Chocolate Snowtops Recipes

CHOCOLATE SNOWBALLS

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350°. In a large bowl, cream butter, sugar and salt until light and fluffy. Beat in egg and vanilla. Gradually beat in flour. Stir in pecans and chocolate chips., Shape dough into 1-in. balls; place 2 in. apart on ungreased baking sheets. Bake until set and bottoms are lightly browned, 15-20 minutes. Cool on pans 2 minutes. Roll warm cookies in confectioners' sugar. Cool completely on wire racks. If desired, reroll cookies in confectioners' sugar.

CHOCOLATE-ESPRESSO SNOWCAPS

Steps:

• In a medium bowl, sift together flour, cocoa, espresso, baking powder, and salt. With an electric mixer, cream butter and brown sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in egg until well combined; mix in cooled chocolate. With mixer on low, gradually add flour mixture; beat in milk until just combined. Flatten dough into a disk; wrap in plastic. Freeze until firm, about 45 minutes.
• Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line two baking sheets with parchment. Shape dough into 1-inch balls. Pour confectioners' sugar (about 1/2 cup) into a medium bowl; working in batches, roll balls in sugar two times, letting them sit in sugar between coatings.
• Place on prepared baking sheets, 2 inches apart. Bake until cookies have spread and coating is cracked, 12 to 14 minutes; cookies will still be soft to the touch. Cool cookies on a wire rack.

CHEWY CHOCOLATE SNOWCAPS

Steps:

• Heat oven to 325 degrees. Whisk together sugar, cocoa and salt. Stir in chocolate and pecans. Beat egg whites until slightly stiff, then stir into chocolate mixture until just until incorporated. (Do not overmix.) You can use a stand mixer on low or a sturdy spoon and a large bowl.
• Crush sugar cubes and place in a shallow bowl. Using a small ice cream scoop or a melon baller, spoon up dough to create a scoop about the size of a golf ball. Lightly dip the top of the cookie into the sugar and then place on a parchment-lined baking sheet, about 2 inches apart.
• Bake until cookie tops are dry and crackled, about 12 to 15 minutes. Rotate sheets if using more than 1 at a time. The cookies should be dry and crunchy on the outside, chewy on the inside and capped with a nice sprinkling of chunky sugar.
• Transfer sheets to wire racks and let cookies cool completely. Can be stored in an airtight container for 3 days.

CHOCOLATE LOLLIPOPS

Steps:

• If desired, add nuts to any or all of the chocolates. Pour the chocolate into the molds, filling them to the top. Set the sticks in place by inserting them just far enough to be secure within the mold you are using. Set the molds aside to allow the chocolate to set. When set, simply pop out the lollipops. If you are using molding compound, roll it into a 1/2-inch-thick rectangle on top of a sheet of parchment paper. Using a sharp paring knife, cut out whatever shapes you would like and remove the cutout, leaving the homemade mold. Spray the inside edge of the molding compound with vegetable cooking spray and pour the chocolate into the cut out space. Insert the lollipop sticks and let cool completely before removing the molding compound. When finished, the molding compound can be saved and reused for another day.
• How to Temper Chocolate (From Dessert Circus, Extraordinary Desserts You Can Make At Home by Jacques Torres): Chocolate is tempered so that after it has been melted, it retains its gloss and hardens again without becoming chalky and white (that happens when the molecules of fat separate and form on top of the chocolate). There are a variety of ways to temper. One of the easiest ways to temper chocolate is to chop it into small pieces and then place it in the microwave for 30 seconds at a time on high power until most of the chocolate is melted. Be very careful not to overheat it. (The temperature of dark chocolate should be between 88 and 90 degrees F, slightly warmer than your bottom lip. It will retain its shape even when mostly melted. White and milk chocolates melt at a temperature approximately 2 degrees F less because of the amount of lactose they contain.) Any remaining lumps will melt in the chocolate's residual heat. Use an immersion blender or whisk to break up the lumps. Usually, chocolate begins to set, or crystallize, along the side of the bowl. As it sets, mix those crystals into the melted chocolate to temper it. A glass bowl retains heat well and keeps the chocolate tempered longer. Another way to temper chocolate is called seeding. In this method, add small pieces of unmelted chocolate to melted chocolate. The amount of unmelted chocolate to be added depends on the temperature of the melted chocolate, but is usually 1/4 of the total amount. It is easiest to use an immersion blender for this, or a whisk. The classic way to temper chocolate is called tabliering. Two thirds of the melted chocolate is poured onto a marble or another cold work surface. The chocolate is spread out and worked with a spatula until its temperature is approximately 81 degrees F. At this stage, it is thick and begins to set. This tempered chocolate is then added to the remaining non-tempered chocolate and mixed thoroughly until the mass has a completely uniform temperature. If the temperature is still too high, part of the chocolate is worked further on the cold surface until the correct temperature is reached. This is a lot of work, requires a lot of room, and makes a big mess. A simple method of checking tempering, is to apply a small quantity of chocolate to a piece of paper or to the point of a knife. If the chocolate has been correctly tempered, it will harden evenly and show a good gloss within a few minutes.

CHOCOLATE FUDGE COOKIES

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease cookie sheets.
• In a medium bowl, stir together the cake mix, eggs and oil until well blended. Fold in the chocolate chips. Roll the dough into walnut sized balls. Place the cookies 2 inches apart on the cookie sheet.
• Bake for 8 to 10 minutes in the preheated oven. Allow cookies to cool on baking sheet for 5 minutes before removing to a wire rack to cool completely.

