Jim D.

@teonzo: Upon further reflection (and after eating one of the "marjolaine" bonbons that had sat for a while), I think I will abandon the idea of deliberately allowing the cookie insert to soften. Instead, I will add the hazelnut gianduja ganache to the shell first, then instead of almond gianduja ganache, make a soft almond gianduja (one that will have a texture not wholly unlike ganache), and insert the cookie into that. In that way I can bake the nut meringue cookies as you describe (crisp outside, softer inside), and, when surrounded by gianduja, they should maintain that texture. Susanna Yoon is firm about a 10-day shelf life for her bonbons, but I don't have the luxury of that with my wholesale customers (and retail ones who eat their box of chocolates slowly). Do you see any issues with my revised plan?

The September 2020 assortment: Clockwise, beginning with the blue bonbon at the top: (1) "marjolaine" (hazelnut gianduja ganache, almond gianduja ganache, nut meringue), (2) "crème brûlée" (caramel crunch, vanilla buttercream), (3) Speculoos cookie butter & milk chocolate, (4) "caramel macchiato" (caramel ganache, vanilla ganache, coffee ganache), (5) pistachio gianduja, (6) lime cheesecake with graham cracker crust, (7) salted caramel with shortbread, (8) layers of extra-dark chocolate ganache with Angostura orange bitters & vanilla buttercream, and (in the center) (9) cherries and caramelized almonds with almond gianduja

Your reply is, as usual, very helpful. I like the idea of pasteurized, fresh egg whites; I'll have to see if I can find them locally. I have access to Sosa products, but (without checking) assume the container is going to be much larger than I can cope with, given that I will not be making this filling all that often and given the short shelf life of dried egg whites. Susanna Yoon (originator of this bonbon filling) made it work with gelatin-based marshmallow, and, as I reported, it worked for me the first time. But I believe egg whites will produce a more reliable recipe. The recipes I have seen for marjolaine (the cake) call for meringue layers, which start out quite crisp but, because they are adjacent to components such as pastry cream or butter cream or ganache (depending on the recipe), they soften as they sit, and nearly all recipes assume the cake will not be served immediately. I have seen several references to Fernand Point's original recipe that lead people to believe he used meringue (with nuts folded in), but it seems a bit hazy. I haven't seen any reference to a softer layer that you mentioned, except in cases where people are adapting the recipe. In any event, it's the nut meringue that I am going to use (and have used in the version that I have made). In Susanna Yoon's video, there is a big point made of how crunchy the meringue cookies are on the outside, but soft inside. That's what I am aiming for. She does, by the way, sprinkle them with confectioner's sugar just before baking them. I was quite pleased to see your recommendation that I get a chablon for shaping the cookies because that's exactly what I did! I was surprised that I found one with circles the size I needed to fit in the molds I am using, but Chocolat Chocolat in Montreal is an amazing place. The chablon worked quite well to keep the cookies in shape. What Yoon does is to pipe them without a guide of any kind (her piping skills are impressive), and she lets them rise as they will, then turns them upside down into the ganache in the shell, so they soften as they sit--unlike the usual goal of keeping cookies crisp by surrounding them with something like a gianduja. So what I did is to fill the shells about 1/3 with a hazelnut gianduja ganache made with dark chocolate, then another 1/3 of almond gianduja ganache made with a combination of milk and white chocolate--to keep it more like an almond cream, then inserted the nut meringue cookie with the pointed, risen side down. I must say I am pleased with the flavor combination, and after I get the cookie to be something I can produce reliably (which I think the egg white meringue rather than gelatin marshmallow will accomplish), I will be satisfied. The Aw, by the way, of the two ganaches was quite within acceptable limits, and although I didn't check the cookies, they were crisp enough that I can't see a problem with them.

I actually had some dried egg whites from a local grocery some years ago that did not taste totally disgusting (when flavored with other ingredients in a recipe), but the store quit carrying them, and I don't recall the brand name. I am encouraged by the fact that Peter Greweling calls for using either fresh or powdered egg whites in aerated recipes, meaning that he must have located at least one that tasted OK. Today I found powdered egg whites from Modernist Pantry (a business of which, if I recall correctly, various eGullet contributors have spoken positively). The website has a video showing these egg whites being reconstituted and whipped into a meringue, with the claim that one cannot tell them from fresh egg whites. I will order some of this powder and report back. I am working on a bonbon filling, this one based on Susanna Yoon's take on the French pastry called marjolaine. In a much-viewed video Susanna uses gelatin-based marshmallow, but in her recipe published in So Good magazine, she calls for fresh egg white-based meringue. Not wishing to use fresh eggs in bonbons (even cooked ones), I have made a gelatin-based meringue twice (trying to guess at her recipe); once was successful, but the second time the baked meringue cookies puffed up (as desired) but many of them split open in the oven. In both cases, the meringue mixture is very fragile, and any attempt to bake a second batch from the mixture comes out as an almost completely flat cookie (which is delicious but totally different from the baked nut meringue used in the original marjolaine). Thus the conclusion that egg whites are the only reliable way of making the dacquoise layer. And by using actual dacquoise, I can probably adapt Susanna's recipe from So Good. The taste of the various marjolaine layers together is good enough to keep me searching for a reliable, reproducible way of making this filling.

