Peanut Clusters

 

Technique by Cynthia Cottam, and predecessors 

Ingredients:

Guittard Old Dutch dipping chocolate
Salted Planters Cocktail peanuts

Equipment:

Double boiler
Marble slab (or cookie sheets as substitute)
Wooden spoon
Waxed paper
Cookie sheet

Method:

1. Slowly melt Guittard Old Dutch dipping chocolate over a double boiler until smooth.
2. Use a marble slab (or cookie sheets) placed in front of an open window on a cool, clear night.
3. Ensure room temperature near the window is about 65°F.
4. Place a wooden spoonful of melted chocolate on the slab.
5. With clean hands, fold the chocolate into itself repeatedly until it feels cool to the touch.
6. Mix salted Planters Cocktail peanuts into the tempered chocolate, ensuring they are fully coated.
7. Drop coated peanuts into clusters on a cookie sheet lined with waxed paper.
8. Leave clusters in front of the open window until hardened.

Original:

I slowly melted Guittard Old Dutch dipping chocolate over a double boiler,

Then, on a marble slab (I used cookie sheets until I got a marble slab), in front of an open window, on a cool clear (no clouds) night, with the house temperature by the window and in the room I am dipping in at 65F, I would put a wooden spoonful of chocolate.  With my clean hands, I would temper the chocolate by folding it into itself over and over again, until the chocolate is "cool to the touch".  Then, I would add salted Planters Cocktail peanuts to the puddle of chocolate and cover the peanuts completely. Then, I would drop them into clusters onto a cookie sheet with waxed paper, and let them sit in front of the open window until they were hard.

All of my recipes are look and feel.  Sorry that I do not have any temperatures to go by, but neither did my Mom, and I learned it from her.