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Easy Chocolate Cake

For many Nuts Candies, the recipe requires that the Nuts be Chopped. Depending on how finely the Nuts should be chopped, this task can be done by hand or with a food processor. If a recipe calls for “finely chopped” or “finely ground Nuts,” it is easiest to use a food processor. Place a small Almonds of Nuts in the processor, and pulse quickly several times. Nuts have a great deal of oil, so it is easy to over-process Nuts and end up with Nuts butter if you are not carefully monitoring them. Do the Nuts in small batches to ensure even chopping.

If the candy recipe calls for simply “Chopped Nuts” or “coarsely chopped Nuts,” the Nuts can be chopped by hand using a knife. I prefer to use a heavy, sharp chef’s knife to do the job. First, gather the Nuts in a circle slightly smaller than the length of the knife’s blade. Rock the blade back and forth, rotating it around the circle with a firm, quick stroke. Periodically stop and reposition any Nuts that have shifted outside of the circle. Continue chopping in this fashion until the Nuts are a suitable size.

Remember, never chop Nuts while warm. This can result in greasy, oily Nuts - not ideal for candymaking. Additionally, if a recipe calls for a certain amount of chopped Nuts, measure the Nuts after chopping, not before. Whole Nuts will take up more space in the measuring cup than chopped Nuts, so you will have an inaccurate amount of chopped Nuts if you measure them before chopping.

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Easy Chocolate Cake

Nuts are a great addition to many Candies. Their crunch can offset chewy or soft candies, while their slightly savory, slightly sweet flavor is a good counterpoint to Sugar and Chocolate. Hazelnuts, Almonds, peanuts, walnuts, pecans, pistachios, and macadamias are the most common nuts called for in candy recipes, although others can also be used. Because some recipes require Skinning Nut, Storing Nut, Chopping Nut or Roasting Nut, knowing how to prepare nuts for candymaking is essential for successful nut confections.

How to Roast and Skin Nuts

* Hazelnuts: Hazelnuts are commonly sold with their thin, papery skins still on the Nuts, so they need to be skinned before they can be used. The skins are not harmful, but their taste and texture are not desirable in candies or other baked goods. To skin them, first toast them by spreading the Nuts in a single layer on a a baking sheet. Bake them at 325 degrees until they give off an aroma, and their skins are brown and split. This should take about 7-10 minutes, depending on the amount of Nuts. Check the Nuts every few minutes while toasting, and shake or stir the Nuts so they toast evenly. Remove them from the oven when they are fragrant and brown, and allow them to cool at room temperature. Once they are cool enough to handle, rub the Nuts between two clean kitchen towels. The skins will come off with the friction, leaving clean and toasted Nuts. A small amount of skin remaining on the Nuts is normal.

* Almonds: Almonds are sold in various states of preparation: whole, sliced, or slivered, blanched or natural. It is easy to find whole Almonds that have been skinned, but these are typically more expensive than “natural” Almonds, so if cost is a consideration, you might want to skin them yourself. To skin whole Almonds, drop them in boiling water and let them cook for 1 minutes, then drain the Nuts and let them cool. Once they are cool enough to touch, pinch the Nuts between your fingers and the Nuts will slide out of the skin. To toast Almonds, spread them in a single layer on a baking pan. Bake at 325 degrees until they are light brown and fragrant, about 5-10 minutes depending on the amount of Nuts. Check the Nuts frequently and stir them to ensure even toasting.

* Other Nuts: To toast walnuts, pecans, pistachios, macadamias, and other Nuts, follow the same procedure as for toasting Almonds: spread them in a single layer on a baking pan. Bake at 325 degrees until they are light brown and fragrant, about 5-10 minutes depending on the amount of Nuts. Check the Nuts frequently and stir them to ensure even toasting. Always cool your Nuts before chopping them. Nuts have a great deal of oil that has been brought to surface by the heat, and the oil must be allowed to be reabsorbed, or the Nuts could turn greasy during chopping.

