Jim D.

@ChristysConfections, if you want to give yourself a little more time to taste the pâte de fruit (before it starts to jell), you could look into using a low-ester pectin (Pomona's is an easily found brand in the U.S.) rather than the pectin employed in the usual pâte de fruit. With a pectin like Pomona's you have more "wiggle room" at the end of the process: you stop when the mixture has returned to a boil after adding the pectin and some sugar, and at that point you can remove the mixture from the heat, cool a spoonful, taste it, add more flavoring, heat it again if you need to. The downside is that it is more difficult to judge just how firm the pâte de fruit is going to be, but you can test it by putting a dab on a plate and refrigerating it for a while. There was a discussion of using Pomona's for pâte de fruit in molded chocolates on eGullet. With Pomona's one does not use quite as much sugar, so water activity (and resulting shelf life) can be a concern, but in that other thread I dealt with that issue and have continued working on it since then. If you were to make a rose pâte using Pomona's, you would need to add more pectin than in the recipe I gave in the earlier thread.

Not to get off the track about infusing, but you mentioned your final goal is to make ganache for filling chocolates. From my experience (and as others have suggested above) the only way to know how much flavor you will get, regardless of method, is to try it. Orange peel, for instance, has a very strong flavor that shows up even in a dark chocolate ganache. Surprisingly it is stronger even than grapefruit, which comes out as more subtle than one might expect. A little cinnamon goes a long way. Lavender can get too strong very fast, but it fades somewhat in a ganache. Ginger is quite subtle (unless you leave it in the ganache). Earl Grey tea is strong in an infusion, but fades in a ganache to the point where I have discovered some people can't taste it (unless they know it's there). I thought lemon verbena sounded promising, but the finished ganache had very little of the flavor, even though I used a lot of leaves. And as someone else stated, there is no getting around heating the medium (usually cream), and that causes some flavor loss, even some change in the flavor. I would also add that you need to try the infused cream in an actual ganache and then in an actual shell. I have given up on some flavors because they mostly disappear in a finished bonbon. White chocolate in the ganache causes the least loss of flavor, but you might be surprised (if you haven't already tried this) at how it overwhelms many flavors that seemed strong at first. Substituting a small amount of cocoa butter for some of the chocolate helps somewhat. A more dramatic way of flavoring a ganache is to use fruit purée instead of cream as the liquid; I have had success with that method using black currant and blackberry. There is another thread that is helpful about flavored ganaches.

This inconsistency in the outcome is not at all unusual. Sometimes some pieces will fall out of the mold immediately, while others stick. Sometimes some pieces are nice and shiny, while others are dull. Sometimes, IMHO, there is no explanation for this situation (and we just have to guess why it happened). But I have found that since I started putting the shells in the refrigerator for a few minutes after they have been formed (after they have crystallized at room temperature), I have had far fewer cases of dull or sticking shells. This has to do with the "latent heat of crystallization" given off as chocolate crystallizes. To give credit where it's due, I learned this technique from Kerry Beal.

@teonzo, I can't wrap my head around the sweet ingredients in the panicio (such as the wonderful-sounding candied pumpkin) and the slight bitterness of radicchio in a single item. Can you describe the taste? How much vegetable bitterness comes through?

Just wanted to post an update on this issue. After one rather snippy response ("...we've provided the answer Breville is offering, there is no other answer which will be provided....I understand a supervisor has already offered to assist you in a very generous way to ensure you have the best experience possible. I imagine that will suffice.") I finally got a clear-cut answer from Breville: The noise is in fact "the way it is" and has to do with the fact that the blades connect to the motor with the spindle. In the 16-cup model (which seems to be what most people have and therefore they have not experienced the noise) the blades connect directly to the motor, and there is no knocking sound when the motor starts and stops. I am now returning the Breville to Williams-Sonoma and (since it is a design issue, not a flaw in the particular machine I received, there is no point in getting a replacement) am purchasing a Cuisinart instead.

That's what I plan to do, but I expect some resistance since the rep I spoke to said the machine located in the room with him made the same noise. My deduction at this point is that it's not an issue with the motor but rather with how the blade and the spindle (which links the blade and the bowl) fit together as the noise doesn't occur with just the spindle in place (no blade) and also doesn't occur with the spindle plus one of the grating/slicing disks in place or with the small bowl (which has its own blade and does not use the spindle) in place. The larger 16-cup Breville model does not use the spindle to connect the blades. Thanks again to those who gave this issue some thought.

