Slashfood Ate (8): Luxury Easter Chocolates

 Peeps and grocery-store chocolate candies are all well and good, but the end of Lent calls for something of a splurge. Fortunately, the purveyors of fine chocolate and other goodies are more than happy to oblige the impulse to celebrate the season. Here at Slashfood, we are happy to indulge whenever the opportunity arises, but these luxury Easter chocolates are really ideal for a special occasion.

1. Harry and David may not be the "go-to" chocolatier for some, but their Chocolate Praline Eggs are somehow shaped inside a colorful, real eggshell and need to be broken out before eating. A half dozen eggs are $29.99.
2. Robert L. Strohecker's Assorted Rabbits are chocolate bunnies designed to have three different flavors of filling inside different parts of the rabbit: toasted almond ears, an almond butter crunch head, and a caramel pecan body. Available in both milk and dark chocolate, this is one bunny you won’t get bored with. They are $30.95 a pair.
3. Neiman Marcus' Chocolate Easter Bunny is hand poured, hand decorated and hand wrapped. At nearly 5-pounds, it is one very big, but festive, bunny. Use it as a centerpiece, then serve it for dessert. Each bunny is $99.

4. Vosages offers some of the most originally flavored chocolates in the world. Their Exotic Bunnies is are cute to look at, but are filled with bold combinations, four flavors in total. The Black Pearl Bunny has ginger and wasabi flavors, while the Red Fire Bunny has chilies and cinnamon. Each bunny is $9.50.

5. Dean and DeLuca's Chocolate Easter Eggs are hand painted white, dark and milk chocolate "shells" that are filled with rich and exotic flavors, like passion fruit ganache. 8 eggs are $36.

6. Elegant Cheesecakes' Easter Basket Cake is not as chocolaty as some of our other picks, as the only chocolate is on top of the cake. It is white chocolate butter cake with layers of lemon curd, butter cream frosting, and raspberry mousse, topped off with two large chocolate truffle easter eggs. The cake is in an edible basket, which is finished with green coconut "grass." It looks so amazing, it is hard to believe the whole thing is edible. Each cake is $150

7. Moonstruck Chocolates probably has the best packaging of all our luxury picks. Their Truffle Chick in a Chocolate Egg tastes as good as it looks and that is an impressive feat. Each chick-filled egg is packaged in a miniature crate and costs $20.

8. Richart is a leading Parisian chocolatier and has a box of half-egg-shaped Luxuriance Truffles. The 25 truffles have flavors that range from honey with lavender and vanilla in dark chocolate to fennel and lemongrass in milk chocolate and blackberry, huckleberry and raspberry in white chocolate. These very adult Easter treats are $64.90 per box.