CHOCOLATE = LOVE

Valentine’s Day is just around the corner! It’s pretty impossible to go into a store right now and not be inundated with boxes and bags of chocolate. Look up and down the aisles and you’ll see everything from white to dark to crispy chocolate, to chocolate covered fruit and nuts and chocolate filled with marshmallow or peanut butter. Apparently, nothing says Valentine’s Day like chocolate! Maybe it’s a “girl thing,” but there’s just something about chocolate (or maybe it’s the chemical compounds in chocolate that makes people react so strongly). But Valentine’s Day and chocolate go hand-in-hand.

Want to give your sweetheart a box of really nice chocolates, but it’s just too expensive? Why not make homemade chocolate candy? It’s thoughtful, from the heart, and most importantly, chocolate! Don’t worry - you don’t need to be a master chocolatier like Jacques Torres to make chocolate! Making chocolate is not nearly as difficult as you think. It’s all about the chocolate preparation. There’s the simple way (melting chocolate chips into molds) and the less simple way (tempering the chocolate and pouring into molds). Both will give you the same result: chocolatey goodness. It just depends how much time you want to spend in the kitchen! And the best part of making your own chocolate? You can add any flavoring or filling you’d like!

Prepping Chocolate the Simple Way: Melting Chips

Using chocolate melting chips is the easiest method for beginner chocolatiers! Make a quick trip to your local party supply shop and buy a bag of chocolate melting chips and your favorite candy molds. Chocolate melting chips come in just about every color, and you can add your favorite candy flavorings! For those of you who want to use better quality chocolate, some stores, such as Munson’s Chocolates, sell their own melting chips.

Never used melting chips before? Making chocolate with melting chips is so easy! All you need to do is melt the chips in a double boiler and pour the melted chocolate into a candy mold. If you don’t have a double boiler, you can use a saucepan filled with water as the bottom pan and place a stainless steel or heat-resistant glass bowl on top. Before you begin making your chocolate, make sure that all of your utensils are completely dry. The chocolate is ready to mold when it is completely melted and looks like pudding.

Fill your candy mold with the melted chocolate using a spoon, melting bottle (looks like a ketchup or mustard bottle you’d find at your local hot dog stand), or disposable pastry bag. When your mold is completely filled, lightly tap it on the counter to make sure all the chocolate has settled and there are no air bubbles in the chocolate. Refrigerate the filled mold to set the chocolate. The chocolate is ready to unmold when the bottom of the candy mold looks lightly frosted. To unmold the chocolate, gently bend or tap the candy mold over a piece of wax or parchment paper.

Prepping Chocolate the Less Simple Way: Tempering

For those of you who are more daring and experienced in the kitchen, why not try tempering your own chocolate? Be advised…this is not an easy technique for the beginner. There are many ways to temper chocolate. Below is one of the easiest methods. Again, before you begin making your chocolate, make sure that all of your utensils are completely dry. Also, do not heat the chocolate in excess of 130°F (especially milk chocolate). Chocolate is extremely sensitive to heat, and can easily scorch or seize if not monitored closely.

Chop 1 lb. of chocolate into small pieces. Melt about 2/3 of the chocolate over a double boiler, heated over hot (but not boiling) water; stir the chocolate constantly until it reaches 110°-115°F on a candy thermometer. Remove the top pan of the double boiler from the heat and allow the chocolate to cool on a towel to 95°-100°F. Add the remaining chocolate to the top pan, stirring until completely melted.

Now What Do I Do With All This Chocolate?!

Once you’ve mastered the basic chocolate prepping and molding techniques, you can make more elaborate chocolate candies. Be as creative as you’d like!

Crème-Filled Chocolate

You can either make your own favorite crème filling or buy pre-made crème centers from your local party supply store. Fill the candy mold about ¼-1/3 full with the melted chocolate. Using a small decorator paintbrush, lightly brush the chocolate up the sides of the mold to create completely coated “shells.” Place the mold in the refrigerator for a few minutes so the chocolate can begin to firm. Remove the mold from the fridge and fill the chocolate “shells” with the crème filling. Add more melted chocolate to completely cover the filling. Lightly tap the mold on the counter to make sure all the chocolate has settled and there are no air bubbles in the chocolate. Place the mold in the refrigerator until completely set and the bottom of the candy mold looks lightly frosted.

Nut-Filled Chocolate

Fill your candy mold halfway with the melted chocolate. Lightly tap the mold on the counter to make sure all the chocolate has settled and there are no air bubbles in the chocolate. Place the mold in the refrigerator for a few minutes so the chocolate can begin to firm. Remove the mold from the fridge and place a nut (such as almonds, pecans, macadamias, or hazelnuts) on top of the partially set chocolate. Add more melted chocolate until the nut is completely covered and the mold is filled. Again, lightly tap the mold to make sure there are no air bubbles in the chocolate. Place the mold in the refrigerator until completely set and the bottom of the candy mold looks lightly frosted.

Layered Chocolate

You can make as many layers as you’d like depending on how many colors you’d like to use. Try two layers of red and white or three layers of red, white, and pink for Valentine’s Day. Depending on how many layers you’re making, fill your candy mold with one color of melted chocolate to the desired height. Remember, this is the color for the top of the chocolate. Lightly tap the mold on the counter to make sure all the chocolate has settled and there are no air bubbles in the chocolate. Place the mold in the refrigerator until the chocolate is firm. Remove the mold from the fridge and add a different color of melted chocolate to the desired height, depending on how many layers you’re making. Remember, if you’re making two layers, this will be the bottom color. If you’re making three layers, this will be the middle color. Again, lightly tap the mold to make sure there are no air bubbles in the chocolate. Place the mold in the refrigerator until the chocolate is firm. Repeat this process until you’ve made all of your desired layers.

Marbled Chocolate

You can get as creative with this as you’d like! Separately melt two different colored chocolate melting chips. In a heat-proof glass bowl, slightly stir the two colors together using a lollipop stick. Be careful not to over-mix the colors or you will not get a marbled effect. Fill your candy mold with the marbled chocolate. When your mold is completely filled, lightly tap it on the counter to make sure all the chocolate has settled and there are no air bubbles in the chocolate. Refrigerate the filled mold to set the chocolate.

…And More!

Using the basic melting technique, you can also make chocolate lollipops (using lollipop candy molds), chocolate clusters (coat peanuts, raisins, marshmallows, coconut, or cereal in the melted chocolate, drop by spoonfuls onto wax or parchment paper, and refrigerate to set), or chocolate covered fruit, pretzels, or cookies.