ibjack

I've always used a food processor and never have had problems. I'd rather mix by hand than use an immersion blender

Kerry, thanks for the help. Here's what I use for my 1oz bars, 1oz mold and my 2oz bars 2oz molds Torsten, I will get some pictures up soon, once I figure how to post them.

Now that my candy bar orders are at 1000/wk, I find it takes alot more time to wrap them then to make them. Any thoughts of a machine that could do this for me or where to find one?

I've seen pectin added to the egg whites and the results have been exactly what you described, 8" and no falling. Sorry no recipe, but I do know that the pectin made all the difference.

I don't know, I would have missed out on a lot of good things in life if I followed that one. I'd modify it to: if you have any doubts, talk about them. Don't not say things because you're afraid it will offend. ← I should specify, if there are the "this doesen't feel right" feelings in the pit of your stomach then don't do it. You have to be 100% in or 100% out in these types of things IMHO,

If you have any doubts, don't do it.

I'm working out of a kitchen in Hillcrest, PM if you want some chocolates. Jack

In Larkspur, CA, just over the Golden Gate is Emporio Rulli the quintessential Italian pastry shop. In San Diego you'll get recommendations for Extraordinary Desserts . One of the best pastry chef's working in SD is Jack Fisher. He moves around frequently, but I believe he's still at Addison, which is the restaurant for the Gran Del Mar Hotel. Extremely spendy. ← Thanks Kalypso. I'm now working for myself. My Webpage

After having the opportunity to work at 910, Georges, Jack's La Jolla and opening Addison. I feel compelled to put in my opinion. Without a doubt, having a consistant front of the house staff who care about service and have the knowledge, is what keeps San Diego dining down. Except for Addison where the service and the wine program are top notch (yet the food lacks????) evrey other place hasa serious lack of good staff and managment to oversee them. Also the lack of good pay for cooks, because the same bozos who work FOH get $8.25+tips, most are drawn to bigger markets that pay more. The lack of credible food writers doesn't help either. I'm not sure how to fix these things, because if I could I'd be the richest guy in town.

That's a great idea but the whole set up requires a few parts to make it work. From the video on the website it appears to look very easy with good results. Maybe they could send me a pre printed sheet and I could go from there?

For those of you thinking about buying a chocovision machine, think twice. I won a used 3210x on ebay and it broke within four days. I sent it in to be fixed, they recieved it on the 12th and I heard nothing from them until I called on the 19th. I hear nothing until the 30th when I called again, they said it was ready and I would get an email letting me know when it was shipped. As of today I have heard nothing. I'm very dissapointed in the lack of service. Is there another place that these machines can be fixed?

I've been dealing with Tim from Chocolate World and he has been great to deal with, answering many questions. I will be getting the set up to print my own transfer sheets soon. I will let you know how it works.

Most insurance companies that deal with businesses should be able to take care of this. 1 Million dollars of liability should be enough to cover anything that may arise.

Lior, i couldn't find it on Chocolate Worlds website, but I did find it in other places. How do I find a way to use cocoa butter to print?

Kerry, thanks that should help alot.

I'm looking into purchasiing a machine to make my own transfer sheets. Anybody have an idea where to buy one?

CM, thanks so much for clarifiying this. Let me know when you open so I can come up. Jack

Wow, I'm not sure what to say. Maybe you can create two businesses one that manufactures then sells it to the other at wholesale prices. Then you can sell the "other guys" product. They probably would never catch on. Call Michael at Chuao. Best of luck to you.

Speaking of molds, I'm trying to figure out how many molds of each shape I should buy for small to medium production. I was thinking that 10 of each should be enough. Any suggestions?

This is a different Nobu. In the new Hard Rock hotel there is an outpost of teh famous Nobu (of Nobu Matsuhisa/Drew Neioporent) not the local SD place. For casual Japanees you might consider Taka (which is what you might be talking about Octabeman). ← Correct Swicks. Been to the Nobu in Manhattan, and Morimoto in Philly. Nobu in SD would be good - Nobu anywhere would be good. So far, it's a toss up between Mama Testa, Chilango's, or Miguel's Cocina (last choice) for lunch tomorrow. Porkyland in La Jolla or Mariscos German truck for lunch Friday. Dinners will be either Oceanaire or Nobu. One more question about Coronado: Is there a nice place for lunch near the beach? I know there is the Hotel, but is there a lunch spot with a good vibe and scenery? Coronado will be our 1st stop before tide pools. I've been to Coronado and it is beautiful with a capital B. I think if there were a great place with great food and local scenery, we'd probably wind up there. Then I'll catch up my missed Mexican lunch on Saturday... ← Nothing near the beach that is good, but I like Tartine near the Ferry Landing.

Kerry, does Tomric sell the Selmi machines? I checked their website but didn't find what I was looking for. I emailed them but I think they are still on vacation.

Here's another question that I had. If you could only buy either a guitar cutter or a small tempering machine, like the chocvision delta, what would you buy 1st? Thanks to schneich for posting the pictures. (I'm trying to find a US distributor of the Selmi machines)

I just looked at the Selmi workstation and it looks like what I want for my business. I emailed them for more information.

After working for others for the past 12 years and having recently been laid off I've decided to start my own business. I will focus mostly on chocolates but will do desserts down the way. This a great thread with lots of useful information will help along the way. One thing I would hope others could contribute is what is the minimum capital needed to start. I know this is different for each person, but if you wouldn't mind letting me/us know what you spent that would be great. I will be looking for investors and would like to make sure I get enough money to get going. My thought is somewhere around $80,000.

I just got layed off from my job and am hopefully starting my own chocolate business. So I decided to take orders for chocolate boxes for some of the people that I know. Anyhow I ended up making 130 boxes with 16pcs/box (2050pcs total). I'm on my second run making chocolates for my gifts this years. I never thought that unemployment would keep me this busy!