1754 replies to this topic

[E.T.]

And heres my candy, I tried to make them look like little watermelons.

They do look like little watermelons! And thanks for posting the video. It's a great illustration of the process. The pros make it look so easy :)

[Darienne]

I am speechless. I am blown away. Both by the videos and then by your candies. Brilliant! Come to my house and teach me how!!!

[minas6907]

Hey thanks for the compliments! Heres an almond nougat I made today using the recipe from "The Advanced Professional Pastry Chef." I was trying to come up with a few designs to put on the top in chocolate for a friends wedding, I have a few better ideas then these. I like the lattice up top, not too crazy about the one on the bottom.

Attached Images

• 

[E.T.]

Hey thanks for the compliments! Heres an almond nougat I made today using the recipe from "The Advanced Professional Pastry Chef." I was trying to come up with a few designs to put on the top in chocolate for a friends wedding, I have a few better ideas then these. I like the lattice up top, not too crazy about the one on the bottom.

I don't know if this something you are interested in, but it might be fun to paint a thin layer of white chocolate on top of the candies and experiment with some transfer sheet designs. Depending on how many of these you are making, using transfer sheets might also be a bit less labor-intensive than piping.

[CanadianBakin']

S'More Pop
Can't figure out how to get the picture here but you can click on the link above.
We tried using oil instead of cooking spray on the foil under the marshmallows but it stuck so we ended up with some rough looking ones. Thought I would use them to make some pseudo S'more and they came out pretty good. Now to figure out if there's a way to package them for resale. First attempt the torched end became sticky overnight & stuck to the cello bag. Anyone have suggestions? Maybe I just have to be really careful about having them stored airtight at all times.

Edited by CanadianBakin', 09 April 2011 - 10:29 AM.

[RWood]

Snicker bars. I need to make a chocolate nougat and try a Milky Way/Three Musketeers type or something. Even though I cut these 1", after being dipped they still looked bigger than I was thinking. I liked the thickness of the layers though.

Attached Images

• 

[minas6907]

Very nice Snickers! I love the uniformity, the layers look very even with just a thin coat of chocolate, perfect!

Heres some turkish delights I made that I was very happy with, I was surprised. I'm very picky with things I make, and especially these ones. I'm half Greek, so I've been eating these things since I was a child. Anyways, I followed the recipe from Chocolates and Confections At Home, and they came out a little softer then what I was used to. After they dried for 2 days, the texture did improve, but just a little bit soft. Although I was very encouraged by them not sweating.

I made the recipe again (both times I did a half recipe) and added a 1/2 oz. more cornstarch to it, made sure to cook the starch paste fully so it gels properly, and instead of cooking the mixture for 20-25 min like the book says, I cooked it for 40 min, the gel was much thicker. Let it cool overnight in a frame, cut and coated in the morning, and two days later, the texture was perfect, not too tough, but not so soft, the candy had a little bite to it.

Anyways, and now I'm enjoying them with some Turkish coffee (ooooo, look at that crema)

:-)

Attached Images

• 

[Darienne]

Just finished dipping some raspberry truffles in dark chocolate. No, no photos. The only way I could ever post photos of my handiwork is if I could have the photos professionally airbrushed. But they are delicious. The raspberry ganache is the most incredible I have ever tasted. Calls for 1/2 cup of Chambord. Heaven.

[E.T.]

Just finished dipping some raspberry truffles in dark chocolate. No, no photos. The only way I could ever post photos of my handiwork is if I could have the photos professionally airbrushed. But they are delicious. The raspberry ganache is the most incredible I have ever tasted. Calls for 1/2 cup of Chambord. Heaven.

Oooh, I love the combination of chocolate and raspberries. Sounds heavenly!

[RWood]

One more bar. Chocolate nougat with nibs.
I folded until I thought my arm would fall off, and one little speck of white still shows up. Probably not the only one.

Attached Images

• 

[Darienne]

One more bar. Chocolate nougat with nibs.
I folded until I thought my arm would fall off, and one little speck of white still shows up. Probably not the only one.

It is my considered opinion that making confections is a two-person job. A friend, like my confectionery partner, Barbara, or a husband with strong arms who will butt out after he does the 'manly' parts. Alas! My DH will help me...but he won't butt out.

Your bar looks delicious.

[minas6907]

Heres some hardy candy I made today at a friends house for the kids, the flavor of choice was blueberry.

Attached Images

• 

[lironp]

One more bar. Chocolate nougat with nibs.
I folded until I thought my arm would fall off, and one little speck of white still shows up. Probably not the only one.

Both these bars look absolutely amazing! I'd prefer a few white spots over a texture that is too tough...

