I got a bit frustrated and really have a lot of respect for chocolatiers after trying to mold my own chocolate Easter bunnies. Notice the title of this post is just "bunny" and not plural. I was able to salvage one bunny, but no more. It was difficult to get the shell thick enough, without air pockets and to get both sides to stick together. A one-sided bunny would have been much easier, but of course I have to spring for the three dimensional bunny from the get-go. I had two different bunny molds and used a brush to put the melted milk chocolate in the mold and held them together with binder clips and paper clips (a new use for my old office supplies). After putting them in the freezer for a while to harden, I carefully pulled away the molds to see what I had. I did get one of the small bunnies to stay together for me. The others came apart, but the chocolate pieces were still enjoyed in my period of depression over not being able to get them to stay together.
I was happy (as was Audrey) that I ended up with at least one bunny and she thoroughly enjoyed it after her nap on Easter.
Meringues
I made chocolate molds once (for my dad's retirement party), and learned after a visit to the chocolate wholesale store in Chicago (www.blommer.com) that a particular kind of chocolate is needed to so this sort of thing (and it doesn't require tempering!). I was skeptical, but they turned out GREAT.... maybe a road trip for Hot Doug's and a stop at the chocolate supplier is in order. :)
ReplyDeleteYes! I remember the smell of Blommer's chocolate factory many days arriving at the office in Chicago - yum! It totally overtook all the icky smells of the city!
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