Twirly Swirly Chocolate Decorations

                      dark chocolate swirls and twirls decorations

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*Updated ... note at bottom about using water instead of vodka

I love these chocolate twirly swirly decorations that are easy to make with the help of a glass of chilled vodka. You can make abstract shapes like I did today, make straight squiggle shapes, thick or thin shapes, intertwine different coloured chocolates or even piped flowers/designs. Here's how....

Ingredients

1 tall glass or tall narrow container of vodka

melted tempered chocolate of choice

piping bag fitted with a small round tip

Method

Pop your glass of vodka or water in the freezer to chill, you want to be nice and icy cold.

Fill your piping bag with melted chocolate. Remove cold vodka from the freezer. Holding your piping bag 2cm (bit less than an inch) from the surface of the vodka, apply firm even pressure and pipe directly into the vodka letting the chocolate fall naturally.

       piped chocolate in chilled vodka

Chocolate will set instantly set on hitting the cold vodka, remove decorations as they are piped to a baking rack to dry. Moving your piping bag as you're piping will create different shapes. Once dry they are ready to use on your cupcakes or plated desserts.

Try using multiple piping bags at once with a swirling motion to have intertwined shapes. White and dark chocolate look great together.

Using light pressure with your piping bag will result in "floating shapes", carefully pipe flower shapes and designs remove to baking rack to dry after you have completed each shape.

*Note "Water"   My preferred method is using vodka because alcohol evaporates quickly and you don't get water marks.  However, you can use iced water if you are using the pieces immediately. There is a high risk of water marking/blooming on standing. You can compensate for water marking by spraying or dusting with food colours or dusting with cocoa powder. As an alternative chocolate be piped directly into a tray of sifted cocoa powder for a 3D effect. 

Frozen vodka: if you have ever frozen vodka you would have noticed it doesn't 'turn into ice' what you do get is a slight thickening, this is the perfect condition for the chocolate swirls to form. The vodka used has to be the highest alcohol content, lower alcohol brands of vodka will become icy.

Happy Baking :)

You might also be interested in;

           Rainbow Chocolate

try easy Bubble Wrap Chocolate decorations 

or perhaps a fondant gold fish tutorial