Chocolate is often used as a decoration for cakes and pastries. But how does it work properly? And how do you manage to keep the chocolate glaze from breaking immediately? We have collected many tips about chocolate glaze here:
Decorating with chocolate made easy
Pastries, chocolates, and cakes can be decorated quickly and easily with chocolate – if you know how. Couverture is particularly popular. It has a higher cocoa butter content than a conventional bar of chocolate, which makes it more fluid when heated.
Important when melting couverture
Heat the couverture slowly and evenly. The melting point of couverture is around 40° Celsius, after which the chocolate can be processed perfectly.
Professionals use a special cooking spoon with a thermometer, which displays the temperature very precisely and ensures the chocolate is heated just right.
Correct distribution of the couverture
The cake or pastry should be a little warmer than room temperature. If the baked good is colder, the couverture cools down too quickly and becomes uneven, which detracts from the overall impression of the dessert.
Ganache glaze (also called Parisian cream)
This glaze is a mixture of couverture and cream and is therefore naturally softer than couverture. When cooling, the glaze also does not become quite as firm as couverture and is therefore particularly suitable for cakes or pastries with cream fillings.
Recipe for ganache: Recipe for ganache for a cake
Chocolate decoration does not break so easily
Once the couverture has melted as usual, simply stir in 1 tbsp plain yogurt. This ensures that the chocolate does not become quite as firm and therefore cannot break as easily.
Ornaments or other decorations made of chocolate
Figures from a piping bag
For that special touch on cakes & co., you can of course use couverture to conjure up ornaments or other decorations. Using a piping bag (with a tiny opening) this is very easy. If you don't want to buy a piping bag, you can help yourself with parchment paper. You can roll this yourself into a small mini-piping bag and cut off just a hint at the tip. Now put the liquid couverture inside so that you can create decorations of any kind.
Small chocolate cones
To do this, roll a piece of parchment paper into a cone and glue it shut. Now fill in the soft chocolate and let it harden. After cooling, remove the paper and arrange the decoration on the dessert plate.
Make your own chocolate lattice
Use a small spoon to pipe small lattices onto baking paper. The whole thing becomes nicer and more precise with a piping bag. Pipe the lines onto the baking paper and let them harden.
Extra tip: Pipe lattices with dark and white chocolate.
Read also: Grate chocolate more easily
Photo by Sabine, meinhaushalt.at
