Make way for bonbons! Today we’re making the last recipe in my Jane Eyre menu: bonbons inspired by Mr. Rochester’s time in France. Although the rest of this menu was heavily influenced by early 19th century recipes, I had a difficult time finding bonbon recipes from the period. Luckily, the basic process doesn’t appear to have changed that much over the years, so I decided to use modern techniques but stick with period-appropriate flavors. Let’s take a look at the flavors we’re using today:
- DARK CHOCOLATE RASPBERRY. We’re starting off simple and classic. Raspberries were a wildly popular dessert ingredient in the early 19th century, just like they are today. Plus, they’re my favorite fruit! These bonbons are filled with homemade raspberry jam, so in each bite you get the tartness of the berries, the bitterness of the chocolate, and just enough sweetness to balance it all out.
- DARK CHOCOLATE COCONUT ALMOND. Coconuts may not be the first thing you think of when you imagine England in the early 1800s, but macaroon recipes appeared in almost every period cookbook I read while researching this menu. Almonds were also a popular ingredient. Fun fact: the coconut “bonbons” I’m making today are technically truffles, since bonbon filling must be liquidy enough to spill out when the chocolate shell is broken. Does that mean I love these little beauties any less? No way. 😉
- WHITE CHOCOLATE CINNAMON SALTED BUTTERSCOTCH. Caramel and cinnamon appeared in many desserts from Jane’s time, and they pair beautifully together (butterscotch is caramel made with brown sugar). White chocolate wasn’t invented until the 1900s, but I think it complements the filling better than dark does. I just gotta say, the filling is PHENOMENAL. It’s probably the best thing to come out of this whole recipe. I’m putting it on my ice cream for the rest of my life!
You may not believe it, but I was SUPER SCARED to make these. Candymaking can be tricky, and this probably the most gourmet dessert I’ve ever made (except maybe opera cake). But these turned out to be pretty easy! It can get a bit messy, but I’ve included some tips in the recipe below to help with that. Enjoy! 🙂
A
Mr. Rochester’s Bonbons
“Here ensued a pause, filled up by the producing and lighting of a cigar; having placed it to his lips and breathed a trail of Havannah incense on the freezing and sunless air, he went on— ‘I liked bonbons too in those days, Miss Eyre, and I was…croquant chocolate comfits, and smoking alternately, watching meantime the equipages that rolled along the fashionable streets towards the neighbouring opera-house…’”
— Jane Eyre
INGREDIENTS:
- CINNAMON SALTED BUTTERSCOTCH SAUCE
- 1/2 cup brown sugar, packed
- 2 Tbsp water
- 3 Tbsp unsalted butter, cut into pieces
- 1/4 cup heavy cream
- 1/4 tsp cinnamon
- 1/4-3/8 tsp salt
- RASPBERRY JAM
- 1 lb frozen raspberries
- 1/2 cup plus 2 Tbsp sugar
- 2 tsp lemon juice
- a pinch of salt
- COCONUT FILLING
- 2 Tbsp crushed almonds
- 1/2 cup shredded unsweetened coconut
- 1/3 cup powdered sugar
- 2 Tbsp sweetened condensed milk
- 1/4 tsp almond extract
- a pinch of salt
- CHOCOLATE SHELLS
- 4 oz high quality white chocolate (technically vanilla almond bark will work too, but it’s more difficult to get a thin, even chocolate layer)
- 6-8 oz high quality dark chocolate
- 3 candy molds with 8 wells each (1 mold with 24 wells is also acceptable, though be careful not to smear the different chocolates into each other)
- cinnamon, for decoration
- 4-6 red chocolate wafer melts, for decoration
Makes 24 bonbons, 8 of each flavor
INSTRUCTIONS:
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- FOR THE CINNAMON BUTTERSCOTCH SAUCE. Add brown sugar and water to a small saucepan on medium heat. Whisk until sugar is dissolved. Heat without stirring, only swirling the pan occasionally, until mixture reaches 240-250° on a candy thermometer. Remove from heat and whisk in butter until dissolved. Take care, as the sugar is hot and will foam up considerably when the butter is added. Whisk in the heavy cream, then the cinnamon and salt. Allow to cool in the pan for 10 minutes. Transfer to a sealed container.
- FOR THE RASPBERRY JAM. Place all the ingredients in a medium sized pot. Break up the raspberries with a spatula. Bring to a boil over medium heat, stirring frequently. Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer for 10 minutes. Pour into a sealable container and allow to cool, uncovered, on the counter until the jam reaches room temperature. Cover and chill until ready to use.
- FOR THE COCONUT FILLING. In a 325° oven, toast almonds on a baking sheet for 3-5 minutes. Allow to cool. In a mixing bowl, combine all ingredients and stir until well combined. Cover and chill for 30 minutes.
- CHOCOLATE SHELL ASSEMBLY. Melt down white chocolate according to package instructions. Working quickly so the chocolate does not cool, pour as much as needed to fill 8 wells in a candy mold. Tilt and rotate the mold over a large bowl or sheet of wax paper to catch any drips. Continue to tilt and rotate until the chocolate evenly coats the insides of the wells. Scrape excess chocolate from top of mold with a bench scraper. Rotate and scrape again if needed. Place mold in freezer until ready to fill. Use a clean finger to spread a tiny bit of excess white chocolate into the bottom of 8 empty molds (this will be the “garnish” on your coconut bonbons). Transfer remaining excess chocolate from bowl/sheet to a microwaveable bowl and set aside for use if needed later.
- Repeat Step 4 with the dark chocolate in the remaining 2 molds (8 wells each), making note of which ones have white chocolate in the bottom. Freeze until set.
- Fill the white chocolate shells with approximately 1/4 tsp cinnamon butterscotch sauce, depending on the size of the well. You don’t want to fill it to the very top, because you want enough room left for a layer of chocolate on the bottom of the bonbon. Fill the dark chocolate wells similarly with coconut filling and raspberry jam. Freeze for 20 minutes.
- Remelt remaining white chocolate. Pour over the butterscotch centers to cover, then scrape off excess with a bench scraper. Again, I recommend working over a bowl or wax paper to avoid mess. Freeze until set.
- Repeat Step 7 with remaining dark chocolate, using it on the raspberry and coconut bonbons. Freeze until set.
- Carefully remove bonbons from molds. Dust the white chocolate bonbons with cinnamon. Melt the red chocolate melting wafers according to package instructions and drizzle over the raspberry bonbons.
- Serve at room temperature to the brooding lord of Thornfield Hall.
- FOR THE CINNAMON BUTTERSCOTCH SAUCE. Add brown sugar and water to a small saucepan on medium heat. Whisk until sugar is dissolved. Heat without stirring, only swirling the pan occasionally, until mixture reaches 240-250° on a candy thermometer. Remove from heat and whisk in butter until dissolved. Take care, as the sugar is hot and will foam up considerably when the butter is added. Whisk in the heavy cream, then the cinnamon and salt. Allow to cool in the pan for 10 minutes. Transfer to a sealed container.
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