Tri2Cook

Efficiency is important, at least that's what I tell myself when I do basically the same thing. When I finished my batch of 70% dark from the Sur del Lago nibs, I decided to start a batch of 40% milk from the same nibs so I just scraped the dark out as well as I could and proceeded. I suppose it does skew things in some tiny way but it seemed silly to wash it and wait a day for it to dry thoroughly just to work with the same nibs again.

Sometimes if I wonder if the cocktail world has reached that point where it's just digging up anything it can find from somewhere in the world strictly in the interest of having something different. I'm not saying you specifically, I realize this was a gift, but just in general. I'm picturing a bartender tasting some bottle from a remote village that's only open to traffic two days out of the year and only produces 7 bottles a year, 3 of which they keep for themselves, and saying "Man, this is awful. Has to be the worst tasting thing in existence. I wouldn't drink this if the winning lottery number was at the bottom of the glass. We HAVE to find a way to use it on our menu."

I think if I ever got close enough to their window to be one, I'd be one too. As far as I know, in the context you used it in, "PM" is private message and "DM" is direct message... so to-may-to/to-mah-to.

I marinate chicken in pretty much the same mixture, with basil instead of coriander. I cook the chicken on the grill and boil the marinade to reduce a bit, strain it and brush it on the chicken while it's cooking. Gonna have to give it a shot with pork and coriander.

I'm trying to make myself get around to that. I'd like to do a batch of praline paste. The problem being, buying nuts from the local store is a bit of a crapshoot on whether they'll be rancid or not when you get them home and open the package.

Yep. I think of it as being like to it's namesake... pleasantly bitter.

Too hot for heavy food today, by far the hottest day we've had since last summer... so chicken salad using smoked chicken, celery, Vidalia onion, jalapeno and Granny Smith apple on (store bought) garlic naan with a salad of cucumber, grape tomatoes, Vidalia onion, garlic and jalapeno that I sealed in a bag with a vinaigrette this morning and let marinate all day. Didn't bother with a picture which is a shame because this may be one of the more colorful and photogenic meals I've made recently.

If he's going to post pictures showing that beautiful scenery where he wades out and digs his own clams, his dishes damn well better look good!

I knew he'd show up at the townhouse at some point. It usually inspires me to have a visit with Eeyore myself. May not this year though, I have a lot of tiki related products sitting around that aren't going to stay good forever so I'm trying to stay in that area this summer.

I think a person's market has to be part of the equation as well. It can factor into what level constitutes "good" for the people buying it. There's nobody doing chocolate work at any level within several hours of where I live that I'm aware of. Anything I use that ranks above the bags of chocolate chips in the grocery store is great as far as the local customer base in concerned. What that means for me is, if I can charge X amount for chocolates using Callebaut, that doesn't mean I'll get away with charging Y amount if I start using Valrhona. A large part of the local customer base won't care enough to pay more. It's an area high on my list of concerns as I begin to venture into making my own chocolate... whether I'm going to be able to sell it for enough where I live to be worth doing.

Lisabeth? Just a random guess because you're where you are and she's the only one I know about there. There may be 50 of them there in actuality.

I have an electric one that was a gift from my grandmother many years ago. I don't know where it ranks in quality level but I've had it for over 20 years and it still works great. She overheard me mentioning to my sister that I was thinking about getting a juicer and got that for me. She had one just like it, her and my grandfather had a winter place in Florida and she had a couple orange trees in her yard so she used it for the oranges. I didn't have the heart to tell her that wasn't the type of juicer I meant but it has come in handy at times. I don't use it often, not worth the cleanup for one or two pieces of fruit, but it's nice when I have reason to juice a large amount of citrus in one shot.

