Alan.”
guess the mantra is that it’s more about the quality than the quantity,” Michael explained. “Visitors – and consumers – from outside the province get that immediate view that we’re going to take the time to get it right. People envision a country kitchen feel where everything is hands-on and done with care. It’s going to be a recipe passed down through the generations – a kind of ‘I used to make them at home, but now I make them for everyone else feel.” “We’re very hands-on. The fondant we make is a maple syrup-based fondant that Alan created. He actually got the original recipe from The Joy of Cooking and adapted it and adapted it to make it work for what he, and we, were looking for. He was also very good friends with local maple syrup producers – actually the same people we continue to get our maple syrup through. He really studied the product by talking to his friends, the producers here in the Went- worth Valley, and figured out a way to make it completely smooth. It has an amazing texture and taste and it’s fairly simple to make. From there, my wife usually does the rolling of the centres and then we hand-dip them into the choco- late and then use a small wire tool to extract them. We really need to understand the look, the feel, the smell, the taste of properly tempered chocolate.” Chocolate dips – whether they’re Belgian Callebaut (milk or white) or French dark – and maple fondants are only parts of a whole at Appleton Chocolates. Michael and Heather use only the best, locally-sourced blueberries and cranberries. “Our cranberries come from the people at Terra Beata Farms in Lunenburg – the home of the Bluenose,” he explained. “Things we can’t source locally like walnuts and ginger, we use a source that’s just into New Brunswick. Everything we can have produced in Nova Scotia is; anything we can’t produce in Nova Scotia is sourced in the Maritimes. Even the rum we use in one of our It’s a feel that couldn’t be more genuine.
Michael wasn’t totally without experience, but even he admitted that not a lot of it entailed recipes.
“My father was a chef so I have kitchen experience, but I’m actually a mechanic by trade. I was an automotive mechanic for a number of years. I eventually moved into the customer service side of things because I love working and interact- ing with people, the public. I met Heather in the automotive industry in Alberta – she’s actually from there. We have the administration side of that industry in common. We’re both experienced at managing people and interacting with cus- tomers. From there, I took a job in banking until the opportu- nity came up to return to Nova Scotia.” “We really need to understand the look, the feel, the smell, the taste of properly tempered chocolate.” I was curious as to why Michael and Heather had the, as he put it earlier, “energy and enthusiasm” to leave reputable careers. Heather’s response was a homerun. “We realized we needed to find more than a job. What we wanted was a lifestyle where the people you interact with are happy; you make them happy. Nobody wants to fix their car; nobody wants to go to the bank, so you generally get the hard edge of people in those industries. Now, making chocolate, you see everyone come through the door with a smile on their face.”
The Footes have a feel for Nova Scotia.
“The lifestyle in Nova Scotia is much more laid-back; it’s mostly a slower pace of life. We take the time to enjoy every- thing. We get to know our neighbours, we take the time to listen, share, and experience other people’s interests. I
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SPOTLIGHT ON BUSINESS MAGAZINE • OCTOBER 2017
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