HomeRecipesReviewsHow to GuidesLatest PostsWhere to Buy Cookie Decorating SuppliesJanuary 24, 2021Desserts / How to GuidesTo decorate cookies, you need a few items before you can start. From piping bags, to a cookie scribe tool, we’ve broken down all of the cookie decorating supplies you’ll need to begin decorating cookies with. Cookie decorating supplies for beginners Cookie decorating Tips Decorating cookies involves using a variety of cookie decorating tips to create designs on your cookies. You always want to use a fresh and dry cookie decorating tip. If you use a decorating tip that isn’t quite dry, the water left in the tip can make the icing run off of the cookie. If you were counting on that cookie, this might be very disheartening. It’s best to keep a couple of the same sized tips just in case you need the same tip on the same day for decorating your cookies with. Typically you’ll use Tip #2 for writing, and smaller details, so I would recommend having at least 2 of Tip #2 in your cookie decorating supplies. Couplers Couplers allow you to place them in a piping bag, and then screw on your piping tip. This means that you can successfully change your piping tip, and not have to remake a new piping bag of icing. If you’re planning to switch tips with your icing bags, couplers are a necessity. Icing Bag Ties Icing bag ties make storing icing much easier. Icing bag ties with close your bag and not allow any air to penetrate the icing. Therefore you can reuse your icing the next day without the icing dry out. Decorating cookies with Squeeze Bottles Decorating squeeze bottles are helpful for flooding cookies. Piping icing takes a toll on your arms and fingers with the intricate work it takes to pipe icing. Decorating squeeze bottles let you fill your icing in them, and then you just squeeze the bottle and the icing flows out of the tip with ease. If you’re flooding a bunch of cookies, these squeeze bottles come in very handy. You can also put the closing tip on it and save it for another day. Decorating cookies with a Cake Writing Tool A cake writing tool is simply a way to write with icing easily. You can use Tip #2 to write on your cookies as a cake writing tool. There are also other fancier ways to write with icing like a cake decorating pen. Decorating cookies with a Cookie Decorating Scribe Tool A cookie decorating scribe tool is used to spread, or move icing with a very fine point. A cookie decorating scribe tool can be used to spread icing into tight corners, make fine details, or pop air bubbles that can form in icing. Since the scribe has a fine point, you can tip the point into icing and then make small dots of icing on your cookies. Cookies with fine details use the cookie scribe tool to make these intricate designs. Decorating cookies with Food Coloring To color your cookies, it’s best to use gel food coloring. You don’t need to use much and the color is extremely vibrant. Gel food coloring will not change the consistency of your icing, unlike liquid food coloring. When you’re trying to make the consistency of your icing for either flooding or fine detail, liquid food coloring will not be helpful. Use gel food coloring and save yourself time. Decorating cookies with Paint Brushes To paint food coloring onto your cookies, you’ll need a food safe paint brush. Wilton has a set of different kinds of paint brushes that will cover you for all of your decorating needs. The set includes a fine tip for small details, an angled brush, and wider brushes for painting larger areas. The fine tipped paint brushes work well for painting small details of icing to make the color pop on the cookie. Decorating cookies with Edible Markers You can get a few different colored edible markers that work just like a regular marker. The tips on the edible marker are quite sharp so you can do both fine and thicker lines by level of pressure used. Black edible markers are used the most with adding faces, or other fancy designs on the cookies without having to use icing. Sometimes you just need a touch of black for eyes or eyelashes, edible markers work much better for this than using icing. Decorating cookies with Sprinkles Sprinkles can be added to cookies before the royal icing dries. The sprinkles will adhere to the royal icing, but you need to add them quickly. Sprinkles are an easy way of