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Heart hot chocolate bombs are the perfect treat for Valentine's day. If you loved the hot chocolate bomb trend that took over social media in December, you'll love these geometric heart versions. All you need is a heart mold, some delicious chocolate mix, hot chocolate mix, and 20 minutes of your time!

Heart Hot Chocolate Bomb Ingredients

For this tutorial, we are going to be making three types of heart hot chocolate bombs using white chocolate and a geometric heart mold. You can use semi-sweet chocolate, dark chocolate, or even milk chocolate. I like to use really nice tasting chocolate in my bombs because I like the flavor but you could also use almond bark or candy melts.

If you are going to use real chocolate then you will have to temper it so that it has a strong shell and is nice and shiny. Don't worry, you can easily temper your chocolate in the microwave using a thermometer.

What Are Hot Chocolate Bombs?

Hot chocolate bombs are a fun way to take your hot chocolate up a notch! A thin chocolate shell is filled with flavored hot chocolate mix and marshmallows. Sometimes other flavors are incorporated as decor like caramel or peppermint. Drop it into a hot cup of milk and watch the hot chocolate bomb explode!

How To Make Heart Hot Chocolate Bombs Step-By-Step

Step 1 - Make sure your molds are clean & dry. Cut your molds into individual hearts. This will make them easier to fill. Line a sheet pan with a piece of parchment paper to hold your molds.

Step 2 - Melt your chocolate. I chop my chocolate even if it's in chip form so that it melts faster. The smaller your bits of chocolate, the easier they will melt and the easier it is to control the temperature of your chocolate. Place your chocolate in a heatproof bowl and microwave it for 30 seconds. Stir to distribute the heat. Heat for 15 seconds and then stir.

Make sure the temperature of the chocolate never goes above 88ºF so that it stays in temper. Repeat the 15-second heating and stirring until the chocolate is 90% melted. Continue stirring until it's fully melted.

Step 3 - Divide your melted chocolate into three batches. In one batch I added 1 Tablespoon of ground up freeze-dried strawberries, one batch I added a teaspoon of pink melted cocoa butter, and one batch I left white. If your chocolate has cooled down too much, heat it up again for 5 seconds to get to 88ºF again.

Pro-Tip: You can add in any kind of dry ingredient to melted chocolate like sprinkles, nuts, crushed cookies etc. As long as it doesn't have any liquid, it will work! 

Step 4 - Line all your molds up and start filling them with chocolate one by one, all the way to the top edge. Don't overfill them.

Step 5 - Once they are all filled, start emptying the chocolate back into the bowl. Start with the first mold you filled and work your way to the most recent. Tap the mold or shake it slightly to remove as much of the excess chocolate as possible. Thick shells will be hard to melt.

Step 6 - Scrape the top edge with a spatula to make it nice and clean.

Step 7 - Place the mold upside down on your sheet pan with parchment paper.

Step 8 - Place the molds into the freezer or fridge for 5 minutes to make them set.

Step 9 - Remove the molds from the freezer and with gloved hands, carefully remove the chocolate hearts from the mold.

Step 10 - Make sure you have some melted chocolate ready to go for drizzling. I re-melted the chocolate leftover from the heart molds (never going above 88ºF) and placed it into a piping bag.

Step 11 - If your edges are not flat, you can melt them slightly on a hot plate. I warmed mine in the microwave for 1 minute.

Step 12 - Fill one side of your heart shell with 1 Tablespoon of strawberry cocoa mix. I used Nesquick.

Step 13 - Add two drops of strawberry oil for more strawberry flavor! (optional).

Step 14 - Add some marshmallows on top.

Step 15 - Place your shell on top and squeeze it together to seal it. Make sure you are wearing gloves to avoid fingerprints. You can also pipe chocolate onto the edge and seal it and then wipe away the excess chocolate.

Step 16 - Drizzle some melted chocolate on top, add some sprinkles, crushed strawberries, anything you want!

I like to package my heart hot chocolate bombs in cupcake wrappers. Make sure you include instructions on how to use them or your client might take a bite out of them thinking they are candy! You can get these cool labels and stir sticks here.

