What to do with leftover melted chocolate?

Melted chocolate is pure bliss. There are so many things you might need to melt chocolate for, and if you find that you've melted too much chocolate at once, you'll probably be wondering what to do with it next.

You may also find some melted chocolate or chocolate wafers at home and are looking for interesting ideas to make and how to salvage the situation. In this case, you have come to the right place.

What to do with leftover melted or melted chocolate? There are many, many different ways to use melted chocolate. You can make hot chocolate or mocha, use it as a dip for fruit, make your own chocolates, or even add it to some baking recipes for an extra rich flavor.

Below are some great ways to use melted chocolate. Most of them are incredibly easy to make or just leave room for your creativity and you will definitely come up with some cool ideas on your own too.

Rich hot chocolate

Who doesn't love a warm cup of hot chocolate on a cold day? You can improve your hot chocolate by adding two tablespoons of melted chocolate to the mixture.

If you don't want to use powdered hot chocolate, you can always fill your mug halfway with melted chocolate and add a little warm milk.

This will give you a thick drinkable hot chocolate mixture that you can top with a dollop of fresh whipped cream and chocolate powder for extra flavor.

For a more unique twist, you can always add flavors or extracts to the hot cocoa along with the melted chocolate, such as vanilla, lavender, rose, raspberry, orange, hazelnut, cinnamon or honey!

Making chocolate nuances

To make chocolate, use the finest cocoa powder. To prevent lumps from appearing in the mass, the powder should be sifted through a strainer.

Vanilla essence is added along with butter, and cinnamon is sifted into milk and then “poured” into chocolate.

Homemade milk chocolate should be stored in the refrigerator. Take it out only before serving. You can please your loved ones and friends with this gift by wrapping the bar in food foil and printing a unique wrapper.

Instead of sugar and powdered sugar, you should try natural substitutes: honey, malt, jam or sweet maple syrup. It is worth considering that the consistency of the dessert will change; you may need to add a little more dry matter or take less milk.

Brownie with chocolate layer

Melted chocolate is often used to make delicious cakes. After making the brownies, you may have some leftover melted chocolate.

Here's how to make chocolate brownies:

Mix the brownie batter according to the recipe, adding the required amount of melted chocolate.
Bake the cakes for the recommended time.
After baking, remove the cakes from the oven.
Pour as much melted chocolate over the brownies as you like.
The melted chocolate will harden and soak into the brownies as they cool.

An extra layer on top of the brownies is chocolate heaven! You can make a thick layer if you just can't get enough chocolate in your life, or a thin layer for a slight change in texture.

If you use melted white chocolate, you can color it for special occasions, and the flat, smooth surface of the melted chocolate creates the perfect place for decoration.

You can add sprinkles, powdered sugar, some white chocolate, or even decorative chocolates on top of this layer after it has cooled.

You can layer orange chocolate and make pumpkin brownies for Halloween, write a message in frosting to a loved one for their birthday, or make a red or cool blue layer of white snowflake candy for the holidays.

The choice is yours, so get creative!

Chocolate cake coating

If you baked a delicious chocolate cake, you can use the leftover melted chocolate as a drizzle or frosting.

Using melted chocolate also makes it easy to decorate the cake, and it's incredibly easy to do!

Here's how to frost a cake with melted chocolate:

Let the cake cool completely before frosting with chocolate.
Transfer the melted chocolate into a durable plastic bag, such as a freezer bag.
Cut one of the bottom corners of the plastic bag, making a very small hole.
Pipe melted chocolate from this hole to create a pattern.

This is not only a good idea for the cake, but also for decorating the tops of cupcakes. You can use the melted chocolate as the only addition or add it to the frosting already on the cupcakes.

Alternatively, you can melt the chocolate until it's completely liquid and pour it over the cake, letting it drip down the sides and cool, creating a thin glaze that's easy on the eye, crackles under the fork, and melts. your mouth.

Chocolate Rain

Just like icing the top of a cake with melted chocolate, you can use chocolate to drizzle other sweets.

For many desserts, you can add a little melted chocolate. Butter pies, pies, cheesecakes and puddings can be coated with melted or liquid chocolate. The cookies deserve a little chocolate drizzle too!