adding a bit of color to your decorated cookies. There are a few different types of sprinkles you can add, from rectangular shapes, to small or large circles. I find the larger sprinkles are best used for details like snowflakes, ornaments on a Christmas tree, etc. Try placing them with tweezers if you need the large sprinkle in a specific place on your cookie. Decorating cookies with Stamps Stamps can be used to make designs on cookies by adding gel food coloring and almond extract together. Then use the stamp in the color, and gently place the stamp on the cookie. You can use the stamp color on top of royal icing flooded cookies as long as the icing has fully dried. The stamp on the cookie makes them look very professional and usually give more detail than if you were to use icing. Piping Bags Piping bags are essential for decorating cookies. You can use anything from reusable silicone piping bags to disposable piping bags. There are a few different sizes of piping bags you can use, but usually for icing you don’t need much in the piping bags, unless you are flooding a ton of cookies. It’s nice to have a variety of piping bags for your cookie decorating supplies for flooding or fine details.... Fluffy Lemon FrostingJanuary 23, 2021Dessert Sauces / RecipesFluffy lemon frosting is tangy and savory which goes well with vanilla cupcakes or macarons. Our fluffy lemon frosting makes a lot of icing, if you don’t need that much, feel free to cut the recipe down to how much icing you need. Fluffy lemon frosting can be frozen and used at a later date if you don’t need all of it for your recipe. Our fluffy lemon frosting would be perfect for icing a vanilla or lemon cake as well. The vanilla extract in the recipe cuts down the bitterness of the lemon juice and makes the icing a bit creamier than if you didn’t add it. The creaminess of the icing is very palatable and pungent in flavor. Enjoy! Fluffy Lemon Frosting How to make fluffy lemon frosting Print Recipe Pin Recipe Prep Time 7 minsTotal Time 7 mins Course Dessert Servings 12 cupcakes Ingredients 1 cup butter room temperature1/4 cup lemon juice fresh2 tbsp lemon zest1 tsp vanilla extract4-5 cups icing sugar Instructions Cream butter on high until light and fluffyAdd vanilla to butter and mix until well combined. Cream mixture together with lemon zest until evenly distributed.Add 1 cup of icing sugar and mix on low. Add lemon juice and another 3 cups of icing sugar. Cream together.Check the consistency of the icing, if you need it thicker, add more icing sugar as needed. Keyword frosting... 10 Types of MousseJanuary 23, 2021Desserts / How to GuidesThere are many different types of mousse you can make by using a custard base or whipping cream base. By infusing different flavors into your mousse, you’re able to make a few different types of desserts. You can make layered mousse and make it into an entremet, or dome cake. Try experimenting with a couple different types of mousse and topping it with a mirror glaze to be a bit more fancy. Lemon Mousse Lemon mousse is made by adding fresh lemon juice and lemon zest to the mousse. If you’re wanting to make a dome shaped lemon mousse, the center portion can be lemon curd. Around the lemon curd would be lemon mousse. This gives the cake a tart, flavorsome lemon flavoring that would go well with a serving of whipped cream. Raspberry Mousse Raspberry mousse is made by heating raspberries in a saucepan and adding sugar and water. This creates a raspberry sauce. The raspberry sauce is strained to remove the seeds of the raspberries, and only have the infused raspberry sauce left. The gelatin is added to create a thickened texture. The raspberry sauce is then adding to folded stiff peaks whipped cream and chilled to create a decadent raspberry mousse. Raspberry mousse typically is perfect on it’s own, or serve a small piece of milk or dark chocolate with it. Blackberry Mousse Blackberry mousse can be made in the same way raspberry mousse is made. Blackberry mousse can also be made by adding pureed blackberries and hot water in a blender and mixing together. The blackberries must be strained and then the remaining blackberry sauce is infused into vanilla pastry cream after thickening the custard. Blueberry Mousse Blueberry mousse can be prepared by mixing pureed blueberries with bloomed gelatin. The