Wendy DeBord

Thank-you for the advice Steve. Also I'm sort of amazed at your response about publicly announcing or printing pricing. Personally, it's never made sense to me the secretive nature of " the price" professional sales representatives guard so strongly from revealing. I've asked sales people more then once about this issue and received so many answers (which we all know their justifications) that talked in circles- that honestly I set this issue aside thinking I just was too dumb to get it. I actually felt they (the sales reps I have asked about pricing) treated me like I was a rude person to actually ask them about this....and I've gone with the flow to not be "rude". Having owned my own business in the past and having sold my wares in large wholesale trade shows I had to be open and straight with everyone on my pricing or they weren't receptive to buying from me. BUT when I signed on with a sales marketing group they didn't operate by handing out priced brochures and discouraged me from doing so. For pricing everything was a phone call (of course they wanted to take the call so it listed as their sale and commision, but if that's how things work-that's fine) a play on quantities and countless ways they skirted being open with the same price for everyone. I could see giving someone a break for a volume purchase (which I did), BUT they constantly broke our contract by giving "deals" to THEIR special clients regardless of volume ordered from me. I of course didn't renew my contract with them. My point......this is always been a hush hush issue and I really do think it's wrong. AND I want to tell you that I really respect and applaud you Steve for having the guts to stand-up and say something is wrong, even if it goes against popular ways! As to my purchase of E. Guittard I'm very, very constrained by my Chefs. I will get whatever they want to pay for....and typically they won't purchase from mulitple suppliers for different brands of chocolate for milk, white and semi.

Funny, I made the halsey and noticed it didn't read like the photo- but I did sort of a typical pc thing and did my own thing with it, never thought twice about the discrepancy until you mentioned it. Anyway, it got rave reviews and sold out quickly, so I'd say it was good and I reccomend it. What I did: made the cookie/tart dough bases by rolling out the dough between two parchment sheets (avoiding flour so it wouldn't dis-color my dark choc.) (oh, by the way it's exactly like those purchased chocolate wafers you use for an ice-box/whip cream cake) I chilled the dough then cut them out with a cookie cutter, baked them off (no need to dock this dough as the recipe calls for). Made her caramel whip cream using caramel I had left over (So if you were lazy you could just buy a jar of caramel and not make your own). I piped the caramel in a doughnut shape then filled the center with straight gooey caramel. Put a second cookie ontop of the whipped filing like a sandwich cookie. Coated it with ganche and a plain whip cream dollop. This tastes best after the cookies soften a bit from the filling, just like an ice box cake. It's really simple and it can be embelished with endless suggestions. Another recipe I made was a chocolate short bread and I didn't like it particularly. BUT, I will say all in all I really like her work and would definately reccomend all of her books! Her chocolate book is outstanding!!!!!!!!!! I really like the fact that she is teaching home cooks about master recipes and working out from them. The fact is she saving you years of work and study...........at least it took me that to figure this out myself with-out classes. I really like her and find her to be one of the better female baking book authors.

Well I wasn't in your apartment but I've been in your shoes! Ha....... Seriously, another better way to approach this is to pre-coat your cake in white choc. ganche and skip the butter cream all together (chances are the butter cream is what's making it too sweet also). Make your ganche and chill it until it's barely spreadable. Pipe it on like you would (with a large tip) any other frosting, smoothing your sides with a spatula and chill. Pay attention to any divets or bulges so you surface is smooth, even it it visually looks like a mess at this point. Then pour your ganche over ganche. It will work but you'll need to find the right temp.s. Your ganche coated cake will need to be cold (so the base remains and doesn't melt) and your pouring ganche will need to be borderline warm (so it flows quickly, yet doesn't melt your crumb coat). Other opinions........I think getting the blackberry flavor as intense as you want might need to be approached another way. Not that a soaking isn't a good thing sometimes.........instead sometimes you need contrast to highlight a flavor and too much actually numbs your senses. Jam and a mousse should give you alot. If it's not as you wrote, I'd look at your mousse recipe and see how diluted the fruit is with egg white and or whip cream. Do you own Herme's book? If not, I bet there's a way I could post enough for you to understand what he's doing to compare with what your doing. The reason, I trust him completely, he really is a genious in the pastry kitchen. P.S. You need to take serious consideration of which brand of white chocolate your using. Some as mentioned by chocophile are deoderized and lack good white chocolate flavor...leaving you with just a sweet bland nothingness (hey is that a new word?).

