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Lior

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Posts posted by Lior

    Nougat paste

    in Pastry & Baking

    Posted · Edited by Lior (log)

    Hi. I get my praline paste from Valrhona. JPW gave us a recipe in the course:

    500 g praline, 250 g dark choc melted and tempered, 100g-150g of inclusive ingredients (paillete Feuilletine, nibs, Bres etc). Mix the choc and praline very well, add the inclusive ingr, slab the ganache, cool overnight on the marble, cut and dip.

    If you want milk chocolate use 300 g and white choc use 350g.

    Last time I halved the recipe, and forgot to halve the milk choc (so me...!) It turned out just fine.

    The praline paste can be hazelnut or almond or both.

    My choc thermometer

    in Pastry & Baking

    Posted

    Well just in case someone out there is curious... I was correct in guessing 99.4 C for water's B.P. According to the calculator that Kerry so kindly gave, my B.P. for water should be 99.4. So I went ahead and boiled some water.

    One thermometer read 99.3 and the other, the one I usually use and thought to be more accurate, read 101.8!!

    Today I used my melters without the thermometer and with milk chocolate. I kept checking a sample for temper until I thought I got it right. The chocolate seems okay, although the ambient temp is 24 C, so that may be why it took so long to harden.

    On the fridge note, the thermostat is also not accurate... and tonight the technician is coming to see what can be done about the humidity.

    thanks!

    My choc thermometer

    in Pastry & Baking

    Posted

    hello. I wanted to calibrate my thermometers by the boiling water method, but then remembered from way back when, that the boiling point changes according to altitude, so I need to find out what the B.P. is here, about 150m-200 above sea level... Anyone know?

    Sweetened, Condensed Milk

    in Pastry & Baking

    Posted · Edited by Lior (log)

    I have bought a Russian brand of CM here, as the local stuff has vegetable oil in it and tastes bluckh! When I press the top to check if it has botulism in it-as I do with any can I buy, these did!! I wrote to the Russian company but never heard from them. I still have them a year later... I am not at home now so I can't look up the name? Should I toss? When in doubt, throw out??

    Thnx

    My choc thermometer

    in Pastry & Baking

    Posted

    Thank you everyone. I temper by hand no problem and I have lost some of my confidence with these melters! I just need to get to know them better I suppose. I laughed at the boiling water temp check! So brilliantly simple - I am going to do it now! I do cover the chocolate with the lids as it is humid here. I appreciate the explanation about the light going on and off.

    A while back I mentioned that I am buying an upright beverage refrigerator, with a glass double door-low expense so low risk- cost about 600$. I had a technician put a new temperature control in-he just connected the appropriate wires to the new control unit and set it at 14-17 C. So the temp is right. That was no problem at all.

    Now I need a dehumidifying accessory, although I was hoping the humidity would be alright, it isn't. Does anyone know about such a unit? I figure that for the price it is still a lot less than the fancy display fridges for chocolate and bigger. If the chocolates are in a well closed container it is okay, but I want to have it right if they are out in the open.

    Thanks so much to all.

    My choc thermometer

    in Pastry & Baking

    Posted

    Talk about getting confused and under confident! I decided to experiment different tempering methods with my Mol d"Art melters.

    Here:

    1. Put tempered milk chocolate into melter, set the thermostat at 30 C and wait over night.

    2. Put tempered milk chocolate into melter, set at 45 C to melt, then set to 30+ and leave a few hours to form a "crust"

    3. Put tempered milk chocolate into melter, set at 45 C to melt, then set to 30 C, add seed, mix etc until tempered

    Results and problems:

    1. The room temperature here is 23 C daytime and 17 C nighttime. The chocolate did not melt much. I left it for three nights till it was soft enough to mix. Even after raising the temp in 0.5 increments and waiting patiently :angry: it was extremely viscous and could not be used. I also could not really figure out what is 0.5 degrees because the thermostat is analogue not digital. So here I tried using my choc thermometer and it showed up to 3 degrees different temp reading...I then tried my caramel thermometer and it showed a third different reading! I began getting confused about the red light on the melter-anyone who can expalin why it goes on and off- Iwill be grateful. It goes on when it is set at 45 before it is near 45 and then clicks off. What am I not getting??

