Directions: |
Directions:
HOW TO MAKE HOT CHOCOLATE BOMBS STEP-BY-STEP
Step 1 – Chop 24 ounces of good quality semi-sweet chocolate as finely as you can with a knife. This is kind of tedious but it’s worth it! You don’t want ANY big chunks.
Step 2 – Place the chocolate in the microwave and heat for 30 seconds. NO MORE. Then stir with a spatula, moving the chocolate from the outside edges, to the center to evenly heat it.
Step 3 – Place the chocolate back into the microwave and heat for 15 seconds and stir like we did in the first step. Take the temp of your chocolate to make sure it’s not above 90ºF.
Step 4 – Repeat this process 2-5 more times until the chocolate is almost melted. Never heat more than 15 seconds and do not let your chocolate get above 90ºF. Once almost melted, just continue stirring until the chocolate is fully melted from the residual heat from the bowl.
Step 5 – Pour some chocolate onto some parchment paper and pop it into the fridge for 5 minutes. Take it out and observe it. Does it look shiny? Does it snap in half loudly when you break it? Then it’s tempered and ready to go in your molds.
If your chocolate is dull, has white residue on top or just bends when you try to break it, it’s not tempered and you may have heated it too far. Don’t worry, you can seed it with more chopped chocolate. Just add in 6 ounces of finely chopped chocolate and stir until melted. You may need to heat for 5-10 seconds to get it fully melted. Test again before using.
MOLDING THE CHOCOLATE SPHERES WITH A SILICONE MOLD
Step 1 – Clean your mold. Use some paper towel to thoroughly polish the insides of your molds so that they are nice and shiny. Any amount of residue will cause a blemish on your chocolate. This is true for silicone molds and acrylic molds.
Step 2 – Paint a thin layer of chocolate using a paintbrush on the inside of the mold. Place into the fridge for 5 minutes to set.
Step 3 – Apply a second coat of chocolate, paying special attention to the edges to build them up a bit so the molds have a strong edge. Place the chocolate mold into the fridge to set up for five minutes.
After 5 minutes your chocolate will easily release from the mold and are ready to be assembled!
ASSEMBLING THE CHOCOLATE BOMBS
Step 1 – Set your first half into a small bowl or use the back of your silicone mold to hold it. Fill the chocolate about 3/4 of the way with your favorite hot chocolate mix and marshmallows.
Step 2 – Pipe some melted chocolate onto the top of the sphere.
Step 3 – Place the second half of the chocolate sphere on top and press gently together to seal.
Pro-tip – Use gloves to avoid getting too many fingerprints on your hot chocolate bombs.
Step 4 – Use a gloved finger to clean off the excess chocolate to make a seamless look or simply roll the bomb in spriles to finish the look.
HOW TO USE HOT CHOCOLATE BOMBS
I tested these hot chocolate bombs out in various amounts of milk and found that 14 ounces was about perfect. I heat my milk until it’s steaming (not boiling). Place the hot chocolate bomb in the bottom of the mug and pour the hot milk on top. The hot cream opens up the bomb and all the marshmallows escape! So fun!
Use a spoon to stir so that the cocao and chocolate melt into the hot milk.
Hot chocolate bombs make a great gift! Wrap them in a plastic bag with a fun tie and some instructions for use. Put it in a mug and give them as gifts for the Holidays! Nothing says I love you like hot chocolate!
Milk chocolate has more sugar and dairy in it than semi-sweet chocolate so it will melt at a lower temperature. Follow the same process for melting and tempering but I melt in 15-second increments, stirring in between. Never let the milk chocolate go above 86ºF or it will fall out of temper.
WHITE CHOCOLATE COCOA BOMBS
Making white chocolate cocoa bombs are a little bit trickier because white chocolate melts at a much lower temperature than semi-sweet chocolate. Don’t let your white chocolate go above 84ºF.
I have good luck with LINDT white chocolate bars or you can invest in some white couverture chocolate online. You can use almond bark or other types of melting chocolate but they are not good for using an acrylic mold, silicone molds only.
The process is the same as listed above for making white chocolate bombs EXCEPT I heat for a much smaller amount of time because the white chocolate melts very very quickly and is easy to over-heat.
Finely chop your chocolate
Melt in the microwave for 15 seconds, then 5-second increments. Stir in between. Do not go above 84ºF. If you do go above, refer to my tutorial on how to temper chocolate using the seeding method (scroll down).
Now your chocolate is ready to be poured into acrylic molds or silicone molds.
If your chocolate starts to get firm, melt for 5 seconds. Do not be tempted to heat it for longer.
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This recipe for Hot Chocolate Bombs is from