[Silver Bundt Pans - Crust Woes]

11 hours ago, AlaMoi said:

the question may be:  what is the outside?

 

dark colors/pans absorb radiant heat more than shiny / light colored pans.

attached is a bread bake.  one dough batch, divided in two, one baked in dark loaf pan one baked in shiny loaf pan.

same recipe, same dough, same rise.

 

thermodynamics will not be ignored.

 

That's a great question.  The outer finish is the same on both pans - and they are both Nordicware.  Which is why I suspect the inner finish as the culprit.

 

I'm just wondering if there is any way to get a darker crust with the lighter-interior pain, as I have several of them.  (I have a bit of a Bundt pan addiction!)

[Silver Bundt Pans - Crust Woes]

I made my favorite pound cake (Bishop's Cake from Silver Palate) this weekend and baked some of the batter in a silver-lined mini-Bundt pan and some in a black-lined mini-Bundt.  The crust on the former was disappointing - pale and un-crusty.  The reason was obvious in retrospect.  My question is, is there any way to get a decent crust on a Bundt pan with a silver interior?  You can see the difference in the pic.

 

 

[Your Daily Sweets: What Are You Making and Baking? (2017 – )]

On 11/3/2018 at 4:40 AM, jmacnaughtan said:

I've been playing around with different finishes recently, and come to the conclusion that glazes are overrated.  Go rough and crumpled!

 

Apple, pear and molasses cake

 

 

Speculoos base

Apple genoise

Pear tatin

Apple butter

Molasses and tonka chantilly

Crushed speculoos

Candied pear

 

(Actually the second attempt.  Fittingly, for Halloween, the first was a clear-glazed nightmare, in which each of my attempts to make it look better just made it more and more like foie gras in aspic.  The horror. THE HORROR.)

 

Cool!  Do you use a mold to get that effect?

 

 

[Build your own chocolate tempering machine]

23 hours ago, Artisanne said:

About 6 years ago I came up with an economical way to melt and keep large amounts of chocolate in temper using my sous vide machine. I now own three, because they're cheap, great when I'm holding chocolate workshops and for marbling, etc. and do the job so why not? You can use a cambro and cut the lid, or a cooler, or anything similar. This is the original setup (well, the original one I used foam core board to test it out with). I had a friend cut out a hole for the bowl and one for the sous vide and I can fill it almost to the top of the steel bowl.  I put in 6-12lbs of chocolate (you could make a larger setup and fill it with more) and melt it at about 52C. I stir it now and then to help it along and once melted I remove the bowl (carefully, sitting it on a towel) and temper it with seed or cocoa butter silk. Remove some of the hot water and add ice or cool water to bring the temperature in the bin down to the holding temperature you need for your chocolate, mine being 32c for dark. If the chocolate starts to get used up the lower weight will make the bowl want to float up. So, sorry, not seen here, but you can use a bar or clamps to help keep it from moving. I have never had a problem with water or condensation messing with my chocolate. If you've used a bain marie with chocolate, you know how to be careful with it. 

I'll be making a video this weekend if anyone's interested in watching the process from start to finish. 

 

 

This is brilliant, and I for one would love to see a video!

 

 

[Chocolates with that Showroom Finish, 2012 –]

21 hours ago, Jim D. said:

 

Beautiful decoration. Do you mind telling how you achieved the effect?

 

Thank you, Jim!  I used 3 colored cocoa butters from Chef Rubber's jewel collection -- gold, yellow topaz, and purple amethyst.  Gold spatter first, using a toothbrush and a gloved finger.  Purple next, swirling with a gloved finger.  Yellow last, a few drops in each cavity, then blown with a compressed air canister. 

[Chocolates with that Showroom Finish, 2012 –]

I'm kind of pleased with these.  

[When Life Gives You Meyer Lemons.....]

Lovely, thank you all!

 

[When Life Gives You Meyer Lemons.....]

The Meyer lemon tree I bought last spring finally has ripe fruit!!  I'm all a-buzz and excited to make some curd, at a minimum, but what else?  Any (non-savory) ideas appreciated, as well as suggestions of how to adjust sweetening for Meyer lemons in recipes calling for regular lemons.

[Chinatown Reccomendation?]

I have friends with kids in town visiting.  Can anyone recommend a good spot in Chinatown for dinner with a family that includes a 2-year-old?

[My "Joy of Baking" Pudding Recipe Did Not Set - Twice!]

Egg yolks are significantly smaller than they used to be.  I'd add another yolk and see if that helps.