blueberry gelatin mixture is mixed with melted white chocolate chips. This gives the blueberry mousse a creamier texture. The blueberry mousse is thickened with stiff peaks from whipping cream that are folded in and chilled. Honey Mousse Honey mousse can be easily made by mixing whipping cream, honey, and chocolate over medium heat in a saucepan. Once combined and thickened, the rest of the whipping cream and be beaten until stiff peaks form and folded into the honey mixture to create honey mousse. Guava Mousse Guava mousse can be made by warming the guavas over medium heat until their juices start streaming out. The guava juice needs to be strained and combined with 1 cup of water and reheated together. Add bloomed gelatin and combine with condensed milk. Condensed milk gives the guava mousse a rich flavoring. Mix together with stiff egg whites and chill until ready to serve. Vanilla Bean Mousse Vanilla bean mousse can be prepared by whipping cream until stiff peaks form and combining with icing sugar. Add contents from a scraped vanilla bean and fold the flavoring into the mousse. Chill the vanilla mousse before serving. Cheesecake Mousse Cheesecake mousse can be made by creaming together cream cheese, icing sugar, vanilla and lemon zest. The cream cheese mixture is combined with stiff peaks whipping cream and folded together. Graham cracker crust can be made and crumbled on the top of the cheesecake mousse for more of a traditional cheesecake flavor. Durian Mousse Durian mousse can be prepared by removing the insides of the Durian seeds. Puree the insides of the durian. Mix whipping cream and icing sugar until stiff peaks form, then fold the pureed durian into the durian mousse. Chocolate Mousse Chocolate mousse can be made a few different ways. One way to make chocolate mousse is by mixing egg yolks and sugar together until light and fluffy. Warm heavy cream in a saucepan until simmering, not boiling. Temper the eggs by slowly adding warm cream until fully combined. Whisk the mixture vigorously as it’s slowly coming together, as to not cook the eggs. Warm the cream and egg mixture over medium heat until it thickens. Remove the mixture from the heat source and whisk in chocolate and vanilla extract. Strain the mixture and chill. Remove the mixture once chilled and fold in whipped cream that has formed stiff peaks. Chill and serve chocolate mousse with some chocolate scrolls on top.... Painting Macarons with Food ColoringJanuary 22, 2021How to Guides / MacaronsPainting on macarons with food coloring will give your macarons some color contrast and be more eye catching. You can paint on macarons using either powdered food coloring or gel food coloring with a couple of drops of almond extract. In order for you to apply the food coloring to paint your macarons, you will need to use a food safe paint brush. Macarons have delicate shells that can be damaged if pressed too hard with a paint brush. Apply the food coloring to the macaron gently, as if you were painting a picture. When you’re making up your coloring for painting on macarons, you don’t want to use too much almond extract to make your coloring. If you pour too much, the food coloring will be more like watercolor paint. The color will not go on the macaron as strong, and it will be too runny to really show up on the macaron. Just use a little almond extract for your coloring. The color will be strong and easily painted on the macaron. The color will not run if you only use a drop or two. Sometimes the color will dry out in your bowl, just add another drop or two of almond extract to make it liquid again. You can begin painting your macarons after you have filled them. They will be easier to hold onto, and you won’t have to worry about the color being disturbed if you’re kind of messy when you fill your macarons. Lay all of the filled macarons on a plate, and pick up the macaron when you’re ready to fill it. Hold the macaron steady and you apply paint with the other hand. If you lay the macaron on a plate to paint it, you’ll still have to hold onto the macaron because it will move away when you try to apply paint. Macarons are not heavy enough to stay in place as you paint them. For each color you want to paint your macarons, you’ll need a new bowl. You don’t want any of your colors to mix together, so it’s best to keep the