Lior

ok update: The buttercream is still totally soft. Even if I fridge it, when I dip it it can melt! Hasn't anyone made these? The buttercream is very tasty although a bit too sweet for my likings.

I think I almost cursed at the time. I am not a curser and my family would have fainted if they heard "fu...sha!" That is how it came out. Luckily it is just an experiment- so the family will get it tonight for dessert- if it hardens. In my home, amongst the 4 cats and dog we have the 2 second rule, and blowing air on it, phh phh and it is good enough to eat - no one ever got sick yet! Sigh...

In the spirit of this thread I decided to try out a new recipe in Geert's book- page 175. Disaster struck. One of those clumsy bad days. I decided to replace the hazelnut paste with pnut butter (for Lana). I also divided the recipe by 5 - cause it was a test run. Undivided recipe: So it goes like this : 500g butter, 500 g fondant, 10 drops of vanilla (I used bean) for the bottom base: 500 g hazelnut paste (I used pnut b), 500 g gianduja, 300 g milk choc directions say to melt the gianduja, add paste and chocolate and frame it. On top of this you put the fondant cream. Problems: 1. Base did not harden. I scooped it all back up and tried tempering it-did not work. I then tempered a small amount of choc and added it to the base mixture, still no luck. Tempered some more choc, added it and it more or less hardened - enough to cut. I won't go into the part when I decided to put it in the fridge and it fell off the tray... luckily baking paper side hit the floor... 2. Then I put the fondant cream on top and it was not enough for a thick layer as required, but a thin thin layer!! It also didn't seem to harden but I am waiting to see. Perhaps fridge again?? (Directions just say to stir butter with fondant until fluffy). I used soft butter. base should be 5mm and cream 10mm. It is more like 5mm and 5mm... And of course, the hazelnuts I roasted were no good- bitter-bluckh!! Grrr! Anyone ever make these monsters? (Buche Whipped Cream Vanilla.

thanks. I will try the mango and passion fruit!

Hi! Great! I can say that: 1. Keep bonbon variety down to no more than 15 if not less. 2. Refridgerate and then freeze to keep shelf life-wrap in nylon stretch or vacuum bags. 3. It is great to have ready made bonbon boxes to sell, you can prepare these in advance, wrap in the nylon stretch, place in a ziploc fridge and freeze. 4. Organize bars and such as the first things you make, bonbons last-if you can. 5. Besides having separate boxes and bars to sell, arrange some packages nicely wrapped- a box of bonbons, 2 bars etc all wrapped up nicely. 6. Have a display of bonbons and etcso people can also choose. take photos for us! have fun and lots of success!!

Got it- thanks John and Lana. Maybe now my mango will be better!! I seem to have realized that I often miss/ignore the obvious at times. What I should pick up right away can take me 2 years to realize!! I get into all the nitty gritty and ignore important basics-oof!

I don't know if any of you have used this chart - just click on "chocolate makers" and you get this chart. 1. What is the difference between the first set of "fruit ganaches" and "chocolate molded sweets" as at the END both say to pour into the frame. I also noticed that no white choc is included and in the chocolate molded sweets-only milk choc is used. Also quite a lot of sugars are incorporated- Why different ones and so much? I see no cream is used either... but only butter. The "praline for molding and cutting" is intriguing as it uses gianduja, hazelnut paste and praline. Any thoughts or comments? Thanks

sounds lovely. Thanks for sharing!

Hi Voltage is 220 I looked on ebay and found a German ebay selling one with bids. I don't understand too much German.

I want one.

Yes, I need it! Picky spoons!

Thanks all. I finally found a supplier. I am no where near a Bakers Supply house - unfortunately!! (a 12 hour flight! ). Darienne you are so kind-but I do need around 1000 of them!!I will check out prices and all, but check out left hand side However if anyone has a U.S. source, that willbe good as well. Thanks!!!

