Marmalade

You can warm it in the microwave with a few short blasts, just try not to melt all of it. Shake it well before using. If you are using it with a paint brush, just make sure you are spreading it in fairly thin coats and allow it to set up at least 30 minutes to an hour in a 60-70F environment. If you are using it in an airbrush, you can warm the airbrush with a heat gun or hair dryer before spraying, and rewarm the airbrush and your portions of cocoa butter between sprays. If you keep a hairdryer or heat gun handy, you should be able to keep it warm in whatever you dispense what you need into.

You should let them set up overnight so that a thin shell forms over your filling. I found this has worked best for my products that have similar characteristics as the ganache you're describing. Same for caramel filled pieces.

Badger hair brushes are the only thing I've heard of that works. But they're hard to find and $$$-Hilliard's has them but you'd half to order one.

I would ask first, do they want ready to serve desserts, or are they going to have someone with at least basic skills to plate? If it's the former, then doing pies, cakes, and other easy to serve stuff is a no-brainer, and you can probably charge per item-and many items could be frozen and pulled only at service. If they want fancier stuff, with decorated plates, sauces, etc., then you'll have to know if you have someone to count on during service to put together components. If you have a couple of good sauces and a couple of good staples that can be plated chilled, or warmed and plated, I would opt for the second route. You could still bill per each item supplied, or by the hour....it depends on if you know how fast you are able to make stuff. Also, the offerings depend on what kind of clientele the place has...upscale (fancier plated desserts), average (cakes, pies, brownies, and other basics).

I just talked to Michael Recchiuti about this. From what I know it´s not easy, and there are very few people, if any, who will actually teach it. Very hush-hush, top secret in the industry about how it´s done. Best of luck, let us know how it goes!

Anyone have recent prices on cocoa butter? Non-deodorized if possible. I am considering importing Ecuadorian cocoa butter to the US.

I'll be going too. Have not been to one before but going as a spectator. Have heard mixed comments about going to drum up sales as an exhibitor in the chocolate market.

Anyone out there willing to share what you´ve recently been paying per kilo or pound for couverture, and break it out with whatever info you have (supplier, brand, %´s, etc.)? Thanks.

Sounds to me like you had crystallization occur when you didn't want it. I've had this problem before making brittles. Sometimes just stirring a bit too much, or too frequently, and not giving it the love, patience and attention it needs will cause a hard sugar candy to crystallize on you. From what you say about it turning crumbly, it can be nothing else but crystallization occurring. When this happens the emulsion breaks, though not always, and the fat separates out. Basically, you turned your toffee into a hard version of fudge, but without the fat being properly emulsified. Theoretically you could save it by adding water and getting all the sugar to dissolve over low heat, then strain out the almonds and add new ones at the end (because the old one will get soggy first from all the water then burnt from cooking it all the way up to 300 again to get all the water out), but then you also have to worry about the emulsion again. Honestly, I would say don't bother-I say this from experience because i have tried this method with macadamia brittle, and it was not pretty. :-) Also, yes, don't make candy on a rainy or humid day. You'll have a very hard time ever getting it to hard crack stage and if it's raining out it will instantly begin to absorb water from the atmosphere once poured to set and will turn sticky faster than a New York minute.

I've used a cuisinart several times and you get nice emulsion...but it's too small for most of my batches. Can't wait till I can afford the Robocoupe with the vacuum attachment!

I am guessing he calls for tabling in some of them to get them to set up faster, that is, to accelerate crystallization...I never table, though I guess I would do it if I were in a real rush to get the ganache to set up.

How does this result differ from just using tempered chocolate to make the ganache? ← In concept, it doesn't really differ-you get the same result.

Exactly-I am saying melted tempered chocolate. I don't know that mycryo would work given the temperature difference between the ganache and the mycryo. I have never used mycryo, is it a really fine powder that would melt easily? Since it's cocoa butter, its melting point is likely around 91F, 31C, so the ganache would have to be at least that warm. I use only a tablespoon or so of melted tempered chocolate, stir it in for a good minute or so to distribute, and then pour out and cast the slab...you can't wait too long because if you've done it right, your ganache will start to firm up within minutes and will quickly become unworkable. How firm it is of course, varies from recipe to recipe, but you want to pour out when it's still soft enough to spread to get an even flat surface.

