CD Chocolate Discs

It's up to you.

13 detailed steps, from preparation to service.

1. Installing a perfectly dry station

   Prepare a scale, two bowls, a spatula, a kitchen thermometer and a baking paper-covered baking tray. Wipe each utensil: a drop of water can make the chocolate thicken. Weigh 250 g of dark couverture chocolate and chop it; separate 165 g in large bowl and 85 g in small container. The white chocolate remains apart for the finish. First check the tempering curve written on your chocolate and follow it first; the temperatures below are those of a black blanket of type Valrhona.

2. Roasting nuts

   Preheat the oven to 150 °C, conventional oven setting (no fan). Spread the 24 almonds and 24 hazelnuts on a baking tray, without overlaying them, then bake for 8 minutes. They must smell the roasted fruit without darkening strongly. Remove the pan with oven gloves and pour the fruit into a bowl to stop cooking; let them cool completely, about 20 minutes.

3. Prepare all toppings at your fingertips

   Weigh 30 g of raisins and 30 g of candied orange peel. Cut the peels into small dice of 4 to 5 mm and separate the glued raisins between them. Mentally divide the fillings into 24 batches: an almond, a hazelnut, some raisins and some orange diced for each chocolate discs. Everything must be cold before touching the chocolate.

4. Melt the one hundred and sixty-five grams

   Pour 2 cm of water into a saucepan and bring it to a very slight quiver. Place on top of the large bowl containing 165 g of chocolate, without contact between the bottom of the bowl and the water. Stir with a spatula and measure the temperature in the center of the chocolate, without touching the bowl with the probe. Remove from the bath as soon as the chocolate reaches 50 to 55 °C.

5. Lowering the temperature

   Wipe the bottom of the bowl and add the remaining 85 g of dark chocolate in two or three times. Stir slowly between each addition, scraping the edges well, until the pieces melt and the temperature drops to 28-29 °C. Take the time to measure: adding all the pieces without controlling the temperature does not replace this tempering step.

6. Bringing chocolate back to its working temperature

   Place the bowl on warm water for a few seconds, remove and mix. Repeat very briefly until you reach 31-32 °C, without exceeding 32 °C. Chocolate should be smooth and shiny. Keep the probe and spatula dry; if it thickens during training, warm it up for a few seconds in this way, without putting water or oil back into the bowl.

7. Draw marks on paper

   Draw in pencil 24 circles 5 cm in diameter, spaced 2 cm apart, with a small central circle of 6 mm. Turn the sheet to place the lines on the back and then place it on a flat plate. These markers help to obtain regular CDs; the hole must remain small so as not to weaken the discs.

8. Spreading discs in small series

   Place a small spoonful of chocolate on a marker and spread it with the back of the spoon up to the diameter of 5 cm, 2 to 3 mm thick. With a clean toothpick, gently pushes the chocolate from the small central circle to the edges to leave a 6 mm hole. Prepare only four discs at a time to be able to fill them before taking.

9. Put the fruit before taking

   On the bottom half of each disc still flexible, place an almond and a hazelnut then spread the raisins and orange dice. Press very lightly with the tip of a spoon so that they adhere, without crossing the layer of chocolate. Repeat until 24 pieces; spread the last toppings between them rather than leaving a chocolate discs without fruit.

10. Let crystallize without moving the pallets

    Leave the plates flat for about 1 hour in a cool, dry room, ideally around 18-20°C. The chocolate should become firm, peel off without bending and no longer mark under a light touch. Do not move the pallets as long as they are flexible. Keep them on their paper to then add the white patterns without breaking them.

11. Preparing the chocolate of reflections

    Chop 80 g of white chocolate with a knife and put it in a small, perfectly dry bowl. Place the bowl on a saucepan containing 2 cm of barely simmering water, without the bottom of the bowl touching the water. Stir gently with the spatula and remove the bowl as soon as the pieces are almost melted; continue to stir off the heat. Wipe the bottom of the bowl before moving it: no drop of water should enter the chocolate. Pour the chocolate into a small baking paper cone or piping bag, fold the top and cut an opening of 1 to 2 mm. Test on a piece of paper: the chocolate should flow with gentle pressure, without running on its own. Hold the tip a few millimetres above the surface and guide it with your hand, without dragging the decoration. Keep the black discs on paper, fruit down and half top clear. Make sure that the small central hole remains free; if a thin film has covered it, only remove this film with a toothpick without forcing against a hard disk.

12. Draw three concentric arcs

    On the top half of each CD, draw three white arcs following its curve: one near the edge, one in the middle, one near the hole. Leave a few millimeters of black between the arcs and does not join the trims. Moves the hand at regular speed to place a continuous and quite thick line, without looking for very fine grooves.

13. Let the CDs harden and then store them

    Let the white chocolate freeze for 30 minutes in the cool room. Then take off the discs by folding the paper under their edge, without passing the finger into the hole to lift them. Separate the layers with baking paper in the box. The surplus white chocolate can be spread in small pellets, cooled and then reserved for another preparation.