Recipe: Oatmeal, Peanut Butter, and Chocolate Chunk Cookies

3/4 cup butter, softened
3/4 cup peanut butter
1-1/4 cups packed brown sugar
1-1/4 cups granulated sugar
1-1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
3 eggs
1-1/2 teaspoons vanilla
2-1/4 cups all-purpose flour
2-2/3 cups rolled oats
1 10-ounce package miniature milk chocolate kisses

1. Beat butter and peanut butter in a large mixing bowl with an electric
mixer on medium to high speed for 30 seconds. Add granulated sugar,
brown
sugar, baking powder, and baking soda; beat until combined, scraping
sides
of bowl occasionally. Beat in eggs and vanilla until combined. Beat in
flour. Stir in rolled oats with a wooden spoon. Stir in chocolate kisses.
2. Drop dough from a #50 or #60 scoop, or from a tablespoon, 3
inches apart
onto an ungreased cookie sheet. Slightly flatten dough with your hand,
if desired. Bake in a 375 degree F oven about 8 to 10 minutes or until
edges are lightly browned. Transfer to wire racks and cool. Store in an
airtight container or plastic bag at room temperature up to 3 days.
Makes 60 to 72 cookies.
Make-Ahead Tip: Cool cookies completely. In an airtight or freezer
container, arrange cookies in a single layer; cover with a sheet of
waxed paper. Repeat layers, leaving enough air space to close
container easily. Freeze up to 1 month.

Recipe: Mocha Fondue

Update chocolate fondue with a hint of coffee, and serve it with
meringue cookies as crispy dippers.
1 4-ounce package sweet baking chocolate, broken up
4 ounces semisweet chocolate, chopped
2/3 cup light cream or milk
1/2 cup sifted powdered sugar
1 teaspoon instant coffee crystals
2 tablespoons coffee liqueur
Assorted fruits (such as star fruit slices, pineapple chunks, kiwi
fruit wedges, strawberries, pear slices, banana slices)
Meringue cookies

1. In a heavy saucepan combine chocolates, cream, sugar, and coffee
crystals. Heat and stir over low heat until melted and smooth. Remove
from heat; stir in liqueur. Pour into a fondue pot; keep warm over low
heat. Serve with fruit and cookies. Makes 6 to 8 servings.

Recipe: White Chocolate Pretzels

1 pkg. long pretzel rods
1 pkg. almond bark, or vanilla candy coating
Decorations, such as red and green sprinkles, holiday M&Ms or crushed
up candy canes

Place the candy coating in a microwave-safe bowl. Make sure you do
not get any water in the bowl. Any water at all will cause the candy
coating not to melt properly and separate.
Microwave the candy coating for 1 min., then stir and microwave an
additional min., until it is completely melted and smooth.
Stick a pretzel rod into the chocolate, and with a spoon, cover about
3/4 of the pretzel with chocolate. Let the excess drip back into the
bowl.
Sprinkle the chocolate with either red and green colored sprinkles,
crushed up peppermints, or stick red and green M&Ms to the
chocolate.
Place the decorated pretzel on a piece of waxed paper or aluminum
foil, and let it dry completely, about 1 hr. Gently pull the pretzels
off the paper.

Recipe: Chocolate Cake In A Jar

1 stick plus 3 T. butter or margarine
3 c. white sugar
4 eggs
1 T. vanilla
2 c. applesauce, unsweetened
3 c. white flour
3/4 c. unsweetened cocoa powder
1 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/8 tsp. salt

Prewash 8 pint-sized wide mouth canning jars (be sure to use the kind
that have no shoulders) in hot, soapy water. Rinse well, dry and let
them come to room temperature. Grease insides of jar well with
butter.
Beat together butter, and half of sugar until fluffy. Add eggs and
remaining sugar, vanilla and applesauce.
Sift dry ingredients together, and add to the applesauce mixture a
little at a time. Beat well after each addition.
Pour 1 c. of batter into each jar, and carefully remove any batter
from the rims.
Place jars in a preheated 325 oven, and bake for 40 mins.

While cakes are baking, bring a saucepan of water to a boil, and
carefully add jar lids. Remove pan from heat, and keep lids hot until
ready to use.
When the cakes have finished baking, remove jars from oven. Make
sure
jar rims are clean. (If they're not, jars will not seal correctly)
Place lids on jars, and screw rings on tightly.
Jars will seal as they cool.
Cakes will slide right out when ready to serve.
Eat within 1 month.

Recipe: Caramel Apples with Chocolate

Makes 8 apples
1 piece of Styrofoam
1 apples
8 ice cream sticks
12 packages (14 oz each) creamy caramels
2 tbs. water
3/4 cup pistachios, chopped
8 foil cupcake liners
3 ounces semisweet chocolate

Place Styrofoam on a flat surface. Lightly coat
baking sheet with cooking spray. Remove stems
from apples. Insert wooden stick into stem of
each apple. Place caramels in saucepan. Add the
water, heat stirring until caramels are melted.
Working quickly with one apple at a time, and
keeping caramel over low heat, dip the apple into
the caramel, turning to coat the apple, remove
the apple from the caramel and gently shake. Pat
pistachios onto top of apple, place on prepared
sheet. Refrigerate until caramel is cool. Heat
chocolate in top of double boiler, until melted.
Drizzle chocolate over apples. Press apples
sticks into Styrofoam. Refrigerate until the
chocolate hardens. Remove from Styrofoam to foil
cupcake liners

Recipe: Babe Ruth Bars

1 cup peanut butter
1 cup white corn syrup
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1/2 cup white sugar
6 cups cornflakes cereal
1 cup semisweet chocolate chips
2/3 cup peanuts

1 In a large saucepan over medium heat, combine
the peanut butter, corn syrup, brown sugar and
white sugar. Cook stirring occasionally until
smooth. Remove from heat and quickly mix in the
cornflakes, chocolate chips and peanuts until
evenly coated.
2 Press the entire mixture gently into a buttered
9x13 inch baking dish. Allow to cool completely
before cutting into bars.

Recipe: Chocolate Anise Truffles

1/4 cup Anise liquor
1/2 cup butter
12 oz. semi-sweet chocolate
2 cups pulverized anisette cookies


In a double boiler melt the chocolate, constantly stirring with a wooden
spoon. When the chocolate has melted, add the butter and slowly stir
it into the chocolate as it melts. Continue to stir for another minute
until it is well mixed and smooth. Add in the Rum and stir until well
mixed, then sprinkle in the pulverized anisette cookies (a little at a
time, as sometimes it takes less) until the mixture is slightly thickened
but still smooth. You want the mixture to remain as a thick sauce at
this point.
When you have thoroughly mixed in the anisettes, rest the top of your
double boiler in a bucket of ice and WHISK the truffle mixture slowly
until it has cooled (about 15 minutes). Do not stop whicking or the
butter and rum will separate out of the chocolate-anisette. When the
sauce is completely cooled it should have a soft but solid consistency
which you can then spoon out and form into truffles and coat with
chocolate powder or confectioners sugar.

Recipe: Cognac Truffles

3 1 oz square of unsweetened chocolate
1 1/4 c confectioners' sugar
1/3 c butter
3 egg yolks (I use the whites to make macaroons or meringue
cookies)
1 tsp vanilla or 2 TBSP of cognac


Melt chocolate. Combine sugar and butter in bowl. Cream together.
Add egg yolks, 1 at a time. Stir in melted chocolate and flavoring.
Chill mixture. Break off pieces and form into balls. Roll in coating.
Air-dry 1 hour. Store in air-tight container in very cool place. Makes
about fifty truffles.
Suggested coatings: ground almonds or other nuts, cocoa, more
melted chocolate, confectioners' sugar, coconut, chocolate or colored
jimmies.
Note that this uses raw egg yolks. I find a melon baller to be very
handy in forming the truffles.

Recipe: Easy Truffles

(Servings: 64)
Ingredients:
8 oz Semi-sweet chocolate
1/3 c Milk
1/3 c Unsalted butter
2 ea Egg yolks, slightly beaten
1/4 t Vanilla extract
1 x Unsweetened cocoa


In saucepan, melt chocolate with milk and butter over low heat,
stirring until smooth. Remove from heat. Stir 1/4 cup hot mixture into
egg yolks, the whisk yolks into chocolate mixture in saucepan. Add
vanilla; beat well. Pour into small bowl; cover and refrigerate until
firm. (You can store in refrigerator for up to 2 days at this point.)
Form teaspoonfuls into balls; roll in cocoa and shake off excess.
Makes 1 pound (about 2 dozen). About 75 calories each.
For gift-giving: use a glass jar with lid or candy dish covered with
plastic wrap. Store covered in refrigerator for 3 weeks and in freezer
for up to 2 months.

Recipe: White Chocolate Apricot-Hazelnut Truffles

(makes 28 truffles)
Ingredients:
1 1/4 C hazelnuts (aka filberts)
1/4 C finely chopped dried apricots
24 ounces imported white chocolate
6 Tbl heavy cream


On a baking sheet, spread out 1 1/4 C hazelnuts. Bake at 350 F for 10
minutes, or until nuts are light brown and the dark skins are cracked.
Remove as much of the skins as possible by rubbing nuts in a terry-
cloth towel. Finely chop nuts in a food processor.
In a 1-quart glass container, combine 12 ounces imported white
chocolate, cut up and 6 Tbl heavy cream.
[Note: I used the Nestle white chocolate chips that are available in
my local supermarket. It worked well, but I am sure it would be better
if you use a good import instead.]
Microwave mixture on MEDIUM (70% power), 3 to 4 minutes, stirring
twice, until chocolate is melted and smooth. [You can do this step in a
double-boiler if you don't have a microwave.]

Stir into melted chocolate 3/4 C of the chopped nuts and 1/4 C finely
chopped dried apricots.
Cover the mixture and refrigerate 1 to 2 hours, or until mixture is firm
enough to hold its shape. (If mixture gets too hard, let stand at room
temperature for 30 minutes or so, until firm but soft enough to shape.)
Form 28 smooth 1 1/4-inch diameter balls, either by using a 1 1/4-
inch automatic-release ice cream scoop, or by rolling 1 Tbl of the
mixture between your (clean!) hands.
Place on a wax paper-lined cookie sheet and refrigerate until firm, 1
hour or longer.

