By DanielleNadoryk-David
Baltimore Watchdog Staff Writer
Jinji Fraser’s first inspiration for opening her raw, dairy-free, gluten-free chocolate shop was to offer customers untapped health benefits. Then she realized she’d hit upon something the industry had overlooked. Now, her shop is thriving and about to expand with a new location.
Along with her father, Guy Fraser, Jinji Fraser has founded and owned Pure Chocolate by Jinji located in Belvedere Square since 2012. They provide decadent chocolate and sweets for people with dietary restrictions, as well as for those who just want to enjoy some unique desserts.
“I’m allergic to dairy,” said Jinji Fraser, a young woman with curly hair and a warm smile. “So, the shop made sense from that standpoint, but it was all to make an accessible, healthier alternative for people that have dietary restrictions.”
A new shop is under construction at Harford Road and Southern Avenue, and may be completed as early as Nov. 15.
“It’s 1,400 square feet, as opposed to our current space,” Guy Fraser said. “We’ll have sipping chocolates, and we might try to do non-alcoholic chocolate beer.”
Jinji also shared her inspiration for the shop and its products.
“Anytime you have a raw food as opposed to a processed one, you’re gonna have greater benefits of whatever vitamins and minerals are in the food,” said Jinji Fraser. “That was my first inspiration behind the entire business actually, not just the reason for the way that we make the chocolate.”
Many of the shop’s customers share the same dietary restrictions as Jinji Fraser, and are often excited to find sweets they can eat.
Danielle Nadoryk-David.
“I often see people come into the shop and say, ‘I have Celiac Disease, I can’t find chocolate, this is amazing,’” said Pheobe Baldwin, an employee at Jinji’s since 2018 and a Towson High School senior. “People get excited and say, “Ohh, I can eat this.”
The 80-square-foot shop houses two sinks and a stainless-steel counter. There’s a melanger, a stone device that uses friction to grind and smooth the chocolate nibs into a liquid form. There are shelves packed with containers of cacao beans and nuts, which also hold labeled spices and grinded items such as lemon and rose hips. A single chair is placed by the counter, as only a couple people would be able to move and fit comfortably in the store.
Pure Chocolate by Jinji prides itself in ensuring that the farmers growing the cacao are recognized and properly compensated, while paying tribute to the tradition and history the plant and its providers uphold. Their Instagram, jinjichocolate, shows photos of cacao-farmers and families during Jinji Fraser’s visits to places such as Bogotá, Columbia, and San Juan La Laguna, Sololá. There, she learns and gets involved in the careful processes required to perfect the cacao.
Guy Fraser, with a smile as big as his daughter’s, said he works with the raw materials as they come into the shop.
“I’m not a finished-product maker, I’m a raw-material maker,” Guy Fraser said. “Imagine a grain of sand that has to become three grains of sand–that’s the powdering process of the coconut sugar. The next thing would be to make it a gas, but we’re not going there. There’s no vaping of chocolate yet.”
He said no ingredient goes to waste.
“Everything the shop uses can be incorporated into a new creation,” Guy Fraser said.
Pure Chocolate by Jinji’s selection is always changing to showcase different flavors and new creations. Made with local and seasonal fruits and ingredients, the shop offers pralines, barks, fudges and truffles of all sorts. This week their refrigerated case included items such as Strawberry Lavender dark chocolate and white chocolate Ginger Puckers with lemon and dusted cranberry.
Baldwin also stated that she most enjoys the Halloween treats.
“We make these fun items for every holiday,” Baldwin said. “We made candy corn pralines and green monster barks last year. We’re using natural ingredients, but still making it fun.”