Making Small Edible Leaves

Part 1d of Edible Forest Elements for the Forest Floor Dessert

Delicate little huckleberry-sized edible leaves provide specs of color to offset all the chocolate brown of the Forest Floor dessert.

You can make varying sizes and colors. Even break them up to look more like leaf bits strewn about a natural landscape. For the purpose of my dessert, I kept them itty bitty and light green.

You will need

✓ Modeling chocolate / fondant / gum paste

You can use these bases individually or a blended mix.  You want something pliable like play-doh that will then later set up.

Modeling chocolate tastes the best, but needs cold to set well. It will soften if gets warm again. If you are working on a hot summer day, would be good to blend it.

Fondant will dry eventually, but tends to break more easily once dry if it is thin.

Gum paste is used often for flowers as it is easy to mold and sets quickly. However, it tastes the worst. I use it more of an additive to fondant/modeling chocolate to help them set.

Using a white base gives you some flexibility with your coloring. However, you can get some pre-colored versions and play around as well.

✓ Food Coloring Gel (optional). 
Modeling chocolate can be colored using an oil-based food coloring. I find even blending it with fondant/gumpaste the oil-base is best.

Fondant and gum paste (only) works fine with water-based gel food dye.

✓ Food Prep Gloves (optional)
Recommend if you are going to hand color your base, so you don’t stain your fingers.

✓ Silicone Leaf Vein Mold

I use a similar set of leaf molds for a variety of projects, as they allows varying sizes and shapes. These will simply add vein details to any leaf shape you want. There are other leaf molds to consider if you want more uniform look.

Clean, Dry Molds

Make sure you have gently washed your silicone mold in warm soapy water and rinsed well. They need to be thoroughly dry.

To help make sure everything is very clean and dry, you can use a cotton swab dipping in a little plain vodka to polish out the inside areas. Or just a dry cotton swab.

Prep Station

Set up a clean, dry area where you can have all your items at hand.  I like to work over a silicone mat with paper towel at hand and even a damp towel as things can get sticky. 

With modeling chocolate, your hands will warm it up but it can get too warm quickly. I find dipping my hands in ice water and quickly drying every so often helps.

The Warm Up

Modeling Chocolate an be quite stiff at first. It will become pliable as you warm it up with your hands. I start with small pieces so I an more easily warm it up. Cover it with you hands, and then using twist and fold motion to get thing moving. After a bit, it should become very pliable. If it starts to get almost gooey, just set it down to let it cool a bit.

Some fondants and gum pastes need to be kneaded to warm up as well, however they are usually much softer at first.

Once your base is pliable, you can blend (if you want to mix the bases together) or color as desired.

Mix in Color

If you are using a white base, you can add a bit of colorant (you may want to wear some food prep  gloves for this part).

With a pliable base, make a thick oval and put a little divot in the center.

Put a few drops of color and carefully fold the ends to cover the divot. Gently start kneading it together to get the color blended in.  Repeat the process if you want more color.

A separate option is to get pre-colored bases. I like to have a white base, but then get small amounts of intensely colored packets to mix in. Less mess involved.

Size and Shape

For these small leaf bits, pinch out about a petite pea size amount of your base. Roll it into a ball.

Gently press the ball with your finger to create a disc about 1/8 inch thick – that seems thick but you are going to press it more with the mold.

Pink one end to create a tear drop shape

Place and Press Mold

Find a spot in the middle of you leaf mold so a main vein will go through the center of your leaf.

Place the top part of the mold over and gently press down with a bit of rocking motion from the bottom to the tip.

Release

Carefully remove you leaf from the bottom mold. You may use a chef tweezer, knife or skewer to lift up an edge to release it fully from the mold.

To speed up the process, with a larger mold (and tiny leaves), you lay out several at once. 

Set and Finish

Gently set your leaf bits on a lined prep tray. Modeling chocolate will “harden” once they cool down. You can also put them in a refrigerator to speed up that process.

Fondant will dry in a couple hours. Gum paste will dry even faster. It is best to keep the base covered in a plastic bag while working so it doesn’t dry out until after you’ve molded it.

Once “set”, store in an air tight container. You can then add highlights or a dark wash to add more realistic dimension.

Next: Truffle Pinecones