At holiday time, making your own chocolate goodies is a crafty and fun-filled afternoon. Following are my recipes for: chocolates, ganache frosting and chocolate clay figures and bouquets.

All are free of: The top 8 allergens, sesame and gluten. Enjoy!

Homemade Chocolates

Try whipping up some professional-looking chocolates. You’ll need store-bought molds in designs such as Santas, angels or bunnies.

“Tempering” will be crucial. That’s the process of heating then cooling chocolate to specific temperatures to produce glossy-looking treats that “snap” when you break them and look store-bought. Chocolate is finicky (one drop of water can ruin an entire batch) and it burns easily – so go slowly. It’s best to make small batches of a few chocolates at a time until you get the hang of it.

Ingredients

• 1 bag of allergen-free, semi-sweet chocolate chips*

Method

1. Using a BPA-free microwave-safe plastic bowl, melt 2/3 of the chocolate in the microwave slowly until it reaches 110 degrees F. (I set my micro to power level 2, and checked the temperature using a chocolate thermometer every 25 seconds.)
2. With a silicone spatula, stir in the remaining unheated chocolate until it melts. Stir until the thermometer temperature reaches 88 degrees F, then pour into molds.
3. Overfill a little, and use a straight-edged knife to level. Gently bang the mold on a flat surface to release air bubbles. Refrigerate until the chocolate is set, then release from mold.

*Note: I used Enjoy Life Semi-Sweet Chocolate Mini Chips for this recipe and the ganache. There are other brands of allergen-free chocolate available as well.

Editor’s Note: Pamela writes the “Allergic Diva” column in the Canadian edition of Allergic Living magazine.

Next Page: Ganache

Ingredients

• 1 cup (250 mL) all-purpose flour
• 1⁄2 cup (125 mL) white sugar
• 1⁄2 cup (125 mL) brown sugar
• 1 stick (125 mL) unsalted butter or dairy-free margarine
• 1 tsp (5 mL) baking soda
• 1 tsp (5 mL) egg replacer (such as Ener-G egg replacer) mixed with 2 tbsp water (equal to one egg)
• 1 tsp (5 mL) vanilla
• 1⁄2 teaspoon (2 mL) salt
• 1¼ cup (295 mL) semi-sweet chocolate chips*

Method

1. Preheat oven to 375° F.
2. Mix together flour and baking soda. Set aside.
3. In a large bowl or using an electric mixer, beat together the butter, both sugars, egg replacer, salt and vanilla.
4. Add the flour mixture and mix until smooth. Gently stir in chocolate chips.
   Divide dough into 1 tbsp-sized balls.
5. Arrange cookies on a non-stick baking sheet 2 inches apart. Bake for 8 to 10 minutes, or until bottoms are golden.
6. Cool on a wire rack and serve.

*Note on Safe Chocolate
Here are some of our favorite allergy-friendly chocolate choices for baking:

• Enjoy Life Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chips – free of all top allergens, plus gluten and casein.
  www.enjoylifefoods.com

• Nonuttin’ 70% Dark Chocolate Chunks and Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chips – free of all top allergens except soy.
  www.nonuttin.com

• Vermont Nut Free Chocolates
  Chocolate Chips, Unsweetened Baking Chocolate, Candy Melts and Cocoa Powder – free of peanut and tree nut.
  www.vermontnutfree.com

Recipe by Simon Clarke
Food photography by Chris Gonzaga

First published in Allergic Living magazine.
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