Bonus Pixel Chocolate Discs

It's up to you.

13 detailed steps, from preparation to service.

1. Prepare all the toppings before chocolate

   Counts 24 almonds and 24 hazelnuts, then weighs 30 g raisins, 30 g candied orange peels and 10 g unsalted pistachios. Cut the orange peels into 3 to 4 mm cubes and the largest raisins in half. Roughly chop the pistachios with a knife. Put each topping in a small cup: the chocolate will need to be garnished quickly before hardening.

2. Roast almonds and hazelnuts

   Turn on the oven at 150 °C in conventional oven setting (no fan). Spread the almonds and hazelnuts on a baking sheet, in a single layer, then bake for 8 minutes in the middle of the oven. They should smell good and slightly brown, without strongly browning. Then pour them on a cold plate and let them cool completely for about 20 minutes; a warm garnish would melt the pallets.

3. Chop and distribute dark chocolate

   Weigh the 250 g of dark couverture chocolate and finely chop them. Put 165 g in a perfectly dry bowl and keep 85 g in another dry container. Prepare a kitchen thermometer, a spatula and a saucepan in which the bowl can hold without touching the bottom. The 35 g of white chocolate remains aside for the final pattern.

4. Melt 165 g in a bain-marie

   First consult the tempering curve indicated by the chocolate tone manufacturer: it takes precedence over the temperatures below. Pour 2 cm of water into the saucepan, simmer it then lower the fire. Place the bowl containing the 165 g of chocolate above, without its bottom touching the water. Stir gently and measure in the center of the mass without touching the bowl with the probe. When the chocolate is melted and reaches 50 to 55 °C, remove the bowl and carefully wipe its bottom; no drop should enter the chocolate.

5. Cool with the reserved 85 g

   Pour the 85 g of chopped chocolate into the melted chocolate, in two or three additions, and stir constantly with the spatula. Scrape the edges and bottom so that the temperature is homogeneous. Continue until 28 to 29 °C; the pieces must have melted. This cooling can take several minutes: control with a thermometer, without adding water or putting ice cubes in the bowl.

6. Back to the working temperature

   Put the bowl back on the very soft bain-marie for 2 or 3 seconds only, remove it and stir. Repeat briefly if necessary to reach 31 to 32 °C, without exceeding this range. Place a small trace on baking paper: in a cool room, it must begin to firm up in a few minutes. Keep the bowl out of steam and stir from time to time during shaping.

7. Installing templates on a flat surface

   Draws 24 squares of 4 cm side on a sheet of paper, spaced 2 cm apart. Slide this template under a sheet of clean baking paper, on a perfectly flat tray. Make a small spoon for the chocolate and another for the fruit. Work in groups of four pallets rather than forming the 24 at once: you must be able to fill them before they begin to harden.

8. Spread four pallets at once

   Place a spoonful of chocolate in each square and spread it with the back of the spoon to the corners, about 3 to 4 mm thick. The edges can remain slightly irregular, like handmade pixels. The 250 g of chocolate allows about 10 g per pallet. Stir the remaining chocolate in the bowl between sets and monitor its working temperature.

9. Spread the fruit over a single area

   On a corner of each square, lay an almond and a hazelnut, then a few raisins, orange dice and pistachio chips. Spread the 30 g of raisins, the 30 g of orange and the 10 g of pistachios between the 24 pieces, keeping the center or opposite part clear for the pattern. Slightly push the toppings into the chocolate, without pushing them to the paper. Finish the six sets of four pucks.

10. Let harden before white pattern

    Leave the tray motionless for about 1 hour in a cool, dry room, ideally around 18 to 20 °C. The pallets should become firm and detach cleanly when gently bending the paper underneath. Do not lift them with dried fruits. If the room is too hot, a short time in the refrigerator can help, but then keeps the pallets dry to limit condensation.

11. Melt the white chocolate

    Chop the 35 g of white chocolate with a knife and put them in a small, perfectly dry bowl. Pour 2 cm of water into a saucepan and simmer gently, then lower the heat. Place the bowl above: its bottom should not touch the water. Stir with a spatula until only a few small pieces remain. Remove the bowl from the heat and keep stirring so the residual heat melts them. Wipe the bottom of the bowl; no drop of water should fall into the chocolate. Let it lightly thicken off the heat before filling a small cone. Place a small cone of baking paper in a glass, point down, and half fill it with a spoon. Fold over the top to keep chocolate away from your hand, then cut a 2 to 3 mm opening at the tip. Pipe a test line on the paper: a continuous ribbon should flow when you squeeze gently.

12. Draw four white pixels per puck

    On the part of dark chocolate left free, trace four small white squares joined with the cornet. Arrange them in bar, in L or square of 2 x 2, with lines thick enough to be visible. Start with the contours and fill each small square with a thin layer; avoids overlapping several layers. Spread the 35 g between the 24 pallets and leave the fruits visible in their corner.

13. Let the squares take hold and then peel off

    Let the white patterns firm for about 30 minutes in the cool room. To peel off a puck, bend the paper down and hold the square with your fingers, without pulling at an angle. Lay the pieces in a single layer while checking their hold, then store them with paper between the layers. Keep the box dry and away from the sun; the chocolate should remain firm without becoming wet.