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caramelized white chocolate

I don’t like to make promises I can’t keep. So when I posted on my classes at the L’école du Grand Chocolat Valhrona, everyone began clamoring for the secret technique for the caramelized white chocolate that was shown. Technically, even though I didn’t promise anything, I can’t say I blame you—if I saw a picture of it, I’d want to know how to make it, too.

white chocolate

Since I was otherwise engaged in dipping something that day at school—or more likely, dipping my hands in something—when they caramelized the white chocolate in the adjacent ovens, I didn’t follow along. (Which, I swear, had nothing to do with staying up late drinking Côte du Rhone.) So I e-mailed chef Alex Espiritu who gave me some tips. And as a follow-up, Valrhona generously sent me 3 kilos of their top-notch Ivoire white chocolate to play around with. Let’s hear it for free chocolate! (Or more specifically, let’s hear it for having another big bag of chocolate to dip my hands in around here.)

caramelized white chocolate

Ivoire is 34% cocoa butter, which is higher than many other white chocolates, but I don’t see any reason why this technique shouldn’t work with one with a lower cocoa butter content*. Of course, be sure to use real white chocolate, and stay away from those silly imposters that deceptively call themselves “white coating” or something like that.

This is pretty simple and anyone could do this; all you need is a block, or some fêves of white chocolate, an oven, and a baking sheet. Just be sure not to let any drops of water get near the white chocolate at any time, which can cause it to seize and ruin the whole thing.

Because it’s pure white chocolate, once cool, the liquid caramelized white chocolate will firm up again and become solid. White streaks of hardened cocoa butter may appear, but they’re harmless. To thin it out, rewarm in a microwave, or in a bowl set over a pan of barely-simmering water: it’ll come back and be smooth again in a jiffy. At the school, we mixed it with white chocolate ganache, but if you want to thin it out to use as a swoop or a swirl, you should add about 25% of the volume of liquid to the volume of caramelized white chocolate. (That is, if you have 1 cup of caramelized white chocolate, you should add at least 1/4 cup of liquid to it.)

spatula caramelized white chocolate

So here’s the recipe and the technique for you. As for me, I’m playing with a few ideas for using this and my mind is racing with possibilities. I’m thinking it would make a cerveau-blowing glaze for a chocolate-coffee cake, a topping for sticky buns or even white chocolate-sour cherry scones. Maybe fill some macarons?

How about swirled into a batch of ice cream infused with spicy fresh ginger? Or layered into vanilla ice cream studded with candied fresh cherries?

And then there’s butter pecan ice cream, which could certainly be improved with a few ribbons of this looping through each scoop. My head is spinning, as my ice cream maker is certain to be doing a little later on this afternoon.

Caramelized White Chocolate

The original recipe said it should take 20 to 30 minutes at a slightly-higher oven temperature. Mine took about twice that long, but I baked it a lower temperature since I was concerned about overcooking the white chocolate. Note that this is a recipe more about technique than one to be followed strictly to the letter. So if you think your batch is done before the time indicated, then it’s likely done. Basically what you’re doing is checking the chocolate every ten minutes and giving it a good stir to promote the caramelization. The only danger is overcooking: you want to cook it until it’s the color of natural peanut butter. If you do overcook it and it gets grainy, you can press it through a fine mesh sieve and it’ll be just fine. Update: Because of variations in white chocolate, if you’d like to ensure that the white chocolate will melt more smoothly, add 1 or 2 tablespoons of unflavored vegetable oil or cocoa butter (not regular butter), to the white chocolate at the beginning of the process.
  • 12 ounces (340g) white chocolate, a block or in fêves (as shown)
  • pinch of flaky sea salt
  • Preheat the oven to 250F (120 C)
  • Chop the white chocolate it into coarse pieces.
  • Distribute the white chocolate on a rimmed baking sheet and heat for ten minutes.
  • Remove it from the oven and spread it with a clean, dry spatula.
  • Continue to cook for and additional 30-60 minutes, stirring at 10 minute intervals. At some points it may look lumpy and chalky (and even unpleasant), but keep stirring and it will smooth out and caramelize.
  • Cook until the white chocolate is deep-golden brown, and caramelized. Stir in a good pinch of sea salt.
  • If it’s lumpy, scrape it into a bowl and smooth it out with an immersion blender, or in a food processor.
  • Store in a jar, at room temperature, until ready to use. It should keep for several months, if stored in a cool, dry place.

