pringle007

We used a co-workers SS to carbonate bourbon.

I tried to use this method to candy rhubarb last summer... epic fail.

Ive been using Noel's couverture for about four years now as one of my main chocolates. I've used pretty much all of their varieties. It think its very easy to work with, very well priced, and allows for easy pairing with a variety of ganaches. The only drawback Ive found is their white tends to need a good deal of cocoa butter added to get it thinned to the point that it will allow for molding a thin white shell. That aside, Noel and El Rey make up 85% of what I use. I cant comment on the powder, but $7/lb seems to be inline with most chocolate makers pricing. However, unless you love hot chocolate, $7 is expensive for cocoa given that much cheaper alternatives exist.

It won't taste as apple-y though. I agree. The apple vodka gives less of a apple taste, with more of an alcohol bite to it (like a martini). Schnapps makes it very apple-like. Using Calvados would give you closer to the vodka than the schnapps.

I've made a white chocolate apple ganache with Green Apple Schnapps. I used: Heavy Cream (110 g) Corn Syrup (30g) White Chocolate (260g) Soft Butter (10g) Green Apple Schnapps (20g) Combine the first three per usual technique, let it stand a minute or two, stir in the soft butter, then slowly (I believe the key here is to so this slowly) add the liquor Ive used the same recipe, and substituted the Schnapps for Green Apple Smirnoff for an Apple Martini bonbon.

I work in a restaurant that used Mt. Olive pickles and peppers. They were awesome. Then Mt. Olive had that whole child labor law issue thing, and our eatery joined the boycott...

I had something similar happen to me once. I was brushing luster dust into a mold, then the cocoa butter, then white chocolate, then molding. I was using lime green, yellows, and white colors for decorating a Jagermeister/Lime/WC ganache. When I unmolded, the white would peel off in places, very similar sounding to what you described. I tried several different things, and in the end, I ended up very quickly running a hair dryer over the mold after applying the luster dust and cocoa butter. I did this just before applying the white. I was thinking maybe there was just a build-up of layers that was causing a failure of each to adhere. Dont know if thats proper thinking, but the hair dryer worked, and I still use the technique today.

Ive used Noel as well and find their stuff to be great products for the price. One of my preferred.

"slabbing" ganache is a technique for making chocolates, not a recipe. As Darienne stated, any ganache that sets fairly firm can be used. You basically pour the ganache into frames or even a siran or parchment lined pan. some use a marble slab. Once the ganache sits, you basically have a thin brick, or slab of firm ganache. Flip the ganache from the frame or pan, and coat one side of it with a fine layer of chocolate. This is the footer. After it hardens, slice into desired shape and dip in tempered chocolate, using the footer as your base for your dipping forks! Viola!

Ive applied for my passport (well, not the passport book, but the card) and I should have it in about 4 weeks. I wont know till pretty much the first week of May weather or not I'll be attending (my second child is slated to born on May 9th) but if I do, I'm gonna have to make a stop at the Anchor Bar. Might be a good stop-off idea for those entering through Buffalo via auto traffic. I just want to see a walk-in full of 100,000 chicken wings ready to fry.

Yeah, its from a newer shop here in Columbus, O-H-I-O. Im not interested in recreating the Buckeye effect, but the technique. Ive seen it done another piece of a different chocolatier's website (can't for the life of me remember whose site it was) and since this was the second time I'd seen it, I thought maybe someone here knew the "trick"

Great comments! Using tape was what I suspected, but wouldn't the tape leave a residue on the bonbon? I cant imagine spray painter's tape is food safe..or is it?

The pyramid shaped bonbon in this... how'd they do that? Ive seen a decoration similar to this a few times now. I actually bought this assortment, and the red and white stripes are very precise. I don't think they were done freehand with a brush, as they are straight across the chocolate and even in pigment. I was thinking they might have used some type of food safe tape to tape off the inside of the mold (sort of like making a stencil), hit it with red cocoa butter, then widen the span and re-tape, hit with white, then just do the whole thing in the grey cocoa butter. However, I think a food safe tape would leave a residue on the mold. Any ideas? Does anyone here do anything like this?

Ive used tea in caramel before in place of water. I made a "southern sweet tea" caramel that sat atop a lemon ganache.

An amazing site! Thanks for sharing that!

Canada has some tricky laws in regards to alcohol when compared to U.S. laws. I know that US citizens can be denied entry into Canada if they have ever had a DUI conviction - even a lower class one. Ran into this issue three years ago when a big group of us went to Niagara Falls for a short vacation. I'd love to attend, but I don't have a US passport. I do believe US citizens now need a passport to cross the Canadian border, correct? At last check, it was taking about 8 months for passports to be processed due to the huge rush in the past year. I'll give them a call on Monday and see what they say, for I may be a yes. Im still stewing over missing the event in MD

If you have a Harbor Freight nearby, they sell compressors that fit the badger for about $65 USA. They also have several airbrush kits in the range of $10-35

I make a vanilla-maple marshmallow in the fall. I use real maple syrup. I can send you the recipe if you'd like.

I dip everything in the same chocolate as well.

Ive tried the grated CB method three times now.. twice it worked amazingly well.. one time, not so much. I think I had the chocolate a bit too cool on that run. It was like 89 degrees here and we were cranking the AC for the first time this season, so things inside were a bit cooler than on previous attempts.

I found this thread yesterday and just tried this method using grated cocoa butter. I loved it, and as far as I can tell, everything turned out well. This might become my new #1 method for tempering, as its much faster than more traditional means (I still dont have a Rev... )

They sell them at the Whole Foods here in Columbus. I started to use them as a decoration on an espresso truffle I make.

Yes, one pepper truffle please.. well, better make it two!

Thanks for the kind words everyone! Im okay, and my passenger is just a bit sore, but no worse for the wear. I did find it hard not to shove the whole shoebox of chocolates down the guy's throat, but I think the cops on the scene could already tell I was highly agitated and they were trying to keep us separated as much as possible. The pics are great, and the chocolates looked awesome! The red thai curry/pineapple piece sounds very interesting! What I learned from the conference? Fly next year!

Sorry I missed it guys. I made it 45 miles into Pennsylvania (I'm in Columbus, Ohio) when the guy in the "fast lane" decided that heavy rains meant "drive faster". He probably wishes he'd have rethought that given he hydroplaned and took out myself and two other vehicles on the highway. So, rather than heading to Maryland, I got sent back to Ohio. The Highlight? Being told by a PA county sheriff "I could have been killed - or worse" (is there something worse than death, officer?) and being told by the speedster that "Sorry your chocolate is melting. Could we try a few pieces?" Yes, sir. You just ruined my weekend, cost me hotel reservations that im positive wont be refunded, and did many dollars worth of damage to all these vehicles. But yeah, lets eat the chocolate intended for my colleagues and dance in the rain like happy little hippies. /monthly_04_2010/post-52765-127155211508.jpg' class='ipsAttachLink ipsAttachLink_image'> On a side note, I did have some cool chocs to show you guys. I have been toying with making my own transfer sheets, even using mylar in place of acetate and bunching it up to form a sort of texture/transfer sheet hybrid. I did some nice work using an airbrush on acetate that transfered well. Sadly, thanks to Mr. Fitch and his resounding logic of "I always drive that fast in the rain", I'll have to settle for posting pics of them on here.