Chocolot

Guittard has gone to sunflower lecithin if that helps.

Just a curiosity--Did TSA in STL open your checked bag? I know they opened mine and one of Kerry's. Ever wonder what they think when they see what we pack?:)

Are you having to do it backwards?

I’m on board in Salt Lake heading to STL. Anxious to see everyone.

Don't stress out about what to bring. In the past, there has been plenty. Also, it is a time to experiment. I know I have brought less than beautiful because what I tried didn't work. I think we stress because you think everyone is judging you:). Just bring what you want and don't worry.

They are just under an inch. With chocolate, they are at least an inch. The caramel just pops out. They don't deform unless I have undercooked my batch. They are from Chef Rubber and about $100 each. There are three of them in the pix. They are also great with meltaways. There are 88 pieces per mold.

I also use silicone molds for my caramel. I just pour the caramel into the molds, then using a wide sheet rock scraper, scrape the caramel into the cavities and at the same time, clean off the top of the mold so there are no trails. Using a funnel would drive me crazy having to release the flow for each cavity. The funnel gets real heavy at arms length. This isn't the best example of scrapping, but I have gotten better.

https://www.snapware.com/ I use snapware. It is water tight, therefore air tight. I put my finished bon bons in layers, refrigerate for 24 hours then freeze. No need to FoodSaver anything. Been doing it this way for 10 years without an issue.

I use freezer butcher paper and peel off before cutting.

I'll go with whatever the group decides.

Did they warm to room temp before closing?

Love it! Couldn't be better. Great job Doc.

Pipe contrasting stitches across the cracks and call him ER Bunny.

I use Shopify. It works well for me.

As you have found, caramels are challenging! You have the best thermometer, and your altitude is low enough that you shouldn't need to make adjustments. It is hard to say exactly what the problem is, but you might try cooking the espresso batch a couple of degrees less and see if that works for you. Also, milk solids can aid in stand-up quality. Greweling has a lot of good info on the subject, and he has several formulas using different milks and cream to compare.