Chocolate Decorations

Photo: flickr user Sital Lad

Ingredients

4 ounces chocolate, white or dark

For tinted white chocolate, paste food color

Preparation

In a small bowl over medium saucepan 1/4 full of simmering water melt chocolate. If you're using white chocolate and want to tint it, stir in a tiny amount of coloring now [use a toothpick for this; if you're unfamiliar with paste food coloring, be aware that a little goes a*very*

Long way]. You'll have to settle for pastels, since extra dye will seize up the chocolate before you can incorporate the corn syrup and for this mixture you can't use the trick of adding oil to resmooth it. Stir in corn syrup, just barely combining. It will seize up violently; wrap and refrigerate for an hour. Remove chocolate from refrigerator and begin working it with (impeccably clean) hands. Roll out half of the batch at a time to make a 3-inch-by-9-inch strip. If it's sticky, rechill; if it is still sticky, your slab may be too warm. If that is not the case, or you don't have a marble slab or rolling pin, you may roll out betw

About keeping: Will keep for months, wrapped and refrigerated.

In his book Fantasy Chocolate Desserts, Robert Lambert makes something he calls "chocolate decorations," which can be rolled out, cut and formed into three-dimensional ribbons, bows, etc. You can use white or dark chocolate, and can tint the white chocolate using paste food color.

Notes: Unlike flat chocolate tiles this form of chocolate decoration allows 3-dimensional effects. It is also easier in this form than others to use dark chocolate, if you'd like, though possibilities for tinting are more limited. The decorations will attach readily to most dessert surfaces; whipped cream would be too wet, but ganache, buttercream or chocolate makes a fine base.