Tri2Cook

Good question. I was only commenting on the substitution, not the recipe as a whole.

Just a guess but maybe "works fine here" means "will still be tasty" and not "will be the same" just as an option to anyone who doesn't have Sichuan Pepper sauce available where they live.

Or lots of screenshots and the judicious application of video capture software... not that I would condone such behavior, of course.

That is a good price. I've been looking at the Nutrichef PKFD8 mainly because I'd like to have one I can dual-purpose as a cocoa butter/airbrush warmer. The Nutrichef isn't any more expensive than the Excalibur (normal price) and has a bottom temp of 84 degrees. Most others I've looked at, including Excalibur, have a bottom temp in the 95 - 105 range. I like the idea of having a little more low temp cushion.

Must have been a pretty good deal! It already says "sold out" where the price should be.

I don't know if it's always added but every tutorial I've read or watched included it. I'm not really interested in getting into any of the niche categories of minimalist ingredients or special designations, I just want to see if I can make some tasty chocolate. I appreciate the efforts of those who do explore the possibilities with anything related to food and cooking, it's just not an area I want to get into myself. In regards to the "bar" part of "bean to bar", what's a good size for molding bars?

Good points. I've been doing quite a bit of reading and video watching on the subject recently but I hadn't found much information on the economics of it. I'm not interested in getting into any serious bean to bar production so it doesn't really matter a whole lot, was mainly just curious. Besides, I don't think any playing around I'd do will be considered actual bean to bar by the purists regardless of whether I start with whole beans or nibs because I don't have plans to produce the cocoa butter myself.

Digging this up because it's the only thread that came up in the search with "bean to bar" in the subject line. I'm wondering if I'm correct in my assessment based on perusing the internet and checking out cocoa nib prices that rolling your own is primarily a labor of love? Unless I'm overlooking something, which is entirely possible since I have no experience in this area, it looks to me like higher end commercial couvertures sell in the same general price range per kg as what it would cost to make it yourself. Good but perhaps not top tier chocolate (entirely subjective, I realize) can be purchased for much less than the cost of making it yourself. So am I overlooking something or is that pretty accurate? This is not an attempt to lessen the idea of making it yourself, I'm looking forward to giving it a shot, just wondering if I'm correct that cost is not one of the factors in deciding to make your own.

No picture but I gave a drink I accidentally stumbled across a long time ago while stuck in a youtube loop (for those who aren't familiar, it's when you go to youtube to view something specific and the next thing you know, an embarrassing amount of time has passed while you keep clicking to the next interesting looking video in the suggestions) a try last night. They bill it as a tequila play on a zombie, which seemed about right for Cinco de Mayo, and call it the Oaxacan Dead. Blanco, reposado and anejo tequilas in equal parts plus apricot brandy, passion fruit puree, lime juice, grenadine and a few dashes of yuzu vinegar (which I was unwilling to source just for this). I thought the name was kinda clever (it's what caught my attention and is the only reason I clicked on the video) and it didn't taste bad. I don't know what it would have been like with the yuzu vinegar and probably never will but it wasn't too bad a way to kick off tiki season.

In a stunning display of dedication, with all of the great foods available within the cuisine of Mexico, the Cinco de Mayo meal is going to be... wait for it... nachos. And not even crispy homemade corn tortilla chips topped with pork carnitas or carne machaca or chicken tinga or anything else along that line of delicious. Oh no, couldn't even pull together that level of effort. So it's store-bought chips, ground beef cooked with onion and jalapeno, some pinto beans, cheese, salsa and sour cream and that's about it. The available avocados were not too wonderful so guacamole isn't even on the list. Waffling between a tequila based tiki drink or the Modelo's I already have in the fridge to accompany. And you call yourself a gourmet!

I'm usually somewhere in the middle. I don't use a lot of the Kraft Dinner type stuff for myself but I'm not at all opposed to some things from cans or the freezer section of the store helping make a meal quicker and easier. There is always KD, Campbell's tomato soup, Ichiban ramen noodles and frozen chicken nuggets in the house though... despite my best efforts, the kid won't eat very many things outside of those items.

I was actually semi-disappointed to see his post. That basic idea was already on my experiment list for when I get my hands on a melanger. I thought I had a clever idea in mind, apparently not clever enough to not be beaten to it.

