What 7 Chocolatiers Would Gift Mom for Mother’s Day

For Mother’s Day Chocolate consistently ranks as one of the most popular gifts for mom, and chocolatiers and chocolate makers from across the country are busy gearing up for the holiday. But what would the chocolatiers, themselves, gift their own mothers? We asked some of our favorites from across the country for their very personalized recommendations. 

Gail Ambrosius and family photo & bon bons credit Ambrosius Chocolatier

Gail Ambrosius Chocolatier

Madison, WI

Gail Ambrosius opened her namesake chocolate shop in 2003 after losing her job as a state mapmaker, and her mom, Lucille, was worried about her. “‘Are people really going to buy candy?’ she would say, and it was always candy, not chocolate,” Ambrosius says. Her mom passed away in 2005, but she did get to enjoy her namesake truffle, Lucille’s Vanilla. “When I was a kid, I would help her make this chocolate pudding, and that’s exactly what this truffle tastes like,” she says. 

Her other choice would be to gift her a Brandy Manhattan truffle, Ambrosius’s latest boozy confection, made with cherry bounce from her friend’s tree. “Before she passed, I’d give her a chocolate I made with cognac and ginger, and she couldn’t remember the name, but she’d say ‘I want one of those boozy ones,’” Ambrosius says. A two-piece box sells for $4.50, and 24-piece box sells for $49.25.

Ambrosius’s son Isaac May and daughter-in-law Katharine Hillman also work with her. “I’d give my mom either Lucille’s Vanilla or one of our single origin, straight up, dark chocolates because that’s what our business hangs its hat on,” May says.

Hillman, whose mom grew up on Hawaii, would get her a passion fruit truffle. “As much as I’d like to say I’d get her a variety box, I would probably just get her an entire box of passionfruit truffles because that’s what she loves,” Hillman says.

Katherine Duncan and Fleur de Sel caramels photo credit Katherine Anne Confections

Katherine Anne Confections

Chicago, IL

Katherine Duncan grew up on a dairy farm, and she has fond memories of working in the kitchen with her mother so she would gift her mom a box of her Fleur de Sel Caramels (5 pieces/$14, 12 pieces/$30). “I grew up on a farm, stirring pots of caramel with my mother,” she says. “We used cream from our cows and a neighbor’s honey to create soft, honey caramels. Our modernized version dips the caramels in a 72 percent cacao bittersweet chocolate, with a sprinkle of fleur de sel sea salt.” 

René Bollier & Engadiner Nut Torte photo credit André’s Confiserie Suisse

André’s Confiserie Suisse

Kansas City, MO

René Bollier apprenticed under his father and his grandfather, André, a master konditor-confiseur from Switzerland, and his mom, Connie, still manages the retail store at his famed Kansas City chocolate confectionary. He would get her either his Engadiner Nut Torte  ($38) or his  Signature Dark Chocolate Almonds ($7.50). “Leading up to Mother's Day, one thing I am always certain of is that my mother, the matriarch of our business, is a sucker for a nut dressed in chocolate,” he says.  “Whether it’s pecans blended with caramel, baked in a sugar dough shell and then covered in dark chocolate (i.e., our Engadiner Nut Torte, a traditional Swiss specialty  or the simple pleasure of a roasted caramelized dark chocolate almonds, she loves it.”

Lawren Askinosie 100% Dark Chocolate Zero Sugar Bar photo credit Askinosie

Askinosie Chocolate

Springfield, MO

Chocolatier Lawren Askinosie’s mom adores dark chocolate so she would gift her a 100% Dark Chocolate Zero Sugar Bar ($14). “My mom is a true dark chocolate lover, the darker the better for her,” Askinosie says. “I thought of her when making this bar, and she was a great taste-tester during R&D. This bar is one of her favorites, and it's also great for those with any dietary restrictions, since it's only one ingredient: cocoa beans!” Her second choice, she says, would be her Whiskey-Soaked Cocoa Nibs, which are single origin cocoa nibs that are soaked for more than a week in whiskey from Blackland Distillery, then they’re dried and coated in a brown sugar, swemisweet chocolate. “They’re a fantastic snack,” she says.

Phyllis LeBlanc & Gather Chocolate photo courtesy of Harbor Sweets

Harbor Sweets

Salem, MA

Phyllis LeBlanc, president of Harbor Sweets, says her mom deserves a whole box of truffles, rather than just a single chocolate so she would gift her an entire box of Gather Chocolates (16 pieces/$27, 24 pieces/ $39 or a two-tier gift box/$59, and a portion of the profits from each box goes to Pollinator Partnership to protect honeybees. “Gardening and nature is a passion of my mother’s so she would love to receive a beautiful box of chocolates that help to preserve the health of our pollinators,” she says. In particular, her mom loves any chocolate with honey. “Her absolute favorite is the caramelized honey truffle,” she says. “And after all, my mom is the queen bee.”

Rogan family & Goodnow Farms bars

Goodnow Farms Chocolate

Sudbury, MA

Monica Rogan, founder and chocolate maker of Goodnow, says she would gift her mother three chocolate bars.  “Since my Mom enjoys treats that are just a little bit sweet, our dark chocolate is perfect for her,” she says. “Three bars is just the right number for a delicious, personal stash.”    

For her first bar, Rogan would give her Peruvian Ucayali 70% ($12), from her their Signature Line that just won a 2023 Good Food Award.  “Made with only 3 ingredients - Ucayali cacao beans, organic cane sugar and freshly-pressed Ucayali cocoa butter - this dark chocolate is full of natural floral and herbal flavor notes, mellow, smooth and just plain delicious,” she says. Next up would be their Brown Butter 70% Dark Chocolate ($14). “When you let this chocolate bar made with caramelized butter melt in your mouth the experience is rich, creamy and satiating with flavors of cocoa, caramel and raisins,” she says. To finish up, she would give her a bar of  Putnam Rye Whiskey 77% Dark Chocolate ($16), which is made with Ecuadorian cacao nibs that are soaked in rye whiskey. “The resulting alcohol-free chocolate bar is complex, smooth and exciting with flavors of berry jam, cabernet grapes, baked apple, spiced pear and vanilla,” she says. “Mom can enjoy bites from all three chocolates throughout the day and have quite a celebration.”

Karen Webster  & Raspberry Crunch Bar photo courtesy of Cocoa Parlor

Cocoa Parlor

Laguna Niguel, CA

Chocolatier Karen Webster says her vegan, non-GMO, soy-free and gluten-free chocolates are perfect for moms who are health-conscious or have special dietary needs. But she would gift her own mom, her Raspberry Crunch Bar ($8).  “For Mother’s Day, I would recommend my mom’s favorite Cocoa Parlor special—my Raspberry Crunch Bar,” Webster says. “This bar is made with white chocolate and mixed with real, freeze-dried raspberries, turning the color pin. The crunch comes from popped quinoa which I add into the raspberry chocolate for a crunchy burst.”