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Coussin de Lyon

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Coussin de Lyon
TypeConfectionery
Place of originFrance
Region or stateLyon
Created byVoisin
Main ingredientsChocolate, marzipan, curaçao liqueur
  •  Wikimedia Commons logo Media: Coussin de Lyon

The coussin de Lyon (French: [kusɛ̃ də ljɔ̃]) is a sweet specialty of Lyon, France, composed of chocolate and marzipan and created by Voisin, a French chocolatier. The confection is a piece of pale green marzipan, with dark green stripe, filled with a chocolate ganache flavored with curaçao liqueur.[1]

History

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During the plague epidemic in 1643, the aldermen of Lyon made the vow to organize a procession at Fourvière to implore the Virgin Mary to save the city. They carried a 7-pound (3.2 kg) wax candle and a gold crown on a silk cushion. This gave the chocolatier Voisin, based in Lyon since 1897, the idea of using the shape of the cushion to create this confection in 1960.

Cross-section of a coussin

This delicacy has become very popular. It is possible to buy the "cushions" individually, and also in velvet boxes which recall the original form of silk cushion.[2]

The Boucaud family has a monopoly in marketing the coussins, which it makes in its network of retail stores across the Rhône-Alpes region and in Marseille.[3] In 2010, company manager Paul Boucaud said that Voisin manufactured 85 tonnes (94 tons) of coussins in Lyon annually and that production increased by 10% year on year. The family does not use large retailers to market its product.[4]

See also

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References

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  1. ↑ "Coussin de Lyon". TasteAtlas. Retrieved 4 August 2026.
  2. ↑ "Coussin de Lyon | Local Marzipan From Lyon". www.tasteatlas.com. Retrieved 5 May 2026.
  3. ↑ Postlethwaite, Justin (9 October 2025). "French artisan cheese of the month, plus a regional chocolate speciality". connexionfrance. Retrieved 5 May 2026.
  4. ↑ "Chocolat Voisin monopolise les coussins de Lyon" (in French). Le Journal du Net. Retrieved 27 January 2010.
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