Chocolate Sphere Molds

[David J.]

What about using a depositor that is slightly heated (not hot enough to knock the chocolate out of temper, but just enough to stop the chocolate from setting too quickly)

Are you suggesting something like this?

http://www.vantagehouse.com/chocolateworld..._depositing.php

I like it, but it looks expensive to me.

[polpus]

David, I think he was probably referring to something more like this: http://pastrychef.com/Catalog/confectioner...eel_1026443.htm

We use them at work and they are a real time-saver.

[gap]

What about using a depositor that is slightly heated (not hot enough to knock the chocolate out of temper, but just enough to stop the chocolate from setting too quickly)

Are you suggesting something like this?

http://www.vantagehouse.com/chocolateworld..._depositing.php

I like it, but it looks expensive to me.

←

That's not it. We used a handheld depositor in school. Made all from metal, could be warmed in an oven and was then used to deposit jellies into their silicon moulds. It could be held in one hand and had a "trigger" that opened the funnel at the bottom and closed it when released. Sort of like this:

http://www.matferbourgeatusa.com/catalog.a...00&prodid=77800

The key when buying any depositor is to make sure it is seamless (so that sugars etc do not get caught). They are built more for depositing jellies and caramels, so I'm not sure if they would work for chocolate. I just thought it might be an idea to test if you had access to one.

[gap]

David, I think he was probably referring to something more like this:  http://pastrychef.com/Catalog/confectioner...eel_1026443.htm

We use them at work and they are a real time-saver.

←

Spot on

[alanamoana]

or even cheaper, while you're practicing your technique, you can use disposable piping bags.

[David J.]

or even cheaper, while you're practicing your technique, you can use disposable piping bags.

←

Oh, a confectionary funnel!

I was looking at those already, though they too seem to be more expensive than they need to be. I was going to ask the question seperately, but this looks like a good place:

Does anyone have experience with the automatic dosing funnel vs. the manual type? It seems that it would be really handy to have one that dispenses a fixed amount per trigger pull so you could work faster and neater.

As in:

http://pastrychef.com/Catalog/portion_cont...nel_1431286.htm

I was using a disposable pastry bag to fill the mold through the small holes, but as I stated it took a minute or more to cover the whole mold and it was a more than a bit messy. The bag doesn't afford decent flow control so I ended up dribbling a lot of chocolate around as I shifted from hole to hole.

[cwant]

I had asked for a model that has a dimple molded into it: 

http://www.chocolat-chocolat.com/c210036p16408423.2.html

One pushes on the projection and it drops inside to make a small filling hole.  Filling this mold is a matter of filling the bottom half to a certain level, cliping on the top and spinning it.

Hi there,

I've just purchased that exact double mold with the dimple, and I'm not sure how to fasten the two parts together for use (it has no magnets). Can somebody familiar with that mold recommend a way to keep the two halves attached and properly aligned?

Best Regards,

Chris

[pastrygirl]

I am only making tiny numbers of chocolates and have just started using the truffle shells after doing a one day course at my local college.

The instructor showed us how to use the plastic packaging for the shells to make your own filling template.

The sheet that sits on top of the moulds when they come out of the box has a few holes in already and if you are very patient and have a pair of sharp scissors you can cut out a nice little circle in each dimple to make your piping hole.

When you come to pipe in your filling you just sit this back on top of the shells and it traps any drips/smudges so long as the holes are not too big.  I got tired cutting holes and just made a 4x4 shell template but it can easily be moved across the tray so long as you haven't been too messy with the piping.

I managed to wash it out afterwards but not sure how long it will last before it cracks or splits.

Its a good way to get started anyway!

←

I just took a class where we capped the truffle shells by piping a bit of chocolate into an extra tray (the ones the shells come in), then flipping it over on top of the tray of filled truffles, sealing them all at once. Pretty clever. It might work for David if he buys a couple trays of pre-made shells that are the same size as his.

photo here: http://www.flickr.com/photos/11037087@N02/...57614866602288/

[Kerry Beal]

I had asked for a model that has a dimple molded into it: 

http://www.chocolat-chocolat.com/c210036p16408423.2.html

One pushes on the projection and it drops inside to make a small filling hole.  Filling this mold is a matter of filling the bottom half to a certain level, cliping on the top and spinning it.

Hi there,

I've just purchased that exact double mold with the dimple, and I'm not sure how to fasten the two parts together for use (it has no magnets). Can somebody familiar with that mold recommend a way to keep the two halves attached and properly aligned?