Note: I did try this with ‘supermarket’ white chocolate, which probably had the minimum of cocoa butter (20%) and it was quite chalky and hard to stir. When it was done, I blended it with heavy cream and it was nice and smooth. But be aware if you use a white chocolate with a low cocoa butter content, it will be quite dry during the caramelization. Check the package and look for one with a high cocoa butter content, boasting at least 30%, for best results.

caramelized white chocolate

Related Links and Recipes

Valrhona Ivoire Fêves (Amazon)

Caramelized White Chocolate Cakes

Caramelized White Chocolate Ice Cream

The Great Book of Chocolate

Valrhona Ivoire White Chocolate (Chocosphere)

Askinosie White Chocolate

White Chocolate & Fresh Ginger Ice Cream (Recipe)

What is white chocolate?

Chocolate FAQs

White Chocolate Sorbet (Recipe)

White Chocolate Rice Krispie Treats with Candied Peanuts (Recipe)

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92 comments

    • Judith in Umbria

    OK, you have convinced me that you are evil incarnate. I cannot even imagine how far and to where I would have to travel to find that Valrhona white chocolate, and among the ones I have found here some taste like lemon, some intensely milky and I can barely remember which is OK because they are never more than OK.
    Why doesn’t Valrhona market more widely? They’ve even dropped the 1 kilo block from what they sell at Eurochocolate!

    • David

    Hi Judith: I don’t know what’s available everywhere, but in most European countries, Lindt is widely available, as is Italy’s Caffarel, who makes a vaniglia bar. I haven’t used it, but I would imagine it’s pretty easy to find in Umbria. Give it a try!

    Due to the fact that white chocolate has a short shelf-life, that may be why Valrhona doesn’t distribute their white chocolate in your area and why you’re having trouble finding it.

    • MyKitchenInHalfCups

    (confused here) Do I thank him or shoot myself before I start putting this in and on everything …

    Thank you David.

    • chika

    Hello David,

    Yay! I was among many that have been eagerly waiting for you to turn up the recipe for this, so thank you!! we do have Valrhona Ivoire around here, so that should be my bet. Not sure what I’m going to do with it, but thinking maybe just do something really simple, like dipping some berries in or filling a croissant with it… though ice cream does sound like a fabulous idea. Thanks!

    • TARA

    (I’m speechless.) Be still my heart….

    • bakingepiphanies

    hmmm, i’m thinking this might become all the rage this year, like salted caramel from last year? i’ve never been a fan of white chocolate but i’m really curious about this technique, and how it ends up tasting. really cool (and simple) idea, i guess those vlarhona techies know what they’re doing!

    • dawn

    the end result is wonderful. and yes, you’re right this would be dreamy with those sour cherry scones you made recently.
    I have those same ‘working glasses’. Isn’t it funny how us women recognize what others have in their kitchen?

    • chocolatechic

    Oh…my.

    I think I may have fallen in love with you…or those wonderful folks at Valrhona.

    sigh…..

    • jenna

    Would it be a bad or good idea to melt the chocolate on a silicone mat, like a silpat, or is it fine straight on the baking sheet.

    I’m with you on the ice cream idea- it sounds wonderful and unique.

    • Den

    OMG – this might have applications outside the kitchen ;-P

    Our local green grocer carries Valrhona chocolate – got stop in after work! & pick some up.

    • michaela

    sounds interesting. when i saw the spatula shot on flickr yesterday i thought it was covered in mustard until i read the tags. must have still had the cornichon and baguette on the brain.

    • Sandra

    Just when I thought I was safe (don’t actually like white chocolate) you go and do this.
    It would be scrumptious used as the icing for chocolate eclairs, filled with pastry cream…….

    • Johannes

    Hi David,

    I’m wondering if you did the whole work on a baking sheet? Doesn’t the chocolate flow away when it gets liquid? I surely will try it because it looks really gorgeous and I love caramel and chocolate. But I’m afraid that my oven will be a mess afterwards…

    • lisaiscooking

    This is beyond words. It’s the most perfect food ever invented. And, to finish with a suggestion involving butter pecan ice cream. Well, this is something. Something very, very good.

