For the Salon du Chocolat, at Biel in Beirut last week, pairs of designers and chocolatiers fashioned chocolate into beautiful creations.

Just as Cinderella’s fairy godmother used her magic wand to transform a pumpkin into a carriage, rags into a ball dress and mice into horses, the pastry chef Romy Zakhour, recreated a fairy tale. With her expert hands, she turned chocolate into a ‘One thousand and One Nights’ ensemble with a dress, a magic carpet and a genie’s lamp. Romy’s magic formula? Melt the dark chocolate at 50° Celsius to start crystallization, refresh it to 27°Celsius, then quickly raise temperature by a couple of degrees to reach desired texture. Use 1026 tiny square shaped bars for the bustier and skirt, ornate with pearls and flowers, and cover collar gently with gold dust. Mix chocolate with sugar to obtain paste to shape the lamp and carpet. Bond the different elements with melted chocolate. Top the recipe with passion and a solid know how and you will obtain an elegantly dressed up outfit.

Romy’s passion began the minute she put her hands into the craft of chocolate making. Her father started the now renowned glacier and chocolatier Evasion. Romy initially destined herself to a career in architecture, but opted for Hotel Management which was closer to her father’s business. Her conviction came the first time she assisted her father in his artisan shop. From then on, she traveled regularly to Europe to perfect her skills, attending a ganache workshop in Belgium or a Christmas bûche making class in France. Last year, at 24 years old, she was the youngest chocolatier to participate in the Salon du Chocolat’s 1rst Edition, creating a dress with white, milk and dark chocolate. The chocolate fairy’s creations such as ‘Perles de Nuit’ a tea infused chocolate ganache covered in jasmine flavored petals bring style and beauty to the delicious.

The Chocolate dresses Fashion Show took place on November 12 and the dresses exhibit from November 12 to 14 at Biel