Filled chocolates: a shell around ganache, caramel or nut cream. Jean Neuhaus II made the first in Brussels in 1912; the ballotin box followed in 1915.

Neuhaus began in 1857 as an apothecary in the Galeries Royales Saint-Hubert, where the Swiss immigrant Jean Neuhaus coated medicines in chocolate. In 1912 his grandson Jean Neuhaus II created the first chocolate-filled bonbons, the pralines. His wife Louise Agostini and he developed the ballotin gift box in 1915 after seeing pralines crushed in paper cones. Wittamer opened on Place du Grand Sablon in 1910, and Frederic Blondeel makes pralines in his chocolate factory in Koekelberg.

Where to eat Praline Belge in Brussels

2 editor picks for Praline Belge in Brussels, ranked by editorial score. All Brussels signature dishes · Praline Belge across every city.

  • Wittamer

    Wittamer's shop at Place du Grand Sablon 12 sells artisanal chocolates, haute pâtisserie, viennoiseries and sandwiches, with Click & Collect on a selection.

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  • Frederic Blondeel

    • ★ 4.5

    Order The signature hot chocolate treat.

    Frederic Blondeel is a cacao roaster and chocolate maker that combines an urban roastery, chocolate factory, shop and coffee and ice cream bar in Koekelberg.

    DetailsDirections

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Make it at home

Serves 243 hrAdvanced

Ingredients

  • 400g dark chocolate (70 percent Callebaut or Valrhona), finely chopped, for tempering
  • 150g double cream (for ganache)
  • 30g unsalted butter (for ganache)
  • 100g dark chocolate (60 percent), finely chopped (for ganache)
  • 20g glucose syrup or honey (for ganache)
  • 1 tbsp Cognac, Grand Marnier or coffee extract (optional)
  • 100g hazelnut praline paste (or homemade by blending roasted hazelnuts with sugar)
  • Polycarbonate or silicone praline mould with 24 cavities
  • Pastry scraper, palette knife, marble slab or cold work surface
  • Cocoa powder, gold leaf or chopped pistachios, to garnish

Method

  1. Temper the dark chocolate: melt 280g of the chocolate gently over a bain-marie to 50C. Take off the heat, add the remaining 120g chopped chocolate and stir until melted and cooled to 28C. Warm briefly back to 31C. The chocolate should be glossy and snap cleanly.
  2. Pour tempered chocolate into each cavity of the mould to fill. Tap to release bubbles, then invert over a clean tray to drain excess back; this leaves a thin shell.
  3. Scrape the top flush with a pastry scraper. Cool the mould upside-down for 5 minutes; refrigerate 10 minutes to set the shell.
  4. Make the ganache: warm the cream, butter and glucose until just steaming. Pour over the chopped 100g chocolate. Stand 1 minute, then whisk smooth. Stir in the optional spirit. Cool to room temperature.
  5. Whisk in the hazelnut praline paste until smooth.
  6. Transfer ganache to a piping bag. Pipe into each chocolate shell, filling to about 2mm below the top. Tap the mould gently.
  7. Refrigerate 30 minutes to set the ganache.
  8. Warm the remaining tempered chocolate briefly back to 31C. Spread a thin layer across the open tops of the moulds with a palette knife. Scrape flush.
  9. Chill 30 minutes until the chocolate snaps. Invert the mould and tap to release the pralines.
  10. Garnish each with a dust of cocoa, a flake of gold or a sprinkle of chopped pistachios. Store in a sealed tin at 16C.

Editor tip. Tempering is the whole challenge: untempered chocolate comes out dull and soft, so use a thermometer and a cool work surface.

Common allergens: Dairy, Tree nuts, Soy.