    • David

    Jake: It does go back to being solid. As mentioned, when it does, it may have white streaks of cocoa butter on the surface. But those will melt if re-warmed.

    dawn: I actually use mine for jam, which is what they were intended for. It’s funny that Americans have picked them up to use for glassware. I don’t think anyone here would dream of drinking out of them. And I know one person who once refused to do so!

    jenna & Johannes: I was concerned that it would flow over. At the school, they used a rimmed baking sheet, but mine was relatively flat, with a slight tilt at the edges. (See below.) But the white chocolate, once melted, was pretty molten.

    The pan I used was a non-stick KitchenAid cookie sheet, but any baking sheet should work. I don’t know about using a silicone mat. They didn’t at the school. But if you try it, let me know how it works.

    • Tami

    Oh my word… this being the first thing I’ve read this morning, I’m completely infatuated. You are, once again, the best! I’m already thinking of putting some into the pannacotta I’m making for dessert this week.
    PS: Lindt white chocolate is excellent, so for all of you wanting to source out the Valrhona I’d encourage you to try Lindt. Its widely available and cheaper. I once did a blind taste test which included Valrhona and the Lindt won hands down.

    • The Purple Foodie

    Lovely, David! This looks too good not to try.

    • Jessica “Su Good Sweets”

    Whoa, reminds me of dulce de leche. Could you temper this and eat it like a regular chocolate bar?

    • Tartelette

    Brilliant! I overcooked white chocolate once and thought “That’s actually makes it better!” but I never took the time to explore the idea further. Thanks for the suggestion!

    • ceji

    oh. my. god.

    • shuna fish lydon

    Now that I have sent this link to every pastry chef I know, in the whole world, I will say, zow ! This has to be one of the most innovative ideas I have seen in a long time!

    Thank you for reminding me there is always something to learn, and think about anew.

    • Whitney

    I really need an ice cream maker. And some of this glorious white chocolate.

    • Deborah

    Great post and love the idea of caramelized white chocolate and spicy fresh ginger ice cream. Thanks for the recipe and clear directions — what I love about all your recipes!

    • Susan

    Tinker, tinker, tinker! We just can’t stop, can we? (thank goodness someone can’t stop) I think this sounds like solidified dulce da leche with cocoa butter, but better because it’s not made with tinny flavored, canned sweetened condensed milk. I think this would make a lovely swirl in or on a cheese cake too. Thanks, David. .

    • Dana McCauley

    Interesting. Can you describe the flavour? Is it like dulce de leche or more like a brown butter flavour?

    • Rachel

    So… I agree with Dana –

    what does it taste like? I’m not a white chocolate fan – to me it just tastes sweet with no depth/flavor beyond the sweet (probably at least in part due to crappy quality white chocolate) … but I *love* caramel and dulce de leche type flavors.

    • cdelphine

    ahhhh thank you David, you may be saving me from a life of white chocolate hatred ;) butter pecan ice cream with this in it sounds divine

    • Jennie

    This is the second time today I’ve thought, ‘must buy white chocolate.’ This looks awesome!

    • xocodavid

    I too am a white chocolate hater, for the same reason as Rachel. Too sweet no real flavo(u)r, most likely because de-odorized cocoa butter is used. But I came across this technique a while back, and I have to say that I will now buy white chocolate just so that I can caramelize it.
    It is so easy and wonderful, and everyone that has had it loves it! It is a very dulce de leche-like flavo(u)r. Nice post.

    • Bernadette

    Yowza! No time to make ice cream, just dump the chocolate on the ice cream!

    • David

    Tartlette: I had a friend who was a pastry chef in San Francisco and he used to make Burnt Chocolate Ice Cream. I never tried it because it sounded awful, but now I regret it. What did I miss??

    Dana & Rachel: It’s hard to describe. Imagine the difference between the taste of sweetened condensed milk and dulce de leche, and that’s the difference between this and regular white chocolate. Give it a try and you’ll see how good it is.

    Su: I don’t think you can temper it because it’s too thick.

    • Eralda

    That looks divine! I am so excited to try it. Thank you for sharing.

    • Chocolate and Toast

    My personal trainer and nutritionist would like to have a few words with you. I’ll just step into the kitchen and play with a few pounds of white chocolate while you all work things out . . .

    • Marilou

    I love white chocolate..I love all dark chocolate…I love all chocolate! It’s almost 10 PM here and I can’t wait to go to the store to get white chocolate first thing in the morning. Luckily my grocery store carries Valrhona Ivoire. Thank you for the recipe!

