Lior

There are some kinds that have added sugar, but at the health food store/section you can find silan without added sugar-just sweet from the dates. It is like an inverted type of syrup, like honey or glucose or corn syrup. It has a few reasons for its use. I use glucose etc it because it adds emulsion and shine, but it also adds shelf life and smoother textures. In the case of honey or silan, it adds some flavour and silan has all the good things incl minerals and vitamins etc that dates have. I use it on a lot of things even meat/chicken. Oh and no, the rice krispies do not get soggy because they are in a mixture of hazelnut paste and chocolate (gianduja), no liquids , no sog!!

Bee Zee thank you-I decided to decorate around with another color...

well I had to get the cake done as it is eveninghere already. I made the chocolate cake and this time I sandwiched it with a layer of gianduja (nuts are suitable for an upcoming holiday) and rice krispy-like krispies. On the top I did the usual white chocolate ganache, but I used silan(date syrup) instead of glucose (dried dates are also suitable for the upcoming holiday).

If there is cream in the frosting they will get soggy. Also, if they are on top, after a while they will absorb moisture from the air, assuming the air has more moisture in it than the pop rocks... If it is for prior to serving it would be fine.

yep, white chocolate and cream and a bit of glucose... I know... sweeeeet

My house, it seems, is the official cake bake place of the 7th grade class. Every time someone has a birthday, the cake, the same one, it has to be the same as the kids refuse to change, HAS TO be made in my kitchen by a bunch of giggly girls after school. They make the cake and then go home. I wait for the cake to completely cool down and then cover it in a white ganache, decorate it a bit and the next day it goes to class. Once I made a dark ganache and the kids all complained. Tomorrow they finish semester one and get report cards. Once again a cake is required... I am tired of the same white ganache, although that is what they want! Kim inspired me a bit by her lovely graduation cake and I want something a bit different to their usual but to their liking. I am open to decorating ideas as well. ASAP!! Perhaps a shiny one? Any ideas to help are welcome. Thanks!

I now freeze also. What I have recently done is prepare boxes of 4,9 and 12 bonbons. I wrap each box in a few layers of saran type wrap and then place in a vacuum sealable bag, 2-3 boxes per bag. Then if I have an order I pull out as many boxes as I need, place in a new vacuum sealable bag - if needed (perhaps only one box, so the others need to stay in the freezer in the vacuumed bag) and pop into the fridge. I usually have a few in the fridge at all times and replace as needed. This works very well for a tiny business like mine. No hassles of pulling out a few containers...making up boxes, returning containers to freezer etc.

The date nut bars sound great with puffed rice!! I make the bars with gluten free flour and everyone devours them. It is the kind of food you either don't touch to avoid gobbling or gobble. I always say-ok one bite... yeah uh huh...

The graduation cake is fabulous!!! I am so pleased it turned out so nicely!! Did you make the white chocolate squares? And the tart with that big fat blackberry-beautiful!!! Spring-if you use a lot of colored cb it should be tempered. You can just heat it up to around 33-4 and by the time you shmear it on it gets tempered-a swipe with a finger etc. Was the shell very thin? If it is too thin it doesn't release well. Or perhaps the molds were too cold when you made the shells... I sometimes warm them up a bit when it is cold in the room-not toomuch though or it will also bring the chocolate out of temper.

xxchef! What fantastic help! You are very kind and generous. I will start the research this afternoon and see if it is feasible. Thank you ever so much!

OOOOOH! Kerry! It is so much fun!! Enjoy your space and slowly you will find the right arrangement!! Label everything cause in the beginning you forget what is where!

Thanks! I looked through his site-wow! I guess frozen makes most sense. Althoiugh I can perhaps buddy up or piggy back ride with a fruit exporter in my family... I will ask him details. Does Haas have a layer of fruit puree in his fruit bonbons?! Or is it pate?

Oh the horror-a boot print??? Hey, When I was a little girl and my parents got a "bonbonierre" - a box of chocolates, my brother and I only liked crunchy ones, so we would push the bottoms to see if it was crunchy or soft... (punishment often comes much later in strange packages...!!) But for customs officials to do that... YUCK!!! I would be horrified if anyone did that to my "gems"! Yeah it seems such a headache all those laws and customs requirements... Ergh.

Thanks Kerry!You are so kind! It seems I get more overseas requests than local!! So I thought maybe I should at least look into this option. I guess I have to learn this...somehow...

I often get requests for my chocolates from Europe and even a few from the U.S. Lately I have a request for a nice ongoing bulk order to Europe- to a tea house. I have no idea how to even begin the logistics. Does anyone do this? Is anyone willing to offer tips, refer me to places,or make suggestions?

I know you do it all by hand usually but since you are short of time, maybe you could find a store nearby you and order premade decorations along the theme of graduating-like from sugarcraft or wilton. Then you can use them as a border or centered. Or have lollie molded chocolates standing upright on the cake-these are available all over. Or maybe make the cake look like a big book that is opened by cutting it and then frosting it. Another idea is to make a swiss rolland not roll it all the way up-looks like a scroll-saw it somewhere... Take photos!!Google grad cakes to get ideas also!Good luck!

now this extends over into anything pistachio. Marzipan, for example. Pistachio marzipan also has half almonds. I made a homemade pistachio marzipan from only pistachios. It was very green and tasty but dried out too quickly. I will have to rething that recipe using inverted sugar or glucose maybe.

Yes, dark chocolate!! Just kidding of course, I am in a silly mood forgive me!! I guess you could infuse it with chile or something that would hide the sweetness. Does it have to be white chocolate? Maybe cocoa butter instead?

looks yummy good!!

Delicious and can be done gluten free-I love them!! Can't stop munching on them! Date Nut Bars 1 egg 1/2 cup sugar (I use less) 1/4 lb melted butter 1 tsp vanilla 1 tsp baking powder 1 cup of chopped dates rolled in sugar so they are not sticky 1/2 cup nuts-I use pecans 1 cup of flour or gluten free flour (I used a corn starch type of gluten free flour from the health food store) 1/4 tsp salt Mix egg,sugar,butter and vanilla. Add dates and nuts. Sift flour,baking powder and salt and add to egg mixture. Stir well. Bake in flat tin or pyrex dish for 35 mins at 325F. Cut into squares while still warm. I double the recipe and use a rectangular pyrex.

I think it may help. I warmed up the pb this last time and it helped a bit but not enough!!

I also noticed its whiteness!! I used organic natural pb! If I recall it was something like 125gr. The nougat started hardening fast so I did not mix it in thoroughly. I cooked it to 132C-is this too high?

well to finish shells as regular would obviously get liquid into the chocoalte. To place chocolate along a row of shells and the place the acetate on top of the shells and with the spatual thing swipe from body and away may also cause a liquid mess. So placing the chocolate on the sheet and then lifting uo the sheet and placing it face down on the mold would cover up the shells, and then a light swipe.

It is very difficult to finish the bottoms of the bonbon shells when there is such a fluid liquid involved. Usually a sugar syrup/alcohol solution is used. I am sure shelf life is not long his way, but they are sealable! Conventional methods are usually alcohol in a sugar syrup so crystals form a layer between the alcohol and chocolate. Truffle ball shells are used which have a small opening at the top, the top of the filling also would form the crystal layer allowing you to finish it with a bit of chocolate. I hope the explanationis clear-I am flu-y and sleepy!!

Manjari is a delicious 64% from Valrhona. Red fruity taste tones maybe even strawberry-ish. It is grown in Madagascar as said above and is a Criollo and trintario blend. It is beautiful and easy to use. Strawberry caramel uses mostly pulp for the liquid. PM me for the recipe Amy!