Forum Activity for @Clay

Polishing Panned Products

Posted in: Tech Help, Tips, Tricks, Techniques

Colin -

Try using quantities of bamboo bio-char. I ran across this company a couple of years ago and have used this product in a number of installations where the problem was not quite as severe as the one you're describing. This is a US company but I know they source their bamboo bio-char in SE Asia.

They are quite cheap (the large bags retail for US$23 each) and are good for about 50 cubic meters. You might need four or five or more to address the problem - but they are still really cheap and they require no energy. You could get many more than you need and instead of cycling them monthly, cycle them weekly.

BTW - these bags are also good in refrigerated display cases where there is no humidity control as well as for any application where refrigeration is required and humidity is a problem.

Polishing Panned Products

Posted in: Tech Help, Tips, Tricks, Techniques

Here in Australia we are having really strange weather. Bushfires and record temperatures a couple of weeks back and then very heavy rainfall. It's all adding up to high humidity which is proving "interesting" for chocolate - especially polishing in a pan.

At the moment I can't get below about 60% RH although I have had my dehumidifier on for days with the room closed.

I have a home based business working out of a converted "spare room". I know that I need to work more on sealing it better. But there is more to the problem than that. When the temperature reduces the RH increases. Sadly the dehumidifer also stops working or it goes into a "de-ice cycle" and then the RH soars and if I am polishing I have MAJOR problems.

While there is seemingly nothing I can about it (the manufacturer tells me) I HAVE to fix the problem.

One thought is a dehumidifier that also heats the air to drive up the "dew point". More "non-chocolate" technology to get my head around and pay for too. I think costly.

Another is to use a dessicant dehumidifier. In essence, the raw, moist air is blown into a silica gel wheel where the water is removed. The wheel then goes through a heater where the water is driven off and exhausted to the outside air and then the cycle is repeated.

SOUNDS like a neat solution and seemingly not too costly (about $5,000).

But I don't know anyone that has done this.

Does anyone have any comments please? I need to fix the problem!

Thanks!

Colin

updated by @Colin Green: 04/11/25 09:27:36

Caramel chocolate bits

Posted in: Recipes

Am looking for how best i can do caramel bits quated with chocolates ?i got customer who wants them for ice cream topping and some customers just want to nibble on them

help please

Thankyou and glad to be here

updated by @French hellen: 04/12/15 10:28:57

Time allotment

Posted in: Tech Help, Tips, Tricks, Techniques

Hi Gap,

I really appreciate your post! great stuff and from my limited experience and reading I have come up with similar times. Im glad you made a point on the little dipper machine because Im very close to purchasing an analog model. On the Hilliard website it says that it is a compact melting and tempering unit so I think it should be fine.

Again thanks for the reply

Kelly

Time allotment

Posted in: Tech Help, Tips, Tricks, Techniques

Kelly - this is a bit like asking how long a piece of string is but I'll try and give some guidance from my (limited) experience.

I seem to remember the Behomer Roaster has a 2lb - 2 1/2lbcapacity and the times seem to be roughly 16-20 mins per roast (I haven't used one before, so I'm just going from what I've read). So 20lb would be 2-3 hours of roasting time.

I haven't used a Crankenstein, but cracking doesn't take a long time - 20lb would take me approx 10-15 mins at home using a Champion, so I can't imagine it would take much longer than that . . . maybe half an hour??

Homemade winnower will depend entirely on your design and how efficient it is.

Pre-grinding I don't do but I have seen it done on Youtube videos and it seems fairly quick with a hand-crank device . . . maybe another 30 mins

Spectra . . . this is your swing variable. I've had my chocolate in the machine for as little as 8 hours and as long as 30 hours. Depends on the beans, sugar, milk powders etc you're using and flavour you're aiming for.

Tempering and moulding can be time consuming initially but is something you get quicker at and depends on your setup. I have not used a Little Dipper, but believe it is a melting tank rather than a tempering machine. I hand temper and mould my bars with a Mold Art 6kg melting tankand would take ~2 hours for 20lbs based on my setup. 20lbs is a lot though - if you wanted to do it all in one go you'd need quite a few bar moulds and a large capacity melting tank.