Thanks for posting these results Ted, now I have to find time to try it too. It sounds like it handles exactly like the batter I use to make cookie cups.........hum, I need to compare.........

Mary, I'd love to see you pictures. I can't tell you a tip size-I just grab what-ever and pipe as small as possible to form and still be able to handle. They're like two bites worth in size, the head then the body. Your being generous Docsconz, thanks.......but..........not true.......but I can tell you for sure they tasted auesome anyway. It's alllllll about the ganche inside..........

Honestly, whatever I can get my Chef to buy will delight me. I don't know if Dawn will carry the whole line. Well, what would you reccomend as a 1 shot purchase?

To the best of my knowledge Amoretti's line doesn't include oil's. Flavoring compounds would soften the hard cracked sugar so you'd have a limp sucker. edited to add: ooops, no one read into that.....

I was wondering if you would mind sharing your ratio: oil to sugar amount Nichole? I know this is a such a simple thing-but I'm curious out of respect for you-what ratios you (Nichole Kaplan) specificly use. Thank-you!

God, now that I see that photo posted I'm horrified and embarsed!!!!!!!!!!! Yeaks.........I'm crawling under a rock now! But in my defense (which I feel the need to write to somehow rectify my reputation) I had a bitch of a time on the job I did that batch on. Only one factor in a barrage of factors: I had to hold them in the cooler over night before I had time to dip them and when I returned the next morning they were completely wet from humidity (I wound up towel drying each one). Can you tell they don't provide rubber gloves.............? Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhh, going back under my rock.

I believe I was the person that made that point....about it not melting in your mouth. I'm a little confused/baffled that: 1. you noticed a difference once it was tempered. (I don't understand how that's possible? and didn't find similar results) 2. what do you mean about it being worth the work? (I found it to handle very easy comparitively to some other brands) Don't get me wrong-I really like the high end Flechlin line and used it for years!...just thought the lower end was horrible and no where near the quality of their high end. Also thanks to everyone, it seems that I now have two places to buy E.Guitard from! I've yet to get it in....but I'm very excited to try it.

a tangent and controversy: I do not have access to a stainless pot at one job and I refuse to buy my pots too (as I buy too much personally for the job already). So when I began I asked for a stainless and was denied, chef insisted his pots worked just fine for curds (the last pc used them, yada, yada)............and he was right. Yes, yes....I know all the reasons, the rules, etc....but after having done so for over a year now I can't find a problem in color or taste with making curd in an alumium pot. I don't know, perhaps the years of them (the pots) going thru the automatic dish washer and oxiding (or what ever that is when the metal turns matt in finish) has changed some sort of physical property of this metal.............. I add my butter after it's cooled down....and just barely warm. Basicly a ditto of Karens method.

My experience with white chocolate ganche to coat a wedding cake, it's tricky and requires experience! Problem: as you already realize-over a chocolate cake (or most cakes) it needs a base coat to seal for smoothness and color cover. But the problem I've had is- it wants to slide off a butter based frosting. Perhaps someone else has perfected this and can help you get past this-I haven't really tried-instead I've used other options. I use just chocolate and cream, but I would be open to adding corn syrup or glucose-that might be helpful. I find it's "tricky" because there's just enough cream to make the chocolate flow and it's got to be just at the right temp. to pour it and get a nice finish-AND your cake needs to be at a matching temp.. If's it just a hair too cool when you take a spatula to the top to aid in the flowing over the sides you won't get a clean look. I believe Herme' has such a combo (choc. and blackberry) in his book-you might want to check that out for reference on your filling.