 

[Confections! What did we make? (2014 – 2016)]

On 3/20/2016 at 7:35 PM, Jim D. said:

 

My Easter 2016 collection:

 

 

 

top row:  (1) layers of blood orange ganache and salted caramel, molded in dark chocolate, (2) gingerbread-flavored ganache, dipped in dark chocolate, topped with muscovado sugar, (3) layers of apricot preserves and marzipan, molded in dark chocolate, (4) toasted pinenut ganache with anise, molded in milk chocolate

 

middle row:  (1) mint ganache, molded in dark chocolate, (2) lime cream, molded in white chocolate, (3) layers of coffee ganache and hazelnut gianduja, dipped in dark chocolate, topped with a toasted hazelnut, (4) strawberry cream, molded in white chocolate

 

bottom row:  (1) layers of black currant ganache and crispy hazelnut gianduja, dipped in milk chocolate, (2) banana coconut cream with coconut rum, molded in white chocolate, (3) layers of raspberry preserves and peanut butter mousse, molded in milk chocolate, (4) apple caramel, molded in milk chocolate

 

Stunning.  How do you find the shelf-life of the mousse-filled bonbons?

 

[Chocolates with that Showroom Finish, 2012 –]

Ruth, those marble effects are stunning!  I'm thinking white chocolate layered with white chocolate that has been tinted with candy colors.  What method did you use for the layering?

[Chocolates with that Showroom Finish, 2012 –]

I have drawn endless inspiration from the wonderful work on this thread.  While I'm nowhere near the caliber of you folks, I am starting to get some effects that please me.  Here's my latest (forgive hastily snapped pic while on my way out the door this morning).

 

 

[Packaging for Chocolates]

PastryGirl, that is INCREDIBLY generous of you.  We're test-marketing at my local coffee shop and I was prepared to buy 25 or so to get started, but if you can spare even a few, that would be such a boon.  Hopefully things will go well enough to justify a $50 minimum order soon!

[Packaging for Chocolates]

Oh my goodness, ChocoMom, I'm so sorry to hear about your fire.  How devastating.  I hope there were no injuries.

 

I love that box from Nashville Wraps, but with shipping it's over $1.60 per piece, and I'm not doing the kind of volume that would justify a $300+ order, unfortunately.

 

Sweet Packaging certainly has some reasonable options, thanks for that tip!!

[Packaging for Chocolates]

You guys are the best!  I had completely forgotten about Glerup/Revere, PastryGirl, I'm gonna have fun looking through their options.

 

I definitely want clear boxes; Kerry, here are the two options I was looking at:

 

http://www.nashvillewraps.com/candy-boxes/clear-truffle-boxes/sku-fc23abr.html

 

http://www.boxandwrap.com/candy-boxes-gold-artisan.html

 

Jim, I have purchased my other (larger) packaging at Papermart and I generally like them a lot.  I just wish they had a 2-truffle version of their PET box with the gold bottom; that would be perfect.  And thanks for the tip on availability.  I'm really just a hobbyist who is selling a little on the side at this point and trying to keep my price point low, so not (yet) splurging on the gorgeous boxes....

 

Edited: Oh dear, Glerup has a $50 minimum and is on the opposite coast from me.  Curses!!!

 

[Packaging for Chocolates]

I know this question gets asked frequently, and I've done my research, but I can't believe that I can't find a less expensive option for packaging to hold 2 truffle-sized bonbons.  The two options I liked (from Nashville Wraps and BoxandWrap) come to over $1.60 each when factoring in shipping.  There is no way to price them at that cost.  Am I missing some options out there?

[Storing Finished Chocolates]

thanks so much, that's my current favorite as well.  Spattered, then brushed gold luster dust on the entire surface of the mold, then backed with milk chocolate.  The milk chocolate really makes the gold stand out.

 

[Silicone Baking Mats]

Half-sheet size is great for home bakers (like me) and I think tan/neutral colors are best -- so as not to distort the color of the product and hence misinterpret level of done-ness.  Trimmed-out corners are also a great feature as it makes removing the product from the pan easier.

 

[Storing Finished Chocolates]

I'm much too shy to post any of my work in the chocolate threads, but here are a few samples of stuff I've been doing recently, if anyone is interested.  I'm getting better, but have a way to go!

[Confections! What did we make? (2014 – 2016)]

I also would love to know how you got the marbled effect!  Stunning work.

[Storing Finished Chocolates]

Thank you all so much for sharing your experiences and methods - I feel much better now!

 

[Storing Finished Chocolates]

Thanks, Ruth.  Do you worry about headroom and condensation with the Snapware?

 

[Storing Finished Chocolates]

Thanks, PastryGirl!  Great suggestions.  How crucial is it to cool in the fridge prior to freezing?

 

[Storing Finished Chocolates]

I know the gold standard for storing molded chocolate bon bons is to vacuum-pack lightly, then freeze.  Any suggestions for an overly-enthusiastic home chocolatier with an abundance of inventory and no vacuum sealer?  My local coffe shop is selling my wares, but not as quickly as I've been producing them!