I have an order for many teaspoons (urrgh-they break easily and always get air bubbles!). The order has to be packaged in packages of both two and four spoons. I thought to use cello bags and insert a gold card to serve as the base and such. I cannot find a place where the prices are good and is food safe for sure. Does anyone have a good source for this? I wrote to papermart.com, but there are so many types of gold card paper! And he cannot guarantee foodsafety. Thanks

I think pralinee is the caramelized nut paste. What he is saying is that what we make at home is not gianduja. He seems very adamant so I started wondering.

Have you thought of a thermomix instead? And I also wanted to ask everyone: Once again there is a discussion, in which I did not participate, on our local forum (which is not always friendly unfortunately...). A guy whose avatar is something like "The little man from the street" claims that Gianduja cannot be homemade just as chocolate cannot be. It requires machinery that the chocolatier does not have-conch etc. Also he claims it does not use caramelized hazelnut paste, but only hazelnut paste. I always use these opportunities to expand my horizons. I still think that Gianduja can be excellent if homemade and that it can be either caramelized or not. Now this little man claims that this is not a matter of opinion but fact that: homemade Gianduja is like making oranges from lemons It is not just a "salad" of paste or pralinee with chocolate It can only be made in a factory It does not use caramelized pastes Do I have a misunderstanding of Gianduja? Is there some correct or proper definition accepted universally? I am dead serious not cynical. Thanks

Dying to try El Rey's white- it has un-deodorized cb. How funny- "un de...!" What a weird world.

I find Valrhona's Ivoire so fluid I have to do twocoatings for my molded items or they are so thin they don't come out.

I can only say that I toally agree. Kerry is an incredible person. A rare find, and I am sure that those around her are blessed. Thank you Chocolate Doctor!!! You have time for everything and everyone.

Very interesting! No sugar! Do you have any idea how the general public reacts? I am constantly developing my diabetics line, which is basically 80-85% dark chocolate sweetened with maltitol (15%) and I use it to make a kind of gianduja-using nut pastes with no sugar. Some people like it some hate it. It is dense and bitter as you can imagine. But for a chocolate that is truly okay for these folks, in small quantities, I think it is good. I am torn when people don't like it as I know they should try to get used to it!!! Thanks for the help-as usual you are so helpful!

Lana! How fun for you to be getting the new room and have a thermomix! Enjoy it all! Oil was not added when we had our demo. Which book is it that you need to dig out? I am going to order Wybauw 2 and another book but I don't know which yet. I am also interested in making marzipan and cannot find proper recipes that start from scratch. This is important cause I can only get almond marzipan here and I like pistachio. I have made it myself but it is not perfect. I agree, Kerry that flavour is crucial but I like to have some base on which to build a good recipe.

I am bringing this topic back. I am still interested in maKING MY OWN GIANDUJA. I don't need to make hazelnut as what I buy is excellent. But if I want to make another nut one ... Issues: 1. I need a thermomix. These are great for doing pastes. 2. Working out the recipe. I noted that valrhona has 36% hazelnut, 36% sugar and 28 % milk choc. As I see it there is 34% fat total. Now if I use macadamia or almonds or pistachios, does anyone know what the total percentage of fat should be? Should it always be around 30%? Then I need to figure out fats in the different nuts and based on that, how many grams/percentage of nuts I need to use. Any input or ideas?

Looks so nice! Keep us updated! How exciting to have a storefront! My dream!! I wish you the best of success there!

looks totally delicious!

I was so excited to read all the recipes - with the chart of how much chocolate of each type to use for each recipe!!! Wonderful! Thank you-it is very much appreciated.

I have quite a few plastic wheely boxes with lids that close very nicely. I store all my dirty molds and a lot of chocolate in them. Almost everything is out of sight. I also have two plastic stands with 5 drawers each. and two wooden dressers with 3 drawers each. And shelves. I label everything or I forget. I also have a tall trolley with half size baking trays/shelves which is really a space saver for molds with chocolate or plastic containers with made chocolate-vertical space. If anyone has great space savers or ways to be organized this is a great thread to share! I have a few pictures of my area when it was still empty and I will take one of it all full . One wall: View from entrance although things have changed places a bit: A sink stainless steel table replaced the computer station