Recipe: Rum Balls

1 3/4 cups vanilla wafer cookie crumbs 1 cup ground pecans 1 cup
confectioners sugar 1/4 cup cocoa 3 tablespoons light
corn syrup 1/4 cup light rum 1/3 cup confectioners' sugar (for dipping)

Makes About 2 1/2 Dozen
Mix all ingredients, except for 1/3 cup confectioners sugar. Roll into
one inch balls. Roll balls in remaining confectioners sugar to coat.

Recipe: Quick & Easy Microwave Peanut Butter Fudge

12 oz. semisweet chocolate chips 12 oz. peanut butter 14 oz.
sweetened condensed milk

Makes approximately 42 pieces
In a 1-1/2 quart microwave-proof bowl, melt chocolate and peanut
butter on high power for 3 minutes. Stir well. Add milk and stir until
well blended. Pour mixture into 8x8 dish lined with waxed paper.
Refrigerate to chill.

Recipe: Marshmallow Puffs

36 large marshmallows 1-1/2 C semisweet chocolate chips 1/2 C
chunky peanut butter 2 T butter or margarine

Makes 3 dozen
Line a 9-in. square pan with foil and butter the foil. Arrange
marshmallows in pan. In a double boiler or microwave-safe bowl, melt
chocolate chips, peanut butter and butter. Pour over the
marshmallows. Chill completely. Cut between marshmallows

Recipe: Peppermint Patties

1 lb. confectioners' sugar 3 T butter or margarine, softened 2 to 3 tsp.
peppermint extract 1/2 tsp. vanilla extract 1/4 C evaporated milk 2 C
(12 oz) semisweet chocolate chips 2 T shortening

Makes about 5 dozen In a bowl, combine first four ingredients. Add
milk and mix well. Roll into 1-in balls and place on a waxed paper-lined
cookie sheet. Chill for 20 minutes. Flatten with a glass to 1/4". Chill for
30 minutes. In a double boiler or microwave-safe bowl, melt chocolate
chips and shortening. Dip patties and place on waxed paper to harden.

Recipe: Triple Chocolate Fudge

3 1/3 C sugar 1 C butter 1 C packed dark brown sugar 1 can (12 oz)
evaporated milk 32 large marshmallows, halved 2 cups (12 oz)
semisweet chocolate chips 2 milk chocolate candy bars (7 oz each),
broken 2 squares (1 oz each) semisweet baking chocolate, chopped 1
tsp. vanilla extract 2 C chopped pecans

Makes about 5 1/2 pounds
In a large saucepan, combine first four ingredients. Cook and stir over
medium heat until sugar is dissolved. Bring to a rapid boil and boil for
5 minutes, stirring constantly. Remove from the heat and stir in
marshmallows until melted. Stir in chocolate chips until melted. Add
chocolate bars and baking chocolate and stir until melted. Fold in
vanilla and pecans. Pour into a greased 15" x 10" x 1" baking pan.
Chill until firm. Cut into squares.

Recipe: Dark Chocolate Fudge

3 C semisweet chocolate chips 1 can (14 oz.) sweetened condensed
milk dash salt 1 C chopped walnuts 1 1/2 tsp. vanilla

In heavy saucepan over low heat, melt chips with sweetened
condensed milk and salt. Remove from heat; stir in walnuts and
vanilla. Spread evenly into aluminum foil lined 8 or 9 inch square pan.
Chill 2 hours or until firm. Turn fudge onto cutting board; peel off foil
and cut into squares. Store loosely covered at room temperature.

Recipe: Chocolate Truffles

2 pounds of Belgian chocolate (or any brand of good quality chocolate)
one quart of heavy cream 1/4 lb. unsalted butter 1/3 C liqueur of
choice
cocoa powder

Makes over 2lbs. of truffles
Melt chocolate and cream over a double boiler. Whisk in butter and
liqueur. Continue to whisk as the mixture cools and thickens. Pour into
quart containers and refrigerate. To serve, scoop out with melon
baller, roll in powdered cocoa.

Recipe: Strawberry Truffles

8 oz. cream cheese at room temperature 5 oz. white chocolate 4 cups
confectioner's sugar 1 tsp. grated fresh ginger root 18 medium fresh
strawberries 1/4 cup finely minced crystallized ginger (get it in a
gourmet food store or well stocked supermarket) 1/2 cup toasted
coconut 1/2 cup finely chopped pistachio nuts

Makes about 18 truffles
Melt white chocolate in the top of a double boiler, let cool.
Beat together the cream cheese, sugar and ginger root until smooth.
Add melted white chocolate and mix well. Chill for at least 1 hour or
until easy to handle. Use a small melon baller (or small spoon) to
scoop out the center of each strawberry, half way down each fruit. Pat
strawberry dry. Put a little crystallized ginger into each strawberry.
Shape the cheese mixture around the fruit. Coat one end in the
toasted coconut, the other in the pistachio nuts. Place truffles in candy
cups and chill until serving time.

Recipe: Cookies and Cream Truffles

1 cup finely ground Oreo® Cookies 12 T melted butter 6 oz. white
chocolate, broken into small pieces 5 egg yolks 1 1/4 cup
confectioner's sugar 1 tsp. vanilla extract

Makes about 40 truffles

Note: Pregnant or nursing women, young children or any with an
immune deficiency should not eat foods made with raw eggs.

Chop cookies in a blender or food processor until finely chopped.
Slowly drizzle in 6 tablespoons of melted butter and process till well
mixed. Set aside.
Heat remaining 6 tablespoons of butter in a small saucepan until very
hot and bubbly (be careful not to let it burn). Remove from heat and
add the white chocolate. Stir constantly until smooth and melted. Set
aside.
In a large bowl, beat egg yolks until foamy. Beat in the sugar
gradually, add vanilla and continue to beat until thick (see photo). With
mixer on slow to medium speed, gradually beat in the cookie mixture,
then gradually beat in the melted chocolate mixture. Beat until smooth
and well mixed. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least
thirty minutes or until firm.

Place your choice of coating in a bowl. If you're going to have more
than one, use separate bowls. Some possible coating choices are:
toasted coconut, chopped nuts, unsweetened cocoa, powdered
chocolate, crushed Oreo® Cookies.
Scoop out a teaspoon full of the truffle mixture and, using your fingers,
roll it into a ball. Work quickly as the heat of your hand will quickly
start melting the chocolate. Drop ball in the coating bowl. Repeat the
process until there are 4 or 5 balls in the coating bowl. Gently roll the
truffles in the coating mixture and a sheet of waxed paper.
Wrap truffles in an air tight container and store in the refrigerator for
up to ten days or in the freezer for up to a month.

Recipe: Grand Mariner Truffles

4 T melted butter 4 oz. bittersweet chocolate, broken into small pieces
4 oz. milk chocolate, broken into small pieces 4 T Grand Marnier 4 egg
yolks 1 1/4 cup confectioner's sugar 2 tsp. orange extract

Makes about 30 truffles
Note: Pregnant or nursing women, young children or any with an
immune deficiency should not eat foods made with raw eggs.
Heat butter in a small saucepan until very hot and bubbly (be careful
not to let it burn). Remove from heat and add the chocolate. Stir
constantly until smooth and melted. Set aside.
In a large bowl, beat egg yolks until foamy. Beat in the sugar
gradually, add extract and liquor and continue to beat until thick (see
photo). With mixer on slow to medium speed, gradually beat in the
melted chocolate mixture. Beat until smooth and well mixed. Cover
with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least thirty minutes or until
firm.
Place your choice of coating in a bowl. If you're going to have more
than one, use separate bowls. Some possible coating choices are:
toasted coconut, chopped nuts, unsweetened cocoa, powdered
chocolate, crushed Oreo® Cookies.

Scoop out a teaspoon full of the truffle mixture and, using your fingers,
roll it into a ball. Work quickly as the heat of your hand will quickly
start melting the chocolate. Drop ball in the coating bowl. Repeat the
process until there are 4 or 5 balls in the coating bowl. Gently roll the
truffles in the coating mixture and a sheet of waxed paper.
Wrap truffles in an air tight container and store in the refrigerator for
up to ten days or in the freezer for up to a month.

Recipe: Hazelnut or Almond Truffles

2/3 cup finely ground toasted almonds or hazelnuts 7 T melted butter
3 oz. bittersweet chocolate 3 oz. milk chocolate 1 T Amaretto (for
almond) or 1 T Frangelico (for hazelnut) 4 egg yolks 2/3 cup
confectioner's sugar 1/2 tsp. vanilla extract 1 1/2 tsp. almond extract

Makes about 30 truffles
Note: Pregnant or nursing women, young children or any with an
immune deficiency should not eat foods made with raw eggs.
Chop toasted nuts in a blender or food processor until finely chopped.
Slowly drizzle in 3 tablespoons of melted butter and process till well
mixed. Set aside.
Heat remaining 4 T of butter in a small saucepan until very hot and
bubbly (be careful not to let it burn). Remove from heat and add the
chocolate. Stir constantly until smooth and melted. Set aside.
In a large bowl, beat egg yolks until foamy. Beat in the sugar
gradually, add extracts and liquor and continue to beat until thick (see
p[). With mixer on slow to medium speed, gradually beat in the nut
mixture, then gradually beat in the melted chocolate mixture. Beat
until smooth and well mixed. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate
for at least thirty minutes or until firm

Place your choice of coating in a bowl. If you're going to have more
than one, use separate bowls. Some possible coating choices are:
toasted coconut, chopped nuts, unsweetened cocoa, powdered
chocolate, crushed Oreo® Cookies.
Scoop out a teaspoon full of the truffle mixture and, using your fingers,
roll it into a ball. Work quickly as the heat of your hand will quickly
start melting the chocolate. Drop ball in the coating bowl. Repeat the
process until there are 4 or 5 balls in the coating bowl. Gently roll the
truffles in the coating mixture and a sheet of waxed paper.
Wrap truffles in an air tight container and store in the refrigerator for
up to ten days or in the freezer for up to a month.

