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Chocolate for baking, 54% vs. 58%


Recoil Rob

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This weekend I going to attempt the Chocolate Truffle cake in the new issue of SAVEUR. It calls for semi-sweet chocolate 54% . While shopping today my purveyor only had 58%, he said there's no practical difference it would make on my cake.

I know baking is pretty much chemistry, do I need to worry about the outcome of my cake being affected by 4%?

My problem lies in reconciling my gross habits with my net income.

- Errol Flynn

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Your purveyor is correct, the difference of 4% is going to be pretty much insignificant.

The cake calls for 6 ounces of chocolate, or 170 grams. The 4% less sugar in your 58% chocolate is going to be about 7 grams, or a bit more than 1-1/2 teaspoons.

The frosting calls for 24 ounces of chocolate, or about 680 grams, there you will be missing about 27 grams of sugar, or just over 2 tablespoons.

Also, if one chocolate has relatively more cocoa butter, going by the percentage alone to decide the sweetness level will not necessarily be accurate. The percentage is cocoa solids plus cocoa butter, so you could have a 54% chocolate with 30% solids and 24% fat or vice versa. So given all of the variables in chocolate, I'd still say the difference between those two percentages will be insignificant for most recipes. If you were trying to substitute 70%, then you'd want to make some adjustments.

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Thanks to all for the quick reply. I imagine it's a blend, it was bulk chocolate from Teitels on Arthur Avenue. It passed the quick taste test.

I will report back after makig the cake.

Thanks again, Rob

My problem lies in reconciling my gross habits with my net income.

- Errol Flynn

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Thanks to all for the quick reply. I imagine it's a blend, it was bulk chocolate from Teitels on Arthur Avenue. It passed the quick taste test.

I will report back after making the cake.

Thanks again, Rob

So far , so good, cake is made, ganache is chilling, syrup, is done, just awaiting assembly. By the way, the chocolate turned out to be Callebaut.

A question, the recipe makes no mention if the finished cake must be kept chilled when assembled. It will be done about 7-8 hours before we eat it, will the ganache keep at room temperature or should it be kept refrigerated ?

Thanks, Rob

My problem lies in reconciling my gross habits with my net income.

- Errol Flynn

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It will depend on how long it takes to eat it. There's plenty of info in the threads on shelf life of chocolate and ganache. But, my guess is that you'll consume it before you need to worry about that. If you do decide to chill your cake just bring it back out for an hour or so to bring it to room temp before eating. And it is possible that you'll get some blooming (discoloration) which is perfectly fine to eat.

btw - I just looked and no one has reviewed their recipe, so when you're done, you should go make comments on their website.

Edited by gfron1 (log)
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Thanks for the advice, I was more concerned about the ganache getting too soft and running than I was spoilage. It definitely won't be around long enough for that.

I will write a review when done, both here and on Saveurs website.

Thanks, Rob

My problem lies in reconciling my gross habits with my net income.

- Errol Flynn

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I'm re-reading the recipe and my mind doesn't work well in measures any more (v. weights), so I can't quite guess the thickness. But they say it will be like peanut butter before you whip it, so I would think it would last fine if you keep it away from sunlight and furnace vents.

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I assumed the 24oz. of chocolate was by weight, I melted it and used 3c of heavy cream. It's been in the fridge for about and hour and is just beginning to thicken. I think it's going to take longer than 2 hours to get to peanut butter consistency so it will be done about 4 hours before dessert time. We'll keep it covered in the garage, about 55˚

thanks, rob

Edited by Recoil Rob (log)

My problem lies in reconciling my gross habits with my net income.

- Errol Flynn

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I've alway's believed that anyone who can read, follow directions and has enough manual dexterity to have sex could follow a recipe and cook. Baking is a whole different ball game.

The cake and ganache both came out perfect but the devil is in the details. I have a new found respect for cake decorating.

I went out and bought a piece of dowel to use as guides for dividing my cake into 3 even layers, I place one on either side and tried to keep my knife flat on the dowels. The first layer came out OK but the knife I was useing (my smoked fish slicer) was not rigid enough and the second layer was very uneven. I indexed all 3 layers so went they were stacked they would give a flat top and bottom.

The ganache was a bit tough to spread, especially with the rum syrup soaking the cake, but I managed. I tried to get some nice detail going on on the sides drawing from my experience as an amateur potter. The toughest part was the chocolate shavings. The chunk I had left to shave just wasn't cooperating. It was coming of very dry ad then melting in my hands. In the end it was down to taking handfuls of shavings and throwing them at the cake. :raz: The dog got a bit on the floor, but he's a trooper, he's done it before.

Still, it came out OK, I'm sure it's going to taste great, each component by itself (cake, ganache and syrup) was wonderful. I'll get a photo once it's cut later

Rob

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Edited by Recoil Rob (log)

My problem lies in reconciling my gross habits with my net income.

- Errol Flynn

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...and cut cake. Absolutely, decadent, rich, luxurious! There were four of us and we couldn't finish 1/4 of the cake, it will easily satiate 16 for dessert. The actual cake part is actually fairly light without being crumbly, the ganache is over the top.

Would definitely make it again.

Be careful with the amount of 1c of sugar, it's a bit misleading. 1/4 cup in the eggwhites, 3/4c in the syrup. I'm also not sure if the 1/4c of flour used for dusting the pan is supposed to come from the total 1-1/2c listed. They did the sugar that way but the flour is confusing. I used an additional 1/4c.

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Edited by Recoil Rob (log)

My problem lies in reconciling my gross habits with my net income.

- Errol Flynn

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