I'm looking for suggestions on the best-tasting dried egg whites--if such a thing exists. The couple that I have had left much to be desired in the way of smell and taste.

That was the same as my humidity today, so I went ahead and made caramel. Hard to get below 50% days in Virginia in August. I have tried every conceivable pressure (and the fan spray attachment) to get the Grex to splatter, but it doesn't. It does splatter paint--if that helps! The largest cup is the 50 ml. It is plenty for most of the time, but a 75 would be great for the other times. I got the commercial spray both. The single box is sufficient. The second filter (attached inside the box) is washable. The other two beyond that are not but do not need to be replaced often. It is the outer one that catches the cocoa butter. Last week, I used three of them while spraying a total of 22 molds. The fan is very quiet and very powerful. It is easy to see the cocoa butter being sucked toward it (and away from me). It's not perfect, especially with certain colors (white, light blue--anything with lots of white in it, I think), but it's better than the box with a fan behind it I used previously. The filters are not expensive, but if someone's production were larger than mine, it might be an issue. I bought a whole roll of the material and will cut my filters to size (sounds like something someone I know might do!). There is a video on the CakeSafe site where they place a white board behind the fan box and then spray colored cocoa butter into the fan. No color gets through. I was skeptical enough that after I watched the promotional video (included on the CakeSafe site) of a chocolatier touting its benefits that I emailed David Ramirez Chocolates to ask if they really liked it that much. Within minutes the owner of the company had the chocolatier doing the spraying email me. I gave her a call, and we had a long conversation when I asked all the tough questions I could think of. In the video she wears a white chef's coat, and it stays clean. We agreed that certain colors will always produce backspray, but she is very enthusiastic. If anybody wants to see it, here it is:

@Kerry Beal, beautiful shine on the shells. What's the climate like in your space? I didn't know you had sprung for a Tritium. So how do you like it? And how does it compare (in your use) with the Fuji? I like that the Grex people are getting more inquiries and sales from chocolatiers because the more they know about what we do and how we use their equipment, the more help they can be (in my theory, at least). For example, I would love a larger stainless or aluminum cup than the largest they make. As I have stated, I use mostly the Grex for normal production (Christmas is another matter), but last week I got out the Fuji for splattering. No question, it does a good job (depending on the skill of the splatterer, of course), usually better than a toothbrush. And, last question, what PSI are you using to spray? I am using 60, tried lowering it last week, kept wondering why it was taking so long to cover molds, raised PSI back to 60, got much better results. You do use more cocoa butter and there is more backspray/overspray, but....I guess Chef Rubber has to make its money somehow and that's why they make respirators. I did spring for the CakeSafe spray booth and am liking it very much. It faces head-on the issue that cocoa butter is a different substance from the paint that is normally airbrushed and takes a completely different approach. Rather than suck the cocoa butter out through a hose, this device filters it out at the source of spraying, which, of course, means replacing a filter rather often.

As promised, it looks easy--and delicious. Are the eggs beaten or broken up or anything before being added?

I had a ganache once, a coffee one from Andrew Shotts, that persisted in splitting. I tried all the tricks, and it seemed to work, but a short time later, the separating would start again. The last time, I had it in the piping bag, and as I piped it into the molds, it separated--in the mold. I gave up at that point. But next time I reduced the butter in the recipe, added more liquid, and it has worked ever since. As Kerry pointed out, it might be the chocolate itself; the problem always seems to come down to too much fat for the amount of liquid.

It might help if you listed the quantities of each ingredient you are using.

I get good pistachios from Fiddyment Farms in California. I don't know if you use it or not, but their pistachio paste is also very tasty. I was finding the Italian paste impossible to get reliably.

I have purchased some hazelnuts from Freddy Guys in Oregon (thanks, @curls, for the tip). They are more or less peeled (the contact said about 80%, which is less than I would like). I did find the Piedmontese ones via Amazon, they looked luscious, but alas at 250g for $18, they were a little rich even for my blood, considering the quantities I need. That's compared to the 1361g for $40 I'm paying at Freddy Guys.

I don't suppose you would like to hike out/drive out and pick some from the trees to send me.

I found the answer myself regarding AUI--they don't carry hazelnuts. And in addition, Sunnylandfarms doesn't list hazelnuts as available.

Thanks for the tip. I agree about the chore of peeling hazelnuts. I did it the baking soda way once, and even then it was very nasty. I'll pay anyone else almost anything to do it for me. By your distributor, did you perchance mean AUI?

There's one about 35 miles away, so I could get to that. But in my search for previous eG references to hazelnuts, I saw a post about something inferior being substituted for the previous TJ ones (can't find that post right now but I think Thailand was mentioned as the source).

I am looking for quality hazelnuts. I have purchased them from nuts.com; these taste OK, but the husks are not well removed and the nuts are often very irregular in shape. Yes, I am fussy, but I am using some of these for the decoration of dipped chocolate bonbons. I have seen Piedmontese hazelnuts highly recommended, but don't see a ready place to purchase them. I have also heard good things about Oregon nuts. Freshness is, needless to say, crucial since there is nothing worse than a rancid hazelnut. Surprisingly I have been able to buy them in bulk at a local grocery store, but COVID has caused the removal of all bulk bins (and, with that, of the hazelnuts). Thanks for any help.