Recipe: White chocolate Truffles

1/4 C butter 1/2 C confectioner's sugar 1 teaspoon almond extract 1
egg yolk 8 oz. white chocolate, broken into small pieces 1 C chopped
blanched almonds, lightly toasted

Makes about 2 dozen truffles
Melt chocolate and butter in the top of a double boiler over low heat,
stirring constantly. Remove from heat. Add sugar, egg yolk and
almond extract; beat with an electric mixer until smooth. Transfer to a
shallow glass casserole dish. Cover and refrigerate 1 hour.
Shape mixture into 1 inch balls. Roll in almonds. Cover and refrigerate
at least 8 hours. Place in miniature foil cups at room temperature to
serve. Store in airtight container in refrigerator.

Recipe: Peanut Butter and Chocolate Truffles

1 C peanut butter chips 3/4 C butter 1/2 cup cocoa 1 can (14 oz)
sweetened condensed milk 1 tablespoon vanilla
Coatings: crushed graham cracker crumbs, confectioners sugar or
crushed nuts

Makes about 3 dozen truffles
In a heavy saucepan, over low heat, melt chips with butter. Stir in
cocoa until smooth. Add condensed milk and vanilla. Cook and stir until
thickened and well blended, about 4 minutes. Remove from heat. Chill
until firm enough to handle. Shape into 1 inch balls. Roll in desired
coating. Chill until firm. Store, covered in refrigerator

Recipe: Mocha Truffles

2 packages (12 oz each) Semisweet chocolate chips
8 oz. cream cheese, softened 3 T instant coffee granules 2 tsp. water 1
lb. good dark chocolate cocoa confectionery coating white
confectionery coating, optional

Makes about 5 1/2 dozen

In a microwave-safe bowl or double boiler,
melt chocolate chips. Add cream cheese, coffee and water; mix well.
chill until firm enough to shape. shape into 1" balls and place on a
waxed paper-lined cookie sheet. Chill for 1-2 hours or until firm. Melt
chocolate coating in microwave-safe bowl or double boiler. Dip balls
and place on waxed paper to harden. If desired, melt white coating
and drizzle over truffles

Recipe: Chocolate Covered Truffles

1/4 C butter 1 1/2 lbs. real semisweet chocolate 3/4 C non-dairy
coffee creamer, any flavor 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract 1 1/2 pounds
real milk chocolate for dipping 1 cup finely chopped chocolate, milk or
semisweet for decoration

Makes about 3 dozen truffles

Melt semisweet chocolate in double boiler over hot water. Heat butter,
creamer and vanilla in another saucepan to 125° F on a candy
thermometer. Add to semisweet chocolate all at once, beating until
smooth and creamy. Chill in refrigerator until nearly set but still
pliable. Beat with mixer until light and fluffy. Spread in 9 inch buttered
pan until set enough to roll into small balls. Melt milk chocolate over
double boiler. Dip truffles in melted chocolate, then sprinkle
generously, or roll in, chopped chocolate

Recipe: Chocolate Truffles

½ Cup unsalted butter
2 1/3 C confectioner’s sugar
½ C cocoa
1/4 cup heavy or whipping cream 1 1/2 teaspoon vanilla

Centers: pecan, walnuts, whole almonds or after-dinner mints

Coatings: coconut, crushed nuts,confectioners sugar

Makes about 3 dozen truffles

Cream butter in large mixer bowl. Combine 2 1/2 cups confectioners'
sugar and the cocoa; add alternately with cream and vanilla to butter.
Blend well. Chill until firm. Shape small amount of mixture around
desired center; roll into 1 inch balls. Drop into desired coating and turn
until well covered. Chill until firm.

Recipe: Milk Chocolate Sorbet

Melt 2 oz. Baker's chocolate, and add 1 cup whole milk, and 1 3/4 cups sugar, 2 tbsp vanilla extract, and 4 cups water. Freeze in ice cream maker.

Recipe: Chocolate Sorbet

1 quart water
4 ounce unsweetened chocolate, broken into chunks
1 1/2 cups sugar

Use a knife or a food processor to chop the chocolate into very small pieces.
Heat the water and sugar together in a saucepan. Add the chocolate and simmer for 20 mins until the mixture is very smooth and not grainy. Do not boil. Cool thoroughly.
Pour the mixture into the bowl of the machine and freeze.
Makes 1 quart.

Recipe: Chocolate Ice

1 quart milk
4 ounce unsweetened chocolate
1 1/3 cups sugar

Heat milk and sugar together in a saucepan over low heat. In another saucepan, melt.
Pour the mixture into the bowl of the machine and freeze.
Makes 1 quart.

Recipe: White Chocolate Ice Cream

2 cups light cream
4 eggs
12 oz white chocolate coarsely chopped
1 1/2 cups sugar
2 cups heavy cream

Scald the light cream in top of double boiler set over simmering water. Add the chocolate. Reduce heat so the water barely simmers and cook until the chocolate is melted, stirring occasionally. Remove from heat. Using a electric mixer, beat the eggs in medium bowl. Add the sugar and continue beating until all the sugar is dissolved. Slowly mix in the chocolate mixture. Beat in the heavy cream. Refrigerate until well chilled. Pour into the ice cream maker using it according to manufacturer's instructions. Freeze in covered container at least 4 hours.

Recipe: Sugar-Free Chocolate Ice Cream

1 tsp. plain gelatin
2.5 cups low fat milk
1/2 cup Nestle Quik Sugar Free chocolate drink mix
1 cup drained yogurt (the solid half of 2 cups yogurt strained overnight)
1 tsp. vanilla extract
dash salt

Soften gelatin in 1/2 cup milk. Heat in a small saucepan until gelatin dissolves. Remove from heat and place saucepan in another bowl of cold or ice water to cool mixture to room temperature. Pour mixture into a blender or food processor. Add remaining milk, Quik, yogurt, vanilla and salt. Blend until smooth. Cover and chill in the refrigerator until ready to freeze. Blend for a few seconds before pouring into the ice cream maker. Follow the manufacturer's instructions for freezing. Makes about 1 quart.

Recipe: Old-Fashioned Chocolate Ice Cream

2 c Sugar
2/3 c Hershey's Cocoa
1/4 c All-purpose flour
1/4 ts Salt
2 c Milk
2 Eggs, slightly beaten
1 tb Vanilla extract
1 qt Light cream
1/2 pt Whipping cream

In medium saucepan, combine sugar, cocoa, flour and salt; stir in milk and eggs. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until mixture boils; boil and stir 1 minute. Remove from heat. Stir in vanilla, light cream and whipping cream. Refrigerate until cold. Freeze in ice cream freezer according to manufacturer's directions. About 2-1/2 quarts ice cream.

Recipe: Non-Dairy Chocolate Mint Ice Cream

2 teaspoons kosher gelatin
1/4 cup peppermint tea, room temperature
1/4 cup honey
3-1/4 cups chocolate soy milk
1/2 teaspoon peppermint extract

1. In a small bowl, sprinkle gelatin over apple juice. Let sit, stirring occasionally, until gelatin is dissolved and softened, about 10 minutes.
2. In a medium saucepan, whisk together honey and 2 cups soy milk. Cook until just hot, stirring frequently; remove from heat. Add softened gelatin to hot milk mixture, stirring until gelatin is completely dissolved. Stir in remaining soy milk and peppermint extract; let cool, cover, and refrigerate until very well-chilled
3. Spoon chilled mixture into the canister of an ice cream maker and freeze according to manufacturer's directions.
Makes about 1 quart.

Recipe: Milk Chocolate Sherbet

Remember ordering a "400" at the soda fountain? Well now you can have it frozen. Icy, almost a granita. You'll love it.

Melt 2 oz. Baker's chocolate, and add 1 cup whole milk, and 1 3/4cups sugar, 2 tbsp vanilla extract, and 4 cups water. Mix thoroughly and freeze in the freezer section of your refrigerator in a shallow rectangular cake pan, stirring every 20 minutes with a fork until frozen.

Recipe: Dark Chocolate Ice Cream

4 ounces unsweetened chocolate
1 cup milk
2 eggs
1 cup sugar
1 cup heavy cream
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 pinch salt

Melt chocolate in double boiler over hot (not boiling) water. Gradually whisk in milk, stir until smooth. Remove from heat and let it cool. Whisk eggs in a mixing bowl until light and fluffy. Gradually whisk in sugar, then continue whisking 1 minute, until completely blended. Add the cream, vanilla, and salt; whisk. Add the chocolate mixture; blend well. Cover, chill, and freeze according to ice cream maker's directions.

Recipe: Chocolate Raspberry Ice Cream

Chocolate Ice Cream mix (reduce to 1 tsp vanilla extract)
1 cup raspberries

Mash raspberries together with 1/4 cup sugar. Just before adding to ice cream maker, stir juice from berries into mix. Freeze in ice cream maker according to manufacturer's instructions. Just before frozen, add berries.
Note: Fresh raspberries produce better ice cream, but frozen raspberries will still make an excellent treat (but don't use raspberries frozen in syrup).

Recipe: Chocolate Peanut Butter Ice Cream

3 oz bittersweet chocolate
6 Tbl cocoa powder
2 1/2 cup milk
3 eggs, lightly beaten
1 cup sugar
1 whipping cup cream
1.5 tsp pure vanilla extract
3/4 cup peanut butter

Melt chocolate over low heat. Gradually stir in cocoa powder and milk while continuing to heat. You want the consistency to be thick but not solid as you add the milk and cocoa powder. Beat sugar into eggs. Stir hot chocolate/milk mixture into eggs. Add cream and vanilla extract. Cool. Just before adding to ice cream maker, stir a cup of ice cream mixture into peanut butter. Once mixed, stir into rest of ice cream mixture. Freeze in ice cream maker according to manufacturer's instructions. Use fresh ground peanut butter if possible (i.e., it should be 100% peanuts).

Recipe: Chocolate Mint Ice Cream

1 1/4 cup heavy cream
1 cup milk
1/3 cup sugar
1 cup mint chocolate chips
2 egg yolks
1/8 teaspoon salt

Combine 1 1/4 cups heavy cream, the milk, sugar and the mint chocolate chips in a saucepan. Cook over low heat, stirring with a wire whisk, until the chips are melted and mixture is smooth. Remove from heat. In a medium bowl, beat the egg yolks and the salt until thick. Gradually add the chocolate mixture. Beat until well blended and chill 30 minutes. Pour the chilled chocolate/egg mixture into an electric ice cream freezer; churn until thick. Cover and store in freeze until ready to serve.