I make truffle mice regularly. Instructions-hum....kind of hard to put into words............ Basicly, I wait until my ganche is very set/yet still pipeable or I gently rewarm firm ganche. Then I pipe them out on a sheet pan. The "design" is all in how well you pipe. It's a visual thing, but you pipe the body first then release up and in a continuous stroke add the head as a smaller ball on the base....as your final release your forming the nose of the mouse (pointing upward) and you let that drag off to a peak. I insert almonds for their ears. Then I freeze them before dipping. Freezing before dipping is somewhat controversal....but my ganche recipe (from Norman Love) is very soft. If you use a firmer ganche then you don't need to freeze them....but then they won't be as creamy soft when you bite into them either. I'm going out of town later this day so I can't follow up with further help, sorry. But I will check back here when I return. I'll send a photo of my mice to Kevin and hopefully he can post it for you..... just try to copy what I did. Good Luck.

I refridgerate chocolate to set it and that does NOT cause harm. I believe the problem is in the molds design. Occasionally they don't design them well and it sounds like yours is too thin at the neck....unless your being rough unmolding? If your rapping it on the counter to loosen- when you tap it, thats when it's breaking in the mold. Have you tried being very gentle and just unmolding into your hand with no tapping on a solid surface? Sometimes it's just better to find another mold. Even if you figure out how to be gentle releasing it, odds are it will break prematurely from this poor design.

PLEASE..........are you kidding? They invented the phrase "shit happens" just for me. Somedays it does seem like everything is off. I'm actually pretty happy with myself over this issue, in that I've probably reached "expert level" (if there was a grading system on this) in digging myself out of a mess. I have soooooooooooooo much experience with this-much gained through my catering days. But I've gotten pretty good specificly with baked goods just by experience and necessity. I've had to go back and figure out how to increase everything else to balance out a mistake of adding too much of 1 ingredient. I remember that happening on like the second day I had at a bakery. I was following their recipe and everything was in pounds then 1 ingredient was listed in grams or cups and I didn't catch it. This owner was always standing over me like a hawk-so it was impossible to just quitely work my way out. They treated me like and idiot and they were sort of accusitory-like I'd just spent their last penny and now they'd be homeless......of course they never went back and corrected these inconsistancys in their recipe system...... So I KNOW I wasn't the only one who messed up their recipes. This isn't an example of my diggging out-just a typical mistake. Lets see, just last Sat. I was making cheesecake. I had 15 lbs going and it equaled 1 1/2x recipe but I lost my mind and added 2x the recipes cream and milk. I went ahead and baked them off-figured it was a dense recipe and this "might" be fine. I baked them all together-same oven, same timing, same cooling, etc... 3 out of 4 cracked...........poop! They were plain NY's and I need to keep them plain-so some whipped cream will have to hide my sin. Oh, I have a dig out example. I made a recipe from Duflets bakery (something I've had in my file for a while and wanted to make). It was a meringue, caramel, praline, whip cream concoction. I knew it would be fragile to cut....well I don't know what I was thinking, the darn thing couldn't take being cut and plated at all. So I turned it into a tart. Baked a sweet crust, lined it with chocolate, slopped my meringue mess into it, put a thin layer of chocolate sponge cake ontop, added some ganche and chopped praline on top-....well they snarfed that down. Todays work day consists of making "master pieces" out of the numerous scrap cakes and fillings I've got in the freezer. Practice, practice, practice.........

I've wanted one for a while.......I figure I'll eventually make one myself. I don't begin to understand the pricing on these.....it's not like a complicated machine with computor operated parts........... I keep thinking that it works alot like a silk screen: in that, it's a hinged frame. Why couldn't you drill holes for your wires and string them? What to use on the bottom has me stumped, mainly because of sanitary reasons. If you had something like styrofoam glued down on a board you could take a saw and make cut out grooves to match your wire widths....and it should work-no? So how to make this sanitary? Make your hinged frame out of plastic-perhaps there are plastic silk screen frames? How could you coat the styrofoam?

I haven't tried Flemmings recipe yet, but I use Martha's regularly and reccomend it. It's probably posted on her site.

Ditto KarenS! (words from an obvious pro)

O.k. I'm on the Dawn lead today, thanks! Thanks for the info. Marthapook...........I have to run-but I have a couple more questions...I'll be back to ask you.