food colors separate from each other. If you’re changing colors with your paint brush, wash it out with soap and water and rinse well. Dry the paint brush with a dark towel (just in case the color runs and ruins your towel) and then you can paint your next color on your macaron.... Raspberry Macaron RecipeJanuary 22, 2021Macaron Recipes / RecipesJump to Recipe Raspberry macarons are one of the most divine and full-flavored macarons you can make. Our recipe for raspberry macarons uses raspberry jam for the raspberry flavor. Raspberry jam has a more concentrated flavor of raspberry, and it doesn’t have any of the raspberry seeds. Raspberry jam is much better at concentrating the flavor than using actual fresh or frozen raspberries. We’ve tried it both ways, using the juice from raspberries after straining them, and have used raspberry jam to make raspberry buttercream. The raspberry jam infused raspberry buttercream is more palatable and savory. Our raspberry macaron recipe will become one of your go-to recipes for macarons. You’ll love the mouth-watering rich flavor they have! Professional Macaron Recipe How to make professional macarons Print Recipe Pin Recipe Prep Time 1 hr 30 minsCook Time 12 mins Course Dessert Servings 40 macarons EquipmentCandy ThermometerStand mixerkitchen scale Ingredients Almond Batter55 g egg whites pasteurized150 g almond flour sifted150 g icing sugar siftedItalian Meringue55 g egg whites pasteurized38 g water150 g sugar Instructions Place 55g egg whites in a stand mixer and mix on high speed.Place water and sugar in a saucepan on medium heat and attach a candy thermometer to the saucepan to measure the temperature. Adjust the stand mixer speed to beat on low speed. When the syrup gets up to 118 degrees C slowly stream the sugar syrup down the side of the bowl of the stand mixer. Increase the speed of the stand mixer to medium-heat speed and let it beat. The meringue is finished when you can turn the bowl upside down and the egg whites do not move. Place 55g egg whites in a large mixing bowl. Add any food coloring at this point using gel food coloring or 1/4 tsp of powdered food coloring. You could also add 1 tbsp of coffee grounds or cookie crumbs to the shells. You can add 1/4 tsp of extract as well if you want to flavor the shells. Mix the color thoroughly until the color is fully emulsified into the egg whites.Add sifted and measured almond flour and icing sugar. Mix until fully combined. It should feel like a paste when it's completely mixed.Add 1/2 meringue to the bowl. Mix the meringue until it's completely mixed in. Scrape the bottom and sides of the bowl to mix everything together.Add the rest of the meringue to the bowl. Mix until it's full combined. Continue mixing the macaron batter a little more, a few more turns. It should flow like lava when you lift your spoon. The batter should be glossy and less grainy than when you began mixing.Pipe the macarons 1.5" wide on a silicone baking mat or parchment paper lined baking sheet. They are best cooked on an aluminum baking pan. Then pipe the next macaron 2" further away. Add any sprinkles to the macarons at this point. Pick up the pan and bang the bottom of it to remove air bubbles. Bang the pan 3-5 times. Let the macarons dry for 30 minutes.Bake the macarons for 12 minutes at 300 degrees F. Let the macarons fully cool. Take one of the macaron shells and match it up with a good fit for itself. Match all of your macarons up and place face up. Fill the macarons with your filling of choice. Filling ideas for your macarons include: buttercream icing. chocolate ganache, caramel sauce, etc. You can use a piping tip to give the icing a bit of a design if you like. Put the top of the macaron over top of the filling to create a sandwich. Store the macarons in the fridge for 3 days or in the freezer for up to 1 month. Keyword macarons Raspberry Buttercream Macaron Filling How to make Raspberry Buttercream Macaron Filling recipe Print Recipe Pin Recipe Prep Time 10 mins Course Dessert Servings 40 macarons Ingredients 1/3 cup butter room temperature1 1/3 cup icing sugar1/2 tsp vanilla extract2 tbsp raspberry jam Instructions Cream butter until light and fluffy.Add vanilla extract and beat together.Add raspberry jam to infuse the butter with raspberry flavoring.Slowly add icing sugar to the mixture. Adjust the