    • Rucy

    David, THANK YOU, this will be my new toothpaste AND multi-vitamin! (not to mention all the fabulous desserts it’ll be incorporated into). BTW literally adored your new book, The Sweet Life in Paris, I haven’t laughed that much in ages (what a fun read! it will definitely transform my trips to Paris).

    Shuna, I see your reaction is much the same as mine, are you associated with a kitchen at present? Would love to come try some of your caramelized white chocolate experiments!

    • Margie

    Your website should come with a warning, something along the lines of:

    CAUTION, DANGEROUS CALORIC OVERLOAD AHEAD!

    I’m installing my own version of a warning. My hard drive implodes if I seek entry after 10 p.m. I sought out this desperate measure after the lock devices failed me on the fridge and the pantry doors. I get real creative after I hang with you. I also find myself shopping at, Omar the Tent Makers, and the Moo-Moo Factory. Spandex can stretch only so far and then it snaps. That rubber band bite hurts!

    (I think the fresh ginger, and the ice cream, and a huge swirl of this beauty are WINNERS!)

    • Susan

    Yes!Yes!Yes!Yes!!Yes!!!Yess!!!!!….

    • Sara

    Looks like I found a project for this weekend…

    • Melissa

    My my my what a wickedly delicious and simple recipe.. I thought the Pavlova I asked my mother to make for my upcoming b’day was going to be a sinful pleasure but I’m going to have to take it one step further and get her to make me my favourite white chocolate mud cake slathered in this caramelised white chocolate!

    Thanks for the fantastic recipe, I can’t wait to try it!

    • Maryann

    I am an absolute lover of white chocolate. I HAVE to find a good supermarket around here that at least carries Lindt white chocolate to make this delicious sounding treat. I think I will layer it in some lemon ice cream or rhubarb ice cream. I love white chocolate against something really sour/acidic. Mmmm.

    • Maryann

    Also, in your recipe you simply say ‘liquid’ to thin it out. All I can think of would be cream or something… Anything else?

    • Skippy

    This is the most exciting thing I’ve seen all day. Or all week. Which may say more about my life than the recipe.

    • David

    Maryann: I’m still figuring out what to do with my jar. (Although I simply ate a significant amount of it just off the spoon, while warm.) As for adding liquid; cream, agave nectar, milk, 1/2 and 1/2, Bailey’s, the much-feared corn syrup, or even something like rice or almond milk are things I’m considering trying. Or maybe blended into a milkshake. But it could be served warm, drizzled over ice cream.

    My jar is sitting on the counter and I’m waiting for inspiration. Unless I polish it off beforehand!

    • Margie

    I hauled myself back in here to see what the inspirations were this morning. There is a hefty amount of dew on the keyboard, but as I wipe it away I ask myself, “I wonder if David dipped a slice of tart apple into that little beauty. What would happen?”
    For the life of me I simply can’t stay long. I’m off to KA to order some white chocolate chunks.
    Shame on you, inspiration man. Shame. Shame. Shame.
    ;)
    Seriously though, I’m still building white cupcake ideas for my daughter’s wedding. I think you’re on to something, sweetie. I really, really do believe you are.
    Thanks for the ideas. :) :) :) :)

    • Eileen @ Passions to Pastry

    This looks amazing. I’m a bigger fan of dark chocolate than white chocolate, but I could see using this–a lot. When you mentioned the white chocolate-sour cherry scones, I was totally sold. Now if I just had one to eat with my cappuccino this morning…

    • Janet

    Hi David, I made a white chocolate tart topped with raspberries (using Paule’s pastry dough), mmmm. You got me wondering about slipping in some caramelized white chocolate into the mix. I’ll let you know. :-)

    • Erin

    WOW! This was a really great post. I have always been scared of doing anything really involved with chocolates or sugar. Then again, if I was lucky enough to get free chocolate of such quality, I might be more inclined to try!