Cleanup also takes time and depends on your setup and how clean you work.

Time allotment

Posted in: Tech Help, Tips, Tricks, Techniques

I have been doing some preliminary research into home brewing chocolate set up. My question referes to time allotment for each step in the process using the following equipment,

Behmor Roaster

Crankanstein Cracker

Home Made Winnower

Pregrinder

Spectra 11 Melanger

Little dipper temper

If anyone has any suggestions or other forums to point me to please by all mean and any help is appreciated. Im costing and would like to know approximate times on say 20lbs of cocoa.

updated by @Kelly Sayers: 04/11/25 09:27:36

purchasing chocolate for tempering

Posted in: Allow Me to Introduce Myself

hi everyone

can anyone tell me please about brands of chocolate that i could use for doing bon-bons ?

and if so, where to buy them? cause ordering on-line will cost a lot cause of the weight, and i don't want to pay an addition 30 something dollars just for shipping and all

i live in northfield NJ... i would love to hear if they're shops that i could buy from

thank you

uriya

updated by @uriya laster: 04/10/15 16:07:15

Choco Lovers-Take a look at Tempting Chocolates

Posted in: Self Promotion / Spam

Tempting chocolates implies Zoroy Luxury Chocolates. Here I have found wide variety of chocolates nutty centers, crunches, rich truffles, soft caramels and many more with the good quality and considerable price. I was searching for good online chocolate shopping in Bangalore and I found that Zoroy Luxury Chocolates is the best choice.

www.zoroy.com

updated by @arvinth: 04/30/15 18:49:15

Tempering Machine

Posted in: Tech Help, Tips, Tricks, Techniques

Javier -

I was not far from you last week -- in and around Piura and Lima.

Any "batch" tempering machine, like the Chocovision (including X3210 or Delta) need seed chocolate. This means that in order to temper properly you need already-tempered chocolate. If you are making chocolate bean-to-bar this means that you probably have to table temper the chocolate by hand for at least the first batch.

As you are already tempering by hand, this should not be an issue for you.

As for the difference between the two, it's really a question of how much you need to produce in a day, you match the working bowl capacity to your production. Chocovision offers a baffle that takes the Delta from about 4.25kg to about 8kg, and they also make a larger machine - at about 15kg and I hear there are even larger machines being worked on. With a Rev Delta and the holey baffle you should be able to temper 25kg per day or so.

Hilliards say The Little Dipper can do a max of about 12kg per day.

The difference in capacity could make it easy to choose one over the other.

Tempering Machine

Posted in: Tech Help, Tips, Tricks, Techniques

Hello The Chocolate life members

Let me introduce myself, my name is javier and i am from Peru

I have been making chocolate from bean to bar the last six months.. we have always been tempering the chocolate manually ... eventough we now have enough knowledge to not mess up the chocolate it is still a hard task so we are thinking on investing into a Chocolate temperer..

We have been using quite sucesfully the Cocoatown melangers machines.. since we have the Cocoa in liquid I would like to know if any of you can reccommend me a good machine to temper the chocolate\

Im thinking about buying from Chocovision Revolation Delta or Hilliards Little Deeper.. which one do u guys think will temper the chocolate better (knowing the fact that I have the chocolate in liquid straight out of the Cocoatown melanger)

I will really appreciate your comments

FYI I hope you can come to visit Pucallpa in Peru one day! beatiful Criollo beans

I hope you can help me and sorry for my grammatical mistakes but my first language is Spanish

Gracias

Javier - Chaqchao PERU

updated by @Chaqchao: 04/11/25 09:27:36

Magnetic Chocolate Mold Templates

Posted in: Tech Help, Tips, Tricks, Techniques

Hi

I'm looking for templates for my choc. molds, specifically the heart (DCRPDR9013) & the oval (11271). Other than making my own (last resort) I was hoping that someone might already have some templates that they would like to share, possibly?

