jim loellbach

Hi Rob, I'm new here too, and also very interested in chocolate. This is a great resource, maybe more practical information gathered together here than any other source I know of. Where are you located?

Yes Alex, that's the class. Thanks for the advertising! I'm gonna explain tempering and why it's necessary, show examples of tempered and untempered chocolate, and give a tempering demo (seeding with 1% microplaned chocolate). Then we'll have a bunch of inclusions so the students can make clusters and rochers. I live in Printers Row, just south of the loop. I'd like to open a shop near home. I would need such a small space, it's hard to find anything small enough. Smithy: I did see that post and it sounds interesting. Toronto in May? Sounds good to me!

Hi all, This is my first post except for my intro in the New Members section. Just wanted to say that salt can help sweet preparations in very small amounts. Not enough to make it taste salty, but enough to help amplify other tastes. Sometimes a taste won't stand out unless it has a contrasting taste to push back against (sweet/sour, salty/bitter, salty/sweet, etc.). Great stuff here, it's gonna take me a long time to catch up!

Hi All, My name is Jim Loellbach. I've been a chef in Chicago for about 12 years, been lucky to have worked in some great places here: Four Season Hotel, the Pump Room Restaurant, and C Chicago restaurant. I've been a butcher, line cook, banquet chef, sous chef, and pastry chef. Before that i was an engineer (aerospace), so I like to use my techie background in the kitchen (not modernist stuff, just home-brewed equipment). Recently I decided I'd given enough of my life to the restaurant world and have started my own business. I set it up initially as a personal/private chef business, but I'm now leaning heavily toward an artisinal chocolate shop. My personal cooking runs the gamut in terms of cuisines, but my style is relaxed and rustic. I love making charcuterie at home, fermenting (pickles, beer, cider), and working with chocolate. I'm giving a class on chocolate this Tuesday at a community cooking school. I've visited these forums for a few years now and am happy to start interacting with all of you.