icing as needed. If the icing is too thin to pipe, add a small amount of icing sugar to thicken it. If the icing is too thick, add a little more raspberry jam or a tiny bit of milk to thin out the icing.Place the icing in a piping bag and pipe the the Raspberry Buttercream Macaron Filling onto the raspberry macarons. Keyword macaron filling... How to Write on MacaronsJanuary 20, 2021How to Guides / MacaronsTo write on macarons, you’ll need something that’s able to write on macarons. One writing utensil you can use is an edible marker. An edible marker has a sharp point on the end which makes writing words and on the macarons very easy. The harder you press the edible marker, the wider the lines created. For writing on macarons, you don’t want to use too much force when pressing your design into the cookie. Macarons have a delicate shell and can be easily damaged if pressed too hard. Gently touch the edible marker to the macaron to create your design. There are many different colors you can use to write on macarons. You can create a rainbow on your macarons if you wanted to. You can only write a couple of words on a macaron since the macaron is quite a small cookie. It’s best to write only 1 or 2 words on the macarons to make sure your guests see the writing. When writing on your macarons, try to stick to a theme. Things to write on macarons for a baby shower “Oh Baby!”“Boy!”“Girl”“Baby”“Bundle”“Little On” Things to write on macarons for a wedding shower “Love”“I do”“Yes!”“01/01/21” (Date of Wedding)“Groom”“Bride” Things to write on macarons for a birthday party “Birthday”“21” – (# years old)“Celebrate”“Happy Birthday!”“Over the Hill” (40th birthday) Using your edible marker you can write small details on macarons to create face shapes. In the above photo, you can see how we’ve used the marker to create eye lashes on a unicorn macaron.... Best Silicone Pastry MatJanuary 20, 2021Baking Macarons / ReviewsThe best silicone pastry mat is the Silpat silicone pastry mat. They are one of the most durable and long-lasting silicone pastry mats. Silpat silicone pastry mats are able to be used 2000-3000 times before needing to be replaced. You should only need new pastry mats every 10 years, depending on how often you bake. Silpat silicone pastry mats have one of the highest tolerances for heat in the oven. Usually silicone pastry mats are only good up to about 420°F before they start to deteriorate. Silpat pastry mats can be used up to 500°F in the oven. Silpat silicone pastry mats come in a variety of sizes that fit perfectly in a baking sheet. Silpat baking mat sizes Full Sheet Size, 16-1/2″ x 24-1/2″Countertop Workstation Mat, 15-1/8″ x 23″Half Sheet Size, 11-5/8 x 16-1/2Toaster Oven Baking Mat – 7 7/8″ x 10 7/8″Octagonal Microwave Size Baking Mat – 10 1/4″Round, 12″Cake Liner Round 9″ Silpat temperature range Silpat’s can be used in the freezer and up to 500°F in the oven. What to use Silicone Pastry Mats for Silicone pastry mats are special because they can be used to create fancy chocolate decorations in the freezer, and be used in the oven to bake macarons. Silpat silicone mats allow macarons to spread wider, which produces more of a rounder and flatter macaron. Silpat silicone pastry mats are commercial grade, and are used in bakeries worldwide. Since the Silpat produces the ideal macaron that is round and flat, this gives macarons a more professional look to them. Silpat pastry mats can be used in the freezer to create unique chocolate decorations. You can pipe chocolate directly on the Silpat and then place it in the freezer for about 20 minutes. Gently peel the chocolate decoration off of the Silpat mat and it’s ready to use. Silpat pastry mats fit perfectly in a baking sheet. Instead of using parchment paper to line your baking sheet, you can use a Silpat pastry mat. Silpat pastry mats work very well when baking foods like croissants and scones. Silpat silicone pastry mats can be used to line a baking sheet to prevent the baking pan from getting quite dirty and difficult to clean. How to clean a Silpat silicone baking mat The silicone has a non-stick coating to it, which makes it very easy to clean. Wipe the Silpat mat clean with a cloth soaked in soap and water. Rinse the Silpat with hot water. Silpat silicone mats need to be perfectly clean without any oil residue on them to