White Chocolate Pralines With Coffee Filling

An amazing combination of sweet chocolate and bitter coffee.

Directions

Make the Filling

1. To prepare the filling, chop the milk chocolate and place in a bowl. Bring the heavy cream to a boil in a saucepan, add one tablespoon coffee granules and mix well to dissolve.

2. Pour the hot cream over the milk chocolate, wait one minute, and then mix until the chocolate is completely melted and mixed with the cream. Add brandy or coffee liqueur, if desired. Refrigerate until ready for use.

Tips:

To make this recipe pareve, use bittersweet white chocolate for the outer layer. There is no need to temper it. Use just 9 ounces bittersweet chocolate for the filling. Pareve whipping cream can be substituted for the heavy cream.

Notes:

The filling in this recipe is enough for 50 pralines.

Make the Pralines

Yields 18 pieces.

1. To prepare the pralines, trim your transfer sheet to the size of your mold. Place the transfer sheet in the mold, rough side down, and cover the mold with the metal sheet. Turn the mold over so the rough side of the sheet is facing up. Refrigerate the empty mold for 10 minutes.

2. Next you need to temper the chocolate so that it will stay glossy. Melt the cocoa butter in a small dish until you have an oily yellow liquid (similar to oil). Chop all of the white chocolate, pour over it the melted cocoa butter, mix lightly, and then reheat in the microwave. Set the microwave for a few seconds at a time so you don’t keep the chocolate in for too long; keep checking it until the chocolate melts into a smooth liquid.

3. As soon as the chocolate is melted, pour it onto a dry, clean area of counter and mix in a circular motion with a spatula, so that every time the chocolate comes in contact with the counter it cools down. Dip the edge of a spoon into the tempered chocolate and touch it to your upper lip to feel that it is cool. Now you can fill the praline mold.

4. Remove the empty chocolate mold from the refrigerator. Fill the indentations in the mold with white chocolate. (Tap the pan lightly on the counter to remove air bubbles.) Immediately flip the pan over, but don’t allow all the chocolate to pour out, so that you’re left with a thin layer of chocolate inside the indentations. Using a flat metal spatula, remove excess chocolate from the top of the mold and put aside. Refrigerate the mold again until the chocolate hardens.

Notes:

Tempering is a process of controlling the melting of the chocolate, first through heat and then by refrigeration. This process is done in the factory, but once you melt the chocolate, the tempering effect is lost and you have to redo it, especially when preparing pralines.

Fill and Assemble the Pralines

You will need:

• a chocolate transfer sheet with a coffee bean design

• a magnetic chocolate mold with elliptical shapes

1. To fill the pralines, transfer the filling to a piping bag and pipe into the white chocolate in the mold, filling each indentation 3/4 of the way. (If the filling has hardened too much, soften slightly in the microwave; it should be soft enough to pour, but not liquid.) Refrigerate mold again until the filling hardens.

2. Melt the remaining white chocolate, place in a piping bag, and pipe over the filling to close the praline. Using your spatula, smooth the chocolate and remove excess chocolate until you have sharp, clean edges. Refrigerate for 30–45 minutes.

3. Remove the mold from the refrigerator, remove the metal sheet from beneath the mold, and carefully remove the transfer sheet.

4. Put on latex gloves to prevent fingerprints and press the pralines on the top (decorated) side. They should pop out easily.

Notes:

These last in a sealed container for up to two weeks. They should not be refrigerated or frozen.