Chocolate easter egg

I love Easter. Born on Easter Sunday this spring holiday, and spring in general, has special meaning to me. The smell of blossom in the air. Crocuses and snowdrops popping up all around me. Spring fever! Every year, my mother made ​​a big birthday cake covered with chocolate eggs. Maybe that’s why I’ve always wanted to make one myself. An Easter egg. Big and shiny. Last week I finally got up and did it. Turns out, there’s a lot to making the perfect chocolate egg… Do you have a minute?

Tempering

Melt some chocolate, pour it into a mold and done? If only… That will leave you with a dull and soft egg that won’t come out of the mold. That’s why it’s important to temper your chocolate. This will bring it down to the right temperature and stabilize the crystals in the cocoa butter, which will give your egg a nice shine and crispy texture. You can do this by working on the chocolate on a marble slab, but in this recipe I will show you how to temper in a bowl. A lot less messy!

Set and store

Chocolate can get bloom (turn white) if it’s not properly tempered, hasn’t set right or is stored under the wrong conditions. At high temperature the fat components of chocolate will surface, leaving a white cast behind (fat bloom). Under cold and moist conditions, for example in the refrigerator, moisture can end up on the chocolate which makes the sugar dissolve, leaving a white hue (sugar bloom). So always store your chocolate in a dry place at room temperature. Good to know: as long your chocolate is not burned, you can melt and temper it again, so not all is lost.

Cleaning the mold

It’s important to clean your mold the right way. Rinse with a drop of dish soap and warm water (often this is not necessary), and polish dry and shiny with a soft cloth. Avoid touching the inside of the mold with your fingers.

Filling and decoration

Decorate your egg, by pasting whatever-you-want on it with some melted chocolate. Or turn your egg into a fortune cookie by putting a message inside. Take a look at my Pinterest board for inspiration.

[print_this]

Chocolate

easter egg

recipe

Ingredients

Mold for easter egg  (22 cm/8,5 inch high)
2 bars of Tony’s Chocolonely (360 g dark chocolate )
Silicon brush
Cooking thermometer

Preparation

Chop the chocolate into small pieces. Bring some water to a simmer. Turn down to low heat and place a bowl on top of the pan (avoid the bowl touching the water).

Put 3/4 of the chocolate into the bowl and melt slowly au bain marie while stirring. Remove the chocolate from the heat once it has reached a temperature of about 118°F/48°C.  Avoid getting waterdrops in the chocolate, that will make it set immediately.

Add the remaining chocolate and stir firmly with a spatula until smooth. Really knead the chocolate by pushing it against the side of the bowl. Slowly, you will feel the chocolate getting thicker and shinier. Continue until the chocolate is cooled down to 90°F/32°C.

Scoop 2 tablespoons of melted chocolate into a separate bowl, you will need this later on to paste the egg halfs together.

Brush both molds with about half of the melted chocolate. Make sure the edges get covered with a solid layer of chocolate. Place in the refrigerator for 5 minutes.

Apply a second layer with the remaining chocolate (when the chocolate has cooled down too much, bring it slowly back up to 90°F/32°C au bain marie.

If necessary, scrape the leftover chocolate from the edges with a knife. Cover the molds with cling film and let it set in the refrigerator for 45 minutes. Remove from the refrigerator, turn the molds upside down and push the halfs out carefully.

Reheat the 2 tablespoons chocolate you have set aside au bain marie or in the microwave. Brush the edge of one half with melted chocolate. Place the other half on top. Wait 10 minutes until the chocolate has set. Store the egg at room temperature.

[/print_this]