be used for macarons. If you silicone mat has an oily film to it, use hot water to remove the oil effectively from your silicone mat.... Vanilla Danish RecipeJanuary 20, 2021Desserts / RecipesStep by step guide how to make vanilla Danishes. In this vanilla Danish recipe, we are using croissant dough to make our Danishes. If you need some suggestions for how to shape your Danishes, visit our 6 classic shapes for Danishes. Danish Pastry Filling How to make vanilla bean custard for Danish pastry filling Print Recipe Pin Recipe Prep Time 15 minsCook Time 25 minsChilling Time 2 hrsTotal Time 2 hrs 40 mins Course Dessert Servings 3 cups Ingredients 1 vanilla bean6 egg yolks2/3 cup sugar granulated1/4 cup cornstarch1 tbsp butter unsalted2 cups milk Instructions Place milk in a medium saucepan on low-medium heat.Cut the vanilla bean in half lengthwise with a sharp knife. Remove the vanilla beans and place them in the milk. Place the whole vanilla bean in the milk. Let the milk just come to a simmer, not boiling. Turn off the heat source and remove the milk from the heat. Let the vanilla bean infuse flavor for 15 minutes.In the meantime, separate your eggs. Place the egg yolks in a large heat proof bowl.Add sugar and cornstarch and mix together with a whisk.Remove the vanilla bean from the saucepan. Slowly temper the eggs by adding a couple of tablespoons of the milk to the eggs at a time and vigorously whisking it until fully emulsified.Continue adding the milk very slowly until fully combined. You do not want to cook the eggs.Strain the mixture back into the saucepan and heat on medium heat.Whisk the mixture frequently. Heat the mixture until the cornstarch has activated. It should be a few minutes. You will feel the mixture becoming thickened with your whisk.Cook for 1 more minute after it has started to thicken.Remove the custard from the heat and let cool a little until the pot can go in the fridge. Place a plastic wrap on top of the custard to prevent a film from forming.Chill the custard for 2 hours before using. Keyword dessert Danish Pastry Dough How to make Danish pastry dough Print Recipe Pin Recipe Prep Time 3 dCook Time 30 minsTotal Time 3 d 30 mins Course Dessert Servings 15 Danishes Ingredients 500 g all-purpose flour140 g water140 g milk55 g sugar granulated40 g unsalted butter room temperature11 g yeast instant12 g saltButter Layer280 g unsalted butterEgg Wash1 egg1 tsp water Instructions Day 1In a stand mixer fitted with the dough hook, combine the dough ingredients. Once the dough comes together, knead for another 3 minutes. Remove the dough from the stand mixer, shape into a sphere, and cover it in plastic wrap. Place in the Danish dough the fridge overnight. Day 2Cut the butter layer into cubes. Arrange the cubes on a silicone pastry mat that will be 15 cm x 15 cm. Fold the pastry mat over the butter and pound with a rolling pin. The butter layer needs to be an exact 17 cm x 17 cm. Place the butter in the fridge for 30 minutes. Remove the dough from the fridge and roll out the dough until 26 cm x 26 cm.Remove the butter layer from the fridge and arrange the butter at a 45 degree angle from the dough. The dough will be able to be stretched over the butter layer to create an envelope. Seal the dough together by gently pressing the dough together. Roll out the dough with the butter fully enclosed to create a long rectangle of 20 cm x 60 cm. Roll the dough lengthwise so it only grows lengthwise.Fold the dough to create a letter. Cover the dough with plastic wrap and place on a plate. Refrigerate the dough for 30 minutes. Repeat rolling the dough out to 20 cm x 60 cm and folding the dough like a letter. Cover and refrigerate for 30 minutes.Repeat rolling the dough out to 20 cm x 60 cm and folding the dough like a letter. Cover and refrigerate for overnight.Make your Danish filling and chill it overnight so it's ready for the morning.Day 3Roll the dough out gently, not compressing the folded layers too much. Roll the dough out to 20 cm x 110 cm.Shape and Fill the Danishes.Let the Danishes sit at room temperature for 2 hours to proof.Cover the Danish Pastry dough in egg wash.Bake the Danishes for 15 minutes at 400 degrees F. Keyword dessert... How to Make Hot Chocolate BombsJanuary 18, 2021How to Guides / SiliconeHot chocolate bombs are a delicious treat you can make right