    • Shania

    Oh, gosh! Count me in! I’m now included to one of those individuals who are craving to know the recipe for caramelized white chocolate. And really… thanks a lot.. Thank you for sharing the recipe. I am now one of your followers for this blog. Whew! I can’t wait to try and make caramelized white chocolate myself :D

    • Miss Jane

    David, you may have changed my mind about white “chocolate”. I have always dismissed it as not really being chocolate, and this is the only thing I have ever seen done with white chocolate which makes me think YUM! Bringing home Valrhona Ivoire from work next week……

    • Marina

    Hi David,
    I have a question about ice cream (sorry – nothing to do with caramelized white chocolate). I tryed to marble the toasted coconut ice cream with the mango sorbet (from your the perfect scoop book) and it didn’t work… do you have any pictures of how to do it?

    Thank you

    • Christy

    I know this is sooo bad, but I kinda wanted to experiment with “lesser” chocolate first to see if I can do it w/o burning it. I have 3 small children and odds are at some point I am going to be busy and can’t get right back to it to stir. Is “baking chocolate” ok to use? Once I get the hang of it I would switch to Lindt (that is all available in my area). Thanks and I enjoy reading your tweets!

    • Bryan

    this is super easy! it just took a little bit of time.

    i used up some el ray, the result is very nutty tasting.
    i’m curious how it compares to the valrhona.

    some will go into a batch of buckwheat ice cream (another good flavor!) steeping right now. it needs sweetness.

    • Maryann

    Mmmm, I didn’t even think of those other liquids. Must’ve been mesmerized by how yummy it sounds. I think I might try a non-milk milk like almond or hemp seed milk.

    And I think Im going to try to fill truffles with this but thinned out just a little bit. Mmmm.

    • celia

    Loved this. I made a batch yesterday with Callebaut white callets. I actually used a large Le Chasseur roasting pan and 500g callets – worked great and no danger of overflowing. I overcooked it a little, but the graininess sieved out exactly as you said it would. My husband wants to make icecream, but I’m content just to eat it with a spoon. Thank goodness it sets hard overnight, or I’d have eaten a jar over my Weetbix this morning.. :)

    • Susan

    This is wonderful — made it in a shallow baking pan and agitated it with my handy chocolate spackling knife. This will be brilliant as a ganache dipped in bittersweet chocolate and topped with a few flakes of Malden. But since I don’t make chocolates in months without an R in their name, what’s to become of the experimental batch? Hmm, time to crank up the ice cream maker…

    • Kevin

    Caramelized white chocolate sounds wonderful!

    • sara

    Hi david,
    I am interested to know how you think this would go in brownies, a la dulce de leche brownies. Thought it would make a divine combination but I am concerned about how the caramelised white chocy would go given you say it melt again when heated.

    • Colleen

    David, you do know that you are my hero don’t you???? How did I miss this entry??? I have to find me some white chocolate…….and rather urgently or I might expire heehee…thankyou so much xxx

    • Kimberly Fisher

    Where did you get the cute little jar with the fancy red lid?

    • ingrid_pinay

    oh my god David! this will be great dipping for strawberries or sliced toast.thanks for sharing the technique and recipe

    • Jackie

    As a rule I hate white chocolate, but this recipe looks worth trying. I’ve been thinking of different ways to bake with it but keep coming back to the idea of a caramelized white-chocolate martini.

    • Corliss

    I love Almond Bark which is white chocolate embedded with dried cranberries and almonds. The ingredients are mixed together while the chocolate is in a melted state and then left to harden. As the caramelized white chocolate firms up do you think it would work in this type of recipe to give it an entirely new flavour?

    • David

    Hi Corliss: The problem is, when the white chocolate cools, layers of cocoa butter rise to the surface and form streaks. Which are harmless, but unattractive. So I’m not sure it’d work.

    • Celia

    Aaargh! I’ve just found a way to temper this and set it into block moulds, which is not good, because now we’re just eating it hand over fist (photo of the finished bar on the blog). I’m not sure if it will hold overnight without blooming, but it looks pretty good right now.

    What I did was : caramelise the chocolate, spread it out on a sheet of parchment paper, then let it set hard. Once it was hard, I broke it up again into small pieces and remelted it gently in the microwave. Once it was liquid (be careful, or it will scorch), I let it cool a little then stirred in a handful of already tempered white callets, stirred, and let it cool to 88F, at which point it was tempered and good to mould. Hey, now that I think about it, I think this method of tempering was something I learnt from The Big Book of Chocolate… :)

    • chika

    Hello again,

    I’ve so far tried this twice, with the first batch turning out a little grainy (probably overbaked) and the second one… burnt!!!! (awww) It also took me quite a long time to cook it. Well I guess it was more because of the difficulties dealing with my basically useless oven, but I LOVED it to no end! I had mine spread over a croissant, coating fresh strawberries, drizzled over ice-cream, filled with cookies, and swirled into cheesecake. All lovely, but I was quite happy with just licking it off the spoon :) Once again thanks so much for your sharing yet another genius recipe!

