Melt the chocolate in the normal way, add a few drops of peppermint oil and mix in granulated sugar to give a slightly granular crunch. The amount of sugar you add depends on your taste.
ChocoRice & Hazelnut Crunch
Just mix some puffed rice (such as Rice Krispies or Coco Pops) into the melted chocolate before putting in the mould. Try adding chopped roasted hazelnuts into the melted chocolate and you'll get a fabulous hazelnut crunch.
Almond & Orange
This recipe combines milk chocolate with almonds and orange. Add a few drops of orange oil together with finely chopped (nibbed) almonds to the melted chocolate and refrigerate.
Chocolate Shells
For an interesting decorative effect, brush a little melted white chocolate on to the insides of the Sea Shell mould (making sure not to cover the whole mould) and then fill it with chocolate. This also works with milk and dark chocolate.
Christmas Decorations
Place a 15 cm length of curling ribbon in each of the shapes leaving the main part of the ribbon hanging over the top. Melt your chocolate and pour into the shapes. Once you have allowed the chocolates to set in the fridge you can tie them to the Christmas Tree. To add variety you can make some with white, dark or plain chocolate and wrap some with red, green, silver or gold foil.
Filled Chocolates
First create a hollow chocolate shell by filling a suitably deep mould with chocolate and then place the full mould in the fridge for about 3 minutes. Take the mould out of the fridge and turn it upside down. The liquid chocolate in the centre of each mould cavity should then drain out leaving a chocolate shell. This can be filled to within 1.5mm of the top with a delicious centre such as praline cream which can be made from chocolate spread, a flavoured fondant, marzipan, toffee, jam or marmalade. Once filled, place the filled moulds in the fridge until the centres have hardened then run liquid chocolate over the back of the moulds, scraping off the excess chocolate and allow to harden again. Alternatively a nut or part of a nut can be placed in the centre. TIP: Leave filled chocolates on the side to cool before placing them in the fridge, as cooling too quickly (especially in the Summer) can cause the chocolate to crack. Also leaving them in the fridge for too long may cause condensation to form, when removed from the cold into a warm room, causing a dullness or sugar bloom to develop.
Liqueur Chocolates
Although tempting, it is not a good idea to fill chocolates with neat liqueur. For best results, add the liqueur of your choice to a sugar syrup or mix it with a little fondant or marzipan. The following recipe will allow a thin sugar coat to form on the inside leaving the centre fluid. Combine 375g (12 oz) of granulated sugar and 90 ml (4 fl oz) of cold water in a heavy-based saucepan and stir continuously over a low heat until the sugar has dissolved. Increase the heat to allow the syrup to boil until it reaches a temperature of 108°C (225°F). Quickly remove from the heat and place the pan in cold water to stop the cooking process. Add 60ml or 4 tablespoons of liqueur of your choice to the syrup, without stirring it in. Instead, have a second saucepan at hand and pour the syrup backwards and forwards from saucepan to saucepan, this stops sugar crystals from forming. Once cooled, the syrup can be used to fill your chocolates.
Speckled Chocolates
Dip a small brush into melted chocolate and flick the end to create small speckles in the mould. Leave to set and then add a contrasting coloured chocolate.
Striped Chocolate
This can be done one of two ways. You can either take a spoonful of melted chocolate and drizzle this back and forth over the mould (any chocolate which drips over the edge of the mould can just be put back in the bowl and reused). Leave to set and then add a contrasting coloured chocolate. The other way is to make a small greaseproof paper piping bag and fill with melted chocolate and pipe into the mould either in straight lines, criss-cross or with your own design (you can even write a name or message on the inside but remember this has to be done as a mirror image). Leave to set and then add a contrasting coloured chocolate.
