Mini Chocolate Cake Centerpieces Food

MINI CHOCOLATE LOAF CAKES

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Butter the insides of an 8-cup mini loaf baking pan.
• Put the butter, cocoa, coffee and milk in a small microwave-safe bowl. Cover and microwave until the butter melts, about 3 minutes. Whisk to combine and set aside.
• Whisk the flour, granulated sugar, baking soda, cinnamon, baking powder and salt in a large bowl. Whisk the sour cream, vanilla and eggs until blended in a small bowl. Whisk the hot cocoa mixture into the flour mixture and then stir in the sour cream mixture until just combined. Divide the batter equally among the loaf cups.
• Bake until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, about 30 minutes. Cool the loaves in the pan on a wire rack for 10 minutes and then remove from the pan and cool completely on a rack. Dust the tops of the loaves with confectioners? sugar.

MINI CHOCOLATE CAKE

Steps:

• Position a rack in the lower third of the oven. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
• For the cake: Lightly grease the bottom and sides of a 6-inch round cake pan with 2-inch sides with oil then line the bottom with parchment paper.
• Whisk together the flour, cocoa powder and baking soda in a medium bowl; set aside. Whisk together the egg, sugar, oil, sour cream, coffee and vanilla in a small bowl. Add the wet ingredients to the dry and mix until just combined.
• Pour the batter into the cake pan and bake until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean and the cake starts to pull away from the sides, 29 to 32 minutes. If you under bake the cake, it will slightly sink, so check it!
• Remove the cake from the pan by carefully running a paring knife along the edge to loosen, then tilting it into one hand and peeling off the parchment from the bottom; place it on a small cake stand.
• For the ganache: Combine the chocolate, cream and corn syrup if using, in a double boiler or a heat-proof bowl fitted over a small saucepan of simmering water. Stir over medium heat until melted and smooth, about 3 minutes. (Alternatively, you can melt the chocolate and cream in the microwave on low in 25-second intervals, stirring between each.)
• Pour the ganache over the cake, and garnish with the pomegranate arils.

CHOCOLATE MINI CAKES

Steps:

• Heat oven to 350°F (325°F for dark or nonstick pans). Spray 6 (10-ounce) straight sided ramekins with cooking spray. Place ramekins on 15x10x1-inch baking sheet; set aside. Make cake mix as directed on box, using water, oil and eggs. Pour about 3/4 cup batter into each ramekin.
• Bake 22 to 26 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool 10 minutes; remove from ramekins to cooling rack. Cool completely, about 30 minutes.
• Meanwhile, in large bowl, beat butter with an electric mixer on low speed until creamy. Beat in powdered sugar, 1 cup at a time, until smooth. Add vanilla and milk, 1 to 2 tablespoon at a time, until frosting is piping consistency, adding milk as necessary. Beat in food color.
• Using serrated knife, cut rounded tops off each cake to make a level surface. Place, cut sides down, on serving platter. Cut each cake in half horizontally to make 2 layers per cake. Spread 3 tablespoons frosting on the bottom half of each cake. Place remaining cake halves, bottom sides up, over frosting
• Use pastry bag fitted with a large 2D star tip to pipe remaining frosting around and up sides and on tops of cakes to resemble frills. Top with edible pearls.

MINI CHOCOLATE AMARETTI CAKES

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
• Spray mini cupcake pans with the nonstick spray. Refrigerate. Microwave the chocolate until melted and smooth, stirring every 20 seconds, for about 1 minute.
• Combine the almonds and cookies in processor. Pulse until the almonds and cookies are finely ground. Transfer the nut mixture to a medium bowl. Add the butter and sugar to the processor and blend until creamy and smooth. Add the grated orange zest and pulse briefly, until incorporated. Add the eggs 1 at a time. Blend until the eggs are incorporated. Clean the sides of the mixing bowl and blend again. Add the nut mixture and melted chocolate. Pulse until blended. Clean the sides of the bowl. Blend again.
• Pour the batter into the prepared pans. Bake until the center puffs and a tester inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean, about 8 to 10 minutes. Cool in the pans for 10 to 15 minutes.
• Transfer mini cakes to a platter. Sift the cocoa powder over and serve.