HOMEMADE CHOCOLATE CROISSANTS (PAIN AU CHOCOLATE) RECIPE BY TASTY

Steps:

• In a large bowl, mix the flour, water, milk, sugar, salt, yeast, and butter.
• Once the dough starts to clump, turn it out onto a clean counter.
• Lightly knead the dough and form it into a ball, making sure not to over-knead it.
• Cover the dough with plastic wrap and refrigerate for one hour.
• Slice the cold butter in thirds and place it onto a sheet of parchment paper..
• Place another piece of parchment on top of the butter, and beat it with a rolling pin.
• Keeping the parchment paper on the butter, use a rolling pin to roll the butter into a 7-inch (18 cm) square, ½-inch (1 cm) thick. If necessary, use a knife to trim the edges and place the trimmings back on top of the butter and continue to roll into a square.
• Transfer the butter layer to the refrigerator.
• To roll out the dough, lightly flour the counter. Place the dough on the counter, and push the rolling pin once vertically into the dough and once horizontally to form four quadrants.
• Roll out each corner and form a 10-inch (25 cm) square.
• Place the butter layer on top of the dough and fold the sides of the dough over the butter, enclosing it completely.
• Roll the dough with a rolling pin to seal the seams, making sure to lengthen the dough, rather than widening it.
• Transfer the dough to a baking sheet and cover with plastic wrap. Refrigerate for 1 hour.
• Roll out the dough on a floured surface until it's 8x24 inches (20x61 cm).
• Fold the top half down to the middle, and brush off any excess flour.
• Fold the bottom half over the top and turn the dough clockwise to the left. This completes the first turn.
• Cover and refrigerate for one hour.
• Roll out the dough again two more times, completing three turns in total and refrigerating for 1 hour in between each turn. If at anytime the dough or butter begins to soften, stop and transfer back to the fridge.
• After the final turn, cover the dough with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight.
• To form the croissants, cut the dough in half. Place one half in the refrigerator.
• Flour the surface and roll out the dough into a long narrow strip, about 8x40 inches (20x101 cm).
• With a knife, trim the edges of the dough.
• Cut the dough into 4 rectangles.
• Place the chocolate on the edge of the dough and roll tightly enclosing it in the dough.
• Place the croissants on a baking sheet, seam side down.
• Repeat with the other half of the dough.
• Brush the croissants with the beaten egg. Save the rest of the egg wash in the fridge for later.
• Place the croissants in a warm place to rise for 1-2 hours.
• Preheat oven to 400°F (200°C).
• Once the croissants have proofed, brush them with one more layer of egg wash.
• Bake for 15 minutes or until golden brown and cooked through. Serve warm.
• Enjoy!

CHOCOLATE COVERED SNOW PEAKS

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 225 degrees F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
• In the bowl of an electric mixer, beat the egg whites on medium speed with the whisk attachment until the whites become foamy. Add the cream of tartar and turn up the speed to medium, beating until just fluffy. Add the sugar gradually, while whisking, so it incorporates into the whites slowly without collapsing them. Once all the sugar has been added, add the vanilla and increase the speed to high, whisking until the meringue is firm and glossy, 5 to 7 minutes.
• Place the meringue into a piping bag with a medium-size round tip attached. Pipe 48 bite-size tear-drop-shaped meringues onto the sheets and place in the oven. Bake for 1 hour undisturbed, and then turn off the heat and leave in the oven overnight to really dry out.
• Melt the chocolate over a double-boiler or in the microwave on medium power for 30 seconds. Holding each meringue by the peak, dip the bases in chocolate so the bottom half of the meringue is coated. Let any excess chocolate drip off before placing on a baking sheet lined with wax paper. Allow to set at room temperature; do not put in the fridge. Once set, store in an airtight container.

ALMOND CHOCOLATE CHIP FUDGE SNOWTOPS

Steps:

• Place cake mix, eggs, Cool Whip, and almond extract into large mixing bowl.
• Blend on low speed for 30 seconds, then scrape sides down.
• Increase speed to medium and blend for 1-2 minutes more, or until dough is smooth and thick.
• Stir in chocolate chips and almonds.
• Cover bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 30 minutes.
• Preheat oven to 350.
• Spoon powdered sugar into shallow dish.
• Roll dough into 1 inch balls, then roll in powdered sugar until they are coated.
• Place balls about 2 inches apart on ungreased cookie sheet.
• Bake for 10-12 minutes. Remove from oven and let cool on baking sheets for 2 minutes before removing to wire rack to finish cooling.

CHOCOLATE SNOWTOPS

Steps:

• Combine flour, baking powder and salt; set aside.
• Over hot (not boiling) water, melt 1 cup chocolate chips, stirring until smooth.
• (or melt in the microwave) Beat butter and sugar until creamy.
• Add melted chocolate and vanilla.
• Beat in eggs.
• Gradually beat in flour mixture.
• Stir in remaining 1/2 cup chocolate chips.
• Wrap dough in plastic wrap; chill until firm.
• Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
• Shape dough into 1" balls; roll in powdered sugar.
• Place on ungreased cookie sheet.
• Bake 10-12 minutes, until tops appear cracked.
• Let stand 5 minutes on cookie sheet.
• Remove and cool completely.