Recipe: Chocolate Marshmallow Ice Cream

(Makes 1 Gallon)
1 c. sugar
6 eggs
1 Tbsp. flour
1 can Hershey's chocolate syrup
2 c. miniature marshmallows
1 large can evaporated milk
1 can Eagle Brand milk

Gradually add sugar to eggs, beating thoroughly. Add flour, evaporated milk, Eagle Brand milk, chocolate syrup and marshmallows. Whip thoroughly together. Put all this in double boiler and cook until it coats the spoon. Cool. Pour in freezer can and finish filling the freezer can with whole milk; freeze.

Recipe: Chocolate Macadamia Nut Ice Cream

6 egg yolks
1/2 cup of sugar
1 cup table cream
1 cup milk
4 oz semi-sweet chocolate
1 cup whipping cream
1 pinch of salt
1 tsp vanilla
1 5 oz can Macadamia nuts

Beat eggs yolks in bowl; beat in sugar. Heat table cream and milk in a pan over medium heat. Melt chocolate over low heat. When milk is hot, mix a small amount into chocolate and stir until blended. Repeat with small amounts of milk until all milk is added. Add hot milk/chocolate mix to eggs, stirring as you add. Cool, add whipping cream, vanilla and salt. Chop Macadamia nuts. Freeze in ice cream maker. When almost frozen, add nuts.

Recipe: Chocolate Frozen Yogurt

3/4 cup sugar
2 teaspoons cornstarch
12 ounces evaporated low-fat milk
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 cup plain yogurt
2 ounces semisweet chocolate chips

In medium saucepan, combine the sugar and cornstarch. Stir in milk. Cook and stir over moderate heat until thickened and bubbly. Remove from heat; let the mixture in the refrigerator. Add the vanilla and yogurt. Refrigerate until the mixture is cold. Melt the chocolate. While the chocolate is hot, pour it very slowly into the chilled yogurt mixture while stirring gently. Freeze in a ice-cream maker according to manufacturer's directions.

Recipe: Chocolate Expresso Ice Cream

2 C heavy cream, whipped stiff
1/4 tsp salt
3/4 C chocolate syrup (i.e. Nestle's)
1 whole fresh egg, slightly beaten
1 serving of instant coffee powder, your choice of international flavor (mocha, vienna, etc)

Add the salt and egg to the whipped cream. Beat until well blended. Add, folding gently, but thoroughly, the chocolate syrup and instant coffee. Freeze as is for 3 hours.

Recipe: Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Ice Cream

2 c Milk
1 3/4 c Sugar
1/2 ts Salt
2 c Half & Half
1 tb Vanilla Extract
4 c Whipping Cream
Pillsbury Chocolate Chip - Cookie Dough (large size) - OR homemade cookie dough

Take the chocolate cookie dough out of fridge and leave out till needed. Scald milk until bubbles form around edge. Remove from heat. Add sugar and salt. Stir until dissolved. Stir in half and half, vanilla, and whipping cream. Cover and refrigerate 30 minutes. Freeze as directed by your ice cream machine's instructions. Once ice cream has been through the entire ice cream machine process and is now a chilled soft ice cream, add the chocolate chip cookie dough. Just break up the dough as best you can with your hands and drop it in small clusters into the soft ice cream. Try to mix it around to ensure that the cookie dough is evenly distributed throughout the ice cream. Put the ice cream in the freezer for several hours until hardened.

Recipe: Chocolate Banana Ice Cream

3 eggs
1 cup sugar
2 oz bittersweet chocolate
2 cups table cream (18% milk-fat)
1 1/2 cups milk
6 tablespoons cocoa powder
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
3 over-ripe bananas
Juice of 1 lemon

Beat eggs lightly. Beat sugar in to eggs. Melt chocolate in milk and cream. When chocolate partially melted, stir in cocoa powder. Continue stirring chocolate/cream mixture until hot but not quite boiling. Stir hot chocolate/cream mixture in to eggs. Stir in vanilla extract. Cool. When ready to make, mash bananas and lemon juice together Make chocolate mixture in ice cream maker. Just before ready, add banana mixture.
Note: Use good quality, *very* ripe bananas. Otherwise your ice cream will have a strange flavor.

Recipe: Chocolate Almond Butter Ice Cream

2 oz bittersweet chocolate
5 Tbl cocoa powder
2 cup milk
3 eggs, lightly beaten
1 cup sugar
1 cup cream
1.5 tsp pure vanilla extract
3/4 cup almond butter

Melt chocolate over low heat.
Gradually stir in cocoa powder and milk while continuing to heat. You want the consistency to be thick but not solid as you add the milk and cocoa powder. Beat sugar into eggs. Stir hot chocolate/milk mixture into eggs. Add cream and vanilla extract. Cool. Just before adding to ice cream maker, stir a cup of ice cream mixture into almond butter. Once mixed, stir into rest of ice cream mixture. Freeze in ice cream maker according to manufacturer's instructions.

Recipe: Chocolate Ice Cream 3

3 eggs
1/2 cup sugar
8 oz bittersweet chocolate
1 cup milk
2 cups table cream (18% milk fat)
1 tablespoon cocoa powder
1 tablespoon vanilla extract

Beat eggs lightly. Beat sugar into eggs. Heat chocolate, milk, and 1 cup of cream together in a sauce pan. Stir occasionally until chocolate starts to melt. When chocolate partially melted, stir in cocoa powder. When hot (and chocolate fully melted and cocoa dissolved) but not boiling, remove from stove and stir in to eggs. Add second cup of cream and vanilla. Cool. and make in ice cream maker.

Recipe: Chocolate Ice Cream 2

4 oz unsweetened chocolate (I used Ghirardelli)
1 1/4 cup milk
2 eggs, lightly beaten
1 cup sugar
1 cup cream
1 pinch salt
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
1/2 cup milk

Melt chocolate over low heat while heating milk over low heat. Gradually stir milk into melted chocolate. If you don't stir milk in gradually, chocolate will clump and you will have difficulty breaking it down. If you stir milk in gradually, chocolate will clump, but you'll be able to break it down when you add a little more milk. Heat while stirring until smooth. Mixture will become thick. Beat sugar into eggs. Stir in hot chocolate/milk mixture into eggs. Add cream, salt, vanilla, and extra 1/2 cup milk. Cool. Freeze in ice cream maker.

Recipe: Chocolate Ice Cream 1

4 egg yolks, lightly beaten
1 cup sugar
2 cups table cream (18% milk fat)
1 1/2 cups milk
1/2 cup cocoa powder (sifted)
2 tsp pure vanilla extract

Beat egg yolks lightly. Beat in sugar. Heat the cream/milk on the stove. As it's heating, beat in cocoa powder. Heat cream/milk/cocoa mix until steaming. Stir into egg/sugar mix. Add vanilla extract. Cool. Freeze in ice cream maker.

Notes:
I use Dutch processed cocoa (instead of American processed), but I'm not sure how much difference it makes. I've tried using a higher milk fat content, but then the mix takes on the consistency of pudding when cooled, and doesn't freeze hard enough in ice cream maker.

Making Money Selling Homemade Chocolate

Once you have discovered the joys of making homemade chocolate and you have caused your friends and family to gain weight with your constant gifts of homemade chocolate you might discover that you have a real passion for making homemade chocolate. If you are truly passionate about making homemade chocolate and you want to try and make a little extra money you could try selling your homemade chocolate.

The first thing that you need to do if you want to start selling your homemade chocolate is to find out what the licensing requirements are in your state to have a commercial kitchen and you will need to either have your kitchen inspected or rent a kitchen that has been inspected. Once you have a certificate saying that your kitchen is approved so you will be ready to start making homemade chocolate for sale.

Once you have the necessary paperwork to start selling homemade chocolate you’ll have to figure out what your niche market is. Who are you trying to sell homemade chocolates to? Are you going to make homemade chocolate wedding favors and other party favors or are you going to focus on making homemade chocolates for gifts or do you want to do it all and just make as many types of homemade chocolate as you can?

Sometimes people get started selling their homemade chocolates by selling them at craft fairs, church sales and other places where they are already known to most of the people that are attending. Getting family and friends to buy your homemade chocolate can be a great way to start a small side business selling your homemade chocolate.

If you decide to start selling your homemade chocolate then it’s a good idea to sit down and map out a basis business plan and set some goals for your business. Even if you just want to sell your homemade chocolate part time on the side it helps to have a business plan and some idea of what your expenses for the business are.

Once you’re ready to start taking orders you can set up a website where people can order homemade chocolates from you. Make sure that you do some research into the different types of shipping methods available and how much each one costs because each freight carrier will have their own set of rules about shipping food.

If you don’t want to bother with the hassles of shipping food you can also sell wholesale to local stores and bakeries. If you are making gourmet chocolate at home then local gourmet stores or your local food co-op might be interested in buying your locally produced homemade chocolate in bulk to sell in their stores. Local stores will also sometimes accept consignment sales where you pay them a percentage of what you make.

If you really love making homemade chocolate and you have developed a lot of your own special and unique recipes and you love coming up with new recipes then you might also want to think about selling homemade chocolate recipe books or starting a blog about your passion for homemade chocolate making.

Homemade chocolate making can be a great hobby, and it can make you some extra money too if you are willing to put the time and effort into making your business grow.

Making Gourmet Homemade Chocolate

Most of the time when people think about making homemade chocolate they think about someone working in the kitchen and making some chocolate that is tasty, but not really the kind of high end chocolate that you find in a gourmet store somewhere. But you can make gourmet chocolate at home, and it doesn’t have to cost a fortune to make.

If you have a very sophisticated palette and you really enjoy gourmet chocolate but don’t like paying $7 or more for a gourmet chocolate bar you can easily make your own gourmet chocolate at home.

The ingredients make the chocolate. Whenever you are baking or cooking the quality of the ingredients that you use really make a difference. If you bake cookies with butter instead of margarine you can taste the difference. If you use real vanilla extract instead of imitation vanilla you will taste the different. The same principle applies when you’re making gourmet chocolate at home. Using only high quality ingredients is a must if you want to make the kind of chocolate that your friends and family will swear you bought from a gourmet shop.

