Cocoa Blocks
Fudge on a stick? Swirl these blocks into a mug of hot milk and enjoy luscious hot chocolate. In need of a creamy chocolate fix? Nibble the chocolate blocks directly from the stick.
- ½ cup heavy cream
- 14-ounce can sweetened condensed milk (1 1/4 cups)
- 3 cups semisweet or bittersweet chocolate (chopped chocolate bars or chips)
- 3/4 cup unsweetened baking chocolate
- wooden sticks
Directions
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1) Line an 8" x 8" pan with parchment paper or aluminum foil. |
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2) Heat the cream and condensed milk over low heat until steaming. Remove from the heat and add the chocolate; allow it to gently melt. |
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3) After about 10 minutes, return the chocolate mixture to low heat to completely melt the chocolate. Whisk vigorously until the mixture is thick and shiny. Add a few drops of flavoring oil if you like; hazelnut, coffee, or vanilla are popular flavors. |
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4) Pour the chocolate mixture into the pan; shake the pan gently to level. Sprinkle with cocoa, if desired. Set aside overnight to slowly set up. |
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5) Run a knife around the edge of the pan and turn out onto a clean cutting surface. |
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6) Slice into 1 ¼" cubes. Heat a knife in hot water and wipe dry before each cut, for smoothest cuts. |
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7) Stick a wooden stick into the center of each block. |
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8) Roll in cocoa or crushed peppermint candy, if desired. |
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9) Wrap in waxed paper, parchment, or plastic wrap to store. |
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Yield: about 3 dozen blocks. |
Recipe summary
- Hands-on time:
- 20 mins. to 45 mins.
- Baking time:
- Total time:
- 12 hrs to 12 hrs 45 mins.
- Yield:
- about 3 dozen blocks
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- Recipe comments (16) »
Reviews
12/28/2009
Made and used these blocks as gifts. Everyone loved them. Making some more just to have around for nibbling on.
12/27/2009
I may never again use anything else to make hot chocolate! Absolutely perfect. I wrapped the blocks in waxed paper instead of using sticks. Served at my family's Christmas celebration and sent some as gifts. Only trouble is that I don't dare send them through the mail to family in FL. Well, that leaves more for me :)
12/18/2009
Awesome! ADD ESPRESSO POWDER(a few tablespoons)--and roll in crushed candy canes. This is addictive in a major way! I also made a white chocolate version using vanilla bean paste and rolling in crushed candy canes--a big hit!
12/12/2009
Ohhhhhh...I just made these and wow! they are delicious! I can't wait to make hot chocolate with them. I'm giving them away for Christmas gifts with three or four of them in a mug. I think they'll be well received...provided they make it out the door ;) Awesome recipe!
12/08/2009
Love this recipe, a great, fun way to do hot chocolate. I only wish it had set a little firmer. Any suggestions as to the best way to create a slightly firmer product?
Abby - We spoke through Livechat already but let us know in this forum whether adding more chocolate or reducing the cream works for you. Thanks! Elisabeth @ KAF
11/21/2009
Love these!! I made them per the recipe and used your lollipop sticks with marshamallows skewered through them on top of the cocoa blocks. Then, I dusted with your cinnamon sugar. It was a total hit at a gathering that I hosted. They never made it into the hot milk; everyone just ate the blocks...
11/21/2009
Thanks for the tips, Frank. The separation was really minimal and not even apparent when they cooled. None of the cocoa butter layer I was fearing. The hot chocolate we made with the blocks was yummy -- tho I agree with Melanie that a denser flavor would be good. Next time I think I'll cut them smaller and stack 2 on a coffee stirrer. I used unsweetened + 72% chocolate. My son would like me to try it with milk chocolate too. Besides being tasty, it was also fun to do hot chocolate this way. I'm serving them on Thanksgiving.
11/18/2009
I am just making these now. I chopped all the chocolate finely and, after 10 minutes, put the bowl containing the chocolate and hot dairy over a pot of simmering water to assure a complete melt. Some of the cocoa fat seems to have broken -- not a lot but there's a sheen of fat on the surface of the gananche in the pan. Is this how it should be? The ones pictured with the recipe seem to have been dipped in couverture chocolate so I can't get a sense of what the ganache blocks actually look like. I plan to dip some in pulverized candy cane, some in ground sweet chocolate and some in espresso powder. They look wonderful and the stuff I licked off my fingers was pretty yummy. It sounds like the ganache has "broken" from perhaps being over heated. There should be no separation. The blocks in the photo have been dusted with cocoa, not coated with chocolate. Frank @ KAF.
10/26/2009
This is really good, but I am finding that one block is not quite enough for strong chocolate flavor. Took some into work today and already had two blocks on a stick and noted that people were using two sticks (4 blocks) to get the chocolate flavor that they wanted. Is this common? Either way, great idea. Just don't want to get the quantity right for presentation.
Melanie - Cut the squares to suit your needs! Everyone has different preferences. Elisabeth @ KAF
10/21/2009
My son made these and they are great. We didn't put them on sticks. Wrapped individually in saran wrap, we are keeping them in bags in the refrigerator and freezer. Awesome--Starbucks Signature watch out!
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