Depends, of course, on size of the tanks. With mine (2 tanks), it does not. I would say it starts running every 6-8 minutes or so.

I wrote this question to Grex tech support: And received this answer: But I (and many others on this forum) have found 60psi to be more satisfactory, and that's probably why I said earlier that 60psi is required (I had forgotten exactly what Grex told me). I can't imagine that more than 60 would be needed. Perhaps the Grex person with whom you spoke meant that the compressor should be capable of more than 60, since you don't want to run a compressor at its full capacity all the time. The GMAC pressure regulator between the hose and the Grex airbrush allows you to regulate your pressure easily without going to the compressor all the time to do that.

I agree that the 0.6HP compressor would work as far as producing the required pressure (60 psi I was told by Grex tech support, which, according to the chart you included, would mean 1.01 CFM). But I would find the 1-gallon capacity of the tank very limiting. My 4.6-gallon compressor turns on fairly frequently, so I would think a 1-gallon machine would be almost continuous. There are certainly less expensive compressors out there that would work, such as this one from Husky (which has an 8-gallon tank for $149--though it does get mixed reviews).

Oops, no, should have said 0.7.

I won't presume to speak for Teo, but your volume is not that different from mine, and, at this time, I use only the Grex with the compressor I have described previously. So you will probably be fine--for now. But I do have the Fuji HVLP sprayer for holiday work, and its speed in covering molds is impressive. What Teo is suggesting is that the future should also be considered (something I did not know I should do, foolish as I was). I had not gotten the impression you were willing to spend more, but I would probably buy a compressor large enough to handle both the Grex and an HVLP gun. With a quick-connect hookup, you could easily switch from one to the other and so use the Grizzly gun for splatter, then switch to the Grex for covering a mold (if you didn't want to use so much cocoa butter as a gun takes). If you are as certain as it is possible to be that your quantity will not go up dramatically, then the Grex and a somewhat smaller compressor will work.

I found this useful article explaining compressor terms; it has this statement: For the .7 Grex setup, you will need 60psi (and I would think you would want a compressor that puts out more than that so that it doesn't struggle constantly to keep up...and so wear out prematurely). Two air tanks are better than one (for reasons of moisture reduction and ease of continuous spraying). An air capacity of about 5 gallons is sufficient for the Grex (mine is 4.6), more is better, and you would need a different compressor if you go with an HVLP gun (or you can follow Teo's suggestion of adding an extra air tank yourself--but that assumes you are much more mechanically capable than I am). I am sure you can find compressors at Home Depot less expensive than the Husky models discussed previously (I recall the Campbell Hausfeld brand being mentioned on eGullet). I see that Teo has replied, with good advice. I will add to what I said before that if you make delicious chocolates (and if they are also beautiful, that is a bonus), people will find you and will want them. Depending on where you live, your potential audience may never have seen airbrushed chocolates before. I am going to send you a PM with the details of what I purchased for my Grex setup--all the connectors, hoses, etc. You know, of course, that there is always more to these endeavors than just buying an airbrush and spraying away!

Has good reviews, but I don't think its 1-gallon capacity would be enough for the .8mm Grex needle.

I was looking through the Home Depot compressor offerings. My compressor is 2HP but only 4.6 gal. According to what Teonzo wrote earlier in the thread, it would be nice to have at least 2 or more HP, but it is the capacity that affects your work the most. HP seems to be what raises the cost. The Husky ones have lower HP, but more capacity. All of the ones I looked at offer sufficient PSI for both the Grex and an HVLP gun. As I said previously, my HVLP gun (the same type as the Grizzly you are looking at) struggled with a 4.6-gallon tank. Teonzo recommended 50 liters (13 gal.) minimum, 100 if possible. Home Depot has several Husky models with 20 gal. (76 liters); the least expensive I saw is $219. If you go with a smaller tank model (as you mentioned you are thinking about), it will probably be fine with the Grex, but if you move to an HVLP, you will need to invest in a second compressor (or drive yourself crazy waiting for compressed air). You mentioned having spent enough time thinking about this. I would say it is time well spent. The decision has to do with what direction you expect your work to go. I hope I don't sound like a know-it-all (I certainly am not); I am just thinking of all the expensive mistakes I made along the way. If you can swing the more expensive Grizzly, it will allow for several options. I will try to get @teonzo's attention and hope he can offer his advice on your options. Now for the easier question: If you start with a new bottle of cocoa butter, you can microwave it in short bursts, shake the bottle, and it will probably end up in temper. I transfer cocoa butter to little glass containers and heat them (in my dehyrator) to well above 100F. Then I cool them in cold water (just to save time), and use a little cocoa butter silk from the EZtemper to bring them into temper. There are, of course, alternatives, such as using some fresh cocoa butter as seed, but nothing as quick as @Kerry Beal's silk. Do you have an EZtemper yet?