Titanium dioxide and tempering

[kannehearts]

Hi! I started tempering chocolate in December despite saying I would never temper chocolate because it looks so complicated. Now I'm whipping up chocolates for every holiday and birthday gift. I'm not the best for sure, but I've been practicing a lot and I'm feeling good about the results (usually)!
 

I'm trying to make a bark that is mainly white with some red feathering. I used titanium dioxide for the first time to try to get the white chocolate whiter, and everything seemed to be going well, but after a half hour, the red chocolate (dark) has set but the white is very tacky. I can't find any information on if titanium dioxide affects the tempering process. Did I blow it?
 

 

[TdeV]

I have no idea @kannehearts, but that looks lovely! Welcome to eGullet.

[Kerry Beal]

Welcome @kannehearts

 

Guessing the white may simply not be in temper. What method do you use to temper? Perhaps the titanium dioxide is changing the cues you use to determine temper. 

 

Looks pretty neat though!

 

 

[kannehearts]

I used the seeding method and brought the chocolate up to 110°F and back down to 87°F. It did eventually set, but it definitely has a chalky feel and, although the bark doesn't bend, the break isn't as sharp as it usually is. You can see in the photo that the bark didn't come off the acetate cleanly. It maybe just needed more time to set, or it was always going to be kind of off. Being my first go with titanium dioxide, I just eye balled the amount and kept adding until it was as white as I wanted. Which ended up being a lot. I'll reign it in next time. 

 

I'm going to do another test today. I think I added too much titanium dioxide so it just interfered with the temper. I'm hoping it will set better with less, and it isn't just a lost cause. TBD.

[Jim D.]

I have dealt with less-than-white white chocolate by adding Chef Rubber already-mixed white cocoa butter to it.  It's just a guess, but perhaps you are right that adding a large amount of titanium dioxide directly to the chocolate interferes with tempering.  Here is a previous post from Takomabaker that dealt with more or less the issue you have having.  If you are mixing your own white cocoa butter, a common recommendation is to mix 100g plain cocoa butter and 10g powdered oil-soluble color (in your case, titanium dioxide).  Most people use an immersion blender and then strain the result through very fine mesh or something similar.

[Kerry Beal]

I have used titanium dioxide that wasn't made for use with chocolate before - it never worked well. I'm not sure if there is some difference that makes it more fat compatible.

 

 

[kannehearts]

I tried again yesterday with similar results. I think I'm going to put this one down as a fail.

 

Thanks for the info Jim! I have do have white cocoa butter (I think mine is Roxy and Rich) so I'll give that a go today. At this point, I think I can learn to be content with yellowish white chocolate. I'll read through that discussion you sent as well!

[Kerry Beal]

1 minute ago, kannehearts said:

I tried again yesterday with similar results. I think I'm going to put this one down as a fail.

 

Thanks for the info Jim! I have do have white cocoa butter (I think mine is Roxy and Rich) so I'll give that a go today. At this point, I think I can learn to be content with yellowish white chocolate. I'll read through that discussion you sent as well!

Also consider white Power Flowers. 

[kannehearts]

Thanks Kerry! I saw Power Flowers briefly when I was learning how to temper and have since forgotten they are a thing. I'll look into it and see if this will help!

[kannehearts]

Hmm, I can't seem to find a retailer that will ship to the US. While looking around though, I had a thought. Buttercream often has a similarly creamy yellow tone since it is butter based. A technique I've seen bakers use is adding a very small amount of violet to negate the yellow. I wonder if that would work!

 

I have a few options to try today!

[Kerry Beal]

We've discussed them before on eG - can't recall if it's Albert Uster that carries them or another vendor, Someone here will know. 

[curls]

I’ve gotten the power flowers from Chefs Warehouse, a US distributor.

[no10]

I'm hoping to purchase Power Flowers as well. MAG (Mid America Gourmet) is one of the few distributors (that I could find) that has Power Flowers in stock and that is selling at a reasonable price. I've never purchased from them before and was curious if anyone has experience purchasing from them. Are the prices comparable to when you purchased your Power Flowers, @curls and @Kerry Beal?

