A Chocolate Techniques Class with Tilla

When my friend Tilla told me about the Chocolate Techniques Class he planned to attend in November,he asked if I was interested. It took me about 2 minutes to decide, I got on the internet and enrolled immediately. It was being held at The Institute of Culinary Education in Manhattan. I am a graduate of the Culinary Institute of America but they had only just touched on chocolate, I had always wanted to study the mysteries of chocolate and here was a perfect opportunity. Having heard some good things about ICE and couldn't wait to begin. Our class began at 10 AM, I picked up two coffees from Starbucks and met Tilla in the lobby.
We absolutely adored our instructor, Michelle Tampakis. We both agreed we learned more about chocolate in the first hour of that class than we had learned in our entire lives. I finally understand what the percentages listed on the chocolate bars mean.
After a lecture that began with the cocoa bean to the resulting coverture, Michelle than tempered dark chocolate and made coconut and almond clusters. Here she demonstrates an almond roasted completely thorough. Important because if it isn't completely roasted the moisture left in the nut will spoil the chocolate and cause the nut to become rancid, shortening the life of the confection. Not that anything will last long enough to become rancid around my house.After tempering the chocolate, she mixed in the almonds and coconut and spooned them onto a parchment lined sheet pan.
Left to set up, she explained that hardening in the air will make them dry a looking dull.
Once they had set up, she than drizzled them in milk chocolate. Dull or not, they looked delicious!We went to work at tables that were already set up with everything we could possibly need. They even had someone to wash the pots!
We had decided to make white chocolate clusters with walnuts and dried cherries. Tilla began measuring the chocolate.
We had to melt the chocolate and bring it up to a temperature between 115 degrees and 120 degrees.
Stir to dissolve the lumps.
Cool the melted chocolate down to 84-88 degrees F by adding extra chocolate, or seeding as it's called.Keep checking the temperature. The chocolate needs to be between 84 and 88 degrees for white and milk chocolate, dark has to be within the zone of 87-91 degrees. This is for the ultimate shine and flavor. Sometimes you have to go back to the bain marie to warm it a bit. We spent a lot of time going back and forth between the stove and table. Michelle said the best way to melt chocolate was in a microwave oven. The school had none, so we used a bain marie. A simple metal bowl in a pot of simmering water.Once the chocolate was at the correct temperature, we added 12 ounces total of walnuts and cherries.Working quickly, they were folded into the white chocolate.Tilla, hard at work.
Once the clusters were spooned onto the sheet pan, and cooled, we melted some dark chocolate and piped it on top. They looked gorgeous!About this time another class delivered the dessert they had been making that morning. Layers of chocolate and vanilla mousse topped with meringue. Yummy! We were starting to develop symptoms of sugar shock!
Moving right along, we decided to make a dark chocolate bark of pistachios and dried cherries.
Tilla became an expert at tempering chocolate! He could really work that thermometer.
Can you tell we both adore dried cherries?
To enhance the look of the bark, always top it with more of the same ingredients you used to make it. Here we placed more pistachios and dried cherries on the top. Then we used the white chocolate we had already tempered to drizzle on the top.
The finished product!Michelle than began dipping fruit in chocolate.
We had to follow suite.
We learned to dress our strawberries in tuxedos.My favorite was the dried mango dipped in dark chocolate and sprinkled with chili pepper flakes.
The white chocolate was just as yummy.
Tilla was really trying hard to get the feel of making a paper coronet for piping. Rest assured he finally got the hang of it.
Michelle then demo-ed transfer paper for decorating chocolate.
Spread your tempered chocolate over the transfer plastic.
Cut angles into the chocolate.
Roll it up and put it in the refrigerator to chill.
When it has set, remove and slowly unwind the plastic. The chocolate will break into triangles which are perfect to decorate a finished dessert or ice cream.
These are the on-line purveyors Michelle recommended.
We were able to bring our unused chocolate home.
Tilla and I knew we couldn't live withou a chocolate thermometer, on Michelle's recommendation we immediately went to JB Price at 60 East 31 st. street, on the 12 th floor. A store to the trade. OK, we loved it. And we both promptly blew 50 bucks each!
Here we are with our new Thermometers. And they even threw in free baseball caps decorated with their logo.
My box of confections before it was attacked by my teenagers! I quickly took a few pieces to my neighbor Natasha.
All photos and text are property of The Gypsy Chef.

David! You have the recipe in your book, but it isn't working!

I was eagerly awaiting the arrival of the new David Lebovitz book, "A sweet life in Paris". I looked forward to his cranky observations of Parisians and the French culture. When it finally arrived I wasn't disappointed. It was an easy and comical read with delectable recipes. I found myself laughing aloud as I read through the book. I couldn't wait to try the Chocolate Chip Cream Puffs recipe on page 70. Chocolate chips, over sized crystals of sugar and a light and airy pastry. What more could a girl want?

A freakin' recipe that works!

Both times I made the recipe the puffs scorched on the bottom or the center was undercooked. I thought perhaps it's my baking prowess, my oven or then again maybe the bloody recipe is wrong! Perhaps Cream Puffs just bake up differently in Paris than they do in New York. I don't know, but I thought it was time to reacquaint myself with the classic recipe.
With the help of Julia Child and Simon Beck I was able to make perfect Chocolate Chip Cream Puffs. I've revised David's recipe by adding more direction and shortening the cooking time. I had so many I really went crazy and made vanilla ice cream and chocolate sauce, turning them into Profiteroles. By the end of the evening there was not a one left!
Chocolate Chip Cream Puffs
adapted from David Lebovitz' A sweet life in Paris
and Mastering the Art of french Cooking by Julia Child and Simon Beck

1 cup water
1 teaspoon suger
6 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into pieces
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup all purpose flour
4 large eggs
1/2 cup sweet chocolate chips
1/2 cup Pearl Sugar*

Combine the water, butter and seasonings in a medium sauce pan and bring to a boil melting the butter. Remove from the heat and add the flour all at once, stirring vigorously with a wooden spoon until completely blended. Continue to beat for a minute or 2 over a low fire until the mixture leaves the sides of the pan and a film starts to form on the bottom of the pan. Remove the pan from the heat and add the eggs one at a time stirring until the they are completely absorbed before adding the next one. The third and fourth egg will be the hardest to incorporate as the dough becomes more dense. Once all the eggs are incorporated, continue stirring until the dough is smooth.
Let the batter cool to room temperature, then stir in the chocolate chips.

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees.

Fill a pastry bag with the dough and pipe onto a sheet pan lined with parchment paper or a silpat mat. They should be about 1 inch in diameter and about 1/2 inch high.
Sprinkle the Pearl sugar crystals over the puffs and press them in with your finger.
When they start to bake and the sugar doesn't fall off, you will be glad you did! A DL tip!
Bake in the upper third of the oven for about 20 minutes or until they have doubled in size, are golden brown and firm to touch. Remove from the oven and pierce each puff with the tip of a sharp knife. This will allow the steam to escape to ensure they remain crispy. Return them to a turned off oven and leave the door ajar for 10 minutes. Cool on a rack.
Enjoy them on their own or with fresh strawberries.
Or fill with your favorite ice cream and float on a bed of chocolate sauce. I guarantee there will be nothing left!* Pearl Sugar crystals are available on the King Arthur Flour Website
Written and photographed by Pam Dockery.
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