I just assumed that must be the case since he mentioned it being a problem but didn't get specific. But then again, Michael Laiskonis is one of my pastry heroes so maybe I'm just not as willing to question him as I should be.

Under normal grinding conditions, I'd agree. But with the melanger, I think enough time and, as Kerry and pastrygirl mentioned, enough cocoa butter just might solve that problem. I guess we'll see where he gets with it.

But it's not that at all. He's not making a popcorn bark, he's running it all through a melanger so that the end result is a smooth chocolate with the flavor of the buttered popcorn in it.

Are yeasts and other living microorganisms used in breads and fermented foods vegan? Not instigating anything here, genuinely curious.

I just miss online monthly challenges. The challenges here like the one mentioned in Kerry's post that wrapped up not too long before I joined eGullet (which I read through with great enjoyment as soon as I discovered it) would have been huge fun to me. The TGRWT challenges (They Go Really Well Together... unexpected ingredient pairings) and Royal Foodie Joust (dishes incorporating 3 ingredients chosen by a participant from the previous month), both of which were not eGullet initiated. They always kept me thinking and often inspired me to think in different directions than I normally may have. If I'm not mistaken, there's been a few stabs at trying to get some sort of challenge series going again here over the years but they never seem to catch on or be embraced well enough to continue. I wonder sometimes if people replace "challenge" with "competition" in their head and worry over whether they'll measure up or if it's just something that had it's time and is no longer of much interest.

I'm sure there are. And honestly, I'm glad there are. People should have choices no matter how they choose or are required to eat. My comment was mostly meant to be funny, with maybe a touch of taking a shot across the vegan bow in the mix. Probably should have refrained.

I was going to say to pull some corn off the stalk, shuck it. toss it hot water for a short amount of time and have vegan perfection... then I realized I couldn't roll it in butter. Then I thought about the Thai cucumber salad I like to have when I make Thai food... and realized it contains fish sauce. Even a nice tomato sandwich isn't the same without mayo. So I suppose I don't actually have a favorite vegan dish. Maybe hope the lawn needs to be mowed that day and send 'em out to graze?

I'm glad to hear it as well. I just assumed it was because water is what would cook off first when heating the cream. Glad I haven't been spreading that around like I knew what I was talking about.

Google tracked down a few pectin NH pate de fruit recipes including a passion fruit and a blood orange version. Haven't done them, can't vouch for them but maybe they'll help.

I've never worked with the Pomona's pectin, it's on my list since following along with Jim's experiments but as yet undone. Pectin NH doesn't have a packet of calcium, it has a calcium salt as part of the mix and thus has a fixed ratio used as is. You can decrease the thermoreversibility of NH pectin by increasing the calcium level in the solution with an external calcium source so maybe if you get the pectin/calcium ratio to be the same with both, they'll behave in the same way. But that's 100% speculation, not something I've actually researched.

I'm going to leave whether it will work or not to others who have some actual experience attempting to use if for this purpose but I use NH for making soft, thermally-reversible gels (neutral and fruit glazes and similar). It's a LM pectin (it requires calcium to gel so it isn't dependent on sugar levels, but it's calcium source is included in it's makeup which is why recipes using it don't generally call for an added calcium source) that's been modified to be thermoreversible. You now have me wondering if this may be a route to a pate de fruit-like product that can be piped.

I used to do it that way, it always worked fine as far as end result goes. I started melting the chocolate because sometimes, especially in small batches, it would cool down before all of the chocolate completely melted. I figured if I'm going to have to use the microwave or heat gun at the end to get it all melted, I can just as easily melt the chocolate at the beginning and be done with it with the added benefit that there's zero risk of overlooked little pieces of chocolate that didn't melt. I don't consider it a necessity or special technique or anything, just personal preference.

I haven't encountered that problem but I have no good advice or answers as to why that is other than maybe blind luck. I've never tried any of the fancy mixing methods. I usually just melt the chocolate, heat the liquid ingredients, dump it all over the chocolate at once and stir it in, then work in the butter. When it cools down enough, I stir in some silk from the EZtemper and pipe. I haven't noticed the silk having an immediate effect on the viscosity so I'm sticking with "luck".