Chocolate Plastic

I don't know who invented fondant, but frankly I think it tastes disgusting.  So I was really excited when I heard about chocolate plastic.  I looks like fondant and is easy to work with, but it actually tastes good; plus, it is simple to make.  I used it for the birds on top of my cup cakes and was really pleased with the results.  Here is the recipe

Chocolate Plastic

1 lb semi-sweet chocolate

3/4 cup light corn syrup

Melt chocolate, add corn syrup and mix well.  Wrap in plastic wrap and let sit at room temperature overnight.  When you're ready to work with the plastic knead it with your hands until it is pliable/soft, then roll it out on a flat work surface dusted with unsweetened cocoa and cut or mold it into desired shapes.

For milk chocolate and white chocolate use only 1/2 cup of light corn syrup.

For white Chocolate dust the work surface with powdered sugar

If you want to color your plastic then  kneed food coloring into white chocolate plastic after you have mixed in the corn syrup. ( I had to kneed it over the sink because a lot of grease and food coloring dripped out the plastic, I also had to use generous amounts of candy  food coloring)

Cookie cutters and pastry crust cutters work best, but I used a clear scrap booking stamp for my decorations then used a sharp knife to cut along the outline of the stamp.

Bird Nest Cupcakes

These were really simple to make but tasted great and were really cute.  The I got the Coconut Orange Cupcakes recipe from all recipes.com and the one tip that I used was to chop the manderin orange wedges before adding them to the cupcakes, I also nixed the topping and made my own frosting instead.  the rcepe for the frosting is

White Chocolate Orange Frosting:
5 ounces good quality white chocolate, chopped into small chucks

1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature
4 cups powdered sugar, sifted
Pinch salt
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
Orange Juice to taste (about 1/2 cup - 3/4 cup) 
1/4 cup sour cream


Melt the white chocolate. Remove from heat and let cool until just slightly warm. Meanwhile, beat the butter until light and fluffy. With the mixer on low, gradually add the powdered sugar until well combined. Add the salt, vanilla extract, orange juice, and sour cream.  Mix until very smooth. Add the melted white chocolate and mix just until incorporated.


Once the cupcakes are frosted you pile the top with toasted coconut making a small indent in the center for the eggs.  I made my eggs with chocolate plastic, but if you make these around easter it would be easier to use candy eggs or jelly beans.

To Toast the cocnut just spead it thinly on a large baking sheet and bake at 350 until golden brown, about 7-10 minutes, stirring frequently.

'How Tweet' baby shower

My friend loves birds so we decided that nesting birds would be the perfect motif for her baby shower. We made a banner, painted bird houses, put together a bird inspired wreath and had bird cupcakes and chocolate nests to match. Here is how it turned out: I thought it all came together really well, and I loved the colors she chose.