Transfer Sheets: Tips, Techniques & Care

[curls]

Why do you need to heat your molds if your room is at 76,? I don't know if the warm room is causing the issues... can you cool the room and work at around 72 F? Also try working with your tempered chocolate at its max working temperature, 88 F is on the low side for dark chocolate.

[keychris]

your room is pretty warm, as curls said. I'd want it a bit cooler - I think perhaps your chocolate isn't setting up nicely right at the start because it's so warm.

[pastryani]

Left vs right, mostly non-smudged vs mostly smudged.  Sigh.

 

Why does this happen?  Was my chocolate too warm?  I painted the corners with a chocolatey brush to prevent air bubbles, but that was only in the corners and I certainly didn't linger with the paintbrush.  Ideas?

 

[AnythingButPlainChocolate]

It almost looks like the sheet moved as there's a faint first impression from the image, but I may be wrong.

[Kerry Beal]

5 hours ago, AnythingButPlainChocolate said:

It almost looks like the sheet moved as there's a faint first impression from the image, but I may be wrong.

Raises the question as to whether they were completely flat initially.

[pastryani]

Thanks both.  It kind of does look like the sheet moved, but I'm not sure how that would've happened (I cut the sheet so that it was laying flat when I attached the magnetic bottom to it).  Also I should've specified that all the chocolates in the picture above were from a single casting in that mold, so if the transfer moved then wouldn't all the images be fuzzy?

[Ciordia9]

We work with transfer sheets regularly but most of them are not double backed. By that I mean most of them are one layer, not backed with a white layer. I'm having a real problem with consistency in the thicker sheets as seen attached. We attach these individually as they come out of the enrober but it doesn't feel like we're getting enough heat penetration to do a full transfer.

 

Anyone share some tips on thicker applications like these? Our short run came out fine but as soon as we went into production of course the first batch ends up being shot.

[teonzo]

Since you are talking about an enrober then you must be using a tempering machine too. Try raising the chocolate temperature as high as possible (32° C for dark).

Another thing: when placing the centers on the enrober, it's better to place them at 45°, so the first (and last, mainly) thing being enrobed is a corner and not a full side.

 

 

 

Teo

 

[Eat.Choui]

How long do you wait before ripping the transfers off after the chocolates have been enrobed?  

 

Sometimes we stick the chocolates in the frig for 5-10 minutes and rip one transfer off to check.

[Ciordia9]

Thanks @teonzo we definitely have our temps around that range to begin with but we'll double/triple check. The diagonal we've pondered, thanks for pushing us to try that.

 

@Eat.Choui, we give them plenty of time to setup. I don't think we've ever removed them early by any standard. I wonder if inversely waiting too long could be a culprit.

By putting it in the fridge--where would that help diagnose? If you've run a flight and chill down some and you have a problem, by then there's no fixing it? Or are you running one small flight..?

 

It's always peculiar. Just ran another few flights and they all came out fine. So bothersome to not easily put a finger on things. At this point fluctuations in room temp could be a culprit.

[Jim D.]

@Ciordia9, I know what I'm about to ask about is not your real concern in this thread, but I wanted to ask about the white-backed transfer sheets. I have long thought that would be a good idea because so many colors work only on white chocolate. Red always looks great in the pictures posted by the vendors, but in reality, when used with milk or dark chocolate, it becomes a muddy brownish color. In reality many of the most beautiful transfer sheets turn out to be disappointments, and the photos used to advertise them often amount to false advertising. I have never seen any white-backed transfers in the U.S.  I don't know where you are located, but can you tell us where you got yours?

[Ciordia9]

Hiya @Jim D., all good mate!  We use Choco Transfer Sheets for generic ones and for customs Chef Rubber.

[teonzo]

5 hours ago, Ciordia9 said:

we definitely have our temps around that range to begin with but we'll double/triple check

 

If you were using the correct chocolate temperature and you had no troubles with the following batch, then it can mean that some transfer sheets went out of temper while in storage. Maybe you stored them for a short period in a hot place and the ones that went out of temper were the ones on the top of the box. Or the courier did such a thing, after all we are just at the end of summer. So you should think about when you received those transfer sheets and where you stored them.

