During Christine's stay at the house we discovered that we have a similar like and dislike of Almond Joys--they are so tasty, but why do they call it Almond Joy when there aren't even enough almonds to be joyful?! They should call it "Chocolate/Coconut Joy & Almond ehhh...."!! Seriously, there should be an almond in every bite.
When you want something done right, do it yourself...and we did. Of course, with the help of the lovely Heidi, who created the very special chromosome Almond Joy
(pictured below). A word of advice--actually temper the chocolate with a thermometer according to the directions below. Or suffer the consequence of having super thick chocolate; which when I think about it, isn't such a horrible thing since the coconut filling isn't as sweet as the original.
Maybe they don't make them with more than one almond because almonds are expensive...or maybe it's because they look like trilobites/some weird beetle with all the almonds. Whatever the story is, I don't care! We made our dream a reality and I am very happy with the result, trilobite appearance and all.
From
Chow.com they say:
"Professional pastry chefs use a type of chocolate known as couverture (it has more cocoa butter than normal chocolate) because it sets up well. The only trick is that you need to temper it. For this recipe, we used El Rey 41 percent milk chocolate Discos; they can be found at specialty grocery stores and online.
From experience we can say it’s best to avoid tempering chocolate on a hot day. If you can’t, be sure to work in an air-conditioned space. Chocolate behaves best in a room-temperature environment (mid-60s to low 70s). Once your chocolate is in temper, it stays there for only a short time, so have everything ready to go and work quickly."
(I love this site...they're hilarious...they've also got other knock off treats such as Twixt and Snickles!)
Special Equipment
Kitchen scale
Tape measure
Chocolate thermometer, such as CDN’s
Three-prong chocolate dipping fork
Coconut Filling
10 ounces finely shredded sweetened coconut (about 3 1/4 cups)
6 tablespoons light corn syrup
maybe 2 C worth of whole roasted unsalted almonds (recipe calls for salted...but unsalted was good too)
Chocolate Coating
1 1/2 pounds milk chocolate couverture, such as El Rey chocolate discs 41% (what they use at Chuao!)
CoconutLine a baking sheet with waxed or parchment paper; set aside.
Combine coconut and corn syrup in the bowl of a food processor fitted with a blade. Pulse until coconut is finely ground and mixture holds shape when squeezed into a ball, about 30 (1-second) pulses.
Divide coconut mixture into 27 (2-teaspoon) portions. Work each portion between hands until it is compact and smooth. Shape each portion into a 2-1/2-inch-long, 1-inch-wide rectangle (when forming filling, it helps to rinse hands often with water). Note: the flatter it is, the more almonds you can cram on there...
Set rectangles on the baking sheet and place in the freezer until firm, at least 10 minutes. Meanwhile, temper chocolate.
Chocolate**When we made this, I just stuck the chocolate in a double boiler and called it good.
To temper chocolate, fill a large bowl with 2 inches of cold water, add 3 to 4 ice cubes, and set aside.
Bring a medium saucepan filled with 1 to 2 inches of water to a simmer over high heat; once simmering, turn off heat. Place 18 ounces of the chocolate in a dry heatproof bowl. Set the bowl over the saucepan and stir until chocolate is completely melted and reaches 118°F. (Make sure chocolate does not come in contact with water or exceed 120°F. If either happens, start over, as the chocolate is no longer usable.)
Remove the bowl from the saucepan. Add remaining 6 ounces chocolate and stir until all chocolate is melted and cools to 80°F. To speed the cooling process, after all chocolate has melted place the bowl over the reserved cold-water bath.
Return the bowl to the saucepan and stir until chocolate reaches 86°F; immediately remove from heat. Do not remove the thermometer from the bowl; check the temperature periodically to make sure it stays between 85°F and 87°F. (Chocolate must remain in this temperature range while dipping or it will not set up properly.) Keep the saucepan over low heat and use it to reheat chocolate as necessary.
To test if chocolate is properly tempered, spread a thin layer on parchment paper and place it in the refrigerator for 3 minutes to set. If chocolate hardens smooth and without streaks, it is properly tempered. (If it is not properly tempered, you need to repeat the process.)
Putting it all togetherRemove coconut pieces from the freezer. With your hand, individually dip a side of the almonds into tempered chocolate, and use that chocolate side to adhere the almond to the coconut portion.
Place as many almonds as you can on each coconut piece any which way you want. Once finished, return the baking sheet to the freezer until chocolate is set, at least 10 minutes. (Monitor melted chocolate to make sure it stays in temper.)
Once chocolate almonds are set, remove coconut fillings from the freezer and individually dip them into tempered chocolate with a dinner or dipping fork. Tap the fork several times on the edge of the bowl, and scrape the bottom of the fork against the edge of the bowl to remove any excess chocolate.
Place Almond Jays on the baking sheet by tilting the fork so the edge of each candy bar touches the parchment-lined pan, then smoothly pull the fork out. Repeat until all candy bars have been dipped. Let sit at room temperature until completely set, at least 20 minutes.
Trim any excess chocolate from edges of candy bars and place Almond Jays in an airtight container. Almond Jays will last up to three weeks in the refrigerator or up to two months in the freezer. Let come to room temperature before serving.
