Caramel and Gianduja Bon Bons

Sea Salt Caramel

Ingredients

92g whipping cream (37-38% fat content) 

Piece vanilla pod (handy way to use up pre-scraped pieces to infuse the cream) 

186g granulated sugar 

30g glucose 

150g unsalted butter 

3g sea salt flakes 

Whole blanched/skinned roasted hazelnuts for placing on the caramel 

Mould cast with milk chocolate 

Method

Cut up butter in to cubes in to a bowl and leave to come to room temperature. 

Boil cream with vanilla in a pan and set aside. 

Gradually heat the glucose with the granulated sugar in a pan until sugar is melted (stirring nearly continuously with a heat proof spatula). When crystals of sugar are melted, raise the heat and bring the caramel to an amber colour stirring all the time. Once desired colour is reached, immediately take pan off the heat and add the butter a few chunks at a time and stir in – don’t add more until the previous pieces are incorporated. (BEWARE: the caramel will bubble up vigorously and produce scorching steam, so don’t add too much butter at once, and keep hands well out the way of splashes – use protective gloves if required). 

Once all butter has been stirred in, heat the cream up again until steaming, and stir in to the caramel gradually. 

Pass caramel through a metal sieve in to a plastic bowl. Cool to approx. 30-35˚C, then stir in the sea salt flakes. 

Pour caramel in to a disposable piping bag, check temperature is 25-28C, and pipe in to the moulds to half the depth of the cavities. 

Place a whole hazelnut in each one, leave aside for an hour or so to semi set. Pipe in the gianduja to just under the top of the mould. Let set (preferably overnight if they are not for immediate use, this lets any free water escape before capping) at cool room temperature or in a chocolate fridge (14-16C). 

Cap the mould with tempered chocolate and store appropriately. These chocolates have a best before shelf life of around 6 weeks. 

Gianduja

Ingredients

250g hazelnuts – blanched/skinned 

80g granulated sugar - ground finely 

350g dark chocolate 

1g salt or to taste 

Tempered chocolate for capping 

Method

Preheat oven to 160C. Place nuts in a baking tray sprinkled with the salt and lightly roast for 8-10 minutes, check frequently, they should not colour more. 

Grind granulated sugar in a Thermomix (no heat) until fine like icing sugar. 

Add nuts to sugar and grind to powder. 

Melt chocolate and place in a melanger/wet stone grinder, gradually add the nuts and sugar, and process until smooth, may take a couple of hours. 

Temper on a granite slab until piping consistency. Pipe on top of the caramel and hazelnut almost to the top of the cavity leaving enough room for capping the chocolate as mentioned above