Brain-pickin' time...

[chromedome]

'Lo again, all... Once again I'm looking to shamelessly Hoover ideas and suggestions from those more accomplished than me.

I'm going to be super-busy until Valentine's Day has been and gone, but I'm considering some options for my next couple of months. One thing that's been on my mind is "chocolatines," croissants with a chocolate filling. I've begun making croissant dough anyway, since I've had a lot of demand for ham-and-cheese croissants; and it seemed to me that a chocolate filling was a no-brainer alternative.

My problem is that I don't have the option at present of buying the pre-made rods of chocolate for this purpose. Ganache doesn't work very well, since it just bubbles out the ends and gets everywhere. I'm assuming that there is something along the lines of icing sugar added to the chocolate for stability, but I'm just guessing. Anybody got any input?

A second idea that struck me as viable is fudge. Tourist traps and farmer's markets alike have been selling fudge hand-over-fist for years, and I'm thinking that it's something I could sell easily in my downtown location. Can anyone recommend some good recipes for high-volume fudge-making?

Thanking you all in advance...

[chiantiglace]

fudge is so boring to me. May i suggest nougat/nougatines or different kinds of caramels to make you stand out a bit. There are thousands of different kinds.

[chefcyn]

One thing that's been on my mind is "chocolatines," croissants with a chocolate filling.  I've begun making croissant dough anyway, since I've had a lot of demand for ham-and-cheese croissants; and it seemed to me that a chocolate filling was a no-brainer alternative.

My problem is that I don't have the option at present of buying the pre-made rods of chocolate for this purpose.  Ganache doesn't work very well, since it just bubbles out the ends and gets everywhere.  I'm assuming that there is something along the lines of icing sugar added to the chocolate for stability, but I'm just guessing.  Anybody got any input?

Thanking you all in advance...

←

Chocolate chips. Lay them in the wide part of the triangle and roll. They melt but keep some of their structure--just like in cookies.

The No-fail Fudge recipe from Marshmallow Fluff tubs multiplies out well for large batches--but probably better suited to Church Bake-sales than real business.

Edited February 7, 2005 by chefcyn (log)

[aidensnd2]

Melt a bunch of chocolate, pour it into a sheet pan about 1/2 inch deep. When it's almost set cut it into rectangles the appropriate size for your croissants. Let it set and turn it out. Perfect chocolate batons for croissants.

[JFLinLA]

Okay, this is probably too plebian for what you want to do. Anyway, for years when I make hamantashen** I make both traditional and non-traditional fillings. Chocolate being non-traditional but the kids love it. After years of experimenting with a variety of ganache variations and other stuff that bubbled and scorched, last year I used Nutella. It worked great.

** Hamantashen is a triangular shaped pastry usually filled with poppy seed filling, prune lekvar, apricot lekvar, etc. It's eaten at the Jewish holiday of Purim which is coming up in a few weeks. In addition to chocolate, my "non-traditional" fillings include pecan-caramel and sweet cheese (like a cheese danish).

[chromedome]

Nutella unfortunately is out, because of the whole nut thing. I have a lot of nut-allergic and nut-averse customers. Also, I can't order it from my supplier.

Plain chocolate and ganache both seem to boil out the seams, even when sealed with egg wash or a flour-and-water "whitewash." Frustrating at best, and the heat doesn't seem to do the chocolate any favours re: flavour and texture.

I'm thinking that I'll probably go with a butter ganache that has some icing sugar worked in. That should give me a reasonable consistency, and resist the temperatures reasonably well. Wish me luck...

As for the whole "fudge is boring" thing, well...it doesn't excite me too hugely either, but it's a very down-home sort of thing and Alberta is a very down-home kind of place. Nougat is a good idea, though, and I may well look at doing something with that later on in the year.

[chefpeon]

Plain chocolate and ganache both seem to boil out the seams, even when sealed with egg wash or a flour-and-water "whitewash."

When you say "plain chocolate", do you mean chopped chocolate or some such?

I second chefcyn's suggestion to use chocolate chips. They have additives in them to prevent

them from losing their shape when melted. Because of this, they WON'T spread and leak out of your croissant. I've always used chocolate chips in my chocolate croissants.

Works great!

[scott123]

I'm not sure how long you proof your croissants for, but I freeze my chocolate chips when I add them to chocolate chip cookies - it helps a little bit.

Also, how much chocolate are you using? If you use a very sweet very dark chocolate, it shouldn't need much.

[chiantiglace]

the chips have a small amound of a candy wax that helps them retain shape well. Also makes them hard to melt with some brands especially when over agitated.

Also freezeing them does help because in a way it screws up the chocolates ability to melt due to the fact that it is moisture stricken once it comes to room temp, and we all know how bad moisture is for chocolate.

[chromedome]

The "plain chocolate" I referred to is dark Callebaut couverture in little chunks, which some call pistoles and some call callets. I know those are terms with a specific meaning, but I've heard both names used interchangeably for both products, and the individuals involved were equally adamant. Personally, I don't give a hoot either way. I just use the things.

We don't order chocolate chips any more (we use the chunks of couverture in our cookies and muffins) so that's not a long-term solution for me; but I do have a bucket or two of mini chocolate chips kicking around. I'll try those, and see how they work.

[chiantiglace]

Oh, ha, you are using coverture chocolate. Big difference. Maybe sometimes its better to use the cheap chocolate.

[chromedome]

Well, I opted for pains au chocolat rather than chocolatines, since I had some brioche dough lying around that I wanted to use up. Turns out that the chocolate chips were the answer to my dilemma, they worked out beautifully. I might "spike" them with a bit of couverture, just to improve the flavour a bit, but they seem to be working.

I put them into my display today, and sold eight of the twelve despite their being crowded into the least-visible corner of my showcase. I think that's a reasonable starting point. I made more today, and I'll run them for a couple of weeks and see how they go. At least one of today's customers was thoroughly delighted to see them, and gushed about telling everyone in her office.

We'll see.

Onwards and upwards....