AI have looked through the forums for this. I am doing the best with chow mein noodles and chocolate. I have done a test run with milk chocolate morsels and the noodles (turned out with a great look) BUT was milk chocolate the correct choice of chocolate? It had been in the fridge for a while now but when I touch it, it starts to melt where I touched it. That isn't going to go over well on my pink fondant. Any help or suggestions?? TIA
Did you temper the chocolate? Or are you using chocolate chips/couverture chocolate that is already tempered?
I would like to know how you shaped the noodles - I have to make a nest soon to go on the top of a cake and when I saw the word noodles it was like someone switched the light bulb on!! But maybe you have different noodles to the ones I get here....can you explain how to shape them please?
AWhen you say temper the chocolate, I know what tempering eggs is but haven't heard of tempering chocolate?? And the chow mein noodles are already shaped. I melted the milk chocolate baking chips (Ghirardelli) in a bowl in the microwave. I put some of the noodles in a bowl and spooned some of them melted chocolate over them. I gently folded the chocolate into them (as not to break them) and spooned the chocolate covered noodles into a parchment paper lined bowl. I just used a spoon to shape it to the bowl to make it take the nest shape and put it in the fridge. Did that answer your questions??:D
AHow and why to temper chocolate: Http://www.howtocookthat.net/public_html/how-to-temper-chocolate-in-the-microwave/
For your purposes, I'd suggest using candy melts, as they do not require tempering.
AThank you for the link! I will for sure do another test run with the tempered chocolate!! Candy melts don't taste very good so I think I wi stick with playing with the chocolate. Thanks so much for the link!! :)
Thanks for your explanation, I'll have to see if I can get noodles already shaped into a round. Unless I cook some, shape them and dry them out, or something.
Tempered chocolate would be used so it dries rock solid, like a chocolate bar. Your fingers won't leave marks in it if you just handle it briefly.
Candy melts don't taste good, you're right, but no one will eat the nest anyway! It's an option if you get stuck tempering normal chocolate.
Kataifi dough makes awesome bird's nests.
http://www.babble.com/best-recipes/cinnamon-phyllo-nests-with-chocolate-eggs/
AI have made them for chickens to sit on using an extruder. I made a sausage out of four different colours of chocolate clay so that it was striped, then twisted it ever so slightly so that the lines weren't straight within the sausage. I then pushed it through the extruder with a plate with very small holes. I then shaped these into a nest. The colours in the sausage come out a little haphazard so it looks a bit like it is woven. I dried out some of these 'noodles' and stuck them into the structure haphazardly so it looked more 'real'. I made these as toppers and I can't find a pic but I was really proud of it. I also made a nest out of spun sugar, link below. It looked better in real life, though if I did it again I would do it with different shades of sugar to make it less shiny. You need t be careful with atmospheric moisture with spun sugar though, the finer bits tend to wilt over time, which I didn't realise at the time .
I like the idea of the dough that Kakeladi says, but despite living in a Mediterranean country, I have never seen it at the supermarket (never looked though of course...!).
The extruder is a good idea too, I had forgotten I have the disk with 7 or so tiny holes. It would save me cooking noodles and trips to the shops!
AI made an Easter cake this year with a bird's nest on top. I used spun sugar to make it. To make sure I got the nest shape I turned a small breakfast bowl upside down, greased it and let the spun sugar fall haphazardly onto it. There are a couple of pictures in my 'Easter' album. (Sorry my iPad wont let me add a image into the post).
AWow ladies! Thanks for all of the replies. I don't have an extrude so that is a no go but a fantastic idea for someone who does! As per candy melts vs chocolate; I am currently hooked on the chocolate covered chow mein noodles so I will eat the nest, LOL. Cake is for my SIL's baby shower and I will be attending (and butchering my own masterpiece :-O). Candy melts will be a last resort if necessary. I am going to attempt to make a new nest today and temper the chocolate. :) THANKS SO MUCH!
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