Related : Easy Chocolate Cake Recipe

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Chocolate Candies are sweet confections made from Chocolate or incorporating Chocolate. They are popular sweets in many regions of the world, as a huge number of cultures are very fond of Chocolate, in a variety of forms. Candy shops usually stock an array of Chocolate Candies, and people can also obtain them at drug stores, grocery stores, and directly through the manufacturer in some cases. Some manufacturers even allow tours of their production floors, giving people a chance to see how the candy is made before they purchase it.

Chocolate has its origins in Latin America, where it was originally used in the preparation of savory foods, a usage which continues to this day with dishes such as mole. When Chocolate was brought back to Europe, people explored the possibility of using it in sweet confections, and people quickly acquired a taste for the exotic ingredient. The development of more advanced refining methods for Chocolate made way for Chocolate bars and other sweets.

Some Chocolate Candies are made from solid Chocolate. More commonly, they include Chocolate and other ingredients. The Chocolate may be coated in a candy shell, or a candy may be dipped in Chocolate to create a flavorful coating. Chocolate can cover cookies, wafers, bars, and candied fruit, and it can be used in a variety of ways. In addition to dipping, companies can also use techniques like enrobing, in which candies pass through a curtain of Chocolate to become coated in an even layer of Chocolate.

Chocolate Candies may be made with Milk Chocolate, Dark Chocolate, or White Chocolate, depending on the candy and the manufacturer. Some manufacturers may cut corners with a chocolate coating known as mockolate, which technically cannot be considered true Chocolate because it does not contain Cocoa Butter, a key constituent in Chocolate. Some companies have attracted ire from formerly loyal fans by replacing expensive Chocolate coatings with mockolate in the interests of keeping production costs low.

In addition to being produced commercially, Chocolate Candies can also be made at home. People need some familiarity and skill with candy, and they also need to be comfortable with handling Chocolate. Making candies at home gives people a chance to use custom ingredients and to play with Flavors and designs. Basic candymaking kits are available from some cooking and home supply Stores, and people can also order specialty products such as molds for Chocolate Candies, including custom molds which can be used to make personalized candies.

Related : Easy Chocolate Cake Recipe

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Easy Chocolate Cake

One of the most important elements for chocolate work is melting equipment. A Double Boiler is most commonly used. This tool usually consists of a saucepan that is filled with simmering water, and a fitted metal bowl that sits over the top of the saucepan and holds the Melting Chocolate. This setup ensures that the chocolate receives gentle heat from the hot water below, but does not Overheated Chocolate or come into contact with the water. A makeshift double boiler can be fashioned from a metal or glass bowl that sits snugly over the top of a saucepan, but extra care must be taken so that water droplets and steam from the lower pan do not accidentally splash into the chocolate.

Chocolate can also be melted in the microwave. To use this method, it is best to have a microwave with an adjustable power feature, so you can heat the chocolate at 50% power and avoid the possibility of overheating it. If your microwave does not have this option, you can still microwave chocolate, but you will have to heat in shorter intervals and be very careful. For microwaving chocolate, I prefer using a heavy glass bowl that distributes heat evenly and does not get too hot.

An accurate thermometer is necessary for Tempering Chocolate. Look for a thermometer with a range of at least 60 degrees to 130 degrees Fahrenheit. A standard mercury laboratory thermometer will work, as will an instant-read thermometer or a specialized chocolate thermometer. Be aware, however, that the sensor on many instant-read thermometers is located at least an inch above the tip, so it can be hard to gauge the temperature of a small quantity of chocolate. Most candy thermometers are designed to measure the high temperatures of sugar syrups, so they do not have the necessary range of low temperatures for chocolate work.

To work seriously with chocolate, you need a kitchen scale to weigh the quantity of chocolate. It is nearly impossible to get accurate quantities of Choped Chocolate using measuring cups. Look for a kitchen scale that goes up to at least 5 pounds and allows you to switch easily between ounces and grams. Other helpful chocolate accessories include flavored oils and extracts, heatproof spatulas for stirring chocolate, dipping forks for dipping flavored centers and truffles, and pastry bags and tips for piping chocolate and decorations. If you’re molding chocolates, you will need the molds, of course, and perhaps also candy colors and small pastry brushes with which to decorate the candies. There is a near-endless list of optional chocolate accessories you might need, depending on your recipe, but this short list covers most basic needs.

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