After being commissioned to make a cake topped with an edible stiletto, there were about thirteen days that I was interested in fondant.
The cake turned out pretty well, though I was not excited to work with the dry, flavorless stuff again. One good result of my fondant endeavor was the discovery of HowToCookThat, a blog and YouTube channel run by Ann Reardon. In addition to making fondant-covered cakes, Ann has detailed videos and recipes for things like jelly beans from scratch, the world’s biggest Snickers bar, the Sydney Harbor Bridge constructed solely from chocolate, and truffles!
I chose five of Ann’s twenty plus self-developed truffle recipes. Some are standard – hardened chocolate ganache rolled in cocoa powder – and some are more chocolate box variety, such as strawberry creme or dulce de leche. I made (from left to right, below) peanut butter and jelly, coconut, dark chocolate orange, chewy salted caramel, and raspberry.
Ann’s twangy, matter-of-fact, Australian voice coached me through the making of each truffle. Candy making is new to me; this was the first time I really used my candy thermometer. I pretty much adhered to her recipes. I changed the coating on the PB & J truffle to white chocolate and I substituted heavy cream for the coconut milk in the coconut truffles. I also used regular shredded coconut instead of desiccated.
Also this week! I made The Novice Chef’s cherry almond bundt cake (I used a loaf pan) and Moms Who Think’s yeastless cinammon rolls. They both turned out really well.
Finished the week with some quick copycat Tostino’s Pizza Rolls! Seal pizza sauce, cheddar, and mozzarella in pocket of pie crust, brush with egg wash, and bake for fifteen minutes. The “WTF YES” comes naturally.
LENA'S LUNCHBOX 