If you want to make gourmet chocolate but you don’t want to go to the extreme of ordering cacao beans, roasting them, grinding them, and going through the entire traditional candy making process you can buy melt and pour style chocolate bases that are made from higher end ingredients that most of the melt and pour style chocolate.

Another ingredient that is really important when you’re making gourmet chocolate is the add-ins that you’re putting in your chocolate. You can buy organic nuts, make your own peanut butter blends, get special organic and luxury syrups and sugars and oils and fresh herbs like lavender and rosehips to add into your gourmet chocolate.

When you’re making gourmet chocolate you can also add in different kinds of high end alcohol to some of your chocolate to give it a great exotic taste. For example you could pair a high quality dark chocolate base with some raspberry flavored vodka and a few dried raspberries to make a wonderfully dark and sweet homemade chocolate. Or you could add some high end cognac to a gourmet chocolate dipping sauce that you would use to dip fruit into.

Making gourmet chocolate might take more practice than making regular homemade chocolate because the flavors in gourmet chocolate need to be very subtle but if you love gourmet chocolate you can learn to make it at home and have a lot of fun making your own gourmet chocolate flavors.

Homemade Chocolate Ideas for Other Occasions

You don’t need a holiday or a wedding or a birthday as an excuse to make some homemade chocolate. Homemade chocolates are always a treat, and almost any party or gathering is more fun with some homemade chocolate.

Whether you are looking for an activity to keep the kids busy on a rainy afternoon, or a project that you and your child can do together, or something special that you can make for a friend on a limited budget spending a little time and a little money making homemade chocolate can really brighten your day, or your someone else’s.

Here are some easy and inexpensive ways that you can use homemade chocolates to brighten someone’s day:

• If you have been very busy lately and haven’t had a lot of time leftover to do things with your kids make a date to spend just an hour in the evening making homemade chocolates with them. The process of making chocolate is easy and fun and it will give you a chance to reconnect with your kids.
  
  
• Make some homemade chocolates in heart shapes after your spouse goes to bed and leave a small box of homemade candy tied with a red ribbon on his/her pillow the next morning.
  
  
• Surprise a co-worker that has been having a hard time adjusting to something at work with a “pick me up” gift box of homemade chocolates and some special tea and a mug.
  
  
• Leave some special homemade hot chocolate mixes in the break room at work so that everyone can enjoy a nice sweet treat in the afternoon.
  
  
• Send a small box of homemade chocolates in fun shapes to school with your kids for their teachers as a small “thank you” gift for no reason.
  
  
• When one of your friends has a bad breakup or has relationship problems leave a gift basket on her doorstep with some homemade chocolates, a DVD of her favorite movie, some wine, and new silk pajamas or a cozy bathrobe and slippers.
  
  
• Put some small, individually wrapped pieces of homemade chocolate in your child’s jacket pocket at random times.
  
  
• When you leave a tip for the waiter at your favorite restaurant or the barista that makes your coffee leave a few individually wrapped homemade chocolates too.
  
  
• Bring over some homemade hot chocolate and two mugs to a lonely neighbor, then sit down and talk and share the hot chocolate.

Homemade Chocolate Ideas for Wedding Showers

Homemade chocolates are the perfect party favors for wedding showers. Most women love chocolate, and love handmade things, so giving your friends and family some special chocolates made just for them as a way of saying “thank you” to them for coming to celebrate your impending marriage is a lovely way to let them know you appreciate them. Here are some fun ideas that you can use to make handmade chocolate wedding shower favors for your friends and family:

If you are having an “adult” wedding shower then some homemade chocolates in adult shapes are a lot of fun and a great conversation piece.

One of the most popular wedding shower favors is a small box of homemade truffles or other fancy chocolates tied with a bow. Usually the box and ribbon are in the bride’s wedding colors. If you want to make the favors extra special take a moment to write a personal message on each box.

Chocolate boxes are also fun for wedding showers, especially when they are filled with other small gifts.

Small chocolate bars imprinted with the bride’s name or a cute saying and wrapped in individualized packaging are inexpensive and cute wedding shower favors if you have a lot of guests attending the shower.

Since there are lots of women that watch their weight very carefully a low calorie chocolate dipping sauce and some fresh fruit is a nice alternative dessert at a wedding shower for women that don’t want to indulge in cake or other high calorie desserts.

A handmade chocolate dipping sauce in a personalized bottle makes a nice wedding shower favor. Make sure that you have a few sugar free bottles for anyone that needs to have sugar free chocolate.

You can also serve a “cake” made up entirely of small boxes of individual homemade chocolates and decorated with ribbons in the bride’s colors. Arrange the boxes on a cake platter to look like a layer cake and you’ll have a beautiful alternative to a high calorie cake that is already portioned out.

If you want to celebrate your friendship with the friends and family who have attended the shower a nice party favor is a special mug that contains a packet of homemade hot chocolate mix and a coupon for one afternoon chat with you where you can share the hot chocolate.

Need a special wedding shower favor for your maid of honor? Pack a gift basket full of homemade chocolates, chocolate covered popcorn, two DVDs of movies that you always watch together and a cozy throw blanket so that the two of you can get together, watch movies, and share some homemade chocolates before you get married.

Homemade Chocolate Ideas for Weddings

You might not have thought about using homemade chocolates as wedding favors but homemade chocolates fit in perfectly at weddings. Homemade chocolate wedding favors are also a great way for the bride and groom to save some money because homemade wedding favors will cost a lot less than commercial ones.

At a wedding you give you favors to your friends and family to thank them for coming to celebrate the wedding with you. Since homemade chocolates are a very personal and individual gift they are the perfect “thank you” for friends and family. There are hundreds of ways that you can incorporate homemade chocolates into your wedding but here are just a few of the most popular ways that people use homemade chocolates as wedding favors:

• Get some plastic champagne glasses and fill them with individually wrapped homemade chocolates. Place a square of tulle over the top and tie the tulle down with a ribbon so that the chocolates don’t fall out. Place one at each guest’s seat.
  
  
• Chocolate boxes made in the shape of a heart with the bride and groom’s names and the date carved into them are elegant party favors that are a big hit with guests. If you want to make them even more personal carve each guest’s name into a chocolate box, just make sure that you give the right box to the right guest!
  
  
• Bottles of chocolate dipping sauce labeled with the bride and groom’s name and the dates and a kitchy name are fun wedding favors.
  
  
• Give your guests packets of special hot chocolate and two mugs in a basket with a book of love poems and instructions for them to sit and read the book together over a cup of special homemade hot chocolate.
  
  
• Make a centerpiece of homemade chocolate roses on sticks that are decorated to look like stems and have each guest take one of the chocolate roses home with them at the end of the night.
  
  
• In the kid’s area set up a station where kids can make their own chocolate to keep them occupied. Just make that they are supervised and that aprons are available to protect their nice clothes.
  
  
• Have a chocolate fountain flowing with a special “signature” chocolate flavor and have plenty of strawberries and other fresh fruit available for dipping.
  
  
• A great wedding favor is to package a few homemade chocolates with a small, handwritten recipe book full of great recipes for homemade chocolates. Give the recipes fun names like “Spice up your marriage Spicy Hot Chocolate”.

Homemade Chocolate Ideas for Birthdays

Birthday parties and homemade chocolate go hand in hand. There are a lot of ways that you can use homemade chocolate at birthday parties as an inexpensive, easy to make party favor. Homemade chocolate is always a big hit but homemade chocolate goes over especially well at kids’ birthday parties. Here are some fun ways that you can use homemade chocolate to liven up birthday parties.

• Make homemade chocolate lollipops for your kid’s birthday party. Lollipops and chocolate suckers are great party favors because they can be individually wrapped and they are easy to carry around. Even if your child’s birthday party is somewhere else like a restaurant or park or museum you can easily hand out homemade chocolate suckers as party favors.
  
  
• Make sugar free homemade chocolates in shapes that fit with the theme of the party. Get a bulk order or small Chinese food take out boxes, the little white boxes with wire handles to put the chocolates in. You can get them in bulk online. Put out crayons, stickers, glitter, glue and other materials and let the kids decorate their own party favor box then fill the boxes with homemade sugar free chocolate as the kids are leaving. The other parents will appreciate that the candies are sugar free and the kids will have a sweet treat to take home.
  
  
• Make chocolate boxes for the kids to put their other party favors into and take home. Chocolate boxes are always a smash at birthday parties. You can make chocolate boxes for grownup birthday parties too, and put grownup party favors in them. Homemade chocolate boxes are always a favorite party favor.
  
  
• If the kids are old enough make one of the party activities making their own chocolate. You can melt the chocolate in the microwave for them but then let them add their own fun items into the chocolate like nuts, candy, fruit and so on and let them choose a mold, pour their chocolate concoction in it and by the time the party is over the chocolate should be hard and ready to take home.
  
  
• For grownup parties, set up a chocolate fountain flowing with some delicious homemade chocolate sauce and set up a fruit bar full of fresh fruit for dipping. This gives people that are concerned about their calorie intake a low calorie dessert alternative to birthday cake.
  
  
• Use homemade chocolates as the prizes for some of the party games and let each winner choose their own gift bag full of delicious chocolates.
  
  
• At grownup parties give out a mug with a decorated packet of special hot chocolate mix inside and print the recipe on the envelope so your guests can make it at home.

It’s almost a must that you serve something chocolate at birthday parties. If you are the kind of person that doesn’t really care for chocolate then you can serve some homemade chocolate for your guests so that they will have some chocolate to enjoy.

Homemade Chocolate Ideas for Mother's Day

Mother’s Day is another holiday that you can make a lot more special by giving homemade chocolate. Remember when you were little and your mom loved the presents that you made with your own hands the best? Moms always love handmade presents the best, so this year make her some delicious homemade chocolate treats. The only limit to making homemade chocolate gifts is your imagination, but here are some ideas to get you started:

• Use a soap mold of a mother and child in a cameo to make some special Mother’s Day chocolates. Make sure that you use a chocolate base that is made up of mom’s favorite types of chocolate.
  
