My Special Chocolate Dipped Nixie Recipe
Your new favorite irresistible linear treat!
If you’ve ever shared a Discord server space with me before, you’ve probably seen me share at least a handful of different foods that I’ve made for lunch or treats over the past handful of years. Outside of switches and writing way too long, totally serious review article, one of the things that I take the most pride in and dedicate the most effort to is cooking food at home. Whether it’s making my own bread from scratch for breakfast or throwing together a multi-sauce, nearly entirely from scratch lasagna for the work week’s lunches, I’m always working on something new in the kitchen. Combining this personal love for cooking with people routinely and regularly accusing me of writing reviews that come across like internet recipes for the longest time, I figured that a fresh start to April would be the perfect opportunity for me to combine these passions together. So, to kick things off I figured I would go ahead and share one of my personal favorite sweet treats that I made for Easter Sunday since I just made dozens of these last weekend and honestly they are a super easy recipe with minimal ingredients to get started with all of this. (Don’t fool yourself though, there’s a lot of small points to keep in mind in making sure these come out right!) Based on my own great great great great grandmother’s recipe handed down and adapted from a time long before electricity or I think even water existed, this is my recipe for the sweetest frankenswitch delight – Chocolate Dipped Nixie Switches!
Unlike more basic Chocolate Dipped Nixie recipes, the secret to making these treats really pop in your mouth differently than any other linear out there is using chocolate ganache rather than just straight melted chocolate piece. The extra richness that is delivered by using Creams, in these Chocolate Dipped Nixies, really adds a subtle complexity that complements both the sharpness, bitter chocolate notes and the deep, nylon-y feeling of the Nixies while bringing them together in a more unified final form. While your Chocolate Dipped Nixies will have to remain in the fridge right up until they are served as the chocolate ganache doesn’t quite set as well just plain melted chocolate, most other recipes you find online for this sort of things are already calling for that anyhow. As well, who wants room temperature Nixies anyways? I’ll gladly take a cold Chocolate Dipped Nixie straight out of the fridge on a warm spring or summer day than a room temperature one. Trust me when I say that this recipe here is going to make for the absolute best Nixie frankenswitches that you’ve ever tried and you won’t ever want to have them any other way again!
The 3 Ingredients
When selecting these three ingredients for this Chocolate Dipped Nixie recipe, there are some important considerations to be made for each part, such as:
Creams
- I use full fat Novelkeys Cream switches in this recipe here and I really try to get them as fresh as possible. (While Cream+ or Launch Creams may work here, the flavor just isn’t as complex and rich as if you would use something like the classics.)
You can tell if your Creams are ‘off’ or not quite as fresh as they should be if they are particularly pingy or have a fishy-like smell to them. Be sure to check for this before use!
- Some UK users may inquire about using Double Cream since sourcing normal Novelkeys Creams sold in the states may be a little difficult, and from what I’ve tried thus far this should be acceptable!
- You can also opt for heavier Creams, though in this instance the grey color that comes with the heavily weighted Cream Arcs just makes for a bit of an oddly colored final product.
Chocolates
- You definitely want to use linears in this recipe! Adding any sort of extra crunch, spring ping, or bite from a tactile or clicky switch isn’t necessary at all and really takes away from the soft, luscious feeling of the chocolate and Nixies combined
- I’ve opted to use Chocolate Toffee linears here, though I am going to go ahead and trim off the toffee components to leave the outer shell of the Nixies being just chocolate based
Not only is there just enough of the toffee flavor left from the stems to add some extra depth and complexity to the dip coating of the Nixies, but it also gives me a nice treat to have while making these too!
Nixies
- Much like the Creams, you need to make sure that these are fresh too!
Older Nixies will have yellowed a bit, feel slightly gummy, and even have extra diode pieces in them which make for a less than ideal Chocolate Dipped Nixie product.
Step By Step Photo Recipe
Start by prepping your Nixie switches on a parchment lined baking sheet to make sure you have enough space for all of them and are ready to dip them and immediately get them into your fridge to cool! I’m only doing a macro-pad sized recipe here, but this can easily be scaled up to any build size you have.
Go ahead and separate the non-chocolate and chocolate parts of your Chocolate Toffee switches. If using other switches, this process can be the same, just make sure to collect all of your chocolate pieces into a bowl for mixing with the cream to form your ganache.
In a small pot on your stove, bring the Creams to just the slightest bit of a boil and the quickly remove from the stove. You’ll want to immediately pour this into the bowl of chocolate pieces and stir until mixed together.
While some recipes online call for this mixture to sit for a few minutes, go ahead and gently stir these with a rubber spatula to combine these until the chocolate ganache forms a thick, glossy coating like the photo below.
Next, go ahead and pick up a single Nixie by the stem and slowly dip it into the chocolate ganache until the outer housings are fully covered. You can do this by hand if you’re careful not to burn yourself on the warm chocolate ganache, or simply stick the switch stem between the tines of a fork like I have here.
Once your Nixie switch is properly chocolate dipped, go ahead and place it onto the parchment lined baking sheet set up from the first step. Repeat this for each and every Nixie switch you’re making. Don’t worry about any excess chocolate ganache spilled during the transfer to the baking sheet either – this will just firm up in the fridge and make for a nice little snack later!
Place the Chocolate Dipped Nixie switches on the parchment lined baking sheet in the fridge and let cool until the top housings are more or less set and with minimal wobble.
Once fully set and with a hard outer coating, they’re ready to enjoy!
Frequently Asked Questions
Will the chocolate ganache coating ever perfectly set on the Nixies and have no wobble at all?
- In my experience, the Nixie stems will always wobble just a little bit even when the housings are chocolate dipped. This may just be due to my use of Chocolate Toffee linears, though, and perhaps chocolate from another manufacturer may make for a more set treat!
How long do Chocolate Dipped Nixies last for?
- While they are of course best enjoyed shortly after making, I’ve been told that they can last up to 100 million actuations if they are stored properly.
Could I use other Chocolate switches for this recipe?
- Sure, but you like will likely have to adjust the amount of Creams used in order to get a smooth, creamy chocolate ganache coating. (As well, be sure to do some harvesting of the chocolate should you get switches that are only partially chocolate!)
- Some other options I’ve seen used online include Novelkeys x Kailh Chocolates, Mint Chocolate Chip POMS, Domikey x Glove Chocolate Donuts, and LICHICX Caramels!
Are there any dairy free alternatives to Novelkeys Creams?
- Unfortunately I don’t think there are any such alternatives out there yet that could work for making a proper chocolate ganache shell. I will have to try once there are Coconut Milk/Cream switches out there and update this recipe if it does work!
Recipe Card
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