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felipetruji

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Posts posted by felipetruji

  1. 53 minutes ago, Kerry Beal said:

    Then of course there is this article by Michael Laiskonis where he makes gianduja and spread directly from bean. Choosing a nut that grows near to the plantation to go with the cacao would make a very special local product.

    I have some recipes starting with cocoa liquor, it's ok but if you use too much it starts to harden. 

  2. 2 hours ago, pastrygirl said:

    Fudge is a different animal, chocolate may be the best version of it, but I consider fudge a sugar-based confection that may happen to have chocolate in it rather than a chocolate based confection like a truffle or bonbon.

     

    You mentioned many people don't have ovens, is there an existing tradition of desserts or any interest in specifically European or American foods?  A spread for bread makes no sense if there is no bread, but if people eat fruit for dessert maybe you could market it as a dip for fruit. Or what are traditional desserts that could be made chocolate?

     

    Do most people have some refrigeration?  Chocolate mousse doesn't need tempering or an oven, just a chiller.

     

     

    I expect the assistants to be the wives of cocoa farmers mostly, that have curiosity about chocolate and want to copy the creations they look on instagram or what they have seen in bigger cities...

    The idea of the workshop is to showcase what the chocolate they produce can be used for, and if they are serious about it maybe it's an opportunity for an extra income.

    There are some traditional desserts and that's gonna be me starting point, trying to use chocolate to add an extra layer of flavor and identity... However that's gonna be an on the go, there isn't much I can prepare about that...

    I plan to give them some recipes, like a master class format introducing something new they can make at home, that's where fudge can come handy... But same as you I'm not fond on that one.... 

    Nutella is widely sold in local supermarkets, so spreads I think it's gonna nail it.

     

     

    • Like 2
  3. 32 minutes ago, donk79 said:

    Given that one of the glories of chocolate is it's melting temperature, I think you may want to adapt to the idea of molten chocolate.  Maybe think about how it can be enclosed.  

     

    I have no expertise here, but this is how my mind responds to the problem.

    Great idea, what enclosed items would you think of?

    I'd prefer to stay away of items that need an oven, as most people won't have one.

     

     

     

  4. 30 minutes ago, pastrygirl said:

    Ice cream, cold beverages, cookies, brownies. 
     

    Do the local farms also refine the beans into chocolate or are you working with cacao nibs?

     

    Thanks for the answers.

    Yes you can refine into chocolate, there are some entrepreneur with melangers, some do it the traditional way using another mill wich gives them a paste (around 80-100 microns) wich is mostly used for hot beverages.

    • Like 1
  5. Hi folks.

    I'm doing some workshops about chocolate and cocoa quality for a community located close to cocoa plantations.

    It's common to see locals trying on making chocolate and confectionery items, but they have problems as the chocolate just melts during daytime with average temperatures over 30C.

    So I'm wondering what kind of chocolate items would you propose for folks that live in a neverending summer and have close to unlimited chocolate supply?

  6. 7 minutes ago, teonzo said:

    Where do you put your molds to rest before going in the fridge?

    Do you leave them on the marble? If so, try putting them on a wire rack and force some air circulation with a fan. Big blocks like that have lots of troubles due to the latent heat of crystalization, especially with that indented shape.

     

     

     

    Teo

     

    After filling, they go into the vibrating surface and immediately into the fridge

  7. Update, things are going better but I'm still not at the right spot just yet.

    Got my fridge fixed and that helped a lot (thank Kelly), however today I got this result when tempering 1kg block of 70% dark chocolate.

    Got mixed results from the pure cocoa liquor I was tempering last time, some good ones, some not so good and a crack in the back.

    Currently working with my silk at 33,6C 

    IMG_20190716_145025.jpg

    IMG_20190713_122716.jpg

    IMG_20190713_130612.jpg

    IMG_20190713_122733.jpg

  8. 3 hours ago, Kerry Beal said:

    Is your cocoa butter lumpy? 

     

    Might be hard to do the faster cooling with the fridge out of commission - do you have an air conditioner you can blow on them?

     

     

    The cocoa butter doesn't seem lumpy, however I melted it to 60+, let it fully cristalize and then set the EZTEMPER to 33,2 put the cb back into the machine and let it go overnight.

    I know it's a bit lower than it should, but I'm hopping with your help we will be able to find the perfect temp tomorrow when I report back.

     

     

     

  9. 12 hours ago, pastrygirl said:

     

    I made some bars like that recently.  Looked like nice temper from the back but similar crystal patterns against the mold.   Unfortunately I can't tell you exactly what happened, I assumed it was heat, humidity, or both and re-did them.  But know you're not alone! 

     

    You mentioned room temp being 25C or 77F, which is quite warm for chocolate.  A thick layer of chocolate in a warm mold in a warm room is going to crystallize more slowly.  Usually you want chocolate to cool quickly and lock all the cocoa butter molecules into place asap instead of hanging out getting into trouble.  I second Kerry's advice to refrigerate the filled molds 10-20 minutes or until they release then move to the cooler spot.  Maybe even chill the molds slightly before filling?

     

    Is there any way to work in the cooler room instead?  I prefer around 65F, definitely not more than 75F  (18C, less than 24C). 