at home using silicone molds. To make hot chocolate bombs, you’ll need a couple of items before you begin: semi-circle silicone moldplatescocoa powdermarshmallowssprinkleschocolate Melt 1/3 cup of chocolate in the microwave in 30 second intervals. Mix in between each interval until the chocolate is smooth. Using the back of a spoon, coat the silicone mold with chocolate. Only fill the chocolate up to a maximum of 3/4 of the way up the silicone mold. This will make it easier to remove later. Make sure you fill 2 semi-circle silicone molds for 1 hot cocoa bomb. Place the silicone molds in the freezer for an hour. Remove the silicone molds from the freezer. Gently pull the silicone mold away from the chocolate on the edges. Go around the whole circle gently removing the edges of the chocolate from the silicone mold. Put the silicone mold upside down. Gently press the top of the silicone mold to release the chocolate from the mold. Be patient, and don’t be too aggressive when removing the chocolate from the silicone mold. Place the semi-circle chocolates on a warm plate to melt the edges of the chocolate. This will be to seal the hot chocolate bomb later. Fill one half of the semi-circle with 1 tbsp of cocoa powder, sprinkles, and marshmallows. Hold the filled semi-circle in one hand. Put the other semi-circle on top and gently press the 2 together to create a seal. Top the hot chocolate bomb with any other types of chocolate, sprinkles, gold dust, etc. To use the hot chocolate bomb, place it in a mug and pour warm milk into the cup. Let it sit for a minute until the chocolate melts. Stir the hot chocolate and it’s ready to enjoy. Do hot chocolate bombs taste good Hot chocolate bombs are decadent and creamy. Cocoa powder on it’s own is quite bitter. However, with the chocolate melted into the hot chocolate, this gives the hot chocolate comb it’s delicious taste and creamy texture. Cocoa bomb silicone molds There are a few different cocoa bomb molds you can use for hot chocolate bombs. There are some silicone molds that come in a sheet of 6 semi-circles. These can be difficult to use when trying to remove the chocolate carefully without disturbing the other semi-circles of chocolate. The one I would recommend is the single semi-circle. You need to have 2 single semi-circles to make 1 hot chocolate bomb. Removing the chocolate from these silicone molds is much easier than the set of 6. The trick is, you only want to put chocolate 1/2-3/4 of the way up the mold. Leave a decent amount of mold not covered in chocolate. Lather on the chocolate to the silicone mold for your hot cocoa bomb. You want the chocolate to be quite thick on the edges. The thicker the chocolate, the less likely the edge will crumble. It’s much easier to remove the hot chocolate bomb from the silicone mold if you only fill the mold halfway, and keep the chocolate thick on the edges. How long do you put the hot chocolate bomb in the freezer for Put the hot chocolate bomb in the freezer for at least 10 minutes, but ideally 1 hour in the freezer. Keeping the hot chocolate bomb in the freezer for an hour will ensure the chocolate is set and will remove from the silicone mold easily. How to get chocolate bombs out of molds The trick to getting chocolate bombs out their silicone molds, is by first gently pulling the edges of the silicone mold. Go all the way around the circle to remove chocolate from the edges of the mold. Turn the mold upside down. Gently press on the top of the mold. The chocolate will come away from the mold slowly. Be patient and continue pressing down until the chocolate releases. If you’re having difficulty, it could be because the chocolate isn’t thick enough. If the chocolate is too thin on the edges, the chocolate will crumble. How do you seal the hot chocolate bombs Warm a plate in the microwave for 30 seconds until the plate in a little warm. Place the edges of the semi-circle chocolate on the plate to melt the edges. This will be how the hot chocolate bomb will seal together. When do you fill the hot chocolate bomb Fill the hot chocolate bomb after you have melted the edges with the warm plate. Put 1 tbsp of cocoa powder in one of the semi-circles. Add any sprinkles or marshmallows at this point. Hold the semi-circle that is full of cocoa powder in your hand. Press the other semi-circle chocolate