I have looked into the Chocolate Artist Software, and apparently that has been discontinued according to Chocolate World/Deco UK (plus it was ridiculously priced). I was able to download the software but I need a USB stick to print, perhaps someone has one that they might like to sell?

Any help would be appreciated,

Thanks

Deb

updated by @Debra Farnum: 04/11/25 09:27:36

Chocolate Molds

Posted in: Classifieds ARCHIVE

In the multiple links posted above your comment...

Chocolate Molds

Posted in: Classifieds ARCHIVE

Hello everyone, I need too plastic chocolate molds. Could you tell me where I can buy it?

Thanks lot!

Chocolate Molds

Posted in: Classifieds ARCHIVE

Thanx i will check it now

Chocolate Molds

Posted in: Classifieds ARCHIVE

Thanx a buncj really helpful!

Chocolate Molds

Posted in: Classifieds ARCHIVE

You could also try JB PRince at http://www.jbprince.com/chocolate-and-sugar-work/chocolate-molds.asp

or Chef Rubber ( www.chefrubber.com )

They both havea big selection.

Chocolate Molds

Posted in: Classifieds ARCHIVE

There are a handful of good websites where you can find them. I like:

http://tomric.com/moulds

http://www.chocolat-chocolat.com/home/chocolate-molds/index.html

http://www.bakedeco.com/dept.asp?id=347#.UQa67qXhDZs

Hope you can find what your looking for.

-Duncan

Chocolate Molds

Posted in: Classifieds ARCHIVE

Hello everyone i was wondering if anyone can advice on where can i buy chocolate polycarbonate molds one where they have lots of varities and also professional truffle molds. Help please
updated by @Christine de Massis: 04/07/25 13:00:14

Anyone have a favorite cacao powder and cacao butter they use?

Posted in: Tasting Notes

Looking for advice on buying good bulk cacao powder and cacao butter. I appreciate any help!

Thanks,

Julie

updated by @Julie MacQueen: 04/20/15 01:15:05

Experience with enrobers

Posted in: Tech Help, Tips, Tricks, Techniques

Thanks for your reply. I do certainly think that the continous tempering is better then the halfautomatic versions.The longer take off table would be suitable for two persons working. But it would also get you some more seconds to turn off the belt before anything enrobed can hit the floor.And today I got an email from the FBM factory telling me that they could equip the chocolab with a longer take off table if I consider that.By the way thanks for the video.

Experience with enrobers

Posted in: Tech Help, Tips, Tricks, Techniques

Maya, I know you probably do want only user's opinion, but please let me explain why Chocolab is as it is.

First of all it was designed to face a huge variety of jobs. It is ergonomical in a sense that is not bulky and is made to give upgradable possibilities (mold loader, heated/cooled cabinet). Then operator has a bigger working room for molds, decorations and so on. You can even melt solid chocolate on the left room placed aside of the 12 kg melting bowl.

The difference in enrober's sizes is: - 13 cm for the loading and enrobing section and - 40 cm for take off section.

The question is: how long is the tray you will use to take the paper (and products) off the enrober? And where are you placing it to finish/cooling the product?

About your question "is a longer take off table a big advantage or not" consider that you will need more time to fill it completely.

Then you have also to consider if you are going to work on it with two people or only one!

Is it longer to temper chocolate (do you need more time for the whole cycle) or to enrobe?

The continuous tempering process allows you to keep on working without breaks (you can add liquid chocolate to the bowl while it is tempering and enrobing), the longer takeoff table allows you to put more products on the paper but it requires more time to do that.

That's why we made Chocolab as it is.

So it depends on how you are going to arrange your job and what is more important for you.