CHOCOLATE MOONSCAPE CENTERPIECE

Steps:

• Draw the design you would like to make on a piece of paper. Transfer the design to foam board and cut out the pieces. It is helpful to construct a 3-D version of your centerpiece before you make it from chocolate. You can make any design and any size you like. My centerpiece design included a large moon with a flame and other flame pieces. Then I made a total of 4 thin single flames and 4 thick double flame pieces. The tallest flames I made were about 28 inches long with 3 progressively shorter flames. Trace the foam board design onto the rubber mat and cut out the moon design to make the template. Repeat to make the flame designs. Make the moon design and the flames in dark chocolate: Place the rubber mat moon design cut out on a parchment paper lined surface. Use a ladle to fill the cut out with chocolate. Allow the chocolate to set. When the chocolate has set, peel away the mat. Repeat to make other flame pieces. Make a base: Use flexible aluminum strips or cake ring to form a base. The base I made was 10 inches in diameter. Place it on a parchment paper lined surface. Pour tempered dark chocolate inside the ring to form a 3/8-inch-thick layer. When the chocolate has set, remove the ring and peel off the parchment paper. Make the chocolate plate: Use an offset spatula to spread a 1/4-inch-thick layer of tempered dark chocolate over a 10-inch sheet of acetate. Let the chocolate set slightly. Use a paring knife to trace around an 8-inch cake circle. When the chocolate is set, peel off the acetate. Make the white chocolate moon design and the thin flames: Use the templates for the moon and flames as a guide and draw slightly thinner versions of these things onto acetate. Cut out the acetate pieces. Use an offset spatula to spread a 1/4-inch-thick layer of white chocolate over the acetate pieces. When the chocolate has set, remove acetate from the chocolate piece and place each one on top of its existing dark version. Use tempered chocolate to glue each 1 into place. Use an airbursh to paint the white chocolate pieces red.
• Make the chocolate flowers: Each flower consists of about 13 or more petals. Some petals are about 3-inches long while others are about 4 inches long. I used a lot of flower petals so I made my own petal templates. To do this, I drew the shape of the petal at 1 end of a piece of plastic (like plastic from the side of a bucket) that was about 10 inches long and 5 inches wide. Repeat to draw as many petals as will fit on the plastic. Use an X-acto knife to cut out the petals. Repeat to make another template for the 3-inch petals. Place the template on a piece of parchment paper. Use an offset spatula to spread a 1/8-inch-thick layer of tempered white chocolate over the template. Let the chocolate set slightly. Lift the template from the chocolate. Place the parchment paper over a rolling pin to give the petals a slight curve. You will need petals of varying degrees of curves. Make as many petals as you will need to make as many flowers as your design requires. Assemble the flowers: I used a plastic dome mold to give my flowers their final shape. You could also use a small glass bowl. Place a small dollop of white chocolate in the bottom of the mold. Add petals resting the ends in the chocolate and the tops along the side of the bowl. Add another layer. Continue this process to make as big of a flower as you like. I used the petals with the sharpest curve for the inside layer. When the chocolate has set, pop the finished flower out of the mold. Use an airbrush to paint the flower. Assemble the centerpiece: Use tempered chocolate to adhere the moon design to the base. Use more chocolate to adhere the flames to the base. I glued 1 flame slightly behind the moon design piece and the other slightly in front of the piece. Use more tempered chocolate to glue the flower to the base at the front. Determine the points at which the chocolate plate will rest inside the base of the moon design. Use a hot paring knife to create a 90-degree indentation on the inside of the moon. To do this, heat the knife under very hot water and wipe it dry. Hold the knife blade against the side of the chocolate where you want to make the cut. Do not press on the knife or the chocolate will break. Allow the heat of the knife to "cut" through the chocolate by melting it. Create the same type of indentation on the plate where it will rest near the tip of the moon. Balance the plate into the spot you have created using the tempered chocolate to glue it into place. If you are using this as a dessert display, place any dessert that you have on the chocolate plate.
• Sources: Chocolate Melter: Demarle New Jersey, Demarle.com Chocolate Cold Spray: PCB in France 011 33 0388 587333 Foam board: any art supply store Rubber mat material: hardware store

