thegreatdane

When I add the nuts at 300-310º F the sugar crystallizes. What am I doing wrong. I want the nuts to toast a bit and then retain the sugar/caramel glaze, clear. Should I have more syrup solution to the quantity of nuts? Start the nuts at a lower temp? Thanks for your help, Tom

I've been assured that chocolate cannot be very shiney unless it's formed on acetate, but recently in the bookstore I ran across a book, The Last Course: The Desserts of Gramercy Tavern by Claudia Fleming, that shows on the back page chocolate that's shining like jewels. How'd they do that?

Phoenicia Bakery on South Lamar has a kitchen. Good pita wraps, falafel, chicken, etc., and just looking around that store makes my mouth water. Tom

Lima beans, eggplant, liver, and okra. Also, dry cooked chicken breasts. They sucked the fluids out of my body, they were so dry. Pepper; I couldn't understand why anyone would want to hurt their mouth. Let's ask an expert. My ten year old daughter says, "Escargot; horrible, ugh, makes me want to throw up. Over done stuff like brussel sprouts. Chicken liver. After I got, like a bloody one, forget about it. I thought it was a bloody tooth. Pepper, really, duh... it explodes like a bomb with hot stuff... When you're ten you have plenty of things you don't like and regret eating. Sometimes parents say it's good for you. Nuh-uh."

What do manufacturers put in chocolate chips that make them keep their shape when heated? And why don't chips make good couveture? (I'm not talking about pistoles.) Does it have to do with the cocoa butter? Are they substituting lecithin?

I had a similar idea for sandwich spreads. How would you have it made?

Wow, you really describe well the great process for getting little chocolate mirrors. I'm definitely going to try that. By the way, when you say "acetate" do you refer to thick guage wrapping paper? It seems consumer plastic wrap would be too flimsy. [You can also make colored squares by using various methods for spreading, spraying or painting colored cocoa butter and/or white chocolate on the acetate before spreading with chocolate.] The potential there sounds exciting. Sort of like painting in chocolate, like a window painter. White choc., colored white, milk, dark... Cool. Edible, too. Chocolate VanGogh. Now I'm wondering if one could make prints like an etching using chocolate.

Why use super fine sugar and not regular granulated? You guys are great. Thanks for all the info. I wish we could all be sampling these treats together. Tom

If the cocoa butter would make it harder to temper I definitely don't want to go that way. When I applied the tempered chocolate to the brownies, aside from the laborious task of having to scrape each side thin, they looked great; semi-gloss and dark. They looked like Little Debbies gone to college. I'll experiment more; with veg. oil, with tops or pieces attached, but I'd really like them fully coated. Thanks for your help. Tom

I've been out for a few days so I've missed this fascinating discussion. I'm experimenting with a recipe idea without full knowledge of technique, with which many of the pros on this board are so disciplined and familiar, and for which they have my respect. With practice and time, I will have a much better feel for chocolate. Thanks for your suggestions. I also wrote asking for a way to apply a thin coating of tempered chocolate to all sides of each individual brownie, like a petit four. In my limited reading, I'd run across a reference to adding cocoa butter to chocolate to thin it down. And Dan, aidensnd, suggested the same. In what proportion should I mix the two? The recipe I made recently was a six-chocolate brownie; the sixth being the thin tempered coating. The main reason I chose six is to legitimately use the word "sex" in the name. All in fun. Thanks everyone, Tom

Sorry I haven't been around to answer any questions. Went to the beach in California. Ahh.... Tedwin: Thanks for the Kitchenaid Tumbler Attachment link. I'll check that out. Rickster: I am thinking of eventually doing this commercially. I'd really prefer to find someone who could do large batches and I could concentrate on marketing, etc. Gotta test it at home first, though, and see if it's feasible. nightscotsman: I'm looking for two things; a clear coating, could be amber, for a nice glazed look, and a glaze that will be covered with chocolate, then cocoa. Any suggestions? aidensnd: Thanks for the recipe. What's castor sugar? Why butter at the end? KarenS: Thanks for the recipe. Do you get pools or stands of sugar under the nuts when they cool? Or, do you drain them on a rack? Thanks everyone for your answers and help. This is a great and helpful community. Take care, Tom

I've seen these, probably on TV. Do you know how much they cost. Would it be possible to rent time/contract out the work?

