the wedge of chocolate mousse cake and scoop of pistachio ice cream that chef Michael Broughton served the first time I ate at Terroir. Heaven. I still havent forgotten it.

 I hope you get your chocolate fix this week,

Abigail.