I’m so excited about this new series I’m doing with my bakery. Between orders, I’m pushing myself to try new techniques, creative ideas, and different types of sweets. My challenge is to create a dessert to represent each of Taylor Swift’s 12 eras.
Last week I kicked off my series with an ode to 1989 with cookies inspired by the pop album.
I got the idea for today’s entry in the series when I was dipping chocolate sandwich cookies for the 4th of July. The black/white color scheme made me think of The Tortured Poets Department.
The Tortured Poets Department was an exciting era for me. I was in full Swiftie mode and listened to the album at midnight when it came out and got to witness the surprise drop of the second album that night!! I gravitate to her more poetic, emotional albums, so this was an instant favorite. I couldn’t stop listening to the album. She may have moved past the melancholy of TTPD with her Showgirl era, but these songs are still on heavy rotation for me!
When I did white chocolate-dipped strawberries, pretzels, and chocolate sandwich cookies for the 4th of July, the sandwich cookies were my absolute favorite! I haven’t done a lot of chocolate-dipped treats, but I tried a few tricks I’d read online to perfect my technique.
I’ve learned that a lot of the process simply comes down to using the right type of chocolate. You also want to heat the chocolate properly. I bought higher-quality white chocolate meant for dipping. I did melt it in the microwave, but in small bursts of time and at 50% power. I made sure to heat it until it had a thin, consistent flow.
I submerged the cookies in the chocolate and lifted them up with a fork. I tapped them along the side of the bowl to let the excess drip off. In the past, I’ve rushed too quickly and ended up with a pool of chocolate around whatever I dipped. I’m not complaining about extra chocolate, but they looked a little rough! It’s best to take your time and be patient enough to let it drip off.
After I let them harden, I used black royal icing and black edible markers to decorate them.
I learned that my edible markers didn’t work nearly as well on the dried white chocolate as they do on hardened royal icing. That was unfortunate! But I was able to use a #2 piping tip to create thin lines for the designs.
I did a Taylor Swift silhouette, typewriter, quill, TTPD logo, and a TTPD patch logo. They aren’t perfect, but I love the overall look. It was a challenge with the marker issue. And when you make a mistake, it’s pretty hard to clear off black icing from white! But I’m happy with how they turned out. I’m definitely feeling more confident about making chocolate-dipped treats again!
What era are you most looking forward to seeing as a dessert? Check back next week for an enchanting addition to my series.
Buttercream Dreams Bakery 
Leave a comment