  
• Make a gift basket for mom that has homemade chocolates, special hot chocolate mixes, new mugs, and a soothing CD to play when she needs to relax.
  
  
• Make coupons that promise your mother a homemade chocolate treat every month, along with a visit from you.
  
  
• Sit down and share a cup of tea and some homemade chocolate with your mom.
  
  
• Make a sauce of mom’s favorite chocolate and drizzle it over some buttered popcorn to make chocolate pop corn balls. Mom will love to have a crunchy, sweet snack to enjoy when she’s watching TV.
  
  
• Start Mother’s Day off with a special breakfast of chocolate covered fruit.
  
  
• If you have small children making homemade chocolate is a fantastic way for the kids to make something to give to their mom, but always supervise them when they’re around the hot liquid chocolate.
  
  
• Have your kids decorate gift boxes with glitter and crayons and pack the boxes full of homemade chocolates.
  
  
• Have each child make a handprint in chocolate for mom.
  
  
• Give your mom the best gift you can give her, the gift of your time. Spend the afternoon in the kitchen with your mom making homemade chocolate together and eating everything that you make.

Handmade gifts mean more to mothers than probably anyone else, and making some homemade chocolate to give to your mom is a gift that she’ll remember so this year instead of buying her another robe or taking her to a fancy brunch that is crowded and overpriced just make her some homemade chocolate and watch her face light up.

Homemade Chocolate Ideas for Valentine's Day

Nothing says “I love you” like some homemade chocolates on Valentine’s Day. Since the price of candy and flowers usually goes sky high around Valentine’s Day making your own homemade chocolates for your sweetheart can be a great way to save money and still give that special someone a gift that they’ll love. When you need a special homemade valentine treat you can:

• Make homemade chocolates using some “naughty” chocolate molds for a little bit of fun.
  
  
• Plan a sensuous dessert by cutting up some fresh fruit and making an exotic, spicy chocolate dipping sauce.
  
  
• Make your sweetie a dozen chocolate rose lollipops instead of giving a dozen roses.
  
  
• Use Valentine themed cookie cutters to make special chocolate bars and fudge pieces.
  
  
• Make homemade chocolates that your child can bring to school and share with classmates instead of buying expensive valentines.
  
  
• Surprise your sweetie with heart shaped pancakes and homemade chocolate sauce for breakfast.
  
  
• Make some special hot chocolate mixes as gifts for friends and family.
  
  
• Mix up an exotic chocolate sauce and serve it warm over some cold ice cream.
  
  
• Have an Anti- Valentine’s Day party and make some dark chocolate broken heart candies for your friends that are single.
  
  
• Make homemade chocolate gift bags for everyone in the office.
  
  
• Use Valentine’s Day molds to create chocolate Cupids and then decorate them with candy coloring. Give one to everyone you meet on Valentine’s Day.
  
  
• Make yourself a special Valentine’s Day chocolate treat and fill some dark chocolate truffles with champagne and a little rosewater.
  
  
• Make a box of homemade chocolates for your partner and top each one with a rose petal.

Homemade Chocolate Ideas for Easter

Every chocolate lover gets excited around Easter because no Easter celebration would be complete without lots of chocolate. You can make the Easter holiday much more personal and save a lot of money on Easter baskets if you make your own homemade chocolate treats for Easter.

Since nearly everyone goes overboard and eats too much chocolate during the Easter holiday it’s a good idea to make low calorie, low fat, or sugar free chocolate during Easter. That way you can eat the same amount of candy but you’ll be eating fewer calories and less fat, and so will your kids.

Here are some ideas that you can use to make your own homemade chocolates for Easter:

• Put your own twist on classic chocolate bunnies by using exotic chocolates or an unusual chocolate base like chocolate mixed with spices or fruit to make chocolate bunnies.
  
  
• Make edible homemade chocolate baskets instead of chocolate bunnies, then arrange other holiday treats inside the basket. To make a chocolate Easter basket melt some base chocolate in a plastic bag and blow up a small balloon. Put the balloon inside the bag of melted chocolate until the bottom half of the balloon is thickly coated with chocolate and then immediately move the balloon to the refrigerator.
  
  
• Once the chocolate hardens pop the balloon and pull the balloon out and you’ll have a solid chocolate Easter basket that you can use for your kids or as a holiday table centerpiece. You can even use white chocolate as a base and dye it with food coloring to make your chocolate baskets in different colors. Be careful though! The chocolate will melt if left out in the warm weather.
  
  
• If you want to cut down on the amount of sugar that your kids will be eating during the Easter holiday make a chocolate dipping sauce and then cut fruit into Easter shapes and dip the fruit into the chocolate. Once the chocolate hardens your kids will have a sweet holiday treat with a lot less sugar and calories.
  
  
• Instead of decorating hard boiled eggs in pretty colors make some dark chocolate eggs and use candy coloring to pain the chocolate eggs the way that you would paint traditional hard boiled eggs.
  
  
• Most Easter candies are made from milk chocolate so stay away from using milk chocolate in your homemade Easter candy bases and use something more exotic to make your homemade chocolate stand out more.

Making the Holidays More Festive with Homemade Chocolate Drinks

Almost everyone loves hot chocolate, and during the winter holidays hot chocolate drinks are everywhere. Hot chocolate is a great drink to have at parties where people might not want to drink alcohol and where kids will be present. Homemade hot chocolate mixes also make great gifts.

So this year instead of spending a lot of money on fancy hot chocolate mixes to give as gifts or to keep in the pantry for family and friends you should make your own unique hot chocolate mixes that you use to serve hot chocolate to guests or use as gifts and stocking stuffers.

Homemade hot chocolate mixes are easy to make. The first thing that you need to make homemade hot chocolate is cocoa powder. You can buy sweetened or unsweetened cocoa powder.

Then you need some powdered non dairy creamer or powdered milk. Creamer will make your homemade hot chocolate very rich so most experts suggest that you use mostly powdered milk but add a touch of powdered creamer just to add a little richness to your hot chocolate mix. Use a flavored non dairy creamer to enhance the flavor of the hot cocoa.

Once you have a cocoa powder and milk or creamer base you can use your imagination and cooking skills to put together some exotic hot cocoa mix treats.

Here are some fun ideas that you can use to make your own tasty hot chocolate this holiday season:

• For people that are diabetic or can’t have sugar use unsweetened cocoa and use a sugar substitute to sweeten the cocoa powder.
  
  
• Add spices and herbs to make Mexican hot chocolate or other types of hot and spicy hot chocolate.
  
  
• Add dried fruit and herbs to give your hot chocolate a kick.
  
  
• Add mini marshmallows to make a hot chocolate mix everyone will love.
  
  
• Combine different types of cocoa powder to get different flavors.
  
  
• To make low fat hot chocolate mix use dark cocoa powder and low fat creamer and milk.
  
  
• To make a very personal gift on a budget make up several different kinds of hot chocolate mixes and package them in plastic bags that are inside pretty envelopes and pack them in a basket with two mugs and some homemade chocolates or cookies.

When you’re packaging your hot chocolate it’s a good idea to list all the ingredients on the package in case someone that you are giving the hot chocolate too is allergic to one of the ingredients.

Homemade Chocolate Ideas for Christmas

Holidays are a great time to surprise your family and friends with homemade chocolates, and making homemade chocolate for Christmas is sure to make the holiday more festive. If you love to give personal gifts to your family and friends, or if you are trying to keep your holiday spending budget low making homemade chocolates make great, inexpensive presents.

Here are some ideas that you can use to make your Christmas holiday more festive with homemade chocolate.

• Homemade chocolates that are wrapped in plastic and then arranged in a pretty holiday tin make wonderful inexpensive gifts for teachers, ministers, postal carriers, newspaper carriers, delivery people, bosses, Secret Santa gift exchanges and holiday parties.
  
  
• When you need to bring a dessert to a holiday party and you want your dessert to really stand out make some homemade chocolates and arrange them on a holiday serving platter with a fresh fruit garnish.
  
  
• Homemade chocolates make great stocking stuffers.
  
  
• Use some of your homemade chocolate to make some rich holiday hot chocolate to enjoy on a cold winter night.
  
  
• Need gifts for a large amount of people, like all the people in your office, or each of the 30 kids in your child’s class at school? Put one or two homemade chocolates in a small candy box and have your child decorate the outside of the box with markers, glue and paint and you have a unique gift that doesn’t cost a lot or take a lot of time to make.
  
  
• Use your holiday cookie cutters to cut out some homemade chocolate fudge in holiday shapes.
  
  
• Make sugar free and low fat homemade chocolates instead of Christmas cookies to try and keep the amount of holiday calories that you eat under control.
  
  
• Make some homemade chocolate bark or chocolate cherry bark and arrange it on a platter with some fresh fruit and use that as an edible centerpiece for your holiday table.

Tips for Packaging Your Homemade Chocolate

You can have a lot of fun packaging your homemade chocolate treats for a special occasion, to give as a gift, or just as a treat for the family or your friends. There are lots of different ways that you can package your homemade chocolate but when you’re picking out packaging for your homemade chocolate one thing that you need to keep in mind is that the chocolate needs to be in something that is airtight if it’s not going to be eaten immediately.

Because the first concern is always keeping the chocolate fresh usually homemade chocolate comes wrapped in two wrappers, one that is airtight and one that is decorative. You can choose a traditional gold colored candy box with pillow sheet inserts that are the same as other candy boxes. These are usually very similar to the boxes of candy that are popular as Valentine’s Day and Christmas gifts.

Or you can use little cello bags that seal shut with a hair dryer or other heat source. Cello craft bags are easy to use and are very inexpensive. Often they come in different colors or prints so they are great for wrapping homemade chocolates as party favors or birthday party treats.

If you are making lollipops or suckers then cello bags are the best packaging to use because the cello bag won’t stick to the chocolate like plastic wrap will. Put a cello bag over the top of the sucker, use a hair dryer to heat up the cello bag and the bag will mold to the shape of the candy without sticking to it. Put a ribbon or a sticker on the sucker and you have a sanitary package that will keep the chocolate fresh and looks cute.

The packaging that you use for your homemade chocolates is almost as important as the chocolate itself because the packaging is the finishing touch. Whatever type of packaging you pick for your homemade chocolate should be unique and should reflect your personality.

