Confections! What did we make? (2014 – 2016)

[curls]

27 minutes ago, Anna N said:

When I first saw at the photograph I thought you were going to "dress" the bunnies as Santas.  That was before I realized you were about to remelt them. 

Anna, that truly is an interesting mental image.

[chromedome]

Heck, go for the gusto. A bunny in a Santa suit, with turkey tailfeathers and shamrock "bling" around his neck. Good for the whole year.

[pastrygirl]

My (American) Thanksgiving turkey:

 

 

I'm no Ewald Notter

 

Plus pecan marzipan with maldon salt and honey-walnut-cardamom marzipan with candied lemon, both dipped in 60% dark chocolate.

[curls]

7 hours ago, pastrygirl said:

My (American) Thanksgiving turkey:

 

 

I'm no Ewald Notter

 

Plus pecan marzipan with maldon salt and honey-walnut-cardamom marzipan with candied lemon, both dipped in 60% dark chocolate.

 

What fun! Great way to combine Easter & Thanksgiving too.  ;-)  Your chocolates sound delicious.

Did you see Ewald Notter's Thanksgiving showpiece...? It is gorgeous.

[pastrygirl]

@curls I did see Notter's thanksgiving showpiece, it's fantastic!  Instagram, for whenever I need to feel inadequate   But my 3 year old nephew was pretty excited to eat a chocolate tail feather and turkey eye so that's what counts, right? 

[curls]

The rest of the Thanksgiving chocolates... an almond cluster with mesquite smoked almonds & an update to the cranberry-orange piece. Cranberry-orange became cranberry pdf, candied ginger, and, orange ganache.

[Kerry Beal]

Playing with a mold I've had for a while - while I had the airbrush out.

 

[Smithy]

Those are darling!  It's a good thing I don't live near you.  I'd lose all hope of maintaining a decent weight.

[curls]

42 minutes ago, Kerry Beal said:

Playing with a mold I've had for a while - while I had the airbrush out.

 

Kerry those are shiny & gorgeous! What did you fill them with and how large is that mold?

[Kerry Beal]

1 hour ago, curls said:

Kerry those are shiny & gorgeous! What did you fill them with and how large is that mold?

Hazelnut gianduja - it's about 1 1/2 inches maybe. I have a smaller one too - they might be around 3/4 to an inch each.

 

 

[ElainaA]

My annual candymania is well under way. This is a strictly amateur production - I make candy once a year for holiday gifts so even when I improve my skills I tend to relapse and have to learn them all over the next year.  My equipment is minimal - a stainless steel bowl and a saute pan for melting chocolate, a silicone spatula and instant read thermometer for tempering, my preserving pan for sugar based candy. My husband did make me a set of confectionary bars. I have a lot more candy cook books than equipment. I have a ton of fun, my family and friends enjoy the result and when it is all over, my wonderful husband scrapes the chocolate and sugar off the kitchen floor and counters. 

Here is some of what I have done so far:

Greweling's hazelnut lattes

Coconut- lime white chocolate truffles and raspberry truffles - both from Carol Bloom's Truffles, Chocolates and Confections.

 

Dark chocolate truffles with kirsch and pistachios and plain dark chocolate truffles

White chocolate truffles with candied orange peel, dipped in dark chocolate and Greweling's gingerbread squares

 

Holiday fudge from @Chocolot 's book, Candymaking - one of my first candy books and one I use a lot. If I showed up at my brother's for Christmas without a batch of Amy's toffee I might not be allowed in.

And there is more to be made......

Edited December 17, 2016 by ElainaA (log)

[Darienne]

Maybe there should be a button for 'Wow'.  So much work and dedication.

[Fernwood]

2 hours ago, ElainaA said:

White chocolate truffles with candied orange peel, dipped in dark chocolate and Greweling's gingerbread squares

I am curious about the contents of the plate in the background, behind the truffles w/ orange peel...?

[ElainaA]

8 minutes ago, Fernwood said:

I am curious about the contents of the plate in the background, behind the truffles w/ orange peel...?

I didn't realize that made it into the picture! I made pumpkin caramel molded chocolates and had some of the filling left over. Chilled, it was solid enough to make into vaguely rectangular blobs which I dipped in chocolate. I had a few squares of transfer sheet left from last year so I used them up too. I am a firm believer in repurposing. 