I posted this video for you: http://www.thechocolatelife.com/video/choco-lab-enrober

Experience with enrobers

Posted in: Tech Help, Tips, Tricks, Techniques

I have a small shop and mostly sell my handmade pralins.After some years without any machinery I do now look for an enrobingmachine.I've looked a bit deeper at FBM:s Chocolab but also at Dedy 220.Both machines seems capable but has different strengths.The Chocolab has continous tempering but seems to be less ergonomical and the take off table is very short.The Dedy looks more dedicated to enrobing but without the continous tempering.Has anybody used any of these machines and are able to give me some comments in how they work in reality?Is a longer take off table a big advantage or not?Is the continous tempering a big advantage when mostly doing enrobing?By the way, great site and many interesting discussions.
updated by @Maya Choklad: 04/11/25 09:27:36

What to do with all my chocolate?

Posted in: Opinion

I have been sourcing liquor from a few places and playing around with sugar and butter content, along with time in the melanger. Right now there is probably 40 pounds of barred chocolate, some of it more for drinking being it was made with liquor made in the campo in the Dominican Republic with some rural women groups using Sanchez beans or roasting over wood. I still have more than 20 pounds more liquor to grind/conch.

I have always given my chocolate away and being I make it at home, am unable to sell it to the general public. Everyone has very good things to say about the chocolate but I am not completely happy yet with what I am producing. It would be nice to at least recuperate my costs to I can keep experimenting.

Also, I can roll and dip a pretty good truffle and my chocolate cupcakes are the best.

Any suggestions?

updated by @Thomas Forbes: 04/10/15 09:49:59

Raw Cacao product supplier

Posted in: Make Mine Raw ... (Read-Only)

That's an interesting point with regards to different definitions and I suppose there is no reason why their interpretation of raw should be unconventional, they probably think the same of the raw food community's definition of raw

I wholesale the product so I'm responding to customer requirements who are most likely responding to their customer requirements, who are most likely simply equating raw with healthy. I think as the raw market is going more mainstream, a lot of the new consumers of raw products are buying into a lifestyle and in a time-poor world they are not educating themselves to become discerning consumers... raw is not the be all and end all, and it may not be the best option when all things (e.g. price, taste, nutrient content) are considered. So there's consumer pull for the raw cacao products, and there is also manufacturer pull. I'm guessing a lot of the raw chocolate bar manufacturers see having raw chocolate as good from a marketing persepective. It may not be the best tasting chocolate in the world and it may not be the most healthy treat in the world but it taps into its own niche.

I'd also like to see some more research on the health benefits of raw and unraw and the temperature at which enzyme loss increases for different products, particularly cacao.

Ultimately, it's about helping consumers make more informed choices about what their buying and eating. Organic designation does help in this regard but in some ways "raw" can be a distraction as raw doesn't always equal best.

Raw Cacao product supplier

Posted in: Make Mine Raw ... (Read-Only)

Have you contacted Pacari directly? Are you sure you understand correctly?

It may be as you suspect, that they are using un-roasted beans to make the butter so that's why the consider it to be raw. If they're processing it to 100C then it's not raw by the definition of the raw chocolate community. That doesn't make their definition unconventional, you're just speaking different languages. You are speaking the language of the raw foodist community, they are speaking the language of cocoa processors.

I have a much more interesting question for you - and this is something I pose to everyone in the raw chocolate world when they start asking about cocoa butter: what is the evidence for any negative chemical changes in the cocoa butter that occur during processing at a higher (than 47 or thereabouts) temperature?

You can say it kills "living" enzymes (virtually all raw foodists do say that in my experience) ... but no one has ever been able to show me any credible, independent laboratory analysis of the differences between cocoa butters pressed from the same lot of beans that differ only in the temperature at which they were pressed. And no, neither David Wolff nor Gabriel Cousens meet the standard of credible and independent.

I would love to know if there are differences so I can talk about them knowledgeably, which is why I ask. I personally am not a fan of the taste of most of the raw chocolates I have tasted so, to me, I wonder if my sacrificing my pleasure in eating "cooked" chocolate is worth any supposed meaningful differences in health benefits.

