Lemon and Basil Molded Bonbons

These beautifully balanced and refreshing bonbons offer acidic and herbal notes paired with white chocolate. Colorful cocoa butter prints draw the eye and hint at the experience to come.

Recipe

Created by
  • Russ Thayer - Lead Digital Chef, Chocolate Academy™ North America
  1. Casting the Shells
  2. Lemon Jelly
  3. Basil Paste
  4. Basil Ganache
  5. Assembly
  6. Decoration

Casting the Shells

  1. Using a soft cloth, polish the molds to remove any dust or traces of the previous bonbons.
  2. Cut the transfer sheets so they fit the mold and attach them to the tray using a damp towel. Remove the air bubbles with a dry towel. Be careful not to erase the designs.
  3. Spray pre-crystallized yellow cocoa butter onto the transfer sheet and on the mold.
  4. Place the mold upside down onto a paper towel and clean well.
  5. Let the molds set at 18-20°C (64-68°F) until the cocoa butter fully crystallizes.
  6. Using a large spoon, fill the molds with pre-crystallized white chocolate.
  7. Clean the mold well using a scraper and tap it on the table to remove any air bubbles.
  8. Turn the mold upside down over your melting kettle and use the handle of your scraper to tap the side of the mold in order to remove the excess chocolate. Clean the mold well using the scraper.
  9. Place the mold upside down onto a metal tray lined with parchment paper for a few minutes until the chocolate starts to set.
  10. Turn the mold over and remove any excess chocolate using a scraper.

Lemon Jelly

Ingredients Preparation
  • 175g
    lemon juice
  • 5g
    lemon zest
  • 5g
    yellow pectin
  • 25g
  • 100g
  • 75g
    isomalt
  • 50g
    glucose syrup DE 38
  • 2g
    Tartaric acid solution
  • 40g
    Lemon marmalade
  1. Warm the lemon juice and the lemon zest to 60°C (140°F) and cover the saucepan with plastic film.
  2. Set aside and infuse for 10 minutes.
  3. In the meantime, combine the yellow pectin with the first quantity of sugar until smooth and without any lumps.
  4. Mix the isomalt with the second quantity of sugar.
  5. Once the infusion is ready, strain the infused lemon juice into another pan to remove the zest. Return the strained juice to the stove.
  6. Add the pectin mixture to the infused lemon juice, and bring this mixture to the boil while whisking constantly.
  7. When the mixture boils, slowly add the glucose syrup while maintaining the boil.
  8. Gradually add the isomalt mixture and whisk well.
  9. Once all the sugars have been added, cook to 103°C (266°F) or 68 Brix.
  10. Remove from the heat and add the tartaric acid solution and the lemon marmalade to the saucepan. Whisk well to combine.
  11. Pour into a mixing bowl and cover with plastic film directly touching the surface of the product.
  12. Cool completely. This usually takes at least 4 hours.

Basil Paste

Ingredients Preparation
  • 300g
    inverted sugar
  • 509g
    fresh basil leaves chopped
  1. Cut the basil leaves into small pieces and place them in the bowl of the food processor.
  2. Add the inverted sugar and process until completely smooth.
  3. If not using all of the basil paste immediately, store it with a vacuumed seal and freeze for up to 2 months.

Basil Ganache

Ingredients Preparation
  • 158g
    Heavy cream 35% fat
  • 33g
    butter
  • 46g
    Basil paste
  1. Heat the heavy cream and the basil paste to 30°C (86°F) and stir well.
  2. While the basil mixture is heating, melt the chocolate to 40°C (104°F) and transfer it to a tall recipient.
  3. Pour the warm basil mixture onto the chocolate and blend to form an emulsion using an immersion blender.
  4. Scrape the sides and bottom of the recipient container to ensure that all the chocolate has been incorporated into the ganache, then blend again to remove any remaining lumps.
  5. Add the butter and blend once more.
  6. Allow the ganache to cool until the temperature is between 28-29°C (82-84°F), then transfer it into a piping bag.

Assembly

  1. Remove the jelly from the fridge, stir well until completely smooth and transfer into a piping bag.
  2. Fill the molds to 1/3 full with the jelly.
  3. Pipe the basil ganache on top of the jelly, leaving at least 1mm (0.04”) at the top.
  4. Place the molds in the refrigerator for 15 minutes to help promote the crystallization of the ganache.
  5. Remove the molds from the refrigerator and allow the ganache to finish crystallizing at 18-20°C (64- 68°F) for at least 12 hours.
  6. Using a knife, gently lift the transfer sheet off of the metal tray.
  7. With a heat gun, slightly warm the top of the mold to barely melt the chocolate shells so that when closing the mold with the pre-crystallized chocolate, the two will join together perfectly.
  8. Pour pre-crystallized white chocolate over the mold and remove the excess with a palette knife.
  9. Place the transfer sheet on top of the mold and gently press it to make sure that it covers the entire surface of the mold.
  10. Using a scraper, press firmly against the transfer sheet to make sure that it is flat against the surface of the mold and that any excess chocolate is removed. It is very important to do this with steady pressure and fluid motion to prevent the transfer sheet from moving as you close the mold.
  11. Place the mold back in the refrigerator for 15 minutes.
  12. Remove from the fridge and peel off the transfer sheet, leaving the cocoa butter design behind on the bonbons.
  13. Cover the mold with parchment paper and a metal tray, flip it over and tap the mold with a spatula.
  14. Carefully lift the mold and transfer the unmolded bonbons to a clean tray. If any bonbons remain in the mold, repeat the same process.
  15. After unmolding, handle the bonbons with soft gloves to prevent fingerprints.

Decoration

Ingredients Preparation
  • As needed
    Yellow Power Flower™ 500g non Azo
  • As needed
    Blue Power Flower™ 500g non Azo
  1. Mix two blue power flowers and eight yellow power flowers together with 400 g (14.1oz) of pre-crystallized white chocolate.
  2. Blend well using an immersion blender.
  3. Scrape the container to ensure that the color has been evenly and thoroughly mixed with the chocolate. Blend again to remove any streaks of color and transfer the preparation into a paper cone.
  4. With a gloved hand, place the bonbons onto a wire rack.
  5. Drizzle the green mixture on top of the bonbons, drawing lines in both directions. Let the bonbons set at room temperature.

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