 

 

 

5 hours ago, Ciordia9 said:

The diagonal we've pondered, thanks for pushing us to try that.

 

Putting them in diagonal will end up with finished pralines without tails. All the ones in the photo have the big tails because of how they were placed. Putting them in diagonal will save you quite some time.

 

 

 

Teo

 

[Jim D.]

I find that using magnetic molds with transfer sheets is a useful shortcut to supplement other more time-consuming bonbon decorations when dealing with what are for me large numbers of Christmas chocolate orders (certainly faster than getting out the airbrush equipment and tempering cocoa butters). But finding decent transfers is another matter. Many of them have beautiful colors (such as red) which turn brown when placed on anything but white chocolate (never mind the fact that the online photos from the vendors show a vibrant red atop dark chocolate). Many of the designs are too large (that is, the "repeat" of the pattern is too high and so you end up with a snippet of the design on each chocolate). Someone just gave me a small box of chocolates from a shop in northern Virginia that are, IMHO, strikingly beautiful (I ate one of the pieces before I decided to try finding the transfer sheets used). Has anyone seen any transfers like this:

 

Edited December 3, 2019 by Jim D. (log)

[pastrygirl]

@Jim D. those are nice, no idea who makes them, can you call the chocolatier and ask?

 

On the issue of repeating pattern sizes, Chef Rubber makes some designs that are 1.75" squares with individual images.  Maybe other transfer sheet makers offer these too?  https://shop.chefrubber.com/products/107/1-75in-x-1-75in-squares/

[Jim D.]

12 hours ago, pastrygirl said:

@Jim D. those are nice, no idea who makes them, can you call the chocolatier and ask?

 

 

I guess I assumed they would not wish to reveal their source. As I think more about those particular transfers, I'm wondering if they have them custom made. It's obvious they are applied to dipped chocolates, not used in magnetic molds, and each is 1" x 1". The fact that the shop is named Fleurir might explain why most of them have a flower motif and could argue for custom transfers. I was struck by the self-confident statement on the guide to the flavors enclosed in the box:  "probably the most delicious box of chocolates you have ever eaten." They did make the New York Times list as creating one of the "10 best American small-batch, chocolate-covered salted caramels" in the USA (obviously the Times didn't sample Seattle's best )

[keychris]

6 hours ago, Jim D. said:

I was struck by the self-confident statement on the guide to the flavors enclosed in the box:  "probably the most delicious box of chocolates you have ever eaten." 

 

For most people it's probably accurate. 99% of the population are perfectly happy eating a $2 'chocolate' bar from Cadbury or Nestle and wouldn't even think to pay the asking price that artisan products require. Anyone that's done a market has had the customers who say "I could buy X with what you're charging here!" ...

 

I better stop before I get into a full rant 😂

[Jim D.]

27 minutes ago, keychris said:

 

For most people it's probably accurate. 99% of the population are perfectly happy eating a $2 'chocolate' bar from Cadbury or Nestle and wouldn't even think to pay the asking price that artisan products require. Anyone that's done a market has had the customers who say "I could buy X with what you're charging here!" ...

 

I better stop before I get into a full rant 😂

 

How true. Just outside the city where I live is one of the largest Hershey factories in the U.S. The big excitement is that they are going to start making Reese's Cups there! I recently raised my prices to the point where they almost cover my expenses, and, as I predicted but knowledgeable customers assured me would not happen, sales have diminished.

[pastrygirl]

13 hours ago, Jim D. said:

 

I guess I assumed they would not wish to reveal their source. ... I was struck by the self-confident statement on the guide to the flavors enclosed in the box:  "probably the most delicious box of chocolates you have ever eaten." They did make the New York Times list as creating one of the "10 best American small-batch, chocolate-covered salted caramels" in the USA (obviously the Times didn't sample Seattle's best )

 

I guess some people are secretive, but I feel like a source referral shouldn't be a big deal.