Best Regards,

Chris

←

Chopsticks through the holes is a good way. They do make mold clips for them but they are a bear to use. Let me know if you want a couple - I bought a bunch and never use them.

[cwant]

Chopsticks through the holes is a good way.  They do make mold clips for them but they are a bear to use.  Let me know if you want a couple - I bought a bunch and never use them.

←

Thanks very much Kerry, I'll try the chopsticks. One other idea I had was to use some plastic screws and washers to align and seal the two halves together, but that sounds like too much work to do while the chocolate is setting.

Thank you for the kind offer of the clips! I'll try a few things and if I don't have any luck I might take you up on that.

Best regards,

Chris

[cwant]

Well, I picked up some plastic bolts and wing nuts from Home Depot and they seem to hold the two halves together fairly well, but I now have additional challenges ...

One pushes on the projection and it drops inside to make a small filling hole.  Filling this mold is a matter of filling the bottom half to a certain level, cliping on the top and spinning it.

I've been trying this, but I find the chocolate sets pretty quickly and I don't get a very even coverage of the shells (sometimes it sets so quickly that it doesn't cover the entire shell). Even vigourously shaking the molds doesn't seem to move the chocolate. I'm considering filling the two halves separately, dumping the excess, and trying to put the halves together before they set (and hopefully without losing too much chocolate from the top half).

Does anybody have any other advice on a good way to ensure the mold produces nice shells?

Cheers,

Chris

[John DePaula]

Well, I picked up some plastic bolts and wing nuts from Home Depot and they seem to hold the two halves together fairly well, but I now have additional challenges ...

One pushes on the projection and it drops inside to make a small filling hole.  Filling this mold is a matter of filling the bottom half to a certain level, cliping on the top and spinning it.

I've been trying this, but I find the chocolate sets pretty quickly and I don't get a very even coverage of the shells (sometimes it sets so quickly that it doesn't cover the entire shell). Even vigourously shaking the molds doesn't seem to move the chocolate. I'm considering filling the two halves separately, dumping the excess, and trying to put the halves together before they set (and hopefully without losing too much chocolate from the top half).

Does anybody have any other advice on a good way to ensure the mold produces nice shells?

Cheers,

Chris

←

You could try pre-warming the mold to a few degrees below the working temperature of your chocolate e.g. 27/28C for dark. You just need to be careful to avoid hot spots in the mold which would de-temper the chocolate.

[cwant]

You could try pre-warming the mold to a few degrees below the working temperature of your chocolate e.g. 27/28C for dark.  You just need to be careful to avoid hot spots in the mold which would de-temper the chocolate.

Thanks John, I'll give it a try (although yeah, the thought of de-tempering the chocolate is a bit intimidating).

Cheers,

Chris

[John DePaula]

You could try pre-warming the mold to a few degrees below the working temperature of your chocolate e.g. 27/28C for dark.  You just need to be careful to avoid hot spots in the mold which would de-temper the chocolate.

Thanks John, I'll give it a try (although yeah, the thought of de-tempering the chocolate is a bit intimidating).

Cheers,

Chris

←

I use one of my 6kg Mol d'art melters - nice even heat. Might be possible to use a heating pad covered with 1 or 2 tea towels.

[Lior]

Bringing back this topic.

Did you work anything out? Why are there those little "necks" on the one half of the "ball" I wonder why the hole isn't flat without that neck...

Are there other truffle ball molds around? I seem to remember one without that neck.

[David J.]

Bringing back this topic.

Did you work anything out? Why are there those little "necks" on the one half of the "ball" I wonder why the hole isn't flat without that neck...

Are there other truffle ball molds around? I seem to remember one without that neck.

←

Yes, there is one with a sort of dimple that you push though once you demold it. I was looking for that originally but ended up with this mold instead.

It's a toss up whether it's better to have a hole (and thus a neck) or not. If you don't have a neck you must be quite precise in the amount of chocolate you put in each cavity to end up with the correct shell thickness. If you have a hole, then you can drain the mold like any other so you can overfill it with no problem.

The neck is just the thickness of the mold wall. To eliminate it the mold would have to thin out to a knife edge thickness around the bottom which would probably make it too delicate.

