Tempered Chocolate for Truffles

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Photo: Sang An
Yield:
4 dozen truffles

Because tempered chocolate can be spread very thinly, it is useful for molding chocolate and coating candies, like our Dipped Chocolate Truffles.

Ingredients

  • 1 ½ pounds bittersweet chocolate, chopped, divided in portions

Directions

  1. Place 1/2 pound chocolate in a metal bowl. Bring a saucepan with 2 inches of water to a simmer, and then turn off heat. Set bowl with chocolate over saucepan, and let melt, stirring gently with a rubber spatula until chocolate registers 118 degrees on a candy thermometer. (Watch the chocolate carefully, as heating and cooling times can vary.) Remove bowl from saucepan.

  2. Add 1/4 pound unmelted chocolate to bowl and stir until chocolate cools to 84 degrees. (Remove any unmelted pieces with spatula.) Return bowl to saucepan, and let stand, and stir until chocolate registers 88 to 90 degrees. Use immediately. Repeat with remaining chocolate.

Cook's Notes

Tempering chocolate can be tricky, but a few tips will help: Don't use a wooden spoon to stir, don't let any water get into the chocolate, and be sure the thermometer tip doesn't touch the bottom of the bowl. Because of the large amount of chocolate called for in this recipe, it's easier to make half a batch at a time. Tempered chocolate should be used immediately.

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