To use your heart hot chocolate bombs, place them in a mug that holds 14-16 oz of liquid. Pour steaming hot milk on top and watch it explode! Stir and enjoy!

Store leftover bombs at room temperature in a ziplock or airtight container.

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Homemade marshmallows are sweet, soft, fluffy pillows that melt-in-your-mouth. homemade marshmallows are 1000 times better than store-bought and a lot easier to make than you think. Flavor your marshmallows with different extracts, food coloring, mix-ins like dried nuts or freeze-dried fruit. The options are endless!

Take your s'mores up a notch at your summer BBQ or gift them with hot chocolate bombs for a Holiday treat.

HOMEMADE MARSHMALLOWS VS STORE BOUGHT

You may not think that there is much difference between homemade marshmallows and storebought and if you look at the ingredients, they might look very similar. I picked up a bag of marshmallows at my grocery store and recognized most things aside from tetrasodium pyrophosphate and blue 1.

But the texture, the TEXTURE is totally different. We all know what a regular marshmallow tastes like. Sweet, a little like vanilla, and chewy. I thought that was normal.

Then I had my first homemade marshmallow and I was shocked. It literally dissolved in my mouth. There was no chewing. Like a creamy kind of cotton candy, it just melted away. The vanilla bean and the touch of honey add so much more flavor dimension. I cannot wait to experiment with more flavors.

HOMEMADE MARSHMALLOW INGREDIENTS

Homemade marshmallows are made from only a few ingredients. Sugar, water, corn syrup, gelatin, salt, and flavoring. They get their light texture from whipping the sugar and incorporating lots and lots of air.

Honey and corn syrup are types of invert sugar, meaning that they inhibit sugar crystals from forming and keep things moist. Too much and you'll have a sticky, melty mess but a little can work wonders. You don't have to use honey and corn syrup though, you can use any kind of invert sugar such as glucose, golden syrup, maple syrup, agave syrup, or even molasses if you wanted to make gingerbread marshmallows!

HOW TO MAKE MARSHMALLOWS FROM SCRATCH

Step 1 - Get everything ready. Once you start making marshmallows, there isn't any time to prep anything. Pre-measure all your ingredients, get out all your tools, prep your pans. Scrape your vanilla bean pod.

Step 2 - Brush a 9"x9"x2" pan with canola oil with a pastry brush. Make sure you get into the corners, the sides and the top edges, do not miss any spots. I don't recommend using vegetable oil or any kind of oil with a flavor because it transfers to the marshmallows.

Step 3 - Line the pan with 2 pieces of parchment paper going in opposite directions.

Cut the 1st piece of parchment paper to be 9"x13" and the 2nd to be 9"x 20". The longer piece is going to fold on top of the marshmallows later on. Oil the parchment paper as well. If you don't oil your pan and parchment paper, the marshmallows will stick.

Step 4 - Add the gelatin and cold water to the bowl of your stand mixer and let it absorb for 15 minutes while you make your sugar syrup.

Step 5 -Add the corn syrup, honey, sugar, and water to a medium saucepan. Stir together to combine, then turn the heat on to medium-high to bring it to a boil. Do not stir the mixture again.

Step 6 - Cover the pot with a lid. Once it reaches a boil, let the condensation gather on the lid for 5 minutes then remove the lid and attach a candy thermometer. The condensation helps brush any rogue grains of sugar down from the sides which can cause crystalization.

Step 7 -  Reduce the heat to medium and continue cooking the sugar until it reaches 240°F (115°C). Whatever you do, DO NOT STIR!

Pro-Tip: Do not be alarmed if your mixture is staying at 225°F for a while, it will remain here while the water is evaporating from the sugar syrup. Once steam stops rising, the temperature of the syrup will rise quickly so don't walk away!

Step 8 - Once the sugar reaches 240°F, carefully remove the pan from the heat and take off your candy thermometer. With the whisk attachment, start your mixer on low to break up the bloomed gelatin, then slowly pour in the hot syrup between the blades and the side of the mixer while mixing on low.

Step 9 - Add in the vanilla and salt.

Step 10 - Turn your mixer up to high and whip for 8-10 minutes. When the mixer bowl is slightly warm to the touch, not hot or cold, it's done. Once it's done, move very quickly as the marshmallows will start to set up almost immediately.

