Chocolot

Oh how I hate to have something to post here! Chocolate has such a way of humbling you! Just when I think I know what I'm doing, this happens. I lost about 30 out of 220 pieces. When they stuck, the whole tray stuck. I can't figure out why. It is always at the tip. I cut them and the chocolate at the tip is no thinner than the rest. It happened on lightly sprayed as well as heavily sprayed. CB was at 90F when I sprayed. The key lime ones were sprayed at the same time, shelled at the same time with the same milk chocolate. Piped at the same time and sat overnight together. Color and shape of the mold are the only differences I can see. Green are lovely and didn't lose a single one. Someone tell me why oh why.

What is your cold air source?

This is Cherry-Pistachio. Flavor isn't exactly what I want, yet, but needed something in white chocolate.

I want both the class and Tomric:)

@Jim D. Yes, I make a Maillard caramel for my cut caramels and a burnt sugar caramel for piping. I too am chicken when it comes to using my guitar to cut:). I use a large diameter roller knife. I really think the texture of the caramel is important to cut with guitar. Also, the exact final cook temp. I guess with practice, changing wires isn't so much of a problem?:). Great that some have figured how to do it without a lot of wire changing.

On the caramel issue more generally, do you also find that a few degrees makes all the difference in the world? Do you have trouble achieving consistency from batch to batch? I make Maillard caramels and take them to 232F at 5000 ft. French caramels I take to 244F plus. If my ingredients are consistent, so are my caramels.

That is a French caramel. You cook those to a higher temp than a Maillard. Cook 2F less than at sea level. In caramels, that is a big difference.

Jim, are you making a french caramel like Jean Maries, or a Maillard caramel? What is your altitude?

No idea:)

Another option for you is to use Costco gift cards. You don't have to be a member to use them. If you have friends or family that are members, have them buy gift cards for you. Also, my membership allows me two others to join for free.

I used to use honey all the time before finding invert. Only objection was too much "honey" flavor and cost.

You can use a propane torch to clean off cocoa butter and chocolate from marble or granite.

I like Glarus Gourmet. You get an ounce more for the same price as Chef Rubber. I am a proud owner of an EZ temper and I can tell you it is a game changer. Don't know what I did before I got one.

Didn't say. JMA had his in the spray room and it was HOT!! Thought that was strange.

Atelier Melissa Coppel. Beautiful facility. In the group photo, the arms in the back belong to our own Kerry Beal.

A visit to Jinju Chocolates, then a class with Jin at her kitchen. She is meticulous in her work. #jinju

Melissa put a piece of plastic wrap on her granite to place her used thermometer, spatulas and such so they didn't get the granite messed up. I think she wiped with damp cloth first so it stayed in place. i also learned that some chocolatiers alphabetize their flavorings:)

If I don't put these down, I will forget. When you have chocolate left in a bowl after scraping, pop it in the freezer for a few minutes. That releases the chocolate so you can reuse, but also keeps it from going down the drain. Don't leave in too long or it will pick up moisture.

Someone correct me, but I didn't see any of them temper the cb. They just put the bottle in the freezer for a few minutes until it was at the right temp. 32C ?

What I learned after watching three experienced and successful chocolatiers spray and shell molds this weekend: Each used a different method of spraying colored cocoa butter, one used an airbrush, one a small gun and one a large gun. They all got great results. Takeaway---There is more than one way to get the results you want. Do what works for you. There is not ONE correct way to do something. The thing they all did, was temp their CB. They all chilled the bottle until it was the correct temp for spraying. They didn't do what i sometimes do and just heat, shake, pour and hope. Another thing they all differed on was how to clean their molds. Some washed, some sprayed with alcohol, some just heated and polished.

Depends on how much pigment is in bottle. Just experiment I guess:)

We learned at Jin Caldwell's to thin down your colored cocoa butters with plain cocoa butter. This gives a better shine. It also saves money. Melissa Coppel told us colors like the metallics have so much pigment, that they don't shine. Also need to thin them down.

Here are my Raspberry Lemonade for Vegas. They are actually yellow, not green:)

Blackberries, blueberries,

I accidentally bought a whole bottle of black cardamom pods. Bad mistake! They are black because they have been smoked. They smell like a bonfire. I'm sure someone might enjoy them, but not me:)