together to seal it. Place the hot chocolate bomb on a clean plate. How to decorate a hot chocolate bomb You can decorate the hot chocolate bomb using a different kind of chocolate than what you used for the hot cocoa bomb. You can put lines, circles, dots, all of the hot chocolate bomb. Then you can put sprinkles or some gold dust on the top to finish it off. How to use a hot chocolate bomb To use a hot chocolate bomb, place it in the bottom of a mug. Pour warm milk over the hot chocolate bomb and let the bomb melt. Stir the hot chocolate bomb and it’s ready to enjoy.... Lemon Macaron RecipeJanuary 17, 2021Macaron Recipes / RecipesLemon macarons are one of the most tart and flavorful macarons you can make. Using fresh lemon juice and lemon zest, the filling is where the majority of the flavor is. You have the option in the lemon macaron recipe to add lemon extract to the macaron shells if you want. However, this is optional, and the lemon macarons taste incredible without the extract. Remember that when adding food coloring to your lemon macaron recipe, the coloring should be darker than you want it. The color will lighten as you add your Italian meringue to your almond batter. Lemon Macaron Recipe How to make lemon macarons from scratch Print Recipe Pin Recipe Prep Time 1 hr 30 minsCook Time 12 mins Course Dessert Servings 40 macarons Ingredients Almond Batter55 g egg whites pasteurized150 g almond flour sifted150 g icing sugar sifted1/4 tsp lemon extract optionalItalian Meringue55 g egg whites pasteurized38 g water150 g sugarLemon Macaron Filling Recipe1/3 cup butter room temperature1 1/3 cup icing sugar1/2 tsp vanilla extract2 tbsp lemon juice1 tbsp lemon zest Instructions Place 55g egg whites in a stand mixer and mix on high speed.Place water and sugar in a saucepan on medium heat and attach a candy thermometer to the saucepan to measure the temperature. Adjust the stand mixer speed to beat on low speed. When the syrup gets up to 118 degrees C slowly stream the sugar syrup down the side of the bowl of the stand mixer. Increase the speed of the stand mixer to medium-heat speed and let it beat. The meringue is finished when you can turn the bowl upside down and the egg whites do not move. Place 55g egg whites in a large mixing bowl. Add yellow food coloring at this point using gel food coloring or 1/4 tsp of powdered food coloring. Add lemon extract to the egg whites if you want the shells to have flavoring as well. Mix the color thoroughly until the color is fully emulsified into the egg whites.Add sifted and measured almond flour and icing sugar. Mix until fully combined. It should feel like a paste when it's completely mixed.Add 1/2 meringue to the bowl. Mix the meringue until it's completely mixed in. Scrape the bottom and sides of the bowl to mix everything together.Add the rest of the meringue to the bowl. Mix until it's full combined. Continue mixing the macaron batter a little more, a few more turns. It should flow like lava when you lift your spoon. The batter should be glossy and less grainy than when you began mixing.Pipe the macarons 1.5" wide on a silicone baking mat or parchment paper lined baking sheet. They are best cooked on an aluminum baking pan. Then pipe the next macaron 2" further away. Add any sprinkles to the macarons at this point. Pick up the pan and bang the bottom of it to remove air bubbles. Bang the pan 3-5 times.Let the macarons dry for 30 minutes.Bake the macarons for 12 minutes at 300 degrees F. Let the macarons fully cool. Take one of the macaron shells and match it up with a good fit for itself. Match all of your macarons up and place face up.Prepare the lemon macaron filing recipe. Cream the butter in a stand mixer until light and fluffy.Add lemon juice, lemon zest, and vanilla extract and cream together on high.Slowly add icing sugar and beat on low speed until fully combined. Taste test the icing. If you want it more creamy, you can add another 1/2 tsp of vanilla extract. If you want more of a lemon flavor, you can add a bit more lemon juice. Place the icing in a piping bag.You can use a piping tip to give the icing a bit of a design if you like. Fill the macarons. Put the top of the macaron over top of the filling to create a sandwich. Store the macarons in the fridge for 3 days or in the freezer for up to 1 month. Keyword macarons...