 

Is the group aware of any other US distributors that sell Power Flowers besides the one I've listed below?

The Chefs Warehouse is out of stock.

The Pastry Depot is out of stock (and boy, is it expensive!).

The Pastry Chefs Boutique only sells the Color Master for some reason (maybe the actual colorants are out of stock?).

 

Edited: Mid America Gourmet seems to be a reputable distributor according to this thread.

 

Edited September 19, 2021 by no10 (log)

[curls]

All I see at MAG is pricing for individual colors. Don’t know how it compares to what I bought since I got the starter kit.
 

If you aren’t going to go thru them quickly, you may want to seal them up and store them in the freezer. I think   @Kerry Beal had issues with her white flowers going bad. 

[no10]

 

Thanks for taking a look, @curls Yes, it appears that MAG doesn't sell the starter kit, unfortunately. Did you purchase the AZO or non-AZO variant of Flower Power? Also, what are your thoughts on the product? Do you recommend using this color system?

 

Oh, yes. I saw Kerry mention that in another thread. Thanks for pointing that out.

[Kerry Beal]

10 hours ago, curls said:

All I see at MAG is pricing for individual colors. Don’t know how it compares to what I bought since I got the starter kit.
 

If you aren’t going to go thru them quickly, you may want to seal them up and store them in the freezer. I think   @Kerry Beal had issues with her white flowers going bad. 

Actually all the colours have passed their best by date now - but it has been a number of years!

[curls]

10 hours ago, no10 said:

 

Thanks for taking a look, @curls Yes, it appears that MAG doesn't sell the starter kit, unfortunately. Did you purchase the AZO or non-AZO variant of Flower Power? Also, what are your thoughts on the product? Do you recommend using this color system?

 

Oh, yes. I saw Kerry mention that in another thread. Thanks for pointing that out.

I haven’t used them all that much but I don’t airbrush or use a lot of color on my chocolates. When I have used them they have worked well. 

[no10]

Thanks for the info, @curls, and @Kerry Beal. Which variant of Power Flowers do you both have (i.e., AZO, non AZO, or From Natural Origin)?

[kimmiq]

On 9/18/2021 at 4:59 PM, no10 said:

I'm hoping to purchase Power Flowers as well. MAG (Mid America Gourmet) is one of the few distributors (that I could find) that has Power Flowers in stock and that is selling at a reasonable price. I've never purchased from them before and was curious if anyone has experience purchasing from them. Are the prices comparable to when you purchased your Power Flowers, @curls and @Kerry Beal?

 

Is the group aware of any other US distributors that sell Power Flowers besides the one I've listed below?

The Chefs Warehouse is out of stock.

The Pastry Depot is out of stock (and boy, is it expensive!).

The Pastry Chefs Boutique only sells the Color Master for some reason (maybe the actual colorants are out of stock?).

 

Edited: Mid America Gourmet seems to be a reputable distributor according to this thread.

 

if you go MAG route, be sure to check the best by date.  i ordered 3 colors from them last year, and they were all expired.

[Kerry Beal]

On 9/19/2021 at 11:39 AM, no10 said:

Thanks for the info, @curls, and @Kerry Beal. Which variant of Power Flowers do you both have (i.e., AZO, non AZO, or From Natural Origin)?

Most of mine are AZO.

[Norm Matthews]

HMM. As a potter I have been using Titanium dioxide in glazes for decades. I had no idea it was edible.  Live and learn.

[no10]

15 hours ago, kimmiq said:

if you go MAG route, be sure to check the best by date.  i ordered 3 colors from them last year, and they were all expired.

Thanks for the heads up, @kimmiq! Where you able to exchange the items with MAG with little hassle?

[no10]

7 hours ago, Norm Matthews said:

HMM. As a potter I have been using Titanium dioxide in glazes for decades. I had no idea it was edible.  Live and learn.

There's "food-grade" titanium dioxide. Titanium dioxide can be used as a white food colorant in the US but not in the EU, I believe.