    If it is grainy, as mentioned, you can likely strain it to make it smooth. You can see an example of caramelised white chocolate success here. -dl

    • Kristina

    Yummmm…My eight year old son Sam made this, and it came out perfectly. Then he hit upon the idea of serving it on waffles. I think I’m skipping dinner and having that instead.

    • olive

    Hmm, looks fantastic, going to try it out

    • Drea

    Just made some and am eating it warm off of pretzel sticks. The salty/sweet combo is great!

    • Beth

    Oh, good lord! I’m another of those white chocolate haters, but this may have just changed my mind (if you’ll forgive me beating a dead horse here).

    Celia – that’s brilliant. I’m dying to try this now! Like I needed another project.

    • Donna

    Words cannot do justice to the concept……definitely a wow factor!

    • Yael Holman

    Wow, I didn’t know you can do that to white-chocolate without burning it!
    What is it used for,besides coating cakes/cookies?
    How do you think will it work as a layer between short-pastry and some sort of fruit-jam?

    I would also like to ask a question regarding white-chocolate:
    when you used “supermarket” white chocolate, with lower percentages of cocoa-butter than the good-quality kind – had you added cocoa-butter, wouldn’t you get the same result, or at least closer to “the real thing”?
    I’m asking because I’m recently experimenting with white-chocolate ganache (callebaut 26%) for dipping-pralines.
    Since white chocolate has less cocoa-solids than milk/dark chocolate, I figured I could add cocoa-butter to the ganache, so it sets better, but that wasn’t the case – the white-chocolate ganache was too-soft at cool-tempored room, making it hard to dip in the tempered chocolate, and was pouring out of the praline at first bite, making me keep the whole batch in the freezer at all times, even right before serve…

    I follow your blog, and admire your chocolate experience, so I thought perhaps you might have an idea.

    Cheers,
    Yael.

    • Alberto

    Dear David,

    I tried to do this recipe three times now, with different chocolates. Last one was a “29% minimum cocoa”.

    In all of the three attempts, the chocolate didn’t melt: the bits got soft by the first “take out of the oven and stir” step, and after that, they turned into a “dust-like” state, and never recovered. The chocolate got browner and browner, but never melted.

    Do you know what I might be doing wrong?

    • Alberto

    Dear Dave,

    I come to share my new results, to maybe help other people that have the same problems. As a matter of fact, what was happening before was simply that I was overcooking (burning) the chocolate. I am not 100% sure of what was the cause. Maybe because I used a smaller amount of chocolate (just one 100g bar), or maybe because of the oven temperature (I use a small Oxo oven thermometer , but I suspect it is giving me wrong readings). I tried to set the oven to no more than 150 degrees (C), and by the time the first 10minutes passed, the underpart of the chocolate bits were already “dark caramel” colored, pratically black, while the upper part was still white. When I stirred, it all became something like a crumble, the texture much like gardening earth.

    Tonight I tried again, with more chocolate (about 300 grams), and I was very controlling of the temperature (I tried to keep the oven between 100 and 120 degrees). The chocolate was “supermarkety”, but I bought one with no “vegetal fat” added.

    After about only 3 minutes, I took out the baking sheet to stir, and the chocolate was already melted. Then, for about one hour, I stirred every 5minutes , and afterward, every 10 minutes. The result was much like the pictures on the websites (David’s and the other people who tried to make the CWC), but the time it took to get to desired result was really, really long – three hours.

    Congratulations for the killer recipe. I’ve never had so much pleasure to “clean” a baking sheet or a pan after cooking something.

    Regards,
    Alberto

    • Shania

    Guess what… me and my mom tried this recipe during one of our family reunion and our other family love it. Many thanks to this recipe again…

    • Shoshana

    I have a batch of white chocolate caramelizing in my oven as I type this and the house smells fantastic! Thank you for such a wonderful idea. I want to use it to make a ganache filling for molded chocolates. In your post you said that you mixed it with white chocolate ganache, and I was wondering if you would be willing to share the proportions. Would it be possible to make white chocolate ganache solely using the caramelized white chocolate or do you think it is necessary to add regular white chocolate as well in some proportion.
    Thank you so much.

