{"id":419248,"date":"2026-04-04T01:49:07","date_gmt":"2026-04-04T01:49:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/419248\/"},"modified":"2026-04-04T01:49:07","modified_gmt":"2026-04-04T01:49:07","slug":"inside-the-kylemore-abbey-chocolate-kitchen","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/419248\/","title":{"rendered":"Inside the Kylemore Abbey chocolate kitchen"},"content":{"rendered":"

Sr Genevieve might well be the Catholic Church\u2019s answer to Willy Wonka, having turned what once seemed an impossible dream \u2014 opening her own chocolate factory \u2014 into reality.<\/p>\n

Six years on, and the Benedictine nun\u2019s kitchen at Kylemore Abbey in Connemara is a whirlwind of activity as chef Veronica Davin churns out the nun\u2019s signature \u201clucky lambs\u201d and luxury chocolate boxes.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Easter is their busiest time of year but Sr Genevieve Harrington isn\u2019t fazed. More importantly, she still finds plenty of time for reflection in line with the order\u2019s \u201cwork to pray\u201d principle, which aims to eliminate idleness while maintaining moderation.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Raised on a sheep farm in the Australian Outback, Sr Genevieve has enjoyed a colourful life.\u00a0<\/p>\n

She had been involved in missionary work in the Kimberley region of Western Australia and nursing in Tangier, Morocco, before studying chocolate-making in Connemara. It was here she discovered her second calling in life.\u00a0<\/p>\n

In recent years, the chocolate kitchen has embraced nuns and volunteers from all over the world who are keen to learn the art. Sr Genevieve hopes the tradition can continue for as long as possible.\u00a0<\/p>\n

She admits some were initially sceptical about her idea to transform their old home economics room into a chocolate kitchen back in 2010. It followed the closure of Kylemore Abbey School \u2014 a secondary school for girls \u2014 six years earlier.<\/p>\n

Sr Genevieve first trained in artisanal chocolate, honing her craft with handmade bars and honeycomb.<\/p>\n

\u201cI got my inspiration from this chocolatier in Kerry who I did a course with. The challenge was to make it in commercial quantities and make it a commercial product. I was greeted with scepticism at first,\u201d admits Sr Genevieve.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\n I don\u2019t think people expected much but, bit by bit, they saw the possibilities. There wasn\u2019t any fancy equipment so we knew it would have to stay small, allowing us to work within our means.\u00a0\n <\/p>\n

“First we had one machine, then we had two. It started getting bigger and bigger. I started producing and packing and we even got machines. The secret is making really good chocolate because that\u2019s what keeps people coming back.\u00a0<\/p>\n

“Everything was upgraded from what it had before \u2014 and we even had a packing room.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

The nun\u2019s chocolate business is just one of the activities that keeps her young at heart.<\/p>\n

\"SrSr Genevieve: ‘When I went back to Australia I was looking for moulds for chocolate with my sister. I wanted to get one of the frogs but she set me straight and told me it had to be a chocolate sheep.’<\/p>\n

\u201cOld age is wonderful. I\u2019ll be 80 in July. I never grow sick of chocolate but as you grow older your taste buds change. I haven\u2019t had much during Lent at all but I might have some over Easter.\u00a0<\/p>\n

“Chocolate has always been part of my life. I can remember going to the pictures when I was a child. My favourite sweets to get was a white chocolate frog. It must have been on my mind because when I went back to Australia I was looking for moulds for chocolate with my sister. I wanted to get one of the frogs but she set me straight and told me it had to be a chocolate sheep.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

Sr Genevieve has an unconventional approach to customer service, even if the majority of feedback is positive.<\/p>\n

\u201cI did receive a letter one time from a man who was most unimpressed with a peppermint chocolate. We took it very seriously as we do any issue that someone might have with our product. His main concern was that the filling was too ordinary. We refunded him and sent him extra chocolate. Then he came to visit, telling us, ‘Now, that\u2019s the way to handle a complaint’. He has since become a good friend of ours and he has even given us some archival material related to Kylemore Abbey.<\/p>\n

“We have to thank people for the feedback they give us because we learn a lot from it. The reaction we get is very positive. I\u2019m told that everyone likes caramel chocolate, which is a credit to Veronica\u2019s hard work.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

Sr Genevieve is referring to head chocolatier Veronica Davin, who returns the compliment, telling the Irish Examiner about the special bond she has with Sr Genevieve.<\/p>\n

\"SrSr Genevieve and head chocolatier Veronica Davin place a golden ticket in a chocolate Lucky Lamb.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe get on really well and I absolutely love working with her,\u201d she said. \u201cShe is very funny and has a great personality. I\u2019ve been here for six years, having worked as a chef for 20. I knew there had to be more to life than working in a kitchen, which is why I decided to come here. I had made chocolate before but not like this. Here it all has to be tempered and there is a lot more to it.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

Veronica underwent extensive training to perfect her craft.<\/p>\n

\u201cI went to Belgium to learn how chocolate was made, which was an unreal experience. I learned how to control the machine and the different ways to make the chocolate. I learned so much about chocolate, from different fillings to luxury boxes. Making chocolate is very rewarding. I love seeing it on the shelf and creating the fillings. It\u2019s also nice to see the chocolate do so well.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

People love watching Veronica at work in the kitchen.<\/p>\n

\n We give out a certain number of golden tickets which gives people the chance to come in and see how chocolate is made in the kitchen. Everyone wants to work here. There\u2019s never any trouble finding people to test the product.\u00a0\n <\/p>\n

“I never dreamt that I would be making chocolate but I was lucky enough to get the job after applying. What I do is so totally different.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

Sr Genevieve and her team also enjoy making luxury soap. \u201cThis is also going very well,\u201d she says.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s very much hands on. People love working with their hands once they get used to it. We have bath soaps and Kylemore Abbey garden soap as well as soap we made during covid containing peppermint, eucalyptus, and tea-tree antiseptic.\u00a0<\/p>\n

“Recently, I\u2019ve been experimenting with glycerine, which is a new venture for me. This is just a novelty at the moment but it is rather fun. However, nothing beats ordinary soap with lard and fat and ingredients like that.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Sr Genevieve might well be the Catholic Church\u2019s answer to Willy Wonka, having turned what once seemed an…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":419249,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[73],"tags":[79,154384,18,19,17],"class_list":{"0":"post-419248","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-business","8":"tag-business","9":"tag-easter","10":"tag-eire","11":"tag-ie","12":"tag-ireland"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@ie\/116343929149476223","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/419248","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=419248"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/419248\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/419249"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=419248"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=419248"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=419248"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}