PRAHRAN MARKET GETS ITS JUST DESSERTS – SUNDAY 6 MAY

FESTIVAL COMING UP – MELBOURNE’S PRAHRAN MARKET  The annual Wicked Festival is now not only about chocolate! Get your dessert forks ready! Prahran Market will be celebrating all things sweet with its Wicked Dessert Festival on Sunday 6th May. Showcasing the very best in the industry, the Festival will host a demonstration kitchen and pop-up … Read more

Interview with Kirsten Tibballs

Kirsten Tibballs – Award Winning Chocolatier & Patissier Words by Connie Lambeth In a recent chat with Kirsten Tibballs it was tempting to imagine her on speaker phone elbow deep in chocolate at her Savour Chocolate and Patisserie School in Melbourne. Whatever sweet creation she was into when we hit the call button, there’s no … Read more

Recipe by Kirsten Tibballs: Tahitian Vanilla Cupcakes

Tahiti Tourism National Vanilla Day **What a fabulous reason to eat cupcakes! To celebrate what is possibly one of the most delicious days on the calendar, one of the country’s best pastry chefs – Kirsten Tibballs – has created the attached recipes using the best vanilla in the world – from The Islands of Tahiti. … Read more

Halloween Recipe by Kirsten Tibballs: Spider Peanut Cookies

Halloween Recipe!

Kirsten Tibballs, who Masterchef proclaims ‘the queen of chocolate’, is one of Australia’s most celebrated and internationally respected pastry chefs and chocolatiers. Kristen is Pastry Chef and Director of Savour Chocolate and Patisserie School in Melbourne and is generously sharing several of her Halloween recipes with Gourmet News readers over coming days.

www.savourschool.com.au

spider cookie (4 of 5)

Spider Peanut Cookies

(Peanut Butter Cookies)

Makes: 30-35 cookies

240g unsalted butter

80g caster sugar

300g brown sugar

2   whole eggs

1 tsp vanilla bean paste

130g crunchy peanut butter

400g plain flour

1 tsp baking powder

200g Callebaut milk chocolate chips

Preheat the oven to 170˚C. Mix the butter, caster sugar and brown sugar together in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment until the butter is fully incorporated. Add the eggs, vanilla and peanut butter and continue mixing. Sieve the flour and baking powder together into a bowl. Add the sieved dry ingredients to the mixture and lastly add the chopped chocolate chips. Remove from the stand mixer.

For each cookie, weigh out 40g of the dough and roll into balls. Place each ball onto a baking tray lined with baking paper, leaving space between each cookie to allow for spreading. Lightly press down on each ball. Bake at 170 ˚C for 10 minutes.

Remove the cookies from the oven and using a teaspoon, make a small dent in the middle of each cookie while they’re still warm. This will allow the spider to sit on top of the cookie. Cool the cookies at room temperature.

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Recipe & Images Courtesy of Kirsten Tibballs/Evil Twin PR

Connie Lambeth – The Australia Times News

Editor GOURMET – Food/Wine/Events

E: literallyconnie@gmail.com

E: connie.lambeth@theaustraliatimes.com.au

Follow us on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/tatgourmetmag/

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READ ON FOR ADDITIONAL INFO ABOUT KIRSTEN TIBBALLS…

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HALLOWEEN RECIPE BY KIRSTEN TIBBALLS: GHOST LOLLIPOPS

Kirsten Tibballs, who Masterchef proclaims ‘the queen of chocolate’, is one of Australia’s most celebrated and internationally respected pastry chefs and chocolatiers. Kirsten is Pastry Chef and Director of Savour Chocolate and Patisserie School in Melbourne. Look out for more of her spooky Halloween recipes over coming days!

www.savourschool.com.au

Ghost Lollipops

Makes: approximately 30 truffles

Plastic Chocolate

500g Callebaut W2 white chocolate, melted

100g Callebaut cocoa butter, melted

150g glucose

20g white oil soluble colour (titanium dioxide)

50g water

Callebaut white chocolate truffle shells

Place the chocolate, cocoa butter, glucose and white colour in the bowl of a food processor and pulse until the mixture reaches an even consistency. Add the water and emulsify again. Pour the mixture onto a tray lined with plastic wrap and cover with a second sheet of plastic wrap. Allow the mixture to crystallise at 16˚C for 24 hours.

To use the plastic chocolate, knead it with your hand to get an even consistency and softness. Store the plastic chocolate at room temperature, wrapped in plastic wrap to prevent it from drying out.