EASY CHOCOLATE CENTERPIECE

Steps:

• For the Support Stand: Using an offset spatula, spread a 1/4-inch-thick layer of bittersweet chocolate over the textured side of a dish mat, being sure to spread it all the way to the edges. Roll the mat into a tube and let the chocolate set. When it has set, carefully peel the mat away from the chocolate. Using a sharp, hot chef's knife, trim the edges so they are even. Set aside
• For the Base: You will need to two bases for the centerpiece. Place an acetate or parchment sheet on your work surface with the long side facing you. Using an offset spatula, spread about a 1/4-inch-thick layer of white chocolate onto the acetate sheet. Wait until the chocolate sets. Place another dish mat on top of the white chocolate. Using an offset spatula, spread a layer of bittersweet chocolate over the mat. Allow the chocolate to set. Carefully peel the mat away from the chocolate, creating a white base with dark dots. Repeat to make another base. Use a sharp chef's knife to cut a circle from one of the bases, 2 inches larger than the diameter of whatever you will be placing on the pedestal.
• Set the large base on a flat tray. Use a generous amount of chocolate to glue the circular base to one end of the support stand tube. Use more chocolate to glue the other end of the support stand tube to the other, larger base. Be sure the chocolate has set completely and the stand is sturdy before you set anything on top of it.
• If you would like to use a potato masher or a slotted spatula, first place an acetate or parchment sheet on the work surface, then place the utensil on top of the paper. Using an offset spatula, spread a layer of white chocolate over the utensil (filling the holes) and onto the acetate sheet. Carefully, lift off the utensil. Allow the chocolate to set then use an offset spatula to carefully spread a layer of dark chocolate over the white chocolate texture. Allow the chocolate to set. Use a sharp knife or cutter to cut the chocolate into interesting shapes.
• Use these same techniques for any other textured mat and create more interesting pieces for the centerpiece.
• To assemble the centerpiece, use the chocolate to glue the various shapes into place. Use your eye as a guide to create an interesting design. A nice thing to do is to place a cake on the stand and distribute petit fours around the base of the centerpiece. You can also decorate with fresh fruit to add color.
• How to Temper Chocolate (From Dessert Circus, Extraordinary Desserts You Can Make At Home by Jacques Torres):
• Chocolate is tempered so that after it has been melted, it retains its gloss and hardens again without becoming chalky and white (that happens when the molecules of fat separate and form on top of the chocolate). There are a variety of ways to temper.
• One of the easiest ways to temper chocolate is to chop it into small pieces and then place it in the microwave for 30 seconds at a time on high power until most of the chocolate is melted. Be very careful not to overheat it. (The temperature of dark chocolate should be between 88 and 90 degrees F, slightly warmer than your bottom lip. It will retain its shape even when mostly melted. White and milk chocolates melt at a temperature approximately 2 degrees F less because of the amount of lactose they contain.) Any remaining lumps will melt in the chocolate's residual heat. Use an immersion blender or whisk to break up the lumps. Usually, chocolate begins to set, or crystallize, along the side of the bowl. As it sets, mix those crystals into the melted chocolate to temper it. A glass bowl retains heat well and keeps the chocolate tempered longer.
• Another way to temper chocolate is called seeding. In this method, add small pieces of unmelted chocolate to melted chocolate. The amount of unmelted chocolate to be added depends on the temperature of the melted chocolate, but is usually 1/4 of the total amount. It is easiest to use an immersion blender for this, or a whisk.
• The classic way to temper chocolate is called tabliering. Two thirds of the melted chocolate is poured onto a marble or another cold work surface. The chocolate is spread out and worked with a spatula until its temperature is approximately 81 degrees F. At this stage, it is thick and begins to set. This tempered chocolate is then added to the remaining non-tempered chocolate and mixed thoroughly until the mass has a completely uniform temperature. If the temperature is still too high, part of the chocolate is worked further on the cold surface until the correct temperature is reached. This is a lot of work, requires a lot of room, and makes a big mess.
• A simple method of checking tempering, is to apply a small quantity of chocolate to a piece of paper or to the point of a knife. If the chocolate has been correctly tempered, it will harden evenly and show a good gloss within a few minutes.