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Hello. I finished the Gourmet Chocolate confection class given by Richardson Research labs this past week. It was a week long class and basically we made an assorted box of chocolates. Besides Terry Richardson there were 2 assistants. Thalia from Guittard and Peter who works in Reseach and Developement in the candy industry. They made the centers while us ,the students, did all the tempering by hand and hand dipped all the confections. I took a load of pics but haven't had the chance to load them onto my computer. We made everything from Nougat, Caramel, Toffee, Jellies, Truffles, Nut Clusters, Molded Chocolates, ButterCreams, It was a great class. We were given the recipes to all. There are a few ingredients I may have a problem getting. He used Anhydrous Butter and the corn syrup he used was 42de grade. Have any of you herad of that? I was quite humble doing the hand tempering since I have a Hillards Little Dipper it brought me back to the basics. I had a great time. There were 10 of us. I'm also known as Renam but decided to use my home computer to post for now on so that why I have a different name. Unfortunatly he is not offering the class anymore. He does have 2 other classe's he will teach-Chocolate Technology and Confection Technology. When I get the pic on my computer I will post them... Rena

While looking to stock up my pantry for chocolate and confection making, I have been comparison shopping at various online sources. I keep running across powdered or atomized glucose, which is significantly cheaper than glucose syrup. Can powdered glucose be used when a recipe calls for glucose syrup (as in Peter Greweling's Chocolates & Confections book)? And if so, how?

Hey everyone, Does anyone know of any reputable chocolatier trianing programs? I took a class from Ecole Chocolat online, but I wanted to do something hands on now. I'm in NY for a few months and have been looking at the French Culinary Institute. They have a class for serious amateurs called Chocolate and Bonbons but I wanted something more inclusive I guess. I feel like it is to intro level and doesnt do any confectionary except the tofee which I want to do as well. Has anyone taken it and can give me some feedback? And does anyone know of any program that fits the bill better? Thanks everyone!!

I've got a small retail store where I make and sell chocolates and confections. However, Man does not live by retail alone, and over the summer we've been busy getting wholesale customers. I've got some of the packaging taken care of: Boxes, liners, stickers, etc. but I need the "Frills", and more importantly, some kind of a "security seal". My first choice would be some kind of shrink wrap film over the whole box. After doing some investigating I am faced with two choices: A table top impulse sealer and a hand-held heat gun, or, a heat tunnel. Conservative prices of a heat tunnel start at 3 big ones. The price doesn't put me off, it's just that my volume is very low (100 boxes per day) and space is at a premium. The hand held stuff kind of scares me in that it is fairly labour intensive, especially when you factor in the box assembling and hand packing. What's everyone else doing?

Hi everyone, I'm very new to making chocolates, and have had pretty good success in the past. Apart from these heart chocolates. I am wondering why it looks like little chips are out of the chocolate shells???? It's the first time I have used the mould, polished it before I used it... I dusted the moulds with the red dust first - and it looks like the dust have been left in the moulds where it looks like the chocolates are chipped Any ideas on why this might have happened? Thanks so much in advance, Danni

I am in the process of setting up my ingredients list for my boxes. These will be for retail packaging. The state lady in charge of labels is giving me fits over the colored cocoa butter. She wants every FD&C color listed that is in the box, regardless of the quantity. This means I will have a long list for perhaps 1 or 2 chocolates in the box. She even said that if it is a natural color it still has to be listed as artificial because it is not natural in chocolate. What have the rest of you done? Is she just being extra picky, or is this just the way it is? In checking with the supplier, he says to just list it as color, but she isn't buying it. Any suggestions? I know I could just eliminate those pieces, but that is what makes the box unique.

Looking for recommendations in the NNJ area for great chocolates or other unique food gift ideas for the host who has everything. What do you usually bring when invited to a dinner where the host already has a huge wine collection, fully decorated home, etc.?

historically, during times of economic slowdown - at least in north america, there's been an inverse relationship with the economy and chocolate sales... economy goes down, chocolate sales go up. folks feel they can't afford the lexus anymore, but a nice box of chocolates is viewed as an affordable luxury that in many respects takes the place of the big ticket items. i'm curious as to what those of you with 'boots on the street' so to speak are experiencing in todays economic climate? one of the big differences today vs previous economically difficult times is that raw materials and transportation are simultaneously up - given that sugar and dairy comprise almost everything we make, and they have to be brought in from elsewhere it's a rough combination. not to mention that approx 34% of this years corn crop is going to bio-fuel, and climactic conditions took out a good portion of the crops over the last couple of weeks (that's not going to help anyone). are your sales being adversely affected this year, are you seeing them up vs a few years ago, or are they flat? are you able to pass on higher production costs?

What is the best way to protect a box of Bonbons? I am researching and trying decide what I should use to cover my chocolates when they are boxed and sitting on the shelf waiting for a buyer. Can a heat seal for thin plastic be used or will it melt the chocolates, or a vacuum sealer? Who uses what? Thanks for your help. Deb.