I haven't used it in quite some time, but this is what I did last:

I cut a piece of stiff cardboard to fit just inside the bottom of the mold and covered it with plastic wrap. I used this to cover the holes in the mold to start. Then I ladled chocolate into solid bottom and used a soft spatula to clean it up a bit before snapping on the top. I rotated the filled mold as you would any fully closed mold, then removed the cardboard and drained the mold. I let it sit to crystalize, then put it in the fridge for a bit as with any normal mold.

I set it upside down such that the necks were down and broke the mold open. I found that most if not all of the balls would remain in the bottom because of the necks. I then pushed each ball out by pushing the necks out of the mold. It worked best if the necks were a bit thick so I had something to push against.

Then I removed the necks with a tiny hobby saw or knife. I suppose you could use a heated butter knife as well.

I probably haven't played with it due to the extra effort required over standard molds. It doesn't speed normal production of hand dipped pieces because of that , and because you still have to dip you don't get the shine of a normal mold. The one thing I would use it for would be liquid filled pieces because it's easy to close without a sugar shell.

On the other hand I might try it again. I could just cast a tray or two each time I temper a batch of chocolate, and over time I'd have enough shells to do something with.

[Lior]

Ok thanks! Someone on my local forum asked and so I got curious if there was any new way that I did not know about! Thanks!

[Lior]

I would like to bump up this topic. I keep seeing this question on how to use these molds at home on different forums-also local ones here. I don't have this mold and it is hard to imagine the issues involved but I am curious to whether anyone found a way to use them at home. Or do they just sit around unused? Why can't it be a simple double mold of half spheres? Why all the complications of extra holes, a neck?

[mostlylana]

I have this mold and use it successfully. The holes are there so you can create hollow truffle shells (just like the ones you buy). I bought it because I couldn't find organic truffle shells anywhere.

Only 1 side has holes in it. The other side is half spheres without holes. I place that side on my vibrator and, using a squeeze bottle, I fill each half sphere about 2/3 to 3/4 full with chocolate. If you make it too full, the chocolate doesn't pour out easily when you need it to. Also, the squeeze bottle doesn't take long at all once you get the hang of it. This mold has too many bumps and ridges to just fill and scrape.

OK, once the half spheres are all full, click the other side on (it's magnetic). I now vibrate it on all sides so that the chocolate almost pours out of the 'necks'. Once you do it a few times you'll get the angle. You want the chocolate to completely coat the whole sphere.

I then hold it upside down over my melter with the holes face down and 'tap, tap, tap' to get out excess chocolate. It should pour right out. If you put too much chocolate in to begin with the necks might get plugged with chocolate. Then you need to take a toothpick and poke it in the neck to create a flow. I've gotten pretty good at getting the right amount of chocolate in the half sphere to prevent that extra step.

I keep the mold upside down to set.

When you take them out of the mold they look like Christmas tree decorations with their little necks. I take a sharp knife and chop their little necks off (bawh, ha, ha!!!). They actually come off really easily. Then you're left with a truffle shell to fill. I tried filling before removing them from the mold but it didn't work well for me. However, if you have a very liquidy center, I think it would be no problem at all.

[Lior]

thank you Lana!! Sounds rather uncomplicated!

[Lior]

Getting back to this thread...Lana I posted a link on my local forum to this thread so my friends there could read your idea as well as the whole thread. A lovely lady, who works with a dentist and is talented with chocolate had a new idea and I want to post it here. She gave me permission. So here is Emma's method:

1. Emma looked for for something hollow with a circumference that matched the neck's opening. At first she tried a straw, but it was too small/narrow. While at work she noticed that the tip of the power suction that the dentist uses (yes!) That piece of equipment that suctions at dentist, might be the right size. It has fda approval BTW! She took a few home(with permission) and walla!! It fit the mold perfectly!!

2.Emma inserted the tip and through it piped in chocolate, did the usual banging and emptied out the extra chocolate. The tip prevented a neck from forming!

pictures:

with tip

tip removed

filled with ganache

sealed

finished

[curls]

Just got a Chocolate World double mold, CW1513. How do I clamp these together? It is not the type of mold that will clamp together with binder clips. I suspect something goes through the holes in the middle of the mold to tie everything together... but what should I use? Thanks for your help!

If it will help, I can take a picture of the mold and post it.

Edited February 10, 2011 by curls (log)

[gap]

I can't see the actual mould from the link. Is it a clamp mould or do you just make each half of the design and then stick them together once they have been unmoulded?

[Kerry Beal]

I use chop sticks though the holes then turn the mold on it's side.

[curls]

Thanks Kerry, I'll look through my chopsticks and see if any of them fit.