    • David

    Hi Shoshana: Glad you’re enjoying the recipe!

    The proportions that were used at the school for the ganache was 255g cream plus 50g of inverted sugar brought to a boil, then poured over 530g caramelized white chocolate, 30g cocoa butter, and 120g butter.

    • shoshana

    thanks! I am going to make it this weekend.

    • Yuka6

    I have a question,
    would this toffee (boy, what a wonderful toffee it is) benefit being on a tart crust? Like, the fab French Tart Dough. Maybe with a little salt, a little candied ginger or nuts.
    It would look good, I’m sure of it, but I’m worried if the combination of different fats won’t be overwhelming.

    • Kristal L. Rosebrook

    Great recipe!! Thank you!

    • Kamilah

    Hi David,

    I want to make the caramelized white chocolate ganache as a glaze. Is it pourable? or would I have to spread it? I want to use it to cover small pieces of cake that are hard to frost. If it’s not spreadable on its own, do you think I could add something to it to make it more pourable?

    Thanks a lot for your help on this.

    • kamilah

    I meant to say:

    “if it’s not pourable on its own, do you think i could add something to make it more so?”

    Thanks

    • David

    kamilah: You can add a liquid to it, such as heavy cream, glucose or corn syrup, or perhaps some liquor. In order for it not to seize and become grainy, you need to add at least 25% of one of those per volume measurement of the caramelized white chocolate.

    Without testing it, I can’t say for sure how much to add to get the consistency you’re looking for, but if you do try it, please let me know how it turns out!

    • Kamilah

    Thanks for getting back to me, David. The ganache recipe is wonderful and easy to thin to a pourable consistency. I also used the caramelized white chocolate in a cream cheese frosting recipe, which was delcious on red velvet cake. This is my new favorite ingredient. Thanks, again.

    • LimeCake

    Hi David, I hope you forgive this dumb question. I’m eager to try this recipe, but was wondering if you think white chocolate can be caramelized in a double boiler, constantly stirring till it caramelizes?

    • elana

    I just made this on a silicone baking mat and it worked perfectly and tastes delicious (except I just realized I forgot to add the salt at the end). I also made the scones with it, but the chocolate was still a bit soft and it ended up more like swirls. Do you recommend letting the carmelized chocolate harden and then cutting it in pieces like you do with regular white chocolate in the recipe?

    • Sky

    I tried making this tonight using Guittard white chocolate, and like some others, it never melted – just stayed at that “potting soil” state that Alberto mentions. I found that surprising since the Guittard is 31% cacao, and I usually love their products. I’m going to try with a different brand later this week, hopefully that will work better.

    • David
    David Lebovitz

    Sky: Am not sure if I mentioned this, but I did try this with “supermarket” white chocolate, and although it got crumbly as it cooked, it did eventually caramelized and a blitz in the food processor smoothed it out.

    Although I haven’t tried it, one might be able to add a spoonful of vegetable shortening, oil, or cocoa butter to the white chocolate as it is cooking, to smooth it out. Good luck!

    • Jessica “Su Good Sweets”

    I might be late in the game, but wow, Chocolate Editions sells caramelized white chocolate! They also have cool designs, such as a chocolate pie chart and Neopolitan bar.

    • Ingrid M.

    My mom works at a candy factory and sometimes – when the products come out ugly or whatever – they let the employees take them home. Yesterday, she brought a few blocks of white chocolate (not very pretty, but tasty nonetheless) and I remembered this post and knew that the only way this blocks had a chance to be called ‘beautiful’ was by giving them a nice tan. So I did. I had to! They needed it for their self-esteem… Anyway, the caramelized white chocolate turned out soooo delicious, and beautiful and so unlike anything I’d ever expect out of some wonky-looking white chunks. They must have been high quality because I didn’t run into any trouble or complications in the process and the end result was simply perfection. It reminded me of dulce de leche and at the end it had like a nice, lemony note. I don’t know. I loved it and so did everybody else.
    Now I’m hoping that somedy messes up the machine tomorrow and some white chocolate mutation occurs so that I can get some more. Is that wrong?
    Thank you, David! :)

A

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