Hello

I have a request for a cake topped with chocolate curls and shavings...I've read some instructions, but I'm wondering if you guys have any special tips?

Thanks!

a cheap and easy way is to use like a vegetable/potato peeler. They're cheap enough that you can buy one just for that.

I recently asked the forum this question. I'll see if I can find the link to that thread. There were a lot of helpful posts. If I find it I'll post it here for you! : )

This one?
http://www.cakecentral.com/cake-decorating-ftopict-15112-chocolate.html+curls+shavings

Wow! Faster than I could get to it! Thanks for copying the link, that is the right one.

tip: room temperature chocolate curls much more nicely than cool chocolate. I do curls all the time. I shave a Hershey bar with a veg. peeler. They are the perfect width for shaving.

I have cakebook in finnish and it has these pictures about making chocolate curls.

- melt the chocolate and spread it to smooth
- let it stand in room temperature until it is dryed and harder
- take a large knife with both ends and hold it in 45 degrees
- bush the knife lightly over chocolate so that chocolate curls to long curls

sorry my english...

I try to put some pictures...also about how you can make chocolate leaves..

Jenni

oops... same picture twise.

jenni

Hi,

Just wanted to add, that if you are trying out the leaves, just remember to wash and dry them really well, and use leaves from a plant that has not been sprayed with insecticide/pesticide of any sort.

I always make mine with rose leaves, and they come out absolutely wonderful. Remember to paint the chocolate on the underside of the leaves, so that the veins come out really well defined.

Cool and then peel off the natural leaves, and return the chocolate leaves to the refrigerator to cool.

Good luck,
Karen

Such great information! Thanks for the photos. : )

I've made the chocolate leaves quite a few times. But instead of using real leaves, which I find a little difficult to work with, I went and bought some inexpensive artificial/silk flowers that had leaves in the shapes I wanted...even found artificial maple leaves for fall and I have some holly leaves that I use during Christmas. These leaves can be washed and reused many times before they have to be tossed, plus they're stronger than a natural leaf, so they're easier to handle and work with. Just make sure they're chilled REALLY well before you start working with it to remove the artificial leaf from the chocolate...it's even a good idea to keep a bowl of ice nearby and wrap your hands around it every now and then to keep your fingers/hands nice and cold, too. It's a mess if your hands are warm and it starts to soften and melt the chocolate! lol

I like to use the chocolate leaves as decoration for my pies during Fall and Winter...they look really neat and if the pie is a little warm the chocolate will soften a little but still hold their shape...everyone usually wants a chocolate leaf with their slice of pie...yummy! I really love this technique, it always has people asking 'how did you make that!?' lol Sometimes I tell, sometimes I don't

So, for chocolate leaves, do you just use regular chocolate, or do you mix it with something else? Could I take Toll House morsels for instance, melt them and brush them on the underside of an artificial leaf and get good results? Or, is there something that works better?
I think I might try this!

Wendysue - I usually add a smidgen of shortening to the chocolate as it's melting. And I do mean a smidgen...I don't have a 'proper' ratio because I've just done it so many times...lol. The shortening just makes the consistency a little smoother and 'thins' it ever so slightly...and it also makes it a little easier to remove the actual leaf once it's set. If you will be using an entire bag of chocolate chips, I'd say add maybe 1/2 a teaspoon or so...if it still looks a little thick, then maybe add a pinch (literally a small 'pinch' of shortening) at a time until it's smoother and not quite so thick. But you don't exactly want it really thin...just thin enough that it won't glop up on you while you're painting onto the leaves. If you add too much shortening it will never set up, so better to add it in tiny amounts until you have a not-so-thick consistency. Also - when I started trying to figure out how to do this, I found lots of different instructions online...some called for spraying the leaves with Pam to aid in release of the chocolate. But I found this made it harder for the chocolate to 'stick' to the leaf when painting it...it kind of just slid around...lol. That's when I had the idea of adding the shortening to the chocolate, it seems to work for me. But try the Pam idea and see if it works for you.

I wanted to add that you don't necessarily have to chill them to set them. They will set up fine just sitting on the counter, but I have hot hands so I found that chilling them first gave me more working time when peeling off the leaf before the chocolate started to soften or melt. Oh! And when you're getting the fake leaves ready for use....when you cut them off the stems leave a little tail at the end (does that make sense? ) This gives you something to grip onto when you start to remove them from the chocolate. I hope I haven't completely confused you with my less than perfect descriptions...lol... Good luck with it and post some pics after you try it out!!

JennT,
Thanks for the great info! So, it's like what you do for dipping Strawberries. Another member here was nice enough to share the secrets of making chocolate covered strawberries and mentioned the shortening thing. Never would have guessed it! Good to know. : ) I'll definitely try it, maybe soon. My hubby just told me that his office might be calling me for a cake, if they do, maybe I'll get a little fancy with this one! : ) I have all kinds of artificial flower leaves to choose from.

I'm learning so much from this forum! It's almost like taking a correspondence class online, but without the test at the end!

Thanks again!

Yeah - It's similar to what you do for the chocolate covered strawberries, except don't add as much shortening...but it's the same principle. You want the leaves to be pretty firm, not really soft. You can use choc. chips, the almond bark chocolate, white chocolate...pretty much any chocolate you want, I think.

Another thing I've done when pinched for time is take some line drawings of leaves, for the general shape (I'll print out many leaves of different types and sizes on one piece of paper)...then tape a piece of wax paper to the top of it and then paint the chocolate on using the drawings as my guide (similar to the FBCT technique). Then I take it and lay it over a bath towel that I've laid on the table and sort of bunched it up a little bit here and there. I let it dry and then peel them off...then take a paring knife and use the tip of it to add veining...or not, depending on the time I have. They end up having a very realistic shape having dried on an uneven surface and are very quick to do.

JennT,
Great info! I'm excited to try this.