Well, this message went a stray like the game of telephone kids play. I just wanted to connect with Michael and tell him how I felt (what a huge impact he's had) and give him a platform to talk about what he's sending us in the future. ie....whats Chocolatier going to look like being a more "holiday" type issue? I don't mind material geared to housewifes (good work is good work- and I know how to scale up recipes). In fact some of the best recipes were ones published in your earily Chocolatier issues. You really found the "who's who" of the industry earily on. I assumed that Chocolatier would be under going alot of change...an end of what we've known-a beginning of something new (I should have stated that better, sorry). I noticed Trish had an article.....I've wondered where she'd been and I'm glad to see her back-she's made a huge contribution!!! Who will be running Chocolatier for you? A price increase is fine by me-I'll pay for quality....same holds true for your other publication (PA & D)-I want as much as you can give me and will pay for that. I don't know anything about the National Bread & Pastry Team Championships held in Atlantic City. Please tell me more? Who's competing? How is this set up? When? details, details...any and all are interesting, please.

I recieved my (shock) last issue yesterday. In Michaels Schneiders Random Thoughts column he says this is it. Dear Michael, There are no cheers! Not at all........... I hope you throughly understand that I greatly enjoy both your publications and I anxiously look forward to recieving them. Both Chocolatier and PA & D have opened private doors for all of us who aren't "star chefs" into a world I'm very interested in and curious about. I've been hard on you in other threads, no doubt- but I fully support your work and there would be a great huge void with-out you. So I want to make sure you understand how much I've apprecated your work! I've purchased every issue you've published and duplicates of some. I work from these recipes often, I look up to the people you choose as PC of the year. You've supported my knowledge and given me exposure into my profession I wouldn't have had with-out you. Your last issue is beautiful. I was imediately excited to see the sections on the best Chocolatiers. AND now,.... I hope I (and everyone else) has something new to look forward to...as you alluded? For whatever reasons your private yet accessable. I hope you'll tell us more about what the future holds with you and your publications? Sincerely, Wendy DeBord

I'm sorry, I'm not sure I follow-would you explain a little more- Ted and others? I'm envisioning rice paper like you'd get in an Asian grocery store wrapped around candy. Or I've bought rice paper with printed images (butterflies and similar) on it to use as an edible garnish-is this the same thing your talking about? Are you saying that you can take that basic component -the rice paper- and flavor it to taste like a blt or pop rocks? Or are you wrapping it around another item? Would you catch me up on what you've been reading about these, please? TIA

Hum....interesting review Ted-now I want to try it even more!!! The melt in your mouth point: THAT's EXACTLY WHAT I CAN'T FIND in any other brands I'm getting comercially. The low end Flechlin won't melt in your mouth no matter how long you hold it in, just wierd-I mean, even nestles chocolate chips melt in your mouth. The brands I've gotten, Flechlin (low end only) and Cocoa Berrys Callauet have the texture and mouth feel and taste of cheap coating chocolates. Specificly what is it in the chocolates make-up that does that or prevents melt? If I could look at the side of a box and read that ingredient I'd know instantly if I wasn't going to like the product. Hoping someone can enlighten me...........

Thanks Michael those are a couple helpful leads. Yes, Chef talks to whom ever ansers the phone and I think being able to dirrect him to someone (by name) at European I.'s should be very helpful, Thanks! I have to keep price as a top consideration. I don't think Flechlins lower end is very good and their high end isn't cheap enough...unless somethings changed... Who are you buying the most from/finding the most products you like (with all pastry items) Michael? I was really hoping European was going to be a one stop shopping source....and Midwest has never carried much of an assortment....Great Lakes is interesting-but I fear shipping will be an issue at this club.

I wonder- is it Guittard thats doing a poor job getting their product out there finding distributors and giving their sales staff samples/ammunition to promote their products? Or maybe it's the system- From what I've noticed flechlin seems to be dissapearing from sources. Its wierd because there was this big push/deals/low pricing.....now I don't even see them listed in Usters catalogs. ......were they just trying to unload what they had in stock to purge them from their company-thats my guess. Guittard does good business selling their coating chocolates -apeels....everyone I know buys them. Why not their high end chocolate??