HOW TO MAKE MENDL'S COURTESAN AU CHOCOLAT First, gather your materials. Though correct proportions may vary depending on one's equipment and requirements, we recommend: Small amounts each of the following colours in your choice of double knitting weight yarn: O Light brown, for the pastry. Lavender (although I used blue), pale green and pink, for the glaze. White for the doily, buttercream, and filigree of white chocolate decoration. One small brown bead, or small amount of dark brown yarn, for the single cocoa bean. Small amount of stuffing to fill the pastry sections Small amount of white embroidery thread, if desired. 3.5mm crochet hook. Tapestry needle. Embroidery needle.
STEPS
THE PASTRY
LARGE TABLESPOON DOLLOP
In brown yarn: Make a magic circle of 6 stitches. Round 1 - 2sc into each stitch - 12. Round 2 - 2sc into each stitch - 24. Round 3 - sc into each stitch. Round 4 - sc in first stitch, 2sc in second stitch. Repeat to end of round - 36. Round 5 - sc into each stitch. Round 6 - sc into each stitch. Round 7 - change to blue/lavender yarn, sc into each stitch. Round 8 - sc into each stitch. Round 9 - sc into first stitch, sc2tog into next 2 stitches, repeat to end of round - 24. Round 10 - sc into each stitch. Round 11 - sc2tog into first 2 stitches, repeat to end of round 12. Add filling. Round 12 - sc2tog into first 2 stitches, repeat to end of round 6。 Tie off, weave end round hole that remains and pull tight. Leave a tail for sewing up.
TEASPOON DOLLOP
In brown yarn: Make a magic circle of 4 stitches. Round 1 - 2sc into each stitch - 8. Round 2 - 2sc into each stitch - 16. Round 3 - sc into each stitch. Round 4 - sc into first stitch, 2sc into second stitch, repeat to end of round - 24. Round 5 - sc into each stitch. Round 6 - change to green yarn, sc into each stitch. Round 7 - sc into first stitch, sc2tog into next 2 stitches, repeat to end of round - 16. Round 8 - sc2tog into first 2 stitches, repeat to end of round - 8. Add filling. Round 9 - sc2tog into first 2 stitches, repeat to end of round - 4. Tie off, weave end round hole that remains and pull tight. Leave a tail for sewing up. HAZELNUT SIZE DOLLOP Make a magic circle of 3 stitches. Round 1 - 2sc into each stitch - 6. Round 2 - 2sc into each stitch - 12. Round 3 - sc into first stitch, 2sc into second stitch - 18. Round 4 - change to pink yarn, sc into each stitch. Round 5 - sc into first stitch, sc2tog into next 2 stitches, repeat to end of round - 12. Round 6 - sc2tog into first 2 stitches, repeat to end of round - 6. Add filling. Round 7 - sc2tog into first 2 stitches, repeat to end of round - 3. Tie off, weave end round hole that remains and pull tight. Leave a tail for sewing up.
II - THE DECORATION
PAPER DOILY
In white yarn: Make magic circle of 6 stitches. Round 1 - 2sc into each stitch - 12. Round 2 - 2sc into each stitch - 24. Round 3 - sc into each stitch. Round 4 - sc into first stitch, 2sc into next stitch, repeat to end of round - 36. Round 5 - sc into each stitch. Round 6 - sc into each stitch. Round 7 - work 1 round of picot stitch as follows: sc into first stitch, ch5, sc into next 3 stitches. Repeat until 2 stitches remain in round. Ch5, then sc into next 2 stitches. weave in the end. Leave the cast-on tail for sewing up
BUTTERCREAM TOPPING
Make magic circle of 3 stitches. 2sc into each stitch in round - 6. Tie off. You could leave a tail here - I used the tail from caston for sewing up.
Layer the three pastry sections atop one another - don't try to get them to line up perfectly, it's fiddly and it'll resemble the real thing more closely if they're not perfectly straight. Stitch one pastry to another using the ends left earlier.
Decorate the balls with filigree of white chocolate as desired. I stitched white yarn onto the pastries using white embroidery thread and an embroidery needle, but you could decorate any way you prefer. I found it easier to do this after assembling the stack, to ensure it could all be seen, but You might find it easier to do it beforehand Sew the white buttercream in place on top of the stack of pastries. Sew the cocoa bean in place and attach the doily to the bottom of the stack. Here is a trick for sewing on the cocoa bean bead and doily without leaving your work too visible. I used the long cast-on tail from the doily to pull up through the middle of the stack and out of the top. I pulled this through the bead, tied a small knot, then pulled it back down through the bead and stack again. This also anchors the whole thing together. If you don't have a bead you could sew over and over into the centre of the white buttercream to resemble a cocoa bean, or create a large knot to sew into the centre of it. s the key to achieve an impressive result. Serve fresh
