Lesya 
The homemade chocolates may not look like gourmet goodies, but they will look lovely if you get creative! Our chocolates are made only with four ingredients – dark chocolate, condensed milk, nuts, and butter. They are easy to make, taste great, and are much cheaper than commercial chocolates. Also, when you prepare your chocolates, you can be sure that they are fresh and made from good-quality ingredients.
We show different methods of shaping homemade chocolates, which is why we modify the amounts of ingredients and instructions. With a smaller portion of the chocolate paste, we make a chocolate “sausage” and slice it. That is how we prepared chocolate treats back in Ukraine. From another portion of the paste, we make a chocolate cake. Then we cut it into small squares and decorate them.
To celebrate the spirit of Valentine’s Day, we added fresh strawberries to some chocolates and topped them with sugar icing. To garnish other goodies, we used white chocolate and butterscotch chips. You can also make chocolate hearts if you pour the chocolate paste into heart molds. The universe is abundant with beautiful ideas, find those that will help you shape your chocolate creations and be happy!
Chocolate Slices
To make chocolate slices, first, we need to prepare a chocolate paste and roll it into a chocolate “sausage”. The next step is to freeze this “sausage” and slice it. (You may want to use a portion of the paste for making chocolate hearts if you have molds). In our recipe, we use peanuts, as they are small, and there is no need to chop them. However, you can add any other nuts – pecans, walnuts, or hazelnuts. Just don’t forget to crush them into smaller pieces before you add them to the chocolate paste. Store your chocolates in the freezer, as they become a bit melty if they sit at room temperature for a while.
Chocolate Slices
Equipment
- casserole dish
- Chef's knife
Ingredients
Ingredients required to prepare a chocolate sausage (500 g):
- 300 g condensed milk
- 200 g dark chocolate Belgium or semi-sweet
- 60 g nuts unsalted
- 30 g butter unsalted
Instructions
- Chop chocolate into smaller pieces and measure. (If you use chocolate chips just measure the amount required for the recipe). Put aside.
- Pour condensed milk into a casserole dish with a thick bottom and bring the milk to a boil at medium heat.
- Add pieces of chocolate to the condensed milk and melt it, stirring constantly. (Dark chocolate melts at 50 C).
- Add butter and nuts to the mixture, reduce the heat, and continue to stir the mixture for 20-25 minutes, until it turns into a sticky paste.
- Meanwhile, place parchment paper on a cutting board. (You may want to use aluminum foil instead.)
- With a big spoon or ladle, transfer the chocolate paste to the parchment paper.
- Holding both sides of the parchment paper, shape the paste into a chocolate “sausage” and wrap it up.
- Put it in the freezer for 2 hours.
- Once the chocolate base becomes firm, remove it from the freezer. Put it on the cutting board and slice it.
- Serve cold. Put leftovers into the freezer.
Notes
Chocolate Squares
With chocolate squares, you can unleash your imagination and top them with anything you like – fruit, nuts, chocolate chips or draw on them with a food decorating pen. Our first step was to create a chocolate cake. Then we froze it, cut it into small squares, and decorated it. The red strawberries with sugar icing look fantastic on dark chocolate squares! Store your chocolates in the freezer, as they become a bit melty when they sit at room temperature for a while.
Chocolate Squares
Equipment
- casserole dish
- Chef's knife
Ingredients
Ingredients required to prepare a chocolate cake (1 kg):
- 650 g condensed milk
- 300 g dark chocolate Belgium or semi-sweet
- 100 g nuts
- 20 g butter
Instructions
- Chop chocolate into smaller pieces and measure. (If you use chocolate chips just measure the amount required for the recipe). Put aside.
- Pour condensed milk into a casserole dish with a thick bottom and bring the milk to a boil at medium heat.
- Add pieces of chocolate to the condensed milk and melt it, stirring constantly. (Dark chocolate melts at 50 C).
- Add butter and nuts to the mixture, reduce the heat, and continue to stir the mixture for 20-25 minutes, until it turns into a sticky paste.
- Meanwhile, line a baking dish with parchment paper.
- With a big spoon or ladle, transfer the chocolate paste to the parchment paper.
- Spread the chocolate paste evenly. It will look like a chocolate cake.
- Put it in the freezer for 2 hours.
- Once the chocolate base becomes firm, remove it from the freezer.
- Transfer the firm chocolate cake to the cutting board and cut it into small squares.
- Decorate with fruit, nuts, chocolate chips, etc.
- Serve cold. Put leftovers into the freezer.
What kind of chocolate to use for homemade chocolates?
For our homemade chocolates, we use dark chocolate. We don’t use (or eat) milk chocolate as this product has no health benefits. Dark chocolate, on the other hand, is rich in antioxidants and important nutrients. You can use chunks of semi-sweet dark chocolate or Belgium chocolate. Dark chocolate chips are good too and will melt easily.
Thank you!
Thank you for visiting our website! These homemade chocolates are not only easy to make, but are also fun to make with your loved ones – a great activity for the whole family! Enjoy our homemade chocolates, and leave your comment if you like this recipe. Eat nourishing, natural foods, and stay healthy and happy!
