JoNorvelleWalker

Sad all around but now I feel a bit better about Hamilton. Thanks for the link.

Though I for one would not have turned down the nuts.

This may show it better... Easier to wrestle with than the steel of about the same weight. Perhaps because it's larger. Now I have to figure out a place to put it.

My aluminum came today: If a steel is called a steel, an aluminum is called an aluminum, right? Difficult to photograph in any meaningful fashion, I must say.

I have a pair of Italian grape harvesting shears. Had you asked I could have loaned them. I have three grape vines. I have never so much as seen a grape.

Since I already had the picture, I couldn't stop myself.

Anyhow... It snapped. Must say, more appetizing than what I started with. The almonds are chopped up, more like almond meal. Tasted not half bad. Nice thing about the PHMB, it's basically hands off. No fiddling about keeping temperature. And if you're too lazy to stir it will do that also.

Unfortunately at the library I had no choice. If I get into this I may well buy a copy. Edit: I just requested that the library get a copy of the 2nd edition.

Pretzels one.

Well, I beat it to within an inch of its life, reheated to 90F, and turned it out onto parchment. The morrow shall tell. If I may say, Greweling has precious little information on tempering chocolate. For a CIA publication I'd call it a failure. I was better off with the Time Life volume Candy. Thirty some years ago my little son was into making chocolate bunnies. We got some molds and had pretty good results heating run of the mill chocolate in a bain marie.

Not that I have any cocoa butter...

The chocolate got to 120F. Still not liquid. I reduced the temperature to 85F, took two aspirin, and will revisit in the morning.

I confess like @gfweb I too thought of Sally Hemmings, may she rest in peace. Howe'er the trout part went way o'er my head till it was pointed out. Before Grand Union went bankrupt in the dusk of the last millennium they had a huge self serve pickle barrel at the delicatessen counter. Probably most unsanitary. But boy those pickles were the best! Could Jefferson be said to have jumped the trout? Does it count as a food quote that Harrison Ford* jumped the refrigerator? *who most certainly shot first

Thanks, Kerry. I think I raise the temperature slightly and carry on with the experiment.

I need some help. The induction heated bowl came up to 113F quickly. Problem is after three hours with occasional stirring the chocolate hasn't melted.* The mass of chocolate measures 110-111F and it is in a plastic state. In the video that Kerry linked the chef had her bowl temperature set much higher. Does chocolate require some time at temperature to liquify? Or could my difficulty be due to all the nuts? *It smells good though.

I chopped up the chocolate (the horribly bloomed milk chocolate with almonds), adjusted the machine to 113F, and set a timer. We shall see.

Some of the worst chocolate I've had (that was supposed to be good chocolate) came from a bulk bin in Whole Foods.

Bugialli's eggplant in the style of Parma, The Fine Art of Italian Cooking (pp 234-236)… Assembled. The yellow stuff that looks like butter is butter. Baked in CSO. Served with linguine, olive oil, and capers. The eggplant has a steak-like texture. Very satisfactory.

I have two thermapens. One I keep in Fahrenheit, one in Celsius. I anova in Celsius and bake in Fahrenheit. Since the PHMB does only Fahrenheit, I guess I temper in Fahrenheit.

Indeed, though Fahrenheit tastes better.

Those temperatures would work with milk chocolate?

After a late summer heatwave, today was cool and overcast. Perfect hiking weather. In fact I was minded to go have a flu shot.* At dark the rains came. This is Jersey.** I am reposing with my autumn in Jersey. *And if flu shot is not the name of a drink it should be. **That's actually New Jersey.

This chocolate is most certainly not in temper. I thought the whole idea of heating, cooling, and reheating was to get it into temper? (Maybe I should read the book.)

Thanks very much but I'll be fine for food and toilet paper.

My bedroom is well stocked. And there are always tomatoes.