Love is in the details: in the silver-speckled chocolate, the heart-printed box, and the care taken so that when the lid lifts, the feeling is unmistakable.
Koko started making Valentine's boxes because a friend asked her to. That first year, she made four. The next year, twelve. By the third year, her kitchen was booked solid for the entire week of February 14th, and she understood that the need she was meeting was real and deep.
The strawberries in the sweetheart box are dipped in white chocolate blended with a silver-grey luster — an unexpected choice that makes them look like polished river stones, smooth and cool to the touch. The effect is elegant rather than obvious, which is exactly the point.
Love is in the details — in the silver chocolate, the heart-printed box, and the care that says 'I thought about you.'
Presentation is half the gift. The heart-printed box was chosen specifically because the inside should feel as curated as the outside. When someone receives this, the experience begins before they taste anything — with the red-and-white hearts on the box, the way the strawberries nestle in their pink paper cups, the 'Happy Valentine's Day' sticker centered just so.
There is a kind of love that expresses itself through effort and attention. Koko believes desserts can carry that expression better than almost anything else. Sugar and chocolate are honest materials — they either work or they don't. When they work, the feeling is real.