Follow the same instructions as above for the chocolate cake, placing the melted chocolate in a plastic freezer bag and making a small hole to drizzle the chocolate.

How to make chocolate at home: secrets, tricks and useful tips

When making chocolate from cocoa beans, you cannot skimp on the quantity and quality of this product. All ingredients for real chocolate must be of good quality and natural.

Making chocolate at home will require the use of a water bath, although some recipes allow you to place the container with the food on an open fire. In a water bath, heating occurs more evenly, and the chocolate does not separate.

The mixture should not overheat. The temperature is at most 32 degrees, you can check this with your hand, it should not burn.

Heat the chocolate in a double boiler

When you come across chocolate recipes that you like among the new dishes, don’t rush to prepare a lot of delicacies - try making a small portion first to evaluate the result.

Chocolate fondue

Chocolate sauce or chocolate fondue is a great way to use up melted chocolate. You also don't need to do much preparation.

However, if you don't have any chocolate yet and you're here because you're planning your next culinary endeavor, we suggest taking a look at our article on the 9 best chocolates for melting so you can be sure to get the best results for fondue.

If you have a fondue pot, the chocolate will be warm as you dip into the different ingredients.

Here are a few foods that are perfect for dipping in melted chocolate:

Pretzels
Waffles
Donut holes
Strawberry
A pineapple
Caramel
Pancakes
Belgian waffles, cut into cubes
Bananas
Cookie
Apple slices
Biscotti
Nuts
Marshmallow
Pound Cake Cubes

Chocolate fondue is a great way to turn something so simple into a decadent dessert that will impress your guests.

Chocolate baking recipes

The most delicious chocolate dishes are, of course, cakes, rolls and pastries. There are a lot of recipes for making chocolate pastries; every family has its own favorite. If you have no culinary experience, it is best to start with the simplest dishes: chocolate bagels, cookies, meringues. For children, you can prepare coconut in chocolate - a simple dish, but very aromatic and tasty.

Layered bagels. Required ingredients:

250 g puff pastry;
50 g nuts;
50 g milk or dark chocolate;
30 g melted butter;
sugar to taste.

Roll out the dough into a large circle and divide it into 8 triangles with a sharp knife. Brush the surface of each triangle with melted butter and sprinkle with chopped nuts and grated chocolate. Carefully roll the rolls, press the edges so that the chocolate does not leak out, and place on a baking sheet. Brush with beaten egg or milk and bake at 180°C until the chocolate bagels are golden brown.

Chocolate meringue. For this dessert you will need:

75 g dark chocolate;
100 g sugar;
2 squirrels.

First you need to preheat the oven to 130°C and prepare a baking sheet for the meringue. Next, melt the chocolate in a water bath and set it aside to cool to 40° C. Then beat the whites until stiff, gradually add sugar and beat again. Pour chocolate on top of the whites and lightly mix the mixture. Using a dessert spoon, place the egg whites on a baking sheet and place in the oven for 1 hour. The finished meringue with chocolate turns out very attractive in appearance and has a pleasant aroma (image 5).

In most dishes, chocolate can replace cocoa; this has almost no effect on the taste of the treat. Experienced housewives use cocoa recipes even more readily than chocolate, especially if a large amount of sweets is required.

But the main thing is to cook with soul, then any dessert will turn out delicious!

Chocolate bark

Making chocolate bark is one of the best ways to use up melted chocolate. You're completely free to use the ingredients you add to your chocolate bark, so you can make it just the way you like it.

Here's how to make chocolate bark:

Line a baking sheet with plastic wrap or aluminum foil.
Pour the melted chocolate onto the baking sheet, smoothing it out as much as possible.
Sprinkle a mixture of your preferred ingredients, such as Oreos, M&Ms, toasted nuts, crushed candy cane, caramel and sea salt, seeds or dried fruit, on top of the melted chocolate.
Leave it in the refrigerator for several hours.
Once hardened, cut the bark into small portions.

Some people like to add dark chocolate and healthier ingredients like nuts and dried fruits to their chocolate bark for a healthier treat.

Chocolate creams and pastes

Many people know that you can make delicious creams for cakes and sweet spreads from chocolate. They are used not only as a filling, but also as an independent dessert.