I mentioned it in that other discussion but in the interest of compiling this stuff in one place... the first batch I made using nibs of unknown locale (that were listed as raw when purchased, so I did have to roast) was aimed at a 70% dark. 48 hours in, it was unpleasantly astringent. I have no idea if it was related to the beans or my beginner roasting skills but the end result was not going to be enjoyable. So I did exactly as you mentioned, added sugar, milk powder and additional cocoa butter in ratios to end up at a 50% milk chocolate. Those additions resulted in it spending another 12 hours in the melanger (probably didn't need that much to refine the sugar and milk powder, just how it worked out with my work schedule). The result is actually quite nice but I couldn't tell you if the conversion to a dark milk, the additional time in the machine or a combination of both solved the problem. I have lecithin on hand but haven't used it in a batch yet. I have no problems with using it. I'm not aiming for "purist" or "strict single origin" or "minimal ingredient" labeling, I just want to make things that taste good, have good texture and will do what I want them to do. So if I do a batch that I think will benefit from having lecithin added, it will be added. If eye of newt and hair of frog will help me make the best chocolate I can make... well, lets hope that doesn't come up or my customers don't read the ingredient list.

I saw the picture before I read any of the text and that's exactly what I thought... cookies! Then I read and discovered they are in fact buns... except the recipe seems awful similar to cookies. Silly Newfoundlanders calling cookies buns.

Yes it is, wasn't trying to persuade you otherwise. I was just thinking more along the lines of don't let someone telling you a chocolate is good or bad convince you it's good or bad. If it's something you were considering, maybe let being told it's bad convince you to start with a very small amount. But I'd do that even if told it's good... just in case I happen to disagree after tasting it.

Yeah, that's why I've been trying to just follow along and not ask questions. I'm not at all sure there will ever be a point when I would take the course. There are some individual lessons I'd be tempted to purchase if he ever decided to make that format available at some point in the future but the class as a whole, I'm less sure about. Not because I think it's too pricey or I wouldn't benefit greatly from it. I just know myself well enough to know that left to my own devices in the online format, I would very possibly find myself doing lessons that interested me and putting off others. Not proud to admit that but no point lying about it either.

What's good is what you like. What's bad is what you don't like. In case you think I'm being flippant, I'm not. Watch the replies (once this gets rolling some more) and see how many different chocolates are listed as good or bad and how many of the same chocolates are listed as good by one person and bad by another. Taste and use what you like. Don't worry about what someone else thinks about it unless they're giving you their money for it.

I do remember the Tepache... I also remember that you had more success with yours than I had with mine. Mine was tasty but I don't think it ever fully became what it was supposed to be based on the descriptions I'd read. I remember the vinegar idea as well but not knowing where I'd find a vinegar mother where I live, I was forced to drink the tasty, if not all that boozy and fizzy, Tepache-ish liquid instead.

Would have been pretty funny if you'd been able to whip that out and put it on the plate next to those pastries they gave you in NY.

This is my favorite effect so far.

That may be true but I sure don't make messes doing anything else food related that come anywhere close to the messes I sometimes make when doing chocolate work. It may not be messy in and of itself but it's certainly skewed towards bringing out one's inner messy.

Is there any other way?

Howdy! That's a tough one. You're basically asking for tips on all of the things that can't really be taught. Things you develop along the way and figure out because everybody has their own best way of doing those things. If you put 10 cooks in a room and ask them to work efficiently and cleanly (multi-tasking is an efficiency skill), you'll very likely see 10 variations on how they go about that... and they could all work equally well. And where you work can throw a wrench in all of that. Unless you've been recruited to be their top pastry person with free license to do your thing, they'll very likely have their own way of wanting things done, especially at the "upper-tier" level, and then you have to adapt your efficiency, multi-tasking skills and ability to work cleanly to how they insist you do things.

I tempered and molded the 50% milk I made with the no-origin-given nibs today after a couple weeks aging. The EZtemper made easy work of the tempering so it certainly is well named. Gonna have to be a little more violent with the molds next round, got a few bubble dimples in some of these, but they all popped right out of the molds with no banging or freezer assistance and, though it's not easy to see in the pictures thanks to my poor photography skills, they're quite shiny. I'm calling it a success for a first try. Three of the fifteen 80 gram bars I molded. Not selected for best appearance. There were some without bubble dimples that I could have used but this is a learning process so... warts and all.

That's the one. I'd forgotten that I replaced his combination of 1/2 cup puree and 1/2 cup water he uses to hydrate the gelatin with just straight puree. I should probably change that in the one I posted accordingly since it has his name on it. Just in the interest of accuracy.