Kyl Haselbauer has 20 years of experience working in fine-dining and modernist kitchens, including Bar Cotto and Anchovies &amp; Olives in Seattle. He is also the owner of Bright Spot, a café and coffee shop in Seattle.

Kyl Haselbauer

White chocolate is a wonder. Intensely creamy with a different mouthfeel than dark chocolate (due to the higher percentage of cocoa fat), mass-produced white chocolate is also often overwhelmingly sweet. Following the successful development of our <a href="https://www.chefsteps.com/activities/from-bean-to-bar-understanding-chocolate">artisanal dark chocolate bar</a>, we wondered if we could make an easy at-home version of white chocolate with a balanced flavor that’s not cloying. Unlike the artisanal chocolate bar, this recipe requires a blender (and a spice grinder, if you have one) to help finely grind the larger milk powder particles. Using a blender also allows us to include whole vanilla beans (yes, even the pod!), which gives this chocolate great flavor and a beautiful speckled look. Use any chocolate mold you’d like to make full-sized chocolate or small fun-shaped chocolates, pipe your own white chocolate chips to use in baking, or drizzle as a garnish on chocolate-covered strawberries.

The Easiest Way to Make Creamy White Chocolate at Home