Bourbon Chestnut Bonbons Recipes

BOOZY CARAMEL BONBONS RECIPE

Steps:

• In a medium saucepan with a heavy bottom, combine the sugar, water, and corn syrup and stir. Wash down the sides with a pastry brush dipped in clean water, then place over medium-high heat for 7-10 minutes, at which point the mixture will begin to darken. Swirl the pot to even out the caramelization, and allow the caramel to turn deep amber. Then, stand back and slowly add the cream (the mixture will sputter, rise in the pot, and spit; be very careful) and turn off the heat. Once it is safe, whisk in the heavy cream, until smooth. Whisk in the butter until it melts completely. Whisk in the vanilla seeds, booze, and salt and allow the mixture to cool completely.
• Chop the chocolate into very small pieces and divide the chocolate evenly into one very large bowl and one small bowl (the large bowl is the bowl that you will melt the chocolate in, the small one contains the "seed" chocolate for tempering). Set a pot of water to boil on the stove. When the water is boiling, turn off the heat and place the large bowl of chocolate over the water. Temper the chocolate (for a full tutorial, click here ) by stirring to bring to chocolate to 115°F. Then, begin adding the reserved chocolate a little at a time and vigorously stirring the mixture, without stopping. Continue to add the reserved seed chocolate and agitating until the chocolate comes down to 90°F. The chocolate is now tempered. Check to be sure that there are no solid pieces of chocolate left in the bowl.
• Wave the mold over a flame on the stove or place it in a warm oven for just a moment to warm it up slightly (this will help the chocolate flow over it, rather than seizing up immediately when it hits the mold, which prevents air bubbles from forming). Then pour the chocolate into each of the cavities in the mold. Allow it to stand for 10 seconds, then invert the mold over the bowl, allowing the excess chocolate to run off. Tap the mold to shake out additional excess, then turn the mold back over. With a flexible metal scraper, scrape over the top, cleaning off any excess chocolate on the sides. Place the mold in the fridge for 2-3 minutes, then remove.
• Sprinkle a pinch of sea salt into each of the shells. Using a piping bag fitted with a small tip or a cone of parchment, pipe the cooled caramel into the shells, stopping a 3-4 millimeters below the edge (it's very important to leave room, otherwise the chocolates will not seal). Ensure that the chocolate is still tempered (if it is not, you will need to bring it back to 115°F once again, then down to 90°F, otherwise, your bonbons will be streaky on the bottom). Pipe or pour chocolate over the tops of each bonbon. Scrape the top clean to create a seal, then place the mold in the fridge for 2-3 minutes and remove. Twist the mold to release the chocolates, then turn it upside down and tap them out of the mold. Clear the work surface of bonbons, and pound the mold against the counter to release any stragglers. Store the chocolates in a cool, dry place.

CHOCOLATE CREAM BONBONS

Steps:

• In a large bowl, combine confectioners' sugar, pecans, milk and butter. Roll into 1-in. balls. Place on waxed paper-lined baking sheets. Cover and refrigerate overnight., In a microwave, melt chocolate chips and shortening; stir until smooth. Dip balls in chocolate; allow excess to drip off. Place on waxed paper; let stand until set. (If balls are too soft to dip, freezer until firm, 3-5 minutes.)

CREAM CHEESE BONBONS

Steps:

• In a small bowl, beat the cream cheese, sugar substitute, sugar and vanilla until smooth. Stir in coconut. Refrigerate for 30 minutes or until easy to handle., Shape into 1-in. balls; roll in grated chocolate. Refrigerate for at least 1 hour. Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator.

DARK CHOCOLATE & BOURBON BONBONS

Steps:

• Line a 9X9 baking tray with parchment. Chop chocolate and place in a large glass bowl. On the stove simmer heavy cream, bourbon, vanilla and salt. Just before it boils remove from heat and pour a quarter into the chopped chocolate. Allow to rest 2 minutes and mix a little. Slowly add the remainder of the cream and whisk. (Adding all the cream at once would cause the fat to separate from the chocolate which is not what you want.
• Mix thoroughly until creamy and pour into your parchment lined dish. Chill at least two hours or overnight before removing.
• Once set you can remove and cut into your desired shapes. I melted down various chocolates and using a dessert fork with a missing center tine, dipped each bonbon in a bath of chocolate before doing fine decorating using melted chocolate in a parchment bag.

BOURBON BISCUITS

Steps:

• Beat the butter and sugar together until creamy, then mix in the rest of the ingredients. Add a splash of milk if the mixture looks a bit dry - it should come together as a dough.
• Line three baking sheets, dust lightly with flour, then roll and pat one-third of the dough out to the thickness of a £1 coin on each. Cover and freeze for 15 mins.
• Heat oven to 180C/160C fan/gas 4. Slide the dough off the trays and put a new piece of parchment on each. Trim the edges of the dough to straighten, then cut into rectangles, roughly 6 x 3cm. Lift each one carefully onto the tray, leaving some space between them as they'll expand. Bourbons usually have a pricked pattern, so use a cocktail stick to do this if you want (not too many or they'll break up). Put the dough back in the freezer if it gets too soft.
• Bake for 8-10 mins, then leave to cool on the sheet as the biscuits will be soft when they're hot. Sprinkle over some sugar. Will keep for a week in an airtight container.
• Meanwhile, make the filling. Beat the butter and icing sugar together, then divide the mixture into three. Add the cocoa to one lot, a dot of pink colour to another, and leave the last one plain (add a little more icing sugar if you need to). Spoon each into a piping bag or a sandwich bag with the corner snipped off.
• When the biscuits have cooled completely, pipe the icings onto half of them, then sandwich together with the other halves. Leave to set.

DARK CHOCOLATE BOURBON BALLS

Steps:

• Combine 1 cup pecans and bourbon; let stand, covered, for 8 hours or overnight., Cream butter and confectioners' sugar, 1/4 cup at a time, until crumbly; stir in pecan mixture. Refrigerate, covered, until firm enough to shape, about 45 minutes. Shape into 1-in. balls; place on waxed paper-lined baking sheets. Refrigerate until firm, about 1 hour., Dip in chocolate coating; allow excess to drip off. Sprinkle with remaining 1/4 cup pecans. Let stand until set.