Writing sample

For millions of Americans, there are chocolates, and then there are Frango Chocolates. And for every fan, there’s a Frango personality. Some bite a single Frango in half, letting it melt slowly on their tongue, their eyes half closed in dreamy bliss. Others pop one in their mouth and chew contentedly as a big, broad grin lights up their face. Most remain fiercely loyal to the original mint flavor, while there are those who love them all, from Dark Mint to Double Chocolate. But whoever they are, whatever their style, there’s one thing all Frango fanatics have in common: they love the tradition of Frangos as much as the chocolates themselves.

Maybe it’s because Frangos bring back childhood memories of family excursions to Marshall Field’s, a holiday lunch at the Walnut Room, or a favorite midwestern relative who always brought them as a gift. Or, maybe it’s the experience of buying chocolates in a pretty box at a gleaming department-store counter. Frangos are fun. They make people happy.

And that’s what this little book is all about. It’s based on the simple idea that there’s more to Frangos than just eating them straight out of the box. You see, because they’re filled with wonderful flavor and made with premium ingredients, Frango Chocolates give you a head start in making all kinds of desserts, confections, and gifts. In these pages, you’ll find dozens of recipes for turning Frangos into cookies, cakes, and special surprises. They’re all easy and fun to make, and, thanks to the Frangos, their flavor will amaze you.

If you think Frangos make people happy, wait till you see what happens when you transform them into homemade treats. Start with a beloved American classic and add a little love of your own. With a sweet idea like that, you just can’t go wrong.

The Frango Story

Frango has been an American tradition for nearly a century, and today, that tradition is bigger than ever. It all started with a dessert—one that actually had nothing to do with either chocolate or mint. Maple Frango was a frozen confection with a flaky texture, served at the tearoom of the Frederick and Nelson department store in Seattle. It was so popular that pies and fountain drinks were eventually added to the Frango line, and in 1918, the company hired a renowned candy maker to create a chocolate mint Frango truffle. It would become one of the world’s most famous candies.

When Marshall Field’s bought Frederick and Nelson in 1929, the secret recipe for the Frango truffle came with the deal. As soon as the purchase went through, Frederick and Nelson’s candy makers were summoned to Field’s flagship State Street store in Chicago to train the staff of the candy kitchen in the intricacies of truffle making. The mints became an instant Chicago favorite.

For much of the twentieth century, that candy kitchen was the center of the Frango Mint universe. While most department stores smelled of perfume and cologne, the aroma of mint and melting chocolate filled the air and permeated the walls at Field’s on State Street, beckoning guests to see, smell, and indulge.

Candy-kitchen confectioners would melt dark and milk chocolate in giant kettles and stir in a secret blend of flavorings and other ingredients. The mixture was poured out on marble slabs to cool and then cut into individual pieces, which were passed under a curtain of pure melted chocolate in the enrobing machine. Once cooled, the chocolates were nestled in paper cups and packed by hand in signature green boxes.

Frango and Franco: An Urban Legend

So, where did the name Frango come from? A lot of people will tell you that it started out as Franco, an acronym for Frederick and Nelson Co. Those same people will knowingly explain that the name was changed to Frango in the 1930s, to avoid associations with the name of the Spanish dictator, Francisco Franco. It’s a nice story, but frankly, it’s not true.

According to the U.S. Patent Office, the name Frango was first used in 1918. So much for the Franco story, which was probably invented by an overzealous publicist or journalist to sweeten the candy’s history a bit. Well, the story stuck. You can find references to the Franco-Frango name change endlessly quoted and requoted in print and on the Internet. But let’s set the record straight once and for all: Frango has always been Frango—possibly an acronym of Frederick’s and tango, the dance that was all the rage when the chocolates were first created. And no dictators have ever been involved.

Frango Today

In 1999, to meet worldwide demand for Frango Chocolates, the State Street candy kitchen was moved off-site to a larger facility, where the candies are still made using the same secret recipe. Technological advances have made all kinds of new offerings possible, such as the limited-edition Frango Pink Mints created to raise funds for The Breast Cancer Research Foundation. 

Today, more than a million pounds of Frango Chocolates are produced every year. New flavors, from Dark Mint to Double Chocolate, Caramel, and Hazelnut, have been embraced by legions of Frango fans all over the world, but the original Mint Chocolate remains by far the number-one seller.

In 2006, Marshall Field’s became part of the nationwide family of Macy’s stores. While the Field’s name may be gone, the flavor and the magic of Frango live on. And at Macy’s on State Street, the unmistakable aroma of melting chocolate once again wafts through the building. Just follow your nose to the Frango Café on the seventh floor, where you can see, smell, and sink your teeth into freshly dipped Frango treats made just for you.