Giving Chocolate Truffles A New Look

I have purchased  a silicon macaron mat not so long ago. I didn't know such a thing existed until a supplier recommended I buy one. With the macaron baking mat,  I can make macarons in uniform sizes and shapes so they will look like they are done by a professional! What a brilliant invention!

I seldom make macarons. Getting a silicon mat would be a waste of money. My instinct said to go ahead and buy it.  It might come in handy someday. And sure enough, it did. I have been using it to make chocolate truffles in a disk shape,  Similar to the French confection called mendiant which is made with chocolate and topped with nuts or fruits.

A Not So Rocky Road

I was looking for an old recipe in my  stash of notes when I stumbled upon this rocky road recipe. I did a quick review  and  decided to give it a go. It's so easy to make and that's the kind of desserts  I'm always eyeing for  as I have my hands full all the time.  It's  my only way to get a full days work done.

This rocky road crunch bar is made with high quality dark chocolate.  The walnuts and marshmallows I had in stock were just enough for the amount needed. It was a last minute decision  so I had no extra for garnishing, thus the plain looking top. Well, they still turned out deliciously good, chewy and nutty chocolate bar.

Marshmallow Pops

Here's a better way to transform your plain, white marshmallows into colorful and attractive treats for your guests.  Marshmallow on a stick is easy to make. All you need to do is stick the skewer into marshmallow then dip it halfway into melted chocolate. Shake off excess coating and garnish top with cake sprinkles. Chill until the chocolate hardens. A few simple steps to a creative look.

Miniature Chocolate Fudge Cups

I gave chocolate fudge another shot and I was more satisfied with the result. I used the same recipe as the one I made many weeks back (see my old post). Getting the chocolate fudge bars out of the aluminum tray wasn't an easy task. That's one thing I remembered from last time. I wrestled with  the chocolate fudge for an ample amount of time before I could even take one out without ruining its shape. The delay set me back so  I ended up gathering the mixture into one  mass and rolled them into balls.  To avoid similar scenario, I put the chocolate fudge into mini muffin liners. No sweat.  To make it extra special, I garnished the top with mixed candied peel . They turned out the way I expected - cute and appealing!

Chocolate Fudge With Mixed Candied Peel and Dried Apricot

I chanced upon a webpage where I got the recipe for this decadent chocolate fudge. I forgot to bookmark the site after jotting down the ingredients and procedure. The original recipe calls for pistachios to be mixed with the chocolate mixture.I opted to use mixed candied peel and dried apricot in place of pistachios. I chose a natural alternative as my sweetener instead of using condensed milk. The result was chewy candy with a delicate taste.

Amaretto Spiked Chocolate Truffles

I don't celebrate Valentine's Day. Since it is celebrated by many people, I created a delicious treat to mark the occasion. I made amaretto spiked dark chocolate truffles so our guests could have something sweet to relish. The amaretto added a bit of kick to these luscious homemade dessert. I decorated them with brightly colored sprinkles for a more festive look.

No-Bake Mini Chocolate Tart

The last batch of mini tart shells were put to good use finally. I was working on a tight schedule so I opted for  a quick and easy dessert for our nightly turn down service. The tartlet shells were ready-to-use.The filling only required chilling. I was glad I skipped the hard work so I was able to get more things done before the day ended. Here's dark chocolate tart with a velvety smooth ganache filling.

I call it Choco-Berry-Crunch

Another delectable treat made with chocolate, Familia berry crunch and Coco Crunch. I had no idea this three could be so darn good together. It was  a trial. I was aiming for a different concoction . Due to a lack of key ingredient, I could not proceed. I improvised using whatever ingredient was available. This came closed to what I had in mind. Even after the two were combined with melted chocolate, you can still feel the crisp in every bite. Yummy! 

Chocolate Truffles

Since my  recipe overhaul, I have not made a repeat complimentary dessert for nightly turn down service. I'm keeping my vow to myself to make something new and special to our in-house guests. It's all good so far and I'm happy with my achievement.

Chocolate work is something I take pleasure in doing so this week, I decided to continue working with this nature's wonder. What are chocolate truffles? They are bite-sized confectioneries made with chocolate and cream.

Chocolate Bonbons - A new addition to my turndown dessert recipe

Many people who know me can attest to the fact that I like going the extra mile. Friday was another busy day for me. The resort was hosting two parties on Friday and Saturday night  but I wasn't informed of my role until the day before. Well, I take it back. I was asked to make pizza crusts for a party days ago but didn't really understand the details. Language barrier. Then Thursday, I got a piece of paper with a picture of a dessert that I would be making. I was told. I will talk more about it in another post.

Back to chocolate bonbons. I had every thing planned for Friday. Make bread and double amount of pastries for Saturday and Sunday. Saturday is my day off and there's nobody who can make pastries but me. Make 60-70 pizza bases for B party, do early prepping for Sunday brunch, 120 chocolate and passion fruit shooter for Saturday night's function and of course dessert for our in-house guests. As I was looking at my to-do list, I asked myself if I could carry out all. Why not make my workload easier by making pana cotta. It is easy and quick to prepare. With the bonbons, I would need time to temper the chocolate. I knew if I stick to my plan  I would spend a great deal of time finishing my work for the day. Thinking about not living up to my own expectations, I felt bad. So I went to the kitchen and asked if the demi chef de partie could help me make pizza bases. She was so nice she even took the effort to  mix the dough and rolled it out. Two other staff jumped in to help. The four of us divided up the work. Thank you guys for reducing my workload! While I was prebaking the pizza crusts, I went ahead on tempering the chocolate. I was working on a tight schedule. It would be a long day for me again. I still had pastries and the chocolate passion fruit shooter to make. But I went ahead.