I let my ganache cool to just below 90F or so, and then add a small amount of tempered chocolate and stir it in. This "seeds" the ganache and the chocolate in it. You will find it firms up quickly as tempered chocolate will do and makes for a better product. I have also read that if your ganache is tempered it helps improve shelf life, in Greweling's book. BTW, some of your formulations are setting up more firm than without tabling because you are indeed helping to crystallize, and in fact, temper, the ganache. When the chocolate in the ganache is properly tempered, it will tend to be more firm than if it were not.

John, I would complain diplomatically and ask they exchange it for a new product. Purveyors usually want to keep their customers happy to ensure repeat orders. I don´t think you lose anything trying if you do it nicely. Or ask for a discount.

I work in a room about 65F average. When it's really cold, I sometimes put a little space heater down near the lower shelf of my table where my molds are to bring them up in temp a bit. But usually it seems that trying to heat the molds tends to create more problems than solutions for me. I use a thick 100g bar and to get it to cool fast enough so that I don't get bloom in the middle where the chocolate is thick, I use a small fan that blows right across the tops of the molds. I also fill the molds with a ladle or from my machine, vibrate them well to get the bubbles out, then smooth the backs with an offset spatula. I don't get perfectly smooth backs, but hey, we're artisans, aren't we?

You could also try Albert Uster Swiss foods in MD.

I use a guitar and it works beautifully.

I'd really like to hear more on this topic, from both chocolate makers and retail buyers. I am soon going to be shipping chocolate pralines to the US wholesale. I'm trying to figure out a good price point, especially given the economy. For a half pound box (21 pieces) I am looking at a price point anywhere from $8 to $15 ex works. This is a retail box ready to put on the shelf. For a buyer to get this price, I need a minimum order of about 200 pounds. Otherwise, airfreight rates are just too high to make it affordable. That's about 400 units. I also have 12 piece and 6 piece boxes, which will price out a little higher per unit due to packaging costs being pretty steady, regardless of size. I have done my homework analyzing other upper end chocolate makers, and the price per piece (including the fancy box) can go anywhere from $1.60 or so to $3.00. The median is about $1.90 per piece. I'm aiming midrange in that level, assuming a retailer could turn around and sell half pound box for $30-$35.

IMHO, Personally, I would just use xantham...the amount you need is so small nobody would notice any change, and it will hold for the 3-4 days you need without a problem. Or try this from Wikipedia: The general ingredients are whipped cream, whipped egg white (absent since the introduction of electric mixers), lemon juice, lemon zest, sugar, nutmeg and an alcohol.[6]. Mrs Beeton (1861) gives two recipes.[7] One author's recipe says to mix the other ingredients together in a large bowl, "place the bowl under the cow, and milk it full."[8] If you have a whipped cream stabilizer, you could use that, or keep it whipped and in the fridge w/o stabilizer (in my experience this can hold up 2-3 days not problem with no stabilizers), put it in a pastry bag, and have the cook pipe it out with a nice tip or something.

I'm wondering if anyone out there knows in what form vanilla is added to chocolate during processing. I understand it's added during the conching process. Powdered? Fat soluble solution? Paste? Ground? Anyone who can shed light on this, please advise. Thanks!

I´ve found that adjusting the detailer (the spinning rod between the enrobing belt and paper take off belt) to a lower angle has been the key item in getting a nice bottom. When I have it too high, it takes all the chocolate off the bottom and exposes any gaps there might have been or cracks that may have been in the bottom coating. Too low and you get a big foot. Just right and you get a perfectly coated bottom. Thanks for all the help on this one.

Altitude doesn't matter for tempering chocolate. I'm at 9,500 ft. and there are no adjustments necessary. However, for caramels, brittles, and anything else involving sugar, you need to determine the boiling point for water for your altitude. Subtract that amount from 212 F, and that's the number of degrees you should adjust all your sugar boiling points by.

I´ve never seen squares, I just use round ones with no problem. Jeff

Hi. I can't wait to hear your report. I have seen these classes advertised on the web and always wanted to take them, especially the one you took. I am looking forward to your comments.