pastrygirl

If the pectin packet is meant to thicken 1 kg fruit with 500 g sugar, I'd say use about half or a little less. The one cup of sugar in the pie is 200 g, the strawberry juice will be about 300 g, but since you are not using the pulp/fiber of the fruit juice alone will need more thickener by weight than whole fruit.

I'm kind of surprised at the author's surprise at the fiber content. That would be the cacao solids, cacao is fat and fiber like most other seeds/nuts. Agree with Kerry and Jim, dark milk is the artisan, bean-to-bar, grown-up answer to the insipid mass market milks. There's a wide range for different palates & applications. The Felchlin 49% is really nice, only 40% sugar. I use more of a less expensive 43% that is 43% sugar with slightly less milk fat and noticeably sweeter. Their 36% is probably closer to classic milk chocolate with 53% sugar and way too sweet for me.

I haven't used the chocovision and don't hand dip. Is it awkward because it holds so little chocolate and you have to keep melting more, or is it about the workflow? I have a food warmer that I bought for bulk melting, only used a few times. IIRC, it melted fine on low, but then I found an old D&R melter which goes lower and has a temp dial vs low-high. I'm trying to remember if I even used the D&R last busy season, would entertain offers on either one, pick up in Seattle. This says low is 140, which is a bit high for chocolate. Someone else can explain how to make it go lower (pid controller something something?) https://www.restaurantsupply.com/winco-fw-s600-1500-watt-countertop-electric-food-warmer-fits-6-deep-pan?keyword=&gclid=CjwKCAjww7KmBhAyEiwA5-PUSjbJrnMBP4JoiXzZOIV03e_TkbZbW_4pR9xeHFjC-71VD6O0RIx2AxoCn5QQAvD_BwE The D&R model, it's just a melter. Not insulated like the mol d' arts but if you just want chocolate melted & ready to add to your temperer ... The one I found was under $100 & missing the side brackets. https://dr.ca/collections/chocolate-machines/products/tf20-chocolate-tempering-machine-20kg-44lbs Either of these holds up to 20 kg, or you could use smaller pans/inserts. For 2kg or less I use the microwave on 40-60% power and rarely scorch it.

I hope it wasn't that warm, you tossed most of it, and you live to post another day.

@Chocoguyin Pemby was it this one?

I love spicy heat but agree that it's lame to have a superiority complex about it.

In my humidity theory, the sugar would probably separate and stick to the rollers, so IDK 🤷‍♀️ I hope this batch works better! 🤞

Oh no! Do you have really high humidity? Maybe the caramel on the nuts absorbed too much water and the paste 'broke'?

When I make cream puffs, I like to slice one side but leave a hinge, clamshell style. Then pipe in whipped ganache. Using some water instead of all milk and adding extra egg whites instead of all whole eggs is supposed to make lighter, crisper choux.

@ElsieD go with the white then, it won't add flavor

Agree that an American recipe probably means the light/clear corn syrup, but I have used Lyle's golden syrup in caramel candies and think the flavor goes nicely. You could also substitute honey or leave it out. I think dark corn syrup would be too molasses-y. What syrups do you have and what's the caramel sauce going with?

Not a fan either, but there is probably worse coffee. It's a small treat/indulgence and endlessly customize-able, people can feel special for <$10. When they started, they actually made coffee. Espresso wasn't everywhere and the standard was cans of Folger's at the office. The drinks with a pint of milk and heaps of sugar gained traction with the masses so they went after that market. The biggest companies don't necessarily make the best products, they just know how to sell.

I've seen that advice, you cut the choux after baking then dry them out to make them more crisp. Agree that there shouldn't be much interior dough to scoop out, just a few webs. Disagree that falling apart while being eaten is a flaw - it's a cream-filled pastry, it doesn't need to be sturdy

looks like they are medicine* measuring glasses, but that doesn't necessarily explain the tsps to TB discrepancy ... https://www.ebay.com/itm/RARE-original-BAUER-BLACK-etched-medicine-or-DOSE-GLASS-still-in-ORIGINAL-BOX-/390932815805 *of course, some people consider whisky to be medicine so I guess it's a shot glass after all

When buying raw nuts - in this case raw pistachios from Trader Joe's - are they actually raw, never heated or have they been steamed or otherwise pasteurized?

@KennethT thanks for elaborating, that's even more rural than I was imagining. Can't go out to dinner if there aren't any restaurants.

Interesting take, never thought of it that tourists supporting the village shops would be imposing. Do other people feel like they should self-segregate to the tourist areas? Does it depend on how big the village is?

Full disclosure: I bought a bunch of close to expired Valrhona when they were trying to unload it in late 2020 after all the hotels & cruise ships shut down. It was fine and I have no regrets about making that Xmas a little more profitable.

Has your Dad always been this way? How could constant scrutiny not lead to anxiety and preferring to eat alone? Growing up in the 70's-80's I definitely got the message to be smaller, defer to men, and other BS that I'm still trying to un-learn.

Yeah, then you'd have at least a little gluten to hold things together Why do you want to add almond flour? If you can eat wheat and want a flaky pie crust, stick with the traditional pate brisee. If you want an almond crust, a pate sucree might work better. https://pastry-workshop.com/pate-brisee-pate-sucree-pate-sablee-3-types-of-basic-dough/

Does it appear to have been mis-handled - bloomed or stuck together? White chocolate could potentially get a little cheese-y if the milk fat goes off, but if it looks in good condition and tastes fresh, I'd use it through the end of the year.

No, just handle with care. It may help to roll it out between sheets of parchment paper or plastic wrap.

A top crust is usually less dough than the bottom/sides. 1-2/3 or 1-3/4x should suffice. Almond flour will act differently. The added fat and lack of gluten will probably make the dough more crumbly & fragile.

Your sugar is on the low side compared to many white chocolates so you could certainly add more. Here's the breakdown for Felchlin whites: edelweiss 36% - 36% cacao fat, 4.7% milk fat, 49.3% sugar (this is what use, it is sweet but not the sweetest) mont blanc 31% - 31.2 % cacao fat, 3.6% milk fat, 58% sugar sao palme 30% - 30.9% cacao fat. 4.2% milk fat, 58.4% sugar opus blanc 35% - 35.3% cacao fat, 8.1% milk fat, 46.8% sugar (This is their 'grand cru' white with UNESCO biosphere Swiss meadow milk.) I agree with adding vanilla. If you want to try caramelizing some a la Valrhona Dulcey, bake it in a low-ish oven stirring occasionally until it reaches your desired shade.

I did something similar once with hazelnut and the bonbons ended up losing their shine due to nut oil migrating through the shell. I think milk chocolate is a little less susceptible to that? Anyway, just to note that those might have a shorter shelf life, appearance-wise. And you guys are making me want to do something pistachio. I always liked them with apricots.