Based on the basic recipe, each housewife creates her own variations (depending on the available products and imagination).

Delicate chocolate cream will make the simplest cake incredibly tasty, and the paste can be eaten simply with bread or toast, or filled with straws and cookies for tea.

Chocolate cream. For preparation you will need:

150 g dark chocolate;
50 g butter;
0.5 cups of fat sour cream;
a bag of vanilla sugar;
a pinch of salt;
2.5 cups of powdered sugar.

Image 4. Chocolate spread.
The chocolate needs to be melted and mixed with soft butter. Add salt and vanilla sugar to the cooled mass and add sour cream. Mix all ingredients thoroughly and add powdered sugar little by little. To make the mass fluffy and homogeneous, beat it with a mixer for several minutes. This cream is great for decorating cakes because it holds its shape well.

Chocolate paste. Required Products:

10 tbsp. l. granulated sugar;
0.5 l of milk;
1 stick of butter;
3 tbsp. l. flour;
5 tbsp. l. cocoa.

Pour the milk into a saucepan, add the butter cut into pieces and bring to a boil. In a separate bowl, mix flour, cocoa and sugar, pour into boiling milk and stir very intensively with a whisk so that lumps do not form. Cook for another 1-2 minutes, then remove from heat and cool. You can add muesli, nuts, dried fruits or candied fruits to the finished pasta (image 4).

Chocolate soufflé. For preparation you will need:

70 g dark chocolate;
50 g butter;
70 g sugar;
2 egg yolks;
4 squirrels;
baking dishes with high sides.

Image 5. Chocolate meringue.
The molds need to be greased, sprinkled with sugar and refrigerated.

Place chocolate, butter and sugar broken into pieces into a bowl, place in a water bath, and melt until smooth.

Add the yolks into the warm mass and stir well; beat the whites in a separate bowl. In several stages, the whites are introduced into the chocolate mass, mixing it very carefully.

You can stir for no more than a minute, otherwise the proteins will begin to settle. Pour the mixture into cold molds and place in the oven for 5-7 minutes. The oven should be preheated to 200° C. Sprinkle the finished soufflé with powdered sugar.

Chocolate candies in shape

You can use those fun little molds you have in the back of your kitchen cupboard to make chocolate popsicles from melted chocolate.

You can even use different colored chocolates, like colorful candy canes, to make seasonal chocolates for holidays like Halloween, Christmas or Easter.

Here's how to make your own chocolates:

Clean the candy molds well.
Spray with cooking spray to line the pans if you are not working with flexible silicone.
Slowly pour the melted chocolate into each candy mold, filling just to the top of the mold.
Place the candy pan in the refrigerator for a few hours to set.
Once set, carefully remove the chocolates and enjoy!

There are many candy molds to choose from. Not only is this a fun activity for the whole family, but you can even wrap them as gifts for the holidays!

If you want to get really fancy, you can even sprinkle the inside of the molds with edible glitter or glitter dust before pouring in the chocolate.

This will coat your chocolate with a layer of bright metallic color and help it stand out from the desserts your neighbors bought at their Christmas party.

Warning: Your candies may turn out to be so beautiful that you will have to waste them because you can't bring yourself to destroy something so perfect!

Frozen chocolate covered bananas

Extra bananas and melted chocolate combine to make one of the most delicious and easy treats!

Here's how to make them:

Peel as many bananas as you want to freeze.
Line a baking sheet with plastic wrap or aluminum foil.
Dip half a banana into the melted chocolate.
Place the dipped bananas on a baking sheet.
Sprinkle on any toppings you want while the chocolate is still wet.
Place the sheet in the freezer for several hours.
Once frozen, you can place the frozen chocolate covered bananas in a freezer-safe container or plastic bag for easy freezer storage.

You can remove enough food from the freezer at a time to enjoy it without having to defrost the whole batch, since they wouldn't freeze together. By the way, you can read more about freezing chocolate and its change in taste during the freezing process.

If you want to get creative, you can top the bananas with desiccated coconut, toasted nuts, or M&Ms before freezing!