Step 11 - Grease a spatula (and your hand) with canola oil and pour the marshmallow fluff into your prepared pan. This can be challenging, it helps to have a 2nd person to hold the bowl while you scoop out the marshmallow fluff.

Then oil your hands or spatula again and spread the fluff out to the sides of the pan. It will be very sticky. Cover with the long end of the oiled parchment and smooth to the edges with your hands.

Step 12 - Let the marshmallow sit at room temperature for a minimum of 2 hours, preferably overnight. The longer you let them rest, the easier they will be to cut.

Step 13 - Once set up, lift the sides of the parchment paper to remove the marshmallows from the pan. Then peel off the top layer of parchment paper and dust the top with powdered sugar. Dust your surface with powdered sugar as well, remove the bottom parchment paper from your marshmallows and place the square on your prepared surface. You really can't have too much powdered sugar. It prevents sticking and we will brush off the excess later.

Step 14 - Coat your bench scraper, knife, or scissors with a layer of canola oil to help prevent sticking. I found that a 10" long bench scraper worked the best for cutting marshmallows. Clean your bench scraper with a warm washcloth in between cuts for less sticking and more precision. If you don't have a bench scraper, you can use a taping knife or something similar.

Cut your marshmallows into 2" squares (or whatever size you prefer).

Coat each marshmallow in more powdered sugar to prevent sticking and store at room temperature for up to 4 days.

I highly recommend toasting homemade marshmallows to use in s'mores or dipping some in chocolate to use in a cup of hot cocoa. So freaking delicious!

HOW TO KEEP HOMEMADE MARSHMALLOWS FROM STICKING

• Canola oil and powdered sugar are your best friends when it comes to homemade marshmallows. Coating everything in oil from your pan, parchment paper, bench scraper, knives, and even your hands will help the sticking problem.
• Don't cut your marshmallows for 24 hours.
• Dust your work surface liberally with powdered sugar as a base for cutting your marshmallows.
• After you cut the marshmallows into squares, it's best practice to roll them in powdered sugar to prevent the sides from sticking to each other.
• Let your marshmallows dry out at room temperature for 24-48 hours to develop a skin which keeps them from sticking together and makes them easier to toast.

HOW TO MAKE MARSHMALLOWS WITHOUT A SUGAR THERMOMETER

Using a candy thermometer is the easiest way to make marshmallows. I like to use this candy thermometer, or an infrared heat thermometer from Thermo works. That's great because then nothing has to touch the sugar syrup and you can get an accurate reading without the mess!

If you absolutely cannot get a thermometer, you can try to do the softball test. If you haven't done this before, I would only recommend it for seasoned professionals. About every 5 minutes, take about a teaspoon of the sugar syrup and place it into a bowl of cold water. If the sugar comes together in the water and you can form it into a firm ball with your fingers without it collapsing, then it's ready. It will be pliable and able to hold its shape when you press it with your fingers. If it dissolves or flattens then the syrup is not ready yet. 

WHY ARE MY MARSHMALLOWS DENSE?

If your sugar syrup goes over 240 even a couple of degrees, your sugar will be too firm and will cause your marshmallows to be hard instead of fluffy.

Keep a close eye on your thermometer and take it off the heat the second it gets to 240ºF and immediately pour into your gelatin.

Also, check to make sure your thermometer is reading accurately. Insert your candy thermometer into a pot of water and bring it to a rolling boil. The bubbles should be constant and vigorous. At sea level, the boiling point for water is 212º F or 100 C; this will be our baseline. Leave your thermometer in the water for five minutes to give it time to get an accurate reading. If it reads 212ºF it's accurate. If not, it may need calibration or you need a better thermometer.

MARSHMALLOWS WITHOUT GELATIN

Gelatin is an important ingredient in getting homemade marshmallows to have that fluffy texture. You can use agar agar powder (telephone brand) instead of gelatin, but it will not have the same consistency. Check out this highly rated recipe for vegan marshmallows.

HOW LONG DO HOMEMADE MARSHMALLOWS LAST?

Store homemade marshmallows in an air-tight container and they basically last forever! Pop them in the freezer to keep them fresh and prevent them from drying out.

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