If you are making homemade chocolates for an event or a holiday using special theme packaging always makes a good impression. Even though you might think it’s not necessary to spend a lot of time or money on packaging your chocolate it’s really worth it to take that last step and create a fun package for your chocolate.

After all, you worked hard to make a delicious treat, and in order to keep that treat delicious and safe to eat it’s necessary to put some kind of packaging on it. So pick out some wild or funky packaging or even something sweet and traditional but make sure that whatever packaging you pick out expresses a little of your personality to make your chocolate really unique.

Creative packaging for your homemade chocolate doesn’t have to be expensive to be great it just needs to be something that you designed yourself and put your own artistic stamp on.

Tips for Making Better Homemade Chocolate

When it comes to making homemade chocolates everyone has their own preferred methods that they use and really the only way to learn the best way to make homemade chocolate is to make some. But, here are some quick tips that you can use to make your homemade chocolate better that have been gathered over the years by expert chocolate makers and home chocolate makers alike. These tips can make your homemade chocolate creations even better:

• When you buy chips or wafers of chocolate that you’re going to melt as a chocolate base for your candy don’t take them out of the plastic bags that they come in. Microwave them until they are melted or use a double boiler to melt them and then just cut a small hole in the corner of the bag and use the bag like a pastry bag to pour the chocolate into molds.
  
  
• When you microwave chocolate to melt it start with just 1 minute and then keep microwaving it in 1 minute increments until it’s melted. Every microwave is different and each type of chocolate has a different melting point so the time needed to melt the chocolate will be different on every microwave. Melting the chocolate in one minute increments means that you won’t accidentally burn the chocolate.
  
  
• Don’t freeze your chocolate concoctions. Freezing will start to make the chocolate break down and you’ll lose the delicious flavor of homemade chocolate. Instead of freezing the chocolate store it in an airtight container at room temperature.
  
  
• Dark chocolate that is properly wrapped and stored will stay good for about a year, but milk chocolate will only stay good for about six months. If it’s been longer than six months look for white spots on the chocolate. If the chocolate has white spots, called bloom, it means the chocolate is starting to separate and you should eat immediately or throw it out.
  
  
• To cut calories and make your homemade chocolate last longer take the homemade candy or chocolate bars that you made and cut them into a bunch of small pieces. Wrap the pieces and put them in the refrigerator. When you or the kids want a cold, sweet treat on a hot summer day take out a piece of the cold homemade chocolate. It will have fewer calories and fat than ice cream or a full candy bar and will taste delicious.
  
  
• If you’re really in a jam and you need some chocolate to finish making a batch of homemade chocolate and you’re out of chocolate, you can get by with some melted chocolate chips. It’s not a great solution, but it’s a solution when you need some emergency chocolate for a recipe.
  
  
• If your chocolate does develop bloom and you are not going to eat it right away but don’t want to throw it out you can melt the chocolate down, add some new ingredients, put it in new molds, and then wrap it and put it away.
  

Using Molds

Using molds is a great way to make your chocolate fun and interesting. You can use basic molds that are just in traditional shapes like squares or bars or you can use fun molds that are in all different shapes and styles. If you want to make lollipops or suckers there are special molds that you can use to make those.

There are lots of companies that make special candy molds that are specifically made to be used with chocolate. These are often found in holiday shapes like Easter bunnies, chicks, and eggs or in Christmas shapes like Santa Claus, stars, and Christmas trees. There are candy molds out there for every season so you shouldn’t have any trouble finding a mold that will be perfect for you holiday celebration.

But you’re not limited to just using candy molds for your chocolate. You can use soap molds, cake molds, or other types of molds too. As long as a mold is made from a heavy plastic it should work just fine. To make your candy slide out of the mold more easily spray the inside of the mold with a no stick cooking spray. That way you won’t have a situation where half of your chocolate candy ends up stuck inside the mold. If chocolate does get stuck inside a mold turn then mold over so that the open side is facing down and run the mold under the hot water tap until the chocolate loosens and slides out.

To take care of your molds make sure that you wash each one thoroughly after you’re done with it. Molds can be washed with normal soap and water like dishes almost most are not dishwasher safe so don’t put them in the dishwasher unless the mold says that it’s dishwasher safe.

When you pour the chocolate into the molds it might take several hours or even several days for the chocolate to harden in the mold. Even though you might be tempted to put the chocolate and the mold into the freezer so that it hardens more quickly you shouldn’t do that. It will make the chocolate harden too fast and it can damage the mold. You can put the chocolate filled mold in the refrigerator though, and that should help the chocolate solidify in the mold more quickly.

Using molds is a cheap and easy way to make your homemade chocolate more fun. Getting your candy out of a mold can be tricky but one way that you can make it easier to get the chocolate out of the mold once it’s hard is to drop the mold onto the counter before you set it down to loosen the chocolate inside the mold. Running the mold under a little hot water is also a good way to get chocolate candy out of a mold.

Some craft stores carry thin plastic molds that are very cheap but these don’t last very long so they’re not really a bargain. Spend a few dollars more and get molds made from high density plastic that are very thick. They’re really worth the extra cost.

5 Fun Ways to Make Your Chocolate Unique

One of the most fun things about making your own homemade chocolate is that you can play around with different ingredients and make your own unique chocolate recipes and chocolate treats. Putting your individual stamp on the chocolate that you make will also make it more personal when you give the chocolate as gifts to people that you love. And if someday you want to go further and actually sell the homemade chocolate that you make then having your own unique chocolates will make it a lot easier to sell your chocolate.

But most people that make homemade chocolate use the same basic types of chocolate and the same base chocolate mixes from candy supply stores so how can you make your own unique chocolates without making your chocolate entirely from scratch? Here are five easy ways that you can create delicious treats that reflect your own personal style:

1. Mix chocolate bases – Just because a lot of people that make homemade chocolate use the same bases doesn’t mean that you can’t make your base chocolate unique. You can use the same chocolate bases that other people use but just combine them in a unique way to make your own signature flavor. Mixing dark chocolate and milk chocolate, or semisweet chocolate with white chocolate, or mixing other flavors together to create your own unique base can be a great way to make your homemade chocolates stand out from the crowd.

2. Add things to your base chocolate – There are lots of things that you can add to your chocolate base to make your chocolates tastier and more unique. You can use toasted sesame seeds to provide crunch, or you can use peanut butter, seeds, nuts, fruits, and lots of other things to make chocolates that are different and delicious.

3. Make your own molds – Think outside the box when it comes to the molds that you use to put your chocolates in. Instead of just using traditional candy molds in traditional shapes use cake molds, soap molds, cookie cutters and other tools to make fun and unique shapes for your chocolates. If you want to make your own molds you can find books and the supplies that you need to make your own plastic molds.

4. Use unique packages – How you pack your candy can become a signature style for you that will set your chocolate apart from other chocolates and apart from commercial candy too. Instead of using traditional boxes look for fun and unique ways to package your candy like using hand painted box or little cello bags.

5. Use decorations – Using candy coloring and other fun decorations on your chocolates can help you turn even the plainest homemade chocolate into a fun treat. Make sure that you package decorated candy properly to make sure that the decorations don’t fall off in the package.

Making Low Fat Chocolate

If you are on a diet or if someone in your house is trying to lose weight then you might want to try making some low fat chocolate that you can keep around the house or give to your friends as gifts. Homemade low fat chocolates are very popular as desserts for sleepover parties or as party favors at teen birthday favors. It’s also nice to have some low fat chocolates around when you want to be able to enjoy some chocolate without having to worry about how much fat you’re eating.

One way to make low fat chocolates at home is to look for some pre-made low fat chocolate chips or bricks that you can melt down and use to make your own candies. But if you can’t find low fat chocolate that is pre-made or you don’t want to spend a lot of money on a pricey pre-made chocolate base you can easily make your own low fat version of traditional chocolate that you can use to make brownies, cookies, or candy treats. A low fat chocolate dipping sauce for fresh fruit makes a great low fat and low calorie dessert that won’t make you feel like you’re missing out on treat.

Use these tips to make your own low fat chocolate:

• Develop a taste for dark chocolate. Since dark chocolate has no milk products in it dark chocolate hast the lowest fat content of the different kinds of chocolate.
  
  
• Substitute bittersweet or semi-sweet chocolate for milk chocolate. The less milk and cocoa butter that the chocolate has the lower the fat content will be.
  
  
• Don’t add extras to your chocolate. If you must add something to the chocolate make it some chopped nuts that are good for your heart or raisins which are healthier and lower in fat then adding things like candy pieces or peanut butter chips.
  
  
• Use a chocolate coating instead of chocolate. If you are craving a sweet dessert but really want to keep your fat intake low make a low fat chocolate dipping sauce from some semi-sweet or dark chocolate and then just lightly coat some fresh fruit, a granola bar, or some other low fat, healthy snack with the chocolate. That way you’ll still get a chocolate fix but you won’t be eating a lot of fat to get it.
  
  
• Make some low fat hot chocolate instead of candy. Make some low fat hot chocolate using dark chocolate and enjoy a warm cup of hot chocolate instead of making brownies or another type of high fat dessert.
  
  
• These are just some simple ways that you can still have chocolate treats without worrying about ruining your diet or going overboard on your fat intake. If you have kids and you’re concerned by how much fat your kids eat just substituting some low fat chocolate instead of regular chocolate in cookies, brownies, and chocolate milk can make a big difference in how much fat your kids are eating every day.

Making Sugar Free Chocolate

If you or a loved one is Diabetic or is on a diet where they can’t tolerate sugar making your own sugar free chocolate is a great way that you or they can enjoy a sweet treat without sugar. If you are making desserts for a party or dinner and have friends or family attending it would be a thoughtful gesture to include some sugar free chocolates on the menu so that the people who can’t have sugar or are watching their sugar intake could still have a nice dessert.

There are several ways that you can make your own sugar free chocolate. If you are handy in the kitchen and feel comfortable making your own chocolate you can use a base chocolate like unsweetened chocolate that has no sugar in it but you’ll have to add something to the chocolate to make it sweet. If you can use a sugar substitute that has the same consistency that sugar has that is probably the best route but you can also add things like fruit juice to the unsweetened chocolate to sweeten it.

