Drawing with melted chocolate (replicate almost any image)
by Lauren Stockly
(Montrose, Ca)
Hi. This is pretty easy to do once you get the hang of the technique but can be very time consuming if you haven't done it before.
1. All you need to buy is the colored chocolate that is supposed to be put in molds to make lollipops or other candies. They are called "candy melts" or "merckens." I get mine from Michael's Arts and Crafts or online.
2. Then you need to find the image that you want to recreate and flip it so that it is backwards before you print it (i click "flip horizontally" on my computer). Once it is printed, tape it securely to a clip board.
3. Then melt some dark chocolate candy melts (or just chocolate chips) and take a tooth pick and outline the image by tracing over all of the black lines.
4. Melt another color of chocolate (you can do this in a microwave but I prefer to put the candy melts in a zip lock bag and put the bottom of the bag in water as I heat it over the stove). Then just put that chocolate over the parts of the image that are that color. Use a tooth pick or a small paint bush for small details. For covering larger areas cut the corner off of the zip lock bag and squeeze is over the area. Then repeat this step with all of the colors in the image. It is pretty much just tracing and doesn't take any artistic ability.
5. Then take a light colored chocolate (i use white) and cover the whole thing with a few thick layers. This is important because it will break if it is too thin.
6. Put it in the fridge (not the freezer at first) for a few minutes and when it is hard then slowly peel the paper off. It should come off easily (you don't need to grease the paper before or anything). If it starts to crack then stop what you are doing and put more white chocolate over the crack and let it sit.
7. Store it it in the fridge or freezer until you want to use it. You can make it as far in advance as you want and then once the cake is baked all you have to do is stick it on.
E-mail me if you need more details or help figuring out any of the steps.
http://web.mac.com/lstockly/iWeb/Site/Lauren%27s%20Cakes.html
Lauren