Raw Cacao product supplier

Posted in: Make Mine Raw ... (Read-Only)

Hi Clay,

Thanks for the reply and the two references. I've come across Pacari and I understand they sell the CCN51 variety, are there any providers you know of who supply the Arriba Nacional variety in a raw format?

With regards to the Peruvian supply, we've been offered raw Peruvian cacao butter which when we looked at the processing flow chart shows temperatures of over 110 degrees centigrade in the pressing stage and also 100 degrees centigrade elsewhere but it is still being classed as raw cacao butter. I'm not sure whether this is due to the fact that raw cacao beans are used during the process (i.e. no roasting occurs) or whether it is due to the cold pressing process at the end. I appreciate that there is a differences in the definition of raw but it does seem to me that this butter is definitely not raw with that temperature exposure.

Raw Cacao product supplier

Posted in: Make Mine Raw ... (Read-Only)

Harry:

I believe you can purchase Ecuadorian product in bulk from Pacari - I am not sure if they supply the full range of what you're looking for.

Another source (Indonesia) is Big Tree Farms.

You are in the UK so I don't know how much harder this makes it for you. I can get both Pacari and BigTree products in the US.

Having just spent a couple of days in Piura (I am writing this in a hotel room in Miraflores, Lima), I would be interested in knowing what you mean when you say, "their interpretation of raw is unconventional to say the least."

Raw Cacao product supplier

Posted in: Make Mine Raw ... (Read-Only)

Dear all,

I am looking for a bulk supplier of Ecuadorian raw organic cacao products. I came across this site during my research and have read some interesting and insightful discussions on what constitues raw and the difficulties buying (and sourcing) products which are fully raw. We currently source from Peru and while raw beans and nibs are available, we have been unable to source true raw butter, paste and powder. While some Peruvian companies claim to supply raw products such as butter and paste, their interpretation of raw is unconventional to say the least.

I would appreciate any pointers to companies/individuals who can help us source raw bulk Ecuadorian cacao products or supply us, including cacao paste, butter, powder, beans and nibs. If anyone on the forum can point me in the right direction that would be appreciated.

Thanks,

Harry.

updated by @Harry: 12/13/24 12:16:49

Looking for a chocolate-related charity

Posted in: News & New Products Press

I'm working on a chocolate 5k in San Francisco and looking for a chocolate-related charity. Does anyone have any advice or know someone I should contact?

A friend & I are building a 5k training program for aspirational runners who love chocolate and like the idea of running or walking a 5k. We are currently building www.WillTrainForChocolate.com , which is not yet 100% complete, but will be ready by early Feb as we partner with a local 5k company called Picnic Dash.

Our goal with the app is to help people train while using chocolates as rewards. We'll allow people to track and share their favorite chocolates as they train for the 5k and training will start in early Feb as they prepare for the March 30th Chocolate Dash 5k in San Francisco.

For the chocolate-themed training and for the event, we're looking for a chocolatier to promote as well as a chocolate-related charity to sponsor (all Picnic Dash 5ks donate at least 50% of the proceeds to a charity).

Please let me know if you have any advice or know anyone I should talk to. And, feel free to let me know if you'd like to beta test the app!

updated by @Julie Price: 03/11/26 06:20:34

FBM United States Distributor?

Posted in: Classifieds ARCHIVE

Hi Clay,

Sounds great. Will do. Thanks.

FBM United States Distributor?

Posted in: Classifieds ARCHIVE

Brian -

I am the agent for ChocolateLife members worldwide. Please send me a message and I will send you the information you need.

:: Clay

FBM United States Distributor?

Posted in: Classifieds ARCHIVE

Just wondering if someone has a contact for a US FBM distributor? I'm researching possible chocolate equipment to buy for my new business, and need some information. There is no contact information on the Ad page for FBM on this forum.

Any help would be most appreciated.

Thanks.

updated by @Brian Begun: 04/07/25 13:00:14

Cottage Law now available (again) in California!

Posted in: News & New Products Press

That makes perfect sense.

Cottage Law now available (again) in California!

Posted in: News & New Products Press

In Utah, as long as the finished product does not require refrigeration, it is allowed.

