Swedish Fish

I have my doubts that words can express the awe and excitement of all those present at the dinner I attended last night. Actually, it was more of a spectacle than simply supper; it was Hakan Martenson applying the artistry and precision that he usually uses on chocolate to several slabs of raw fish. It was Sushi Night.

Sushi is visually impressive by nature: jewel-toned cuts of fish resting on pearly rice, black bands of nori encasing intricate arrangements of avocado, cucumber and more fresh fish. But to watch the tiny delicacies take shape from beginning to end, in the very same kitchen where you regularly snack on pop tarts and pretzels, is humbling. After arranging his radiant cuts of tuna, salmon, and scallops in an enormous sun pattern, Hakan wilted leeks in boiling water and used them to create beautiful green-and-white-striped serving platters. Once a huge pot of rice was ready, he began assembling long strips of cucumber and green mango for the maki, along with more surprising ingredients like teriyaki chicken strips and cream cheese, and dabbing a grid of perfectly formed ovals of rice with wasabi.

As the leek-lined surfaces filled up with sushi and maki, those of us who weren't Swedish chefs watched and salivated. The whole place had that good-sushi-is-served-here smell found in the best sushi restaurants, a strangely refreshing sweetness, which I've figured out is a combination of wasabi and pickled ginger. When everything was complete (and after a well-deserved round of applause), we readied our chopsticks and soy sauce receptacles, and faced the challenge of being the first person to take the first perfect piece of sushi off the first perfectly configured platter, of bringing ourselves to eat something too beautiful to eat.

The challenge was quickly overcome, and was worth it since everything tasted as good as it looked. For me, the highlight of the spread was an oblong ribbon of nori stuffed with scallop ceviche and black roe. The chicken-cream cheese maki was also a surprising favorite; the teriyaki seasoning added a deep flavor that you don't usually expect in sushi, but it worked well with the smoothness of the cream cheese and sticky rice.

The sense of astonishment at what we had just experienced lingered after the platters had emptied. Hakan had turned the apartment into a garden of tastes, textures, and colors, a Willy Wonka figure with a buzz cut and a hachimaki headband. I suppose this means that sushi is like candy for 20-somethings – not too surprising. I just hope he's willing to give many repeat performances.

Dark Chocolate and Dark Humor

Håkan Mårtennson crafts chocolate that aims to captivate more senses than simply that of taste: his creations also delight the eyes and nose as much as the tongue, and more often than not, play to the all-important sense of humor. This Swedish chocolatier was recruited by the owner of Fika, a Swedish café in Manhattan, to come to New York and exercise his flair for working with chocolate in a line of confections to be sold in Fika stores. The creative freedom that Fika allows him has led to some truly incredible projects, several of which were on display when I went to see him at the New York Chocolate Show this weekend.

It was the day after Halloween, so the blood sugar levels of the visitors to the expo were primed for chocolate sampling. The crowd filtered through the Metropolitan Pavilion showroom, accepting little cups of bacon-pop rock chocolate, caramelized cacao nibs, chocotinis, and other decadences. But around Fika's display there was more commotion than peaceful nibbling. Next to a gleaming case of truffles, Håkan had set up some of the elaborate chocolate sculptures that have earned him worldwide attention. Cameras flashed from all directions, and the chocolatier had to pause every few seconds to pose for someone who wanted to capture him with his work. Håkan's charm and generosity draw customers to him, but his dry wit keeps them guessing about what he'll come up with next.

Håkan is inspired by mythology and magic, and likes crafting whimsical figures because "no one can tell you what it's supposed to look like." Still, his sculptures are impressively accurate; a small statue of a cowering angel with delicate outstretched wings proves that he doesn't shy away from intricate detail. He has expanded beyond his culinary training in Sweden and invented techniques to make his chosen medium take on a range of special effects, from maintaining the sheen on a carefully furrowed head of hair (on a life-size reproduction of the head of the clown from Evil Dead) to recreating the roughness of gnarled wood (for the chair of a sinister gnome creature). The goal behind all of his work seems to be to defy people's expectations of what can be done with chocolate, and a noticeable competitive streak keeps him working hard to surprise and impress.

It is clear that Håkan has an eye for figures and an aptitude to working with his hands, but I am personally grateful that he has chosen to use his talents in the production of edible chocolate as well. Although his bite-size truffles are less grand than his sculptural works, they are no less visually impressive or imaginative. For his Halloween special, a coffin-like box of truffles each representing one of the seven deadly sins, he ensures that each dome of chocolate exhibits such a sheen that, with their swirls of sin-evoking color (red for lust, green for envy, gold for greed, and so on), they look just like dark marbles.

In choosing the flavors to represent each sin, Håkan again took the opportunity to inject his dark sense of humor into his work. "Gluttony" is an incredibly rich butter truffle with pine nuts, and to add to the effect, you get two of them. "Envy" is flavored with cactus and lime, not just because those ingredients are green, but because Håkan is jealous of the inventors of a Swedish cider infused with cactus juice, for coming up with such a good idea. I'm addicted to "Wrath" (whatever that may say about me psychologically), a blend of tangy raspberry with spicy licorice and black pepper. The more traditional flavors are superb too, but it is Håkan's experimentation with unusual ingredients that sets his work apart.

If only kids across the country could receive Håkan Mårtennson deadly sin truffles in their pillowcases on Halloween, instead of chalky Hershey's bars. Unfortunately, because the taste and appearance of chocolate are so sensitive to temperature, Håkan's chocolates cannot be shipped and are only available at Fika stores in New York (and having made the mistake of sending a box of them to Texas in June, I now accept this reality). But any trip to this city should include a stop at Fika to try some of his confections - and if you're lucky, Håkan will be there, and you'll get to meet the bold personality behind the innovation.