I've done the ganache thing a couple of times, with fair results. You've got to move fast, I gather, and not make corrections. Kind of like watercolors. Everything has its technique and mastery, which takes practice, and more practice. That's not what I was trying to do with the brownies. I was trying for snap, and quite pleased with the surface. I could actually pick them up with my fingers later and it wouldn't melt immediately. It was shiney, not like glass, which I understand is not possible unless with a mold or plastic wrap - not a way I want to go. I was looking for a way to cover brownies, like a truffle, with a thin layer of tempered chocolate that would have some shine or sheen. So, I'm wondering what tricks there are for acheiving a thin layer, without scraping it off, and for avoiding cocoa bloom at 75º F room temp. Your suggestions are most helpful and appreciated. Tom

Doc Choc South, Westgate, 290/Lamar area is no more. Doc Choc Central, 35th St./Lamar, is still there as far as I know. And don't even try to find parking there on a weekend or holiday.

How do you put a thin, hard-crack coating of sugar on nuts, then cover that with a thin layer of chocolate. Any suggestions for doing that? Equipment? Manufacturers who do that? How? Thanks, Tom

Okay, got the shiney/sheen difference. Thanks. Last weekend, I tempered some choc. to cover some brownies. What a hassle, scraping it off each brownie to make a thin coating. (Any tips there for thin coating without all the scraping? Adding cocoa butter to choc?) Anyway, some of them looked spectacular the next day, with a beautiful sheen. Some, however, took on some cocoa bloom. I dipped room temp brownies in 90º F chocolate and left at room temp. (about 75º F) What happened there, please? Thanks for your help, y'all. Tom

Thea, The Bastrop place, Roscar chocolates, isn't a retail operation, so you may not be able to visit. They do wholesale to Breeds, a housewares store. They make really large truffles, rich in fresh ingredients, and sell them for about two bucks each. One interesting combination is tequilla/lime/jalapeño.

Thanks for your reply. When you do a test strip, what are you looking for? How glossy? Also, how did you do it without thermometers? I've tested it on the lower lip for slight warmth. What about the crystallization process; heat to 110-120 to melt all cocoa butter crystals, cool to 82-84 to form uniform crystals, work at 88-91? In other words, what's the best way to temper chocolate for the shiniest glaze?

Thea, There are some small operations, one really good one in Bastrop, thirty minutes down the road, who sells in various retail shops in Austin. We don't lack for chocolate unless, like me, you think there should be a bakery and chocolate shop in every neighborhood. Dr. Choc. is better than Hershey's. They even make choc. covered pretzels, strawbs., and bars with assorted mix ins. Not much high art. I don't think Austin would support it. We're a value crowd.

Hey, all, Does anyone know how to temper chocolate until it looks as shiney as glass? I tempered some recently and it was glossy and beautiful but not like a mirror. Is that possible? And what kind of thermometer is best, since temps are so important? Thanks, Tom

Alas, The Doctor is out of Central Market South. Every time I went in there it was empty. I think they thought they'd get some spill over from Amy's ice cream and the movie theater. Not so, I guess. That's something that's mystifying; why chocolate shops fail to attract customers. Most, I dare say, are value driven, i.e., happy with Hershey's, and the small number who'd support quality chocolate are too dispersed for regular walk up traffic. I really don't know.

There's an olive orchard in Wimberley. They also offer pick-your-own blackberries and raspberries. I remember watching a video about fifteen years ago about some olive tree growers in west Texas, using underground irrigation, etc. I wonder if they're still in business. I also remember an article in the Statesman about a guy growing truffles near Austin. I wonder if it worked. There's something weird about this town; people are very fickle with quality. Anyone else see this? Why isn't there as rich a food consciousness as in the Northwest, Napa Valley, San Francisco, and other great food cities? We're coming along, yeah, but it seems... so... slow...

[i want to know everything about that little magical cocoa bean. ] Like you, I research the heck out of things to understand what makes them work, and now I'm learning about chocolate. I have a bag of beans sitting on my counter with which to experiment. Where are you finding your chocolate information? What're you doing with beans?

I visited the El Rey folks in Fredricksburg and that was enlightening. I learned there are so many different delicious dark chocolates. Wow. I called Lammes, asking for a tour. "We're too small," I was told. Huh? What's going on in that little factory? Their strawbs are good. I'll always love their Longhorns and caramels. Still hunting for all things chocolate in Texas. Anyone know of chocolatiers I can visit? Any new chocolate products to taste?

I'm looking for truffles, bon bons, and other finished chocolates. Where in Texas do you find them made fresh?