Does anyone here have any experience with the continuing education classes at Notter's in Orlando (specifically with chocolate) such as learning to temper, etc... http://www.notterschool.com/

I'm looking into purchasiing a machine to make my own transfer sheets. Anybody have an idea where to buy one?

This topic is being started to allow for continued discussion of French macarons (not the coconut cookies). Please utilize the index of the original topic HERE prior to posting in this new topic. Enjoy! And remember, you should always send samples of your macarons to your hosts

Hi all, I realize it's been a very long while since I posted (or read the board, for that matter). I've been exceedingly busy since I moved last year... But I have a need to make some fresh chocolates this afternoon, and I need your help. What are your favorite chocolates where the filling sets up FAST. (They are for a party this evening.) I'm feeling a little brain dead beyond my obvious candidates (fruit ganaches). Ideas?

The new gourmet grocery here has an entire See's candy counter. After hearing quite a lot about See's here and there on eGullet, I figured I should find out what all the fuss was about. So far I've tried three flavors (there's always a sample tray out), and all of the were described as buttercreams (Bordeaux, pineapple, and lemon, for anyone who's curious). While much sweeter than anything I put in my chocolates, they were quite tasty, and now I'm wondering just what the heck a buttercream filling is in the context of chocolate? I have some (limited) familiarity with buttercream frosting for a cake, but this seems different. Thanks!

Hi. I usually use Wybauw's recipes but change them according to my needs. If I want a moulded chocolate I change the choc to cream ratio etc. Or I use it for idea combinations. But now: I want to make Arabe- page 110 exactly as is given. My problem is that I think I can't! First it calls for 30g of Sorbitol. I would rather not use this. So could I replace it with invert or glucose? It is reduced glucose I think- and if so how? Next it calls for Passoa Liqueur- passion fruit liqueur. I can't get it here! What else could be used? Brandy? A fruit liqueur? Another of his recipes calls for pistachio compound (amoretti No.5) It sounds yucky to me. I want natural pistachio. Could pistachio paste replace this gram for gram? This is on page 128. Quite a few customers asked for pistachio hence these two recipes. Thanks!!

Help! I offered to make the chocolates for my lovely stepdaughter's wedding-shower-brunch, and was asked for Tiffany-blue chocolates. Since I have no experience coloring chocolates and (frankly) would rather not, I'm looking for other ideas to propose. A Tiffany box cake and diamond ring cookies are being made by others. I have the geodesic dome mold that looks like a cut gem, am thinking that could be part of it. Any thoughts, anyone? Am also doing the fruit salad, so any ideas on 'Tiffany-ing' that would be great, too! Thanks so much Jennifer

I am looking to incorporate banana into several of my molded chocolates. Do most of you use a banana puree? I tried using a few fresh bananas and some confectionary sugar to make a puree, then mixing that into my ganache. I found the shelf life to be very short though..only about two weeks. Any help or tips?

Does anyone know where to get confectionary supplies in London? I figure stores that sell things like invert sugar may be easier to find then equipment suppliers, but im looking for both if anyone has any ideas.. Oh an I found glucose syrup at Sainsbury's, but its in tiny quantities. Thanks!

I got an ad in my e-mail today for the Culinary Institute of America's "Captivating Confections" DVD set. Here's what it said about the set: They want $200 for the 3-DVD set (I guess it's ordinarily $250, this is a Valentines Day Special). That a bit more than the latest Hollywood blockbuster... and definitely quite a bit more than I typically drop on "cooking show"-type DVDs. I understand that this isn't one of those, but still... lotta money! Has anyone seen this set, or had any experience with the CIA's other DVD sets? I don't have the time or money right now for a real class on this stuff, so if this is a worthwhile investment I would be willing to spring for it, but I don't really know what to expect.

