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Report: eG Chocolate and Confectionery Workshop 2014


Kerry Beal

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Friday morning we convened at Jean-Marie's and spent the day with Melissa Coppel, The Chocolatier of the Year.  She walked us through the piece she won with "Nombre Receta"IMG_2444_resize.JPGIMG_2432_resize.JPGIMG_2434_resize.JPGIMG_2438_resize.JPGIMG_2439_resize.JPGIMG_2441_resize.JPG

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That tool is a Marzipan Roller Board

http://www.pastrychef.com/MARZIPAN-ROLLERBOARD_p_1073.html

I think gfron1 is referring to another sugar tool that Jean-Marie had custom made... I'll post a photo of that item today or tomorrow if someone else doesn't get to it before me.

The white cutting board material "cigar roller" that he used to cut the hard candies is what I'm referring to.  I noted it in my blog 5 years ago because just like his new toys, he was going on and on about it being his new toy then.

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The finished bon bon.  (I like how she said Bon Bon...but I digress momentarily)

This had a fruit compote (reversible PDF) and a yogurt ganache - the shelf life was not very long at all.  I believe when we measured the aW it was somewhere around 0.63

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We then moved onto a "Lion Bar"....a formula that Jean-Marie developed to remind him of a bar back in France that he ate as a child.

You start with Rice Krispie Treats...and for RKT's, use large, store-bought marshmallows, because they work the best.  Don't use your own marshmallows.IMG_2473_resize.JPGIMG_2470_resize.JPGIMG_2472_resize.JPG

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Then, we all got a bad case of Spray Booth envy - cabinets to warm 4 or 5 spray guns, cabinets to keep your coco butter warmed to the perfect temp, a booth like no other - they use more colored cocoa butter just to clean out their gun than I use in an entire production run....

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If having a bad case of paint booth envy wasn't enough - then we shown the enrobing room(s).  The cooling tunnel is so large that they keep it in two rooms.  This also facilitates different temperatures in the enrobing room and the tunnel room.

Melissa also shared some decorating ideas...

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There was also a discussion about putting a foot on our slabbed ganache (Melissa calls this a Chablon - pardon my spelling)

We all fell in love with Melissa's guitar -

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Saturday brought Jean-Marie.  Hard filled candies; Gummies, with a marshmallow backing (not store bought)...and some wonderful off the cuff discussions about business in general.  That alone was worth the price of admission. 

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Hard filled candies - sugar work - an awesome demo with some ideas for "home" work...

Jean-Marie had an antique sugar work machine in his lobby and I asked him if he used it, he smiled and told Lionel to go get "it" and Lionel brought  back a new machine.  Hand cranked, with different dies that can be switched out to make different shaped sugar work...now that would be fun to have

 

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We were going to hold our reception by the hotel's pool, underneath the clear skies of Vegas with the bright neon lights shining off the delicate bon-bons, but Vegas was having a heat wave (yes, even in Vegas) and we didn't think that everyone's chocolates would make it very long under 95 degrees.  So, we switched up the plans and moved the party to a room, which eventually spilled out into the hallway. 

Door Prizes (donated by our very generous sponsor's) were given out - I wasn't quick enough with the camera to get everyone's picture with their booty - IMG_2552_resize.JPGIMG_2553_resize.JPGIMG_2554_resize.JPGIMG_2555_resize.JPGIMG_2556_resize.JPGIMG_2563_resize.JPG

I think we shut it down about 3:00 a.m.  and got up the next morning to do it all again....

 

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One of the amazing side effects of attending the conference is the ability to meet and get to know some truly amazing people.  The level of creativeness shown by the attendees never ceases to amaze me, regardless of whether they are professionals or hobbyist.   One such eG friend, Ilana, hasn't yet been able to make it to a conference, but has often sent us some things to share during the reception.  She's a great friend and this year, she sent us a T-Shirt from her business in Israel.  We took these to show her, that she was with us in spirit.  Can't wait until she is able to join us for a weekend

 

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Sunday was dedicated to playing in the kitchen and Melissa came in to show us some additional decorating ideas -

Jean-Marie stopped in on his "hog" - we cut the nougat and caramels from Friday and Saturday as well - Lionel stopped in for a visit; the Giant Squirrel made an appearance;

 

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...and then it was over.  We said our goodbyes, see you next year, and before Ruth and Kerry went, they attempted to channel Casino Chrissy and, like her, pay for the trip at the slot machines....