Cottage Law now available (again) in California!

Posted in: News & New Products Press

That is probably the case. So if you are doing creme centers, then yeah, that may be a problem. Still this is a huge opportunity. While not perfect, it will give a lot of people a chance to get a home business off the ground, which would otherwise be impossible.

Cottage Law now available (again) in California!

Posted in: News & New Products Press

As I understand it though - if you use cream then you are using a 'high risk' food and that's not allowed.

Cottage Law now available (again) in California!

Posted in: News & New Products Press

Thought I'd share this news. Since I'm hoping to start my business out of my house, and save a ton of money on renting a kitchen or trying to find a community one, this news makes my soon to be business much closer to reality.

Just a little background on a "cottage law" for those not familiar. It's a law that allows "low risk" foods (like chocolate or baked goods) to be produced out of a home kitchen and sold to the public. There are several states that have these laws on the books, and California (from what I understand) used to have one years ago. Unfortunately, California tends to overreach and put too many laws/restrictions that tend to be not business friendly.

Well, Gov. Brown signed a law back in Sept. that went into affect Jan 1st. 2013. So now people wanting to start a small chocolate business out of their house can now do so.

http://www.qualityassurancemag.com/california-cottage-food-law.aspx

Here's the direct link to the L.A. Co. health dept. website to register:

http://publichealth.lacounty.gov/eh/misc/CAHomemadeFood.htm

Hope this info helps someone.

Cheers,

Brian

updated by @Brian Begun: 03/11/26 06:20:34

List of Reps and Contact info for chocolate equipment companies?

Posted in: Classifieds ARCHIVE

That's a great start, although I was looking more for tempering equipment, any and all sources I think would be welcome in one spot.

List of Reps and Contact info for chocolate equipment companies?

Posted in: Classifieds ARCHIVE

Here are some links:

Dehulling/Winnower Units from Probat Burns

Mac trader - confectionery, biscuit and chocolate machines

Bauermeister USA Inc. Equipment

Petzholdt-Heidenauer Maschinen- und Anlagenbau International GmbH

http://www.buhlergroup.com/global/en/industry-solutions/processed-food/chocolate.htm
http://www.cacaocucina.com/http://www.brooklyncacao.com/
http://www.schokoma.com/en/index.php
http://www.cocoatown.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=52&Itemid=59
http://www.lloveras.com/areas/lloveras-chocolate-equipment.php

http://www.macintyre.co.uk/

List of Reps and Contact info for chocolate equipment companies?

Posted in: Classifieds ARCHIVE

Hi all, my name is Brian,

I'm new to the forum, and new to the chocolate business. I'm excited to say that I'm in the process of starting an online chocolate business of my own, focused mostly on chocolate designs, custom as well as a library. Eventually I'm planning on expanding into Bean to Bar production.

Anyway, I'm at the information gathering stage and putting my business/financial proposal together (I will be posting a lot more questions as I go, and as I learn stuff, will try to share as much as possible as well). I was wondering if someone could post contact information for dealers of all the major chocolate equipment manufacturers in one place? Possibly within this post? I thought it would be nice so it would be easier for us to track down. I'm located in the U.S. (Specifically Los Angeles). But, I'm sure it would be great if the info could include dealers from around the world for others to make good use of as well.

Any and all info would be greatly appreciated.

updated by @Brian Begun: 04/07/25 13:00:14

Thinning white chocolate

Posted in: Tech Help, Tips, Tricks, Techniques

Thanks for that Sebastian. I was concerned that I may alter the characteristics of the white chocolate by taking it that high. Cost and flavour are not too concerning as this is only a very thin pre-coat. Appreciate your help on this.

Colin

Thinning white chocolate

Posted in: Tech Help, Tips, Tricks, Techniques

If you have pure cocoa butter you can't add too much unless it becomes cost prohibitive, or flavor prohibitive. Keep adding until cost or flavor no longer works. Additionally, you can try adding 0.1% fluid soy lecithin.