A creamy, moreish chocolate, blonde in colour and with a hint of biscuit. This one leaves you wanting more… and more. As Blond Dulcey 35% is part of Valrhona’s Indulgent range, you can expect luxurious, rich flavours with every bite.  

Tasting Notes of Blonde Chocolate

Dulcey 35% offers up a creamy profile with hints of salted biscuit, balanced beautifully with the sweetness of caramelised milk. Ideal for those rich, special occasion recipes.  

Blond chocolate began with a mistake. Frédéric Bau left white chocolate in a bain-marie during a demonstration, came back to something toasted and biscuity, and eight years later Valrhona launched Dulcey 35%. It is still the chocolate most people mean when they say blonde chocolate.

By composition Dulcey is a white chocolate - 35% cocoa butter, with whole milk powder, dried skimmed milk, whey and butter - caramelised until it takes the colour of shortbread. Valrhona's own tasting notes are biscuity with a hint of salt, and that salt is what balances the sweetness. Ours comes as feves, in 1kg and 3kg bags.

What Is Blonde Chocolate? 

Blonde chocolate (also known as blond, and caramelised white chocolate) is white chocolate cooked slowly so the milk solids and the sugar caramelise. The colour and the toasted flavour both come from that cooking, so there is no added caramel and no colouring in the recipe. Dulcey was the first of its kind and gave the category its name.

How to Use Dulcey 35% 

Temper Dulcey as you would any white chocolate, Valrhona recommend table top tempering for the best results.

Valrhona mark cream mixes and ganache, and ice creams and sorbets, as what Dulcey does best. They also list it for coating, moulding, bars and mousses, so one bag covers most of the bench. There is no cocoa mass in the recipe, only cocoa butter, so work it gently and keep water away from the bowl as you would with any white couverture.

Both pack sizes are the same feves. The 3kg bag is the production size and works out cheaper per kilo; the 1kg is there for a first batch or a seasonal line you are still testing. Feves weigh straight out of the bag, and you can melt only what you need and reseal the rest.

What Makes Valrhona Chocolates, Valrhona? 

Valrhona offers fine chocolates, covering multiple options so every professional can pick the perfect chocolate for their application. They are also a certified B-Corp, meaning they are part of a group of ethically committed companies which meet the highest standards in terms of their social and environmental impact. By buying from Valrhona, you are choosing a responsible chocolate that is traceable and sourced directly from our producers. 

Pairing Options for Dulcey 35%

The rich, moreish profile of Dulcey pairs fantastically with apricot, mango, hazelnut, coffee and caramel. A few ideas to try:

• Salted Dulcey 35% Nama Choco
• Croissant and Coffee Bonbons, where Dulcey is used in both the shell and the ganache
• Passion Fruit Cheesecake Bonbons
• Chocolate Marshmallow Bonbons
• A blond chocolate ganache for filled bars and tarts
• Dulcey ice cream or parfait, one of the two uses Valrhona rate highest
• A blond chocolate glaze over an apricot or mango entremets

Recommended Applications 

While you can make use of this wonderful blonde chocolate in most applications, it performs at its best when used for ganache and cream-based fillings, or for coating dipped pralines and moulding bars and bonbons. 

Find more on how Dulcey came about in our Valrhona Cocoa Library profile, and on where blond chocolate is heading in bakery in The Blond Chocolate Bakery Trend.