 

7 hours ago, keychris said:

 

For most people it's probably accurate. 99% of the population are perfectly happy eating a $2 'chocolate' bar from Cadbury or Nestle and wouldn't even think to pay the asking price that artisan products require. Anyone that's done a market has had the customers who say "I could buy X with what you're charging here!" ...

 

I better stop before I get into a full rant 😂

 

6 hours ago, Jim D. said:

 

How true. Just outside the city where I live is one of the largest Hershey factories in the U.S. The big excitement is that they are going to start making Reese's Cups there! I recently raised my prices to the point where they almost cover my expenses, and, as I predicted but knowledgeable customers assured me would not happen, sales have diminished.

 

Sad that you've seen a difference since raising prices. 

 

The self-confidence is definitely tricky for  a lot of artisans.  Obviously we believe in what we do enough to keep doing it, but the sales and self promotion don't always come naturally. 

 

So the other day I was tying ribbons around my 9 piece bonbon boxes and feeling happy with them, thinking $18 is a justifiable price.  (They've been $18 for a while, sometimes I'll do $16 in smaller towns or if I need to get rid of them.)   Then I saw that another local chocolatier is now carrying a 3rd chocolatier's bonbons, $25 for a 6 piece box!!!  Are you kidding me, $4 each for a bonbon?  3rd chocolatier always strikes me as very confident, is definitely talented and probably had more extensive training than most of us.  But still ... should I be charging way more or is that ridiculous?  It's still just candy, no matter how much time you spent studying it.  I could bump my 9 piece up to $20 ... 3rd chocolatier is outside of town so should have much lower expenses, maybe it's 2nd chocolatier's pricing?  It is hard to actually make a living ... ok, how about $25 for the 9 piece? 😂

 

I have some people in my life who always tell me to charge more but I do have customers occasionally ask for discounts or say it's out of budget so I'll give a discount.  Another challenge, not being able to say no 🙄.

 

Anyway, back to transfers, I haven't used these folks but pricing on custom doesn't seem that bad ...

https://www.americanchocolatedesigns.com/custom-transfer-sheets-1.html

 

 

Edited December 5, 2019 by pastrygirl (log)

[gap]

On 12/5/2019 at 3:44 PM, pastrygirl said:

Anyway, back to transfers, I haven't used these folks but pricing on custom doesn't seem that bad ...

https://www.americanchocolatedesigns.com/custom-transfer-sheets-1.html

 

My family bought me custom transfers from them 11 years ago and I still have them/use them!! I store them in a room that often gets to 28C+ (it's hard not to in summer Australia) but they lie flat and in the dark. They still work perfectly.

Edited December 6, 2019 by gap (log)

[pastrygirl]

@Jim D. fleurir says their transfers are all custom designs - didn’t say who printed the transfers but that’s a start (I asked on Instagram)

[Jim D.]

1 hour ago, pastrygirl said:

@Jim D. fleurir says their transfers are all custom designs - didn’t say who printed the transfers but that’s a start (I asked on Instagram)

That's what I was guessing since (as I said) they mostly conform to the "fleur" theme. You are bolder than I am about asking them, so I thank you.

[Kerry Beal]

A few years back Chef Rubber carried a series of transfers with similarities to these custom ones.

[Kerry Beal]

Nope - I was wrong - these are what I was thinking about - 

 

[Jim D.]

I just received a notice from ChocoTransferSheets as follows:

 

Quote

We are reaching out to inform you that, due to unforeseen circumstances, Choco will be temporarily closed until further notice.

 

I had received several notices recently about price reductions in their products, but our warm fall weather discouraged placing an order.  It sounds as if reopening of the company is an "iffy" proposition.  Of course this is a season when those who use transfer sheets usually stock up for the holidays.  ChocoTransferSheets was unique (as far as I was able to determine) in being able to make any color opaque.  Reds did not turn dark red/brown but stayed a bright red.  I do not know what their secret was, perhaps some use of white that did not distort the displayed color.  I have used several other vendors--and have many bags with their non-opaque transfers that I will never use--except perhaps for bonbons molded in white chocolate.

 

Does anyone have suggestions for another source?