    Normally the lab room is at around 19-22C, I did some heavy roasting that day ending that hot!

    Yesterday I tried another batch double checking temps and stirring for each step, still a fail.

    Today I'm gonna try both melting my cocoa butter to 60C+ and letting cristalize normally before putting it back into the ez, and some fast cooling, my fridge is out of order at this time tho

    15628591678737596430259329500695.jpg

    • Like 1
    • Sad 1
  10. 15 minutes ago, Kerry Beal said:

    So just let me confirm - you took the chocolate out of the melanger, cooled to around 32º C (checked after stirring to make sure that you weren't just getting the surface temperature), added the silk when the chocolate was at 32º C, stirred a bit more, then molded? Then put into the 19º C room to cool?

     

     

    That's pretty much the way I did, except that the temperature of the chocolate (after stirring) was more around 32,5C.

     

    If it helps, it was pure cocoa mass, at around 100 microns (is meant for drinking chocolate so no need to refine further).

    I think It's somewhat possible I have some type VI on my seed, as the cocoa butter I used is an old one. Will check

    • Like 1
  11. 5 minutes ago, Kerry Beal said:

    So can you check  The calibration of your thermometers in boiling water and ice water?  Also try putting your moulds in the fridge for about 15 to 20 minutes after you have poured the chocolate into them.

    Just checked my thermometer with the EZtemper silk, while the silk is at 33,7C my thermometer showed 33,3C

     Still not enough to justify the result I got yesterday.

    15627792597084273882895269111633.jpg

    15627792994796254067371699955923.jpg

  12. 31 minutes ago, Kerry Beal said:

    Sounds like we need to address the accuracy of your thermometer. And perhaps your cooling,

     

    I have two thermometers, used the silk at around 32C, and got this results.

    If it helps I used pure cacao mass out of the melanger, let it cool at room temperature (25C aprox) moving from time to time.

    When at 32-33 range I used the silk, then molded and cooled in a fresher room (around 19C) overnight

  13. On 11/26/2018 at 6:36 PM, Tri2Cook said:

    I think I'll start a campaign to try to convince @Kerry Beal to use her amazing powers as a chocolate ambassador to convince someone in the bean-to-bar field to join these forums. :D I'd like to be able to ask questions about things like how they determine where to go with various beans in terms of percentages and how they decide when to take a batch out of the machine beyond general guidelines. Basically, some basics beyond put this+that+the-other in the machine for x amount of time. Even somebody willing to do an article where they cover things like I mentioned above would be great. I'm not looking for a step-by-step with specific formulas or anything like that, just an overview on how their decision making process works when they decide a bean should end up as a 65% instead of a 70% or might not be as good for a milk as another bean... that sort of stuff.

     

    I do work a lot in the bean-to-bar-field, advantadges of being a chocolatier in a cacao producing country!

    If you have any question just shoot, for now i'll try to answer my take on the topics you posted about.

     

    Quote

    how they decide when to take a batch out of the machine beyond general guidelines

     

    It´s all about the expected thickness you want your chocolate and the texture you want to achieve, in general guidelines you want the particle size to be aboout 20-30 micres, so the tongue is not able to perceive any texture and the mass is fluid enough.

    If you go lower that that you start having viscosity issues or need to add more cocoa butter...

    if the particle size is to high your chocolate will be gritty and the general experience is not so good.

     

    Quote

    just an overview on how their decision making process works when they decide a bean should end up as a 65% instead of a 70% or might not be as good for a milk as another bean

     

    This is indeed a very interesting topic and i can tell the guidelines change a lot from maker to maker.

    My personal take on this concept is to start from understanding the flavor profile of the beans i have, for this step roasting is critical as you can achive different results on the same beans depending on the roasting profile. I do use 3 different roasting profiles (1 long and slow, 1 mid ramp, 1 high ramp) and make a liquor batch from each, you taste the 3 liquor batches to get a general idea on the profile of your beans and what type of roasting is better for them.

    After i have a general idea i do start to think on what kind of chocolate is better to express the flavours and aromas i found while tasting... something like this: fs the beans are fruity maybe i want to go a bit higher in the %, if they are bitter maybe a bit lower, if the cacao flavor is strong it's a very good candidate for a milk bar... 

    After toying a bit i do try a few test batches to find the best fit for the chocolate i want to make, until i find something im happy with.

     

    The best source of knowledge you can find online for chocolate making IMO is at the chocolate alchemist website (just google it). also in the "thechocolatelife" forums. hope it helps!

     

    • Like 2
  14. On ‎10‎/‎26‎/‎2018 at 8:58 AM, tikidoc said:

     

    I used the company linked above a couple years ago to do transfer sheets with the logo for the medical practice I am a partner in, and they did a great job and prices were quite reasonable. The process was easy - I did a single color, and just sent them an image of the logo and a sample of the color I wanted.

     

     

    I just dont like the look of transfer sheets on the finished bombon specially for branding, IMO they look cheap compared to hand painted bombons.

    I have to make some bombons like the ones in the picture above, I´m gonna try some techniques and post the results.

    Was hopping that someone has the expirience of how to do them (or waht doesn´t work) to lead me in the right direction! 

     

    If nothing works ill have to do transfers! (i don´t have magnetic molds tho)

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