    2. Took much longer than two hours and in the end same as 1 above-viscous and impossible to use - even when I tried the hair dryer method. Again I had to rely on my thermometer which may not be reliable. Too bad the melter does not have a digital control!

    3. I got tempered chocolate of course. But all three readings-the two thermometrsand the melter's thermostat all had different readings, none were what I expected! The thermometrs read 33.6, 32.8 and the melte was set at 30.

    Any comments or advice? Ergh!!! Thanks for reading this long and boring account!!

    Cupcakes: Recipes & Decorating

    in Pastry & Baking

    Posted

    When mine were young I made decorating the cupcakes a part of the party activities. , I organized little stations with two choices of icing cream in two colors, different toppings such as mini marshmellows, chocolate chips, sprinkles, etc. The kids had a GREAT time doing their own cupcake. Then we had a cupcake exhibition in which each cupcake was shown and praised. Just an idea!

    Dealing with Difficult/Finicky/Fussy/Picky eaters

    in Food Traditions & Culture

    Posted

    Well I can certainly identify with the fellow that has food issues and is ashamed...

    It is even hard to tell it here! I don't know why! So confession time:

    I became a vegetarian at age 12- never liked the thought of eating meat. I was convinced for health reason as a teen to eat fish. I nearly died. I have a severe fatal allergy to fish. Same with Kiwi fruit and I was diagnosed with celiac... I usually never tell anyone and always find something to eat, even if it is salad and cheese... I cook absolutely everything-and well!

    Do you know what it is like to be in a restaurant with a group of friends, "no thanks I am a vegetarian, no I can't eat fish. No I can't eat pasta. So, what fruit is in the fruit salad?"

    I sound like a total nut!! Only my family and closest friends know. Even now I am ashamed...

    Q&A: Confectionery 101

    in The eGullet Culinary Institute (eGCI)

    Posted

    Hi Kerry! Well today I will begin making the snicker bars!! The pictures with the instructions seem to be unavailable for some reason. Is thereanyway to resolve this? Should I ask someone else? And please-if you make turtles canyou post a pic of the finished product?? Once again, I really appreciate this course. You are wonderful!

    What We're Cooking for Shabbos: 2007 -

    in Cooking

    Posted

    Hi. More often than not Shabbat dinner is at my house. I shop tomorrow and cook Thurs and Fri. So, we will start with everyone choosing a liqueur they like ( I know...!). Chat and then onion soup made with wine,roasted bread cubes and for those who are not observant, grated cheese. We are a mixed family!! Then salad, I will steal the above idea as it sounds great - pears, pommegranates and greens with balsamic. Yum! Thanks!!

    Then for the main serving I think I will go traditional and serve roastbeef-any ideas for a great recipe will be most welcome... Stir- fry with tofu, baked potatoes and artichokes with a butter-lemon sauce. Dessert is a typical one to our household- cold, no- bake chocolate biscuit cake- nicknamed "the lump" by my dear son in law!!

    Much health and good times ahead to all!

    Mol d'art melters

    in Kitchen Consumer

    Posted · Edited by Lior (log)

    I will try cool umtempered but melted choc-good idea.

    I am a bit confused with the thernostat light. In my course JPW said not to take the temp, but to use the light. I was also told that the thermostat reads 0.5C but these marks are not on the thermostat... Do you know how to work by using the little light? I realize it turns on when the temp of the choc reaches the thermostat setting-right? Any other helpful tips?

    Do you take the temp of the choc to see if it does not go above its limit? Sometimes it seems like it can go above and still stay tempered!

    Sorry for soooo many questions!

    And thanks!

    Mol d'art melters

    in Kitchen Consumer

    Posted

    I just bought two melters from them while in belgium. They are convenient because when you mould, you can let the chocoalte drip easily back into the melter without any mess. I still have to get used to temperingin them. I find a problem with overcrystalization-the choc gets too thick. Any suggestions? I know about using a heatgun/hair dryer, but when I did this I must have used too much heat as the chocolate bloomed badly afterwards. I tried raising the temp a bit but it is slow and I was impatient and I suppose I raised it too much. Again I got bloom.

    So I think I just have to learn my melters and get experience using them. I know that Martelatto (sp?) also makes a good melter, with stainless steel- not plastic lids.

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