Thanks for the replies. I have spent a lot of time researching this issue. With the exception of one response on Amazon (that person experienced the same sound but it did not bother him/her), no one else has reported any unusual noise. Today I managed to find several videos demonstrating the machine (unfortunately the 16-cup rather than the 12-cup one I have) and in those videos there was no sound other than the usual food processor sound. I have read every online review I could find. It just seems very unlikely that no one else noticed this sound and failed to report on it. I have used a FP for probably 40 years, so I know the noise one normally makes. Now I just have to convince Breville that there is some defect in my machine, as I have come to believe there is.

For anyone who has the 12-cup (or the 16-cup) Breville machine: Does yours make an unusual "knocking" sound? I just got a new 12-cup FP, and every time it starts and stops, it makes a rather loud sound. The closest I can get to describing it is that it sounds as if someone is hitting a heavy spoon against the side of the bowl. I called Breville, and the person checked a nearby machine and said it made that sound, but he was unable to allow me to listen to the sound on his end, so I don't know if we were thinking about the same thing. I posted a question on Amazon, and someone from Breville wrote: "The induction motor produces a significant sound as it engages and disengages, as no moving gears or parts are responsible, but rather magnetics with great strength to process a range of ingredients most effectively." I know nothing about motors, inductive or otherwise, so I don't fully grasp the point. All I could think of was a very noisy experience in an MRI machine. I can probably learn to put up with this sound if the FP is as good as most reviewers say, but when one is using the pulse mode, the noise could really become obnoxious. Before I go forward, I would like to know if others with this FP have had the same experience. Any input would be very helpful.

Funny you should ask that about invert. Only recently have I had it separate. I just stir it up a bit, and it seems fine. My assumption is that anything that sweet is pretty safe, but I do refrigerate mine after I open it (anything can eventually mold, right?). As for fondant, I have never had it separate. It does harden after a while, but it can be softened gently.

Very helpful. Thank you.

@andiesenji, some time ago you posted about real cinnamon vs. cassia and (I think) pointed out that what most of us buy in stores is really the latter. So is this Frontier brand you mention the real thing? My last bottle from the grocery store says it is Vietnamese cinnamon, but I'm not sure how to tell the difference.

Others beat me to recommending the "lazier" way of obtaining fondant. I get mine from L'Epicerie (they have it in small quantities and at what I consider a very reasonable price). Like Tri2Cook, I don't have a large enough marble/granite slab. Frankly, since fondant always gets flavored with something (to disguise its sweetness/blandness?), I don't see it as worth the effort. Or am I just getting lazy?

One of my Christmas collections of chocolates: Top row: (1) layers of pear pâte de fruit and almond cream with pear brandy, molded in dark chocolate, (2) PB&J: layers of raspberry pâte de fruit and peanut butter meltaway, molded in milk chocolate, (3) coconut cream, molded in dark chocolate, (4) apple caramel, molded in milk chocolate Middle row: (1) gingerbread-flavored ganache, dipped in dark chocolate, (2) layers of hazelnut gianduja and coffee ganache, dipped in milk chocolate, (3) dark caramel with sea salt, molded in dark chocolate, (4) fig ganache with port, molded in dark chocolate Bottom row: (1) lemon cream, molded in white chocolate, (2) pistachio ganache, molded in milk chocolate, (3) layers of apricot pâte de fruit and mango ganache, molded in white chocolate, (4) banana and passion fruit caramel, molded in white chocolate

I haven't made the original Greweling recipe for a while (I developed a different version of it), but I do recall that it did not firm up enough, and I ended up having to add more chocolate/cocoa butter. So you did not have this issue?

The last time I tested a plain caramel (Notter's recipe, intended to be piped into molds), the water activity reading was 0.56. As I think is the case with pâte de fruit, the sugar more than counteracts any water present. With an Aw of 0.56, the product can last for practically forever. And I think one can rely on getting a reading in this neighborhood since a caramel doesn't form until a certain percentage of liquid has evaporated. So if you add more liquid, you have to cook the mixture until it reaches that magic point once again. That's why I have sometimes found it convenient to make larger batches of caramel and then reheat any leftovers to use on another occasion (how's that for tempting the caramel gods--who can be as fickle as the chocolate deities!).