 

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Many thanks for taking the time to share.  esp. the Food.

 

i know very little about making chocolate treats, but have always enjoyed these 'blog-gets'

 

now then :

 

attachicon.gifB.Potato.jpg

 

are those two baby scoops on top of the potato what I think they are ?  is there melted cheese

 

under those Mounds ?

 

:biggrin:   glad to see a bit of Green next to it.

 

a recent "Food Unwrapped " show  from GB, S3E7  'easter special'

 

looked at Flavonols and Chocolate.  this is in chocolate you can get in GB. only one from Belgium

 

had a significant amount.

 

there there is this:

 

http://www.thechocolatelife.com/forum/topics/1978963:Topic:3401

 

Ill still eat the TJ's Dark  just in case.

 

again  thanks for sharing.

 

:biggrin:

Sour cream indeed - with cheese under - and bacon!

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The finished bon bon.  (I like how she said Bon Bon...but I digress momentarily)

This had a fruit compote (reversible PDF) and a yogurt ganache - the shelf life was not very long at all.  I believe when we measured the aW it was somewhere around 0.63

attachicon.gifIMG_2467_resize.JPG

attachicon.gifIMG_2468_resize.JPG

aW was 0.96 actually - almost water!

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So Melissa and JM had two different methods of mixing ganache.  Melissa had chocolate and liquids at 35º C before incorporating.  Also she stated that not melting the butter was just old fashioned and that ganache was fine with the butter melted in with the liquids.  

 

JM espoused the method that apparently Valrhona is using these days - add a bit of the 35º C liquid to the melted untempered chocolate at 32º C expecting all the fat to split out - then gradually introducing the remaining liquid until an emulsion is obtained.  In JM's words - "it will look like you fucked up the recipe until it comes back".  The theory being that you get better homogenization of 'all' the fats if you separate them out first.  Ganache should be 34º C when done.  

 

They used a shit load of sorbitol in their products.  They preferred sorbitol over glucose in bon bons because it doesn't change the texture (glucose making a centre more chewy).

 

When making a curd - heat to 82º C - not to 85º C - it will split at 85 but not at 82.  Apparently Morato explains why - haven't had a chance to look it up yet.

 

Centers that will be cut need at least 18% cocoa content.

 

Software to calculate aW - Prochoc or L'Envers des Matieres (available from Libraire Gourmande).

 

aW of 0.62 to 0.65 will give a shelf life of 3 months.

 

Powdered dextrose (aka powdered glucose) is used on a silpat for rolling out nougat instead of rice paper.

 

If recipe calls for silver gelatine - and you have gold - use 5% less by weight.

 

Hot water will fix a split ganache.

 

Yogurt powder will clump if you heat it.

 

Ganaches with egg yolk use invert sugar to reduce aW.

 

To make a pipeable  PDF - take 100 grams of fruit puree with 30 grams of sugar, blend with 1 kg of PDF until light and fluffy.

 

Pectin - green=slow set=jam=thermoreversible

           - yellow=amidated=apple=PDF=non thermoreversible

           -NH=thermoreversible=glacage or nappage

 

And "it's only my opinion - but it's right!"

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This gadget

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can make these shapes (and I think it can make a few more, depending on which "plate" you put in) - should be used with hard candy without a filling but for the demo we used the strawberry filled hard candy

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Kerry,

I had to laugh at the Jean-Marie/Valrhona method of mixing ganache--causing the fat to separate out deliberately.  I don't know if you remember or not, but you and I discussed difficulties I had with Valrhona's Opalys white chocolate and its tendency to split in a ganache.  So now when I encounter this supposed failure, I can just say it is the way it was meant to be!

 

Jim Dutton

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Hey Kerry, the pipeable PDF is as simple as it appears? No tricks to it that weren't needed in the notes for those who saw it being done?

 

It's kinda like wrestling a gorilla... you don't stop when you're tired, you stop when the gorilla is tired.

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