When you are combining unsweetened chocolate with a sugar substitute you should always mix the two ingredients when they are dry, otherwise they won’t combine properly and they will separate when they are wet. If you are using fruit juice to sweeten the unsweetened chocolate pour in very small amounts and make sure that you add a thickener to the chocolate to keep the chocolate at the right consistency.

If you don’t feel comfortable trying to take an unsweetened chocolate base and trying to sweeten it yourself you can always buy sugar free or diabetic friendly chocolate in blocks or in chips and then use that as a base for your chocolate treats.

Once you have an unsweetened or sugar free chocolate base you can make chocolate candy the same way that you would with regular chocolate by pouring it into molds and letting the candy harden. But if you want to make a fancy chocolate dessert like a chocolate mousse, or a chocolate dipping sauce for fresh fruit, or even sugar free hot chocolate you can still use the sugar free chocolate as a base and then you can experiment with different recipes using the sugar free chocolate as an ingredient.

You can even make sugar free chocolate chip cookies by chopping up small chips of the sugar free chocolate base and adding them to some sugar free cookie dough although you will have to be careful what temperature you bake the cookies at or the chocolate will melt.

If you are planning on making holiday treats or chocolates as gifts for your kid’s teachers, friends and neighbors, or anyone that you don’t know very well it’s always a good idea to include at least a few sugar free chocolates in the gift package because you never know if someone can have chocolate that has regular sugar in it or not. People that can’t have sugar will find it very thoughtful that you included some sugar free chocolates in the gift.

5 Tools You Will Need to Make Homemade Chocolate

Some books and magazines about candy making will say that you need to have a lot of special equipment in order to make chocolate at home but that’s not necessarily true. There are really only five tools that you have to have in order to make great chocolate at home and you probably already have at least some of them in your kitchen. They are:

1. Candy thermometer – Some chocolate candy does need to be heated to a certain temperature in order to be safe to eat, and some types of chocolate need to be heated to a certain temperature in order to be liquid enough to pour and set properly in a mold so it’s a good idea to have at least one candy themometer on hand.

2. Mixing bowls – You will go through mixing bowls like crazy when you are making chocolate, especially if you are mixing other ingredients into a chocolate base. To save money on mixing bowls go to your local Goodwill or Salvation Army store. Charity shops like that usually have kitchen and house wares sections where you can find great deals on glass and stainless steel mixing bowls. You can also look for mixing bowls at garage and yard sales.

3. Pots and pans -If you are using pre-made chocolate base you can heat that base in a microwave until it’s liquid enough to work with but you will need saucepans to mix in other ingredients and bring the chocolate to the correct temperature. Just like mixing bowls you can often find mismatched pots and pans at charity stores and garage sales. You can also use two pans to make your own double boiler when a chocolate recipe calls for you to use a double boiler.

4. Molds – Once you have your chocolate blended just the way you want it and have added any extras that you want to add into the chocolate you’re going to need something to pour that chocolate into so that you can make chocolate candies. It’s always good idea to have a wide variety of chocolate molds that are clean and ready to go.

5. Candy Coloring – If you want to really decorate your handmade chocolates and make them fun shapes and colors you will need to use special candy coloring. Normal food coloring won’t color chocolate. To get the colors to show on the chocolate it’s necessary to have special food coloring that is made for candy and chocolate.

These are just a few of the supplies that you might need to make chocolate but if you have these supplies always on hand then you shouldn’t have any trouble making delicious homemade chocolates at any time. If you are going to make a special type of chocolate or you want to use a special recipe then you might need specialized equipment but in general you can get by just using these pieces of equipment and what you already have in your kitchen.

Best Types of Chocolate to Use in Homemade Chocolate

When it comes to making your own homemade chocolate there are lots of different chocolates that can use depending on your tastes and who you are making the chocolate for. For example, dark chocolate has no milk products in it so if you are making chocolate for someone that is a vegan or someone that is lactose intolerant you should use a dark chocolate base because it doesn’t contain any milk. Here is a quick overview of the most common types of chocolate that you can use to make your own homemade chocolate:

Unsweetened chocolate – You probably have has some experience with unsweetened chocolate before. Unsweetened chocolate is often used in baking to add a rich chocolate flavor to food. You can unsweeten chocolate as a base to make sugar free chocolate and use something other than sugar to give the chocolate a sweeter taste. Many people that are diabetic or are watching their sugar intake will use unsweetened chocolate and a sugar substitute to make their own homemade chocolate.

Dark chocolate – As previously stated, dark chocolate has no milk in it so it’s great to use as a base for people that can’t or choose not to eat milk or milk products. Some people also enjoy the dark, slightly bitter taste of dark chocolate.

Bittersweet chocolate – This chocolate is slightly sweeter than unsweetened chocolate that has no sugar in it at all but it has very little sugar in it. If you want to make chocolate that has a lot less sugar than other types of chocolate but you don’t want to use a commercial sugar substitute you can use bittersweet chocolate as a base for your homemade chocolates.

Semi-sweet chocolate – Semi-sweet chocolate is slightly sweeter than bittersweet chocolate and has a slightly higher sugar content but still has a lower sugar content than most chocolate. Semi-sweet is one of the most popular type of chocolates used in candy making and is also often used in making chocolate chip cookies.

Milk chocolate – Milk chocolate is a rich chocolate that contains high levels of sugar and at least 12% milk or milk solids. Most milk chocolate is made with condensed or evaporated milk. Milk chocolate is very sweet and has a very low cocoa content so it doesn’t have the bitter or slightly harsh taste that other chocolates have.

White Chocolate – White chocolate is really not chocolate, it’s a confection made of cocoa butter, sugar and milk that is often flavored with vanilla or other flavors. It’s called chocolate because it contains cocoa butter but there is no actual cocoa in it.


You can always experiment with different flavors by mixing and matching different types of chocolate too. For example, a touch of milk chocolate might give your semi-sweet homemade chocolate a little bit of richness that will really enhance the flavor. Play around with the different kinds of chocolate until you find a mixture that really tastes great and make that your “signature” chocolate base.

Making Great Homemade Chocolate Without a Lot of Work

Does the process of making chocolate in a tradition way seem like a lot of hard work that you don’t really want to do? Some people love the lengthy process of making chocolate in a traditional fashion but some people want a faster, easier way to get homemade chocolate. For those people, deciding what to use to flavor the chocolate and using unique molds is the fun part of making homemade chocolate.

To make it easier to get to the fun part of homemade chocolate making you can skip the traditional chocolate making process and use special chocolate chips and wafers that are made for candy making. These chips and wafers are great because you can melt them down in a double boiler or even in a microwave and then you have a great smooth chocolate base to start with and you can get creative deciding what to add to the chocolate to make it uniquely yours.

When you use these chips, wafers and bricks of chocolate to make your own chocolate you’ll be amazed at how creative you can. For many people the traditional way of making chocolate is far too difficult and time consuming. Most people just want to be able to make up some cool homemade treats in their kitchen, they don’t want to have to do a lot of research or find special ingredients or invest in a lot of pricey equipment just make some chocolate at home.

If you’re one of those people that wants to get right to the fun part of making chocolate at home, mixing the chocolates and coming up with new chocolate recipes and so on then you should definitely buy some chocolate base and start to make your own candy using those melt and pour chocolates.

Using melt and pour chocolate is also a great way to try out different chocolate flavors. You can get some very exotic chocolate bases that are full of special spices that would cost a fortune if you wanted to buy individually and add to your chocolate. You can also get sugar free and low fat chocolate bases that eliminate the need for you to buy pricey ingredients or measure ingredients to make chocolate that is sugar free or low fat.

If you want to have a lot of fun making homemade chocolate, save some money and make great gifts that all your friends will love then making chocolate using some great melt and pour chocolate bases will be perfect for you.

Traditional Chocolate Making

Making chocolate the traditional way can be done at home, although it’s a lengthy and involved process. If you want to pursue making homemade chocolate as a hobby and it’s important to you to make all of your chocolate from scratch you can do that but you’ll need some specialized equipment and a lot of time on your hands. Some people really do enjoy making chocolate from scratch, so you should give traditional chocolate making a try to see if it’s a hobby that you are interested in pursuing. Using a traditional process to make chocolate home has several steps:

1. Choosing the beans. Chocolate is made from cacao beans so when you first start off making chocolate the traditional way you need to start with some high quality cacao beans. There are suppliers on the Internet that sell different varieties of cacao beans in many different price ranges so if you are looking for whole cacao beans it isn’t too hard to find them.

2. Roasting the beans. Cacao beans need to be roasted just like coffee beans. You can roast them at home on a cookie sheet in the oven if you watch them carefully or you can buy a specialized cacao bean roaster for at home use if you’re going to pursue traditional candy making as a hobby. The beans are usually roasted for as little as five minutes or as many as 35 minutes depending on the type of bean and the flavor that you want to achieve.

3. Getting the chocolate out. After the beans are roasted you need to crack open the outer shell of the bean to get the chocolate that is inside out. There are several ways to do this at home. You can lay the beans in a single sheet on a counter or on a baking sheet and use a hammer to crack the shells open, then use a blow dryer on a low setting to blow the hulls of the beans away from the chocolate or you can use a juicer to accomplish the same goal. This step can be very messy, so make sure that you have a mop and bucket and lots of clean up supplies standing by.

4. Grinding and Refining the chocolate. Now you need to grind the chocolate down as fine as possible. If you’re going to do this at home many expert chocolate makers recommend using a high quality juicer to grind the chocolate. After the chocolate has all been ground as finely as possible you need to add milk, sugar, preservatives, or anything else that you’re planning on adding to the chocolate to enhance the flavor. Once everything is mixed with the other ingredients the chocolate will need to be agitated slowly but constantly. This process could take up to 12 hours to get the chocolate to exactly the right consistency. Experts recommend using a stand mixer on a low setting to refine the chocolate.

5. Tempering the chocolate. Once the chocolate has been fully refined it needs to be tempered before you can use it. Tempering chocolate at home can be a very complicated process but if you want to cheat a little and speed up the procedure you can use a microwave to temper your homemade chocolate. Once the chocolate is tempered and is smooth, hard and shiny it’s ready to be used or eaten.