Milk Chocolate Honey Ganache

87g       Bulla Pure Cream

20g       Honey

½ tsp vanilla bean paste

150g     Callebaut 823 Milk Couverture

300g     Callebaut white chocolate W2, for dipping

Place the cream and honey in a saucepan, add in the vanilla bean paste and bring to a boil. Place the milk couverture in a bowl and pour the boiling cream over it. Whisk by hand until all the chocolate is melted and combined with the cream to create a ganache. Cover with plastic wrap touching the surface of the ganache. Leave at room temperature until it cools. Transfer the prepared ganache into a piping bag and pipe it into each of the truffle shells, filling to the top.

Temper the white chocolate and add in the titanium dioxide, mixing together until fully incorporated. Transfer some of the chocolate to a paper piping cone and pipe a small amount of the chocolate on top to seal the truffle shells. Stick the lollipop sticks into the base of the truffles immediately before the chocolate sets. Once the chocolate sets, dip each truffle shell into the tempered white chocolate and place onto a lollipop stand or stick into a polystyrene base.

Ghost Eyes and Mouth

50g Callebaut 2815 Dark Couverture

Temper the dark chocolate and transfer to a paper piping cone. Pipe a small amount of the chocolate in the shape of eyes and a mouth onto a piece of baking paper or a guitar sheet on top of a baking tray. Allow to cool.

Assembly

QS cornflour or corn starch, for dusting

50g Callebaut W2 White Chocolate

Lightly dust the top of the bench with cornflour. Roll out the plastic chocolate to a round shape 10-13cm and 2-3mm thickness. Temper the white chocolate and transfer some to a paper piping cone. Pipe a small amount of the chocolate on top of the truffle shells to ensure the plastic chocolate sticks to the shell. Cover the outside of the truffle shell with the plastic chocolate and create the desire ghost shape by immediately curving it with your hand. Finally stick the eyes and the mouth onto the body of the ghost, securing with the tempered chocolate. Leave the plastic chocolate until it sets completely.

Ghost (4 of 7)

Recipe & Images Courtesy of Kirsten Tibballs/Supplied by Evil Twin PR

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Connie Lambeth – The Australia Times News

Editor GOURMET – Food/Wine/Events

E: literallyconnie@gmail.com 

E: connie.lambeth@theaustraliatimes.com.au

W: editorcsl.com

Follow us on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/tatgourmetmag/

READ MORE ON KIRSTEN TIBBALLS…

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ZUMBO & TIBBALLS SET TO GET TASTEBUDS RACING AT ANNUAL WINTER CHOCOLATE FESTIVAL THIS WEEKEND!

Michelton Chocolate Festival This Saturday 19th & Sunday 20th August

Mitchelton Wines and The Ministry of Chocolate will again partner to deliver the Mitchelton Chocolate Festival on the grounds of the iconic winery over this weekend!

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Bigger and better than last year’s inaugural event, the winter festival will again be headlined by celebrity chefs Adriano Zumbo, Deniz Karaca, Kirsten Tibballs, Kylie Millar and Arnaud Vodounou and will be held on site in Nagambie in the heart of the Goulburn Valley. The celebration of all things chocolate will also showcase the best in local wines and produce together with established, Melbourne-based chocolate companies.

The Ministry of Chocolate owner and head chocolatier Drew Maddison, said that the event would be another step up from last year’s incredibly successful event, expecting to attract more than 8,000 visitors over the weekend which would be a huge boost for local tourism.

“We’re thrilled to welcome Adriano Zumbo and Kirsten Tibballs back this year, as well as many more elevated chefs and industry leaders to be involved in this celebration of all things chocolate. We’ll also be holding the much-anticipated chocolate and wine paring classes in the iconic Mitchelton Tower.”

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“The grassy outlook of Mitchelton Wines will again be lined with colourful marquees brimming with mouth-watering treats and the best knowledge of all things chocolate and sweet. Guests will also have the opportunity to walk through one of Australia’s largest and rarely seen underground wine cellars.

**The family-friendly event is free to enter and will include an exciting Children’s Zone complete with jumping castle and petting zoo.

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For more information please contact Drew Maddison on 0488 771 992 or visit http://www.micheltonchocolatefestival.com.au

Information & Images Courtesy of The Ministry of Chocolate/Michelton Wines/Circus Media – Taylar Lavars

Connie Lambeth – The Australia Times Gourmet News – Food/Wine/Hospitality/Events

   www.theaustraliatimes.com/news

   literallyconnie@gmail.com

   https://www.instagram.com/tatgourmetmag/

Read on for additional info & pics on the Michelton Chocolate Festival…

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