I'm heading out tomorrow evening for Belgium to take a course on making chocolate showpieces at the Belcolade factory in Aalst, Belgium. Puratos - the supplier of Belcolade in Canada has arranged the course and was kind enough to invite me along. So in preparation for this trip I've been following a jet lag program that I have used with success in the past. It involves dietary manipulation and caffeine restriction, with reintroduction of caffeine at the appropriate times to 'reset' the body clock. So starting on Wednesday I have done alternating days of 'feasting' and 'fasting' eating mainly protein for breakfast and lunch, and carbohydrates at dinner. No after dinner snacking allowed. Caffeine is allowed only between 3 and 4:30 in the afternoon. Apparently studies have shown that depleting glycogen stores makes you more sensitive to the effects of the caffeine. Tomorrow - the day I fly - is a 'fasting' day - about 800 calories - and at 6 in the evening I drink several cups of black coffee. In combination with resting at the appropriate time, waking 1/2 hour before breakfast Belgium time, doing a bit of physical exercise and brain exercise, then starting another 'feasting day' - I should be good to go for the start of the course on Monday morning. I've used this program a couple of times before when traveling to europe and it has made a world of difference to the jet lag I feel. The down side I suppose is the headache from caffeine withdrawal on Wednesday and the boring diet for these few days. This morning - a 'feasting' day I had a 3 egg omelet with onion, mushroom and cheese for breakfast, a steak for lunch and I felt rather yucky all day. It was all I could do to eat the high carbohydrate dinner - I don't think I achieved the kind of calories the program requires for a feast day. Can't wait to get back on a regular varied diet - some protein, some carbohydrate at the same meal. Moule frites I hope will be one of my first proper meals in Belgium. This will be a pretty much all chocolate and food trip, so I'd love to take you along with me. The plan is to attend the course Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday - with any luck we will hit a mold factory on Thursday - then Friday I'm taking the train to Germany. I'll have a quick stopover in Cologne where I hope to get some pictures of Schneich's chocolate lab - then off to visit friends who collect old metal chocolate molds and produce very large equipment for chocolate factories. I'm the proud owner of a new Asus eee computer - a tiny little thing (less than 1 kg) with full WiFi capabilities that should allow me to keep in touch as long as I can find wireless. Picture transfer is a bit of a challenge, so I'll probably post a bunch when I get back, but I'll try to download some while I'm away. I'd love any suggestions about foods I should try - if anyone knows of restaurants in Aalst that are worth checking out I'd love to hear about them. I found lots of threads on Brussels, Bruges and Antwerp, but nothing about Aalst. Also anxious to hear suggestions for any particular chocolate I should try in Brussels.

There have been several threads recently about making chocolate confections, and a few in the recent past about making chocolate from the bean. Strangely, there doesn't seem to be a lot of overlap between the two. From what I can tell, the people making bonbons don't seem to be the same people experimenting with melangeurs. In English, we don't even have good terms to describe the difference, and some manufacturers gain advantage from this. Sometimes this is deceit, sometimes a convenient omission, and sometimes just an oversight. I recently bought a pricey sampler of 'single origin' chocolate bars from a high end shop based on the clerk's statements that they were made in house from the bean. Internet research showed this to be most likely false. I think this was just a poorly informed employee who was making the logical conclusion that a chocolate shop would make its own chocolate, but the manufacturer's own website certainly made no effort to clear up this confusion. What do people think about this? What would be comparisons be to other products? Is a chocolatier that uses commercial couverture like a bakery that buys pre-made flour instead of grinding its own wheat, or is it like a bakery that buys all its products frozen and par-baked and while claiming that everything is 'baked fresh daily'. My feeling is that it depends greatly on the way it is presented. Talking about 'our chocolate made from our beans' is wrong if one is simply melting down a commercially available product, but using chocolate as a basic ingredient is fine so long as this is done without deceit: I don't expect a bakery to grind its own flour, but I do expect it to make its own dough. But having recently made my own chocolate from the bean, and being surprised by the quality of the finished product, I'm surprised more people aren't interested in going this extra distance. ps. Alan McClure, the owner of Patric Chocolate, has a more coherent post on this topic up on his blog: http://www.patric-chocolate.com/store/2007...-chocolate.html

Getting into the chocolate business is something that I would like to do at some point. I am not at that point yet, as feel I am still too novice to produce a competitive product. But, I am curious about a couple things. Reading other threads about starting a chocolate business I see that people on here range from small direct sales to selling via the internet to wholesaling to owning a boutique. A lot of focus in other threads has been in starting a wholesale business or opening a boutique. I’m curious about the direct sales or internet sales side of the business. What rules are involved? Do you need to work out of a commercial kitchen? Are there labeling requirements? Etc… I guess I’m looking for the minimum requirements to be able to sell chocolates. Obviously I know nothing about this stuff. And as I said before, I am not ready to start being a chocolatier yet, but I’d like to know what it entails when I am ready. Thanks.

Cardinal chocolatier makes some chocoalte I got this from my local forum and decided to share it. Nothing really new or amazing, but nice. Eli of Cardinal Chocolates here uses only Valrhona and for some reason makes thin, thin plain bark from 70% Guanaja and 100% pate to get 80%. I am interested in knowing why he doesn't just use 80% . I guess it is a flavor thing. Well sorry that you can't understand the language but the pictures tell it all I think. editted to tell you that you have to scroll down to get to the video-sorry!

Just got an e-mail from C.H.I.P.S. notifying me of another $100+ book that I'm sure I can't live without. I really just love Jean-Pierre Wybauw, so I guess I have to buy this book... It looks like it focuses on ganaches. The above is from C.H.I.P.S.

i guess everyone has heard of those japanese chocolate truffles called "nama chocolate" they are basically a soft ganache dusted in cocoa. they are supposed to be kept in the fridge, nevertheless when you take them out and eat them right away they are very creamy, but they wont melt even if you keep them at rooom temp for a few hours... my question would be does anyoone have a ganache recipe that would match that, very creamy velvety in a cold state, but not fluid at room temp ... cheers torsten s.