[pastrygirl]

Bonbons!

 

across the top: rosemary caramel, yuzu-passion fruit, milk chocolate salty caramel

middle: coconut & black sesame, orange, dark raspberry in Zephyr

[curls]

Today's work: chocolate dipped candied orange peel & almond clusters. Today's fun: chocolate dipped pretzels & almond bark.

 

 

 

 

[RWood]

Is it over yet . I'm so behind this year.  But the chocolates are done.  I did a lot of painting with a gloved finger, transfer sheets and a paper cone. Couldn't deal with setting up the airbrush. 

Top going across:

Valrhona Dulcey, Passion Fruit, soft Rolo type caramel

Absinthe, Coffee, Peanut Butter

Peppermint, White Chocolate Coconut, Black Raspberry

Honey Caramel with Maldon

I think the red transfers are too old.  Only a few were decent, the rest seem faded.  

I really like the silver and copper I got on my last visit to Chef Rubber. 

 

[kriz6912]

Sablé, dulce de leche, moulded milk chocolate.

 

And a short movie...
https://www.instagram.com/p/BORf7Bdjt8c/

[Kerry Beal]

1 hour ago, kriz6912 said:

Sablé, dulce de leche, moulded milk chocolate.

 

And a short movie...
https://www.instagram.com/p/BORf7Bdjt8c/

Looks like the perfect Twix!

[Jim D.]

One of my Christmas collections of chocolates:

Top row:  (1) layers of pear pâte de fruit and almond cream with pear brandy, molded in dark chocolate, (2) PB&J: layers of raspberry pâte de fruit and peanut butter meltaway, molded in milk chocolate, (3) coconut cream, molded in dark chocolate, (4) apple caramel, molded in milk chocolate

Middle row:  (1) gingerbread-flavored ganache, dipped in dark chocolate, (2) layers of hazelnut gianduja and coffee ganache, dipped in milk chocolate, (3) dark caramel with sea salt, molded in dark chocolate, (4) fig ganache with port, molded in dark chocolate

Bottom row:  (1) lemon cream, molded in white chocolate, (2) pistachio ganache, molded in milk chocolate, (3) layers of apricot pâte de fruit and mango ganache, molded in white chocolate, (4) banana and passion fruit caramel, molded in white chocolate

 

 

Edited December 22, 2016 by Smithy
Removed extraneous images per member's request (log)

[rotuts]

I must say one more time  Im deeply impressed with the talent here in the Chocolate Thread.

 

Me :  Im just an Eater .

Edited December 22, 2016 by rotuts (log)

[Kerry Beal]

Sort of indirectly this belongs on the Confections thread. Each Easter and November I get together with the ladies of St Luke's Church to make eggs and barks (I talked them into the barks a couple of years ago as a cost effective fund raiser). Previous to this they had been making only gingerbread houses at Christmas to raise funds - IMHO they weren't charging enough for their houses and they needed something more. They sold a lot more house 'kits' this year instead of completed houses - again more cost effective - and put the price up at my urging. The funds they raise go to support El Hogar in Honduras. 

 

So today this was delivered to my home - it has my house number on it. They were going to make one based on the design of my house but ran out of time.

 

[Shelby]

7 minutes ago, Kerry Beal said:

Sort of indirectly this belongs on the Confections thread. Each Easter and November I get together with the ladies of St Luke's Church to make eggs and barks (I talked them into the barks a couple of years ago as a cost effective fund raiser). Previous to this they had been making only gingerbread houses at Christmas to raise funds - IMHO they weren't charging enough for their houses and they needed something more. They sold a lot more house 'kits' this year instead of completed houses - again more cost effective - and put the price up at my urging. The funds they raise go to support El Hogar in Honduras. 

 

So today this was delivered to my home - it has my house number on it. They were going to make one based on the design of my house but ran out of time.

 

I love the gumdrop lady out front

[Bentley]

Here's my latest creation - a white chocolate pistachio gianduja with a morello cherry compote shelled in milk chocolate. 

[nonkeyman]

11 minutes ago, Bentley said:

Here's my latest creation - a white chocolate pistachio gianduja with a morello cherry compote shelled in milk chocolate. 

That looks gorgeous!