Simple no-bake recipes

Many chocolate recipes do not require much culinary experience, so anyone can handle them. The preparation process takes a minimum of time, all the ingredients are simple and accessible, and the finished delicacy is not only tasty, but also very attractive in appearance. In addition, you can prepare such dishes with your children: they get no less pleasure from it than from eating sweets.

Berries and fruits in chocolate

For preparation you will need:

milk chocolate - 300 g;
cream - half a glass;
a pinch of cinnamon;
any berries and fruits - 700 g;
toothpicks or skewers.

The chocolate needs to be broken into pieces and melted in a water bath. While the chocolate is melting, the berries are washed and drained, the fruit is peeled and cut into pieces. Pour cream into the melted chocolate mass and mix well.

Image 1. Dessert of berries in white chocolate.

After this, take a baking sheet, cover it with foil and begin the main process. Each piece is placed on a toothpick and dipped in chocolate, then placed on foil. Once the chocolate has dried, the fruit is ready to serve. Ripe bananas, strawberries, raspberries and pieces of kiwi or orange work best for this recipe. By the way, this dessert also looks good with white chocolate (image 1).

Chocolate covered straws are prepared in a similar way. Be sure to choose unsalted and crispy straws, then the delicacy will turn out very tasty. You can dip the sticks completely or only halfway to make it easier to hold them. Colored caramel sprinkles and crushed nuts are perfect for decorating this dessert. First, the straws are dipped into the chocolate mixture, then rolled in nuts or sprinkles and placed on a baking sheet to dry. You can mix chocolate with coconut, it will also turn out very tasty (image 2).

Chocolate Turkish Delight

Required components:

4 cups sugar;
1 glass of water;
1 cup cornstarch;
2 tbsp. l. honey;
5 tbsp. l. dry cocoa;
2 g citric acid;
100 g dark chocolate.

Mix sugar and water in a saucepan and heat to a boil. Carefully add starch, stirring vigorously with a spoon, add citric acid. Reducing the heat slightly, add cocoa powder, and then cook for about an hour, constantly stirring the contents of the pan. As soon as the mass becomes viscous, you need to add grated chocolate, mix quickly and place everything on a baking sheet covered with parchment. Having leveled the surface, the Turkish delight is placed in the refrigerator until it hardens. The finished delicacy can be rolled in powdered sugar, coconut flakes or dipped in chocolate.

Decadent cake batter

Any cake batter can be made with extra chocolate! You can use this method to make a regular oven baked cake, a microwave cake, or even a cheesecake.

All you need to do is add about half a cup of melted chocolate to the batter before preparing the cake as usual. Of course, this is for a normal sized cake and you can always adjust it to your liking.

This will give your cake an extra boost and add a new layer of richness and decadence that will probably make your cake appealing to everyone.

Toffee topping

The butterscotch bars are amazing as is, but with the addition of chocolate filling they are heavenly!

Here's how to add melted chocolate to butterscotch:

Remove the blondies or butterscotch from the oven.
While still hot, pour melted chocolate over it.
Allow the chocolate to cool and harden before cutting.

Alternatively, you can place the melted chocolate in a plastic freezer bag, cut off the bottom, and use the melted chocolate to drizzle over the top of blondies or toffee bars.

Just like the brownies we mentioned earlier, this chocolate layer creates a smooth surface perfect for decorating if you want to go all out for your local bake sale.

What you will need

The products needed to make chocolate are very simple: cocoa powder, butter, milk, sugar. The only condition is to take all products of very good quality. That is, the butter is not peasant butter, but traditional, high-fat, milk is whole, fresh. And cocoa... A very good powder is suitable here, of course, without sugar or any additives. It is best to take cocoa from the well-known old Soviet brand.

And you will also need molds. These can be just ice molds, plastic or silicone. You can take molds for candies or cookies (they are often shaped and interesting). The main thing is that the molds can be put in the freezer. But those intended for the oven tolerate frost well.

Interesting questions

What's the best way to melt chocolate?

It is best to melt the chocolate in a double boiler. This is a gentle way to slowly bring the chocolate to the melting point without exposing it to high temperatures.

If you can't use the double boiler method, you can melt the chocolate in the microwave in 30-second intervals, stirring in between.

If you are still interested in this topic, we invite you to read our article dedicated to this very topic: How to Melt Chocolate Wafers.