[Darienne]

Heres some hardy candy I made today at a friends house for the kids, the flavor of choice was blueberry.

I love it!!!

[RWood]

One more bar. Chocolate nougat with nibs.
I folded until I thought my arm would fall off, and one little speck of white still shows up. Probably not the only one.

Both these bars look absolutely amazing! I'd prefer a few white spots over a texture that is too tough...

Thanks! These came out pretty good. The thing I'm liking about making these bars is that they are no where near as sweet as store bought ones, and this one is a lot more chocolaty than a 3 Musketeers. The chef I work for likes to make as much as we can instead of buying, so he's putting these in the new cafe/grill he's taking over.

[minas6907]

Heres a jar of candy I made for a dear friend of mine.

Black - Licorice
Pink - Raspberry
Blue and Purple - Blueberry
Orange - Apricot

Attached Images

• 

[Lior]

what a lovely gift to receive!

Edited by Lior, 12 May 2011 - 03:35 AM.

[Darienne]

Heres a jar of candy I made for a dear friend of mine.

Black - Licorice
Pink - Raspberry
Blue and Purple - Blueberry
Orange - Apricot

Do you live within 200 miles of me? Will you teach me the tricks? LOL. They are beautiful.

[minas6907]

Hi Lior. I just noticed that your in Ashkelon. This particular jar of candy is for a person I know who lives near me, but I made a large batch of this to send back with a friend who lives in Tel Aviv to give to my friends there.

And Darienne, I guarantee I have no secrets! I read about the hard candy in Chocolates and Confections, and watched every youtube video I could fine that delt with it. Search for 'Papabubble' on youtube.

[RWood]

I was not going to jump on the bacon/chocolate thing, and since this was a request, I can still say I didn't .

The caterer I work for has a big client that wanted a truffle made with bacon from their new product line.
This is the first attempt. I made it with the bacon fat in place of the butter, and the texture is very silky. I added crispy bits of bacon to the ganache, which I'm not sure about as far as texture from being in the ganache. The flavor is the strongest in this version. I tried a bacon brittle as well, but the flavor was more from the brittle part and not the bacon.
I'm taking these in later to have the chef try them and go from there.

Attached Images

• 

[Darienne]

I've never tried bacon with chocolate and it still doesn't appeal to me, but your chocolates are lovely. Good going!

[E.T.]

I'm with Darienne on the chocolate with bacon thing The truffles are beautiful though!

[RWood]

I'm with Darienne on the chocolate with bacon thing The truffles are beautiful though!

It's not as bad as it sounds ;). My boyfriend's reaction was "I'm not eating that!", but he later said he would try them.

It's not something I was interested in doing, but we'll see what happens. My only concern is the bacon seems to be getting tough, like it does after it's been cooked a while. I'm not sure about what kind of shelf life either.

[Lior]

minas6907! I did not notice your reply-so sorry!!!! Did these friends love it?

[threestars]

Seems like the bacon+chocolate taste yummy! I wish to try it! :)

[minas6907]

Heres some pics from a candy bar I helped with at a wedding, I briefly mentioned it on a previous post. Theres a few shots of the entire candy bar, I did the pulled sugar lolli's (licorice) sticking out at the top of the two white vases, chocolate caramels on the long white plate, and it just so happened I had some time a few days before the wedding so I made some black licorice heart shaped gummies lined up in front of the cake pops (another friend did the cake pops). I was busy helping the caterer, and I was told that like a half hour after dinner the table was wiped clean, I didnt believe it until I saw it, nothing was left except a bunch of black licorice vines! Enjoy!

Attached Images

• 
• 
• 
• 
• 

[Kerry Beal]

Heres some pics from a candy bar I helped with at a wedding, I briefly mentioned it on a previous post. Theres a few shots of the entire candy bar, I did the pulled sugar lolli's (licorice) sticking out at the top of the two white vases, chocolate caramels on the long white plate, and it just so happened I had some time a few days before the wedding so I made some black licorice heart shaped gummies lined up in front of the cake pops (another friend did the cake pops). I was busy helping the caterer, and I was told that like a half hour after dinner the table was wiped clean, I didnt believe it until I saw it, nothing was left except a bunch of black licorice vines! Enjoy!

Nice job!

[Lior]

looks fabulous!!

[RWood]

I'm pretty much just making bars now, much faster with all the other stuff I have to do for the caterer I work for.
My version of an almond joy I guess, only in bar form. I make the frappe for the filling from Greweling's book. I tried using marshmallow creme once to see if it would save a step, but it was way too sweet and no one liked it compared to what I had made before. Even with unsweetened coconut, this one is pretty rich.

Attached Images

• 

[curls]

Your version of an almond joy looks delicious. Might have to make that recipe myself.