I use cream for thinning out, but I don't see why passion fruit purée would not work. Someone on eG previously mentioned using water. Since it is the water that has evaporated during cooking, water does make sense.

Yes, they look a little offputting, but it really works! Thanks, Kerry, for this idea.

Chris, Yes, spraying was what Kerry originally suggested. As I said then, setting up my airbrush is too much trouble, compared to grabbing a paintbrush.

I thought I should update my experiments with controlling leaking from caramel fillings in chocolates. I tried Kerry's idea of covering the top (eventually to be the bottom) of the caramel by painting on a thin but complete layer of melted cocoa butter. I then closed the bonbon with a layer of chocolate spread twice (with a slight pause between applying the layers). I had tried the double-closing before, with some success. This time, with the addition of the layer of cocoa butter, I saw no leaking in any of the finished pieces. So, thanks to Kerry for leading me to what will now be my standard practice with caramel fillings or any filling that looks as if it might leak. A nuisance yes, but worth it, I would say.

To complete the record of my pistachio experimentation: Contrary to expectations, after a full day, the purchased pistachio paste mixed with an equal part of white chocolate firmed up enough so that it could be piped. It definitely tasted of pistachio. Also contrary to my previous impression, adding some toasted pistachios makes for a stronger pistachio taste, and because no liquid has been added to the mixture, the nuts do not get soggy. On the other hand, the homemade pistachio praline paste, while delicious on ice cream, tastes primarily of caramel. I look forward to trying Valrhona's product to see what they may have done with it.

I thought I should report on today's experimentation, the goal being to create a pistachio praline gianduja: I caramelized some sugar and glucose and added it to pistachio paste (both fairly close to the same temperature). It is, of course, not possible to let the caramel cool or it completely hardens. When the two are mixed, the caramel hardens into lumps. I melted this mixture over hot water, and most of the caramel eventually melted, but the overall texture was not acceptable as it contained clumps of caramel which only increased as the mixture cooled. Perhaps most significantly, the taste of the caramel mostly overpowered that of the pistachio, so the big clue was that pistachio is much more delicate in flavor than I thought (as @jmacnaughtan pointed out earlier). Second try was to make pistachio praline paste from scratch: I caramelized sugar and glucose, added toasted pistachios, poured the mixture onto a Silpat, then ground it to paste in a food processor. It was not (no surprise here) completely smooth. I added an equal amount of white chocolate and melted the two together to make a gianduja. The final taste was quite bland, with the taste of the Valrhona Opalys chocolate predominant. Third approach was simply to mix equal parts of the pistachio paste (no caramel added) and white chocolate, again to make gianduja. The taste is by far the best of the attempts, with a strong pistachio taste. I added some toasted, chopped pistachios with the thought that they might add even more flavor, but whereas they do add a nice texture, I did not perceive any additional flavor. The problem with the gianduja is the texture--it is nowhere near solid enough to use in a bonbon; I would guess that it would take double the amount of white chocolate to make it acceptable. Although I have not tried that option, I am fairly certain that we would once more be dealing with a faint pistachio taste. Oh well, it was an interesting possibility....

But my issue is that I already have some good and completely smooth pistachio paste, from which I now want to make pistachio praline paste--and from that, pistachio gianduja. It seems logical to me that I should make a caramel (just the caramelized sugar, not a full-fledged caramel with cream) and add it to the paste, but I'm not sure what will happen because I can't think of any analogous techniques. I am guessing that heating the pistachio paste may help prevent the immediate seizing of the caramel. Obviously experimentation is in order. Any insights would be appreciated.

Did you use any glucose? If not, that's what I would try.

Just a word of caution: It may well be my faulty technique, but several times (though not every time) when I made butterscotch (cooking brown sugar with the butter, rather than adding the butter later as is usual with a caramel), the finished product looked fine for a while but then separated into a brown sugar and a butter layer, and nothing I did successfully recombined them. So I would suggest you leave yourself some extra time to deal with any "mishaps."

I'm interested in trying that flavor, but don't see anywhere to order it. How would you suggest it be made? Make a caramel and add that to some pistachio paste?