Forum Activity for @Clay

Ursula -

I would go to a local used restaurant equipment dealer and look to find a used bread proofing cabinet. You would not hook up the water because you don't need humidity control. New cabinets can cost as little as $1000, so used should be much cheaper.

The temperature control range is right in the middle of what you're looking for.

You can take the chocolate out of the tempering machine and put it into hotel pans that fit the racks in the cabinet.

Dear chocolate life community,

I'm writing with a question that I hope at least some of you will know an answer to. We are a small producer of vegan chocolate and we process everything at low temperatures. We noticed that when we process a bath with a lighter colored cacao powder, we get a very solid and desirable structure. However, when we process a batch with a darker variety of cacao powder under the same conditions (same tempering curve, same machine, same outside temperature), the end product always ends up being less solid, melting more readily when touched. The darker cacao powder is also significantly more bitter/sour and we even have to change our recipe to adjust for the variation.

Does anyone have any insight as to why this is happening? The supplier, obviously, just says that it's a natural variation. I am wondering if there is a trade term for the lighter variety of Peruvian Criollo Cacao? (See attachment)

Has anyone had similar experiences and can share tips? 

Any help will be much appreciated.

All the best,

Sanja

 20160907_110749 (1).jpg - 515KB

Hi,

I am about to start working with my new enrobing machine and would be interested to learn how/where fellow chocolatiers store their melted couverture at 40 to 45 degrees C (110 to 115 degrees F). If I have to empty the tank because I want to switch enrobing from dark to milk couverture, I release the dark couverture into a bucket which should be stored in a warming cabinet at 40 to 45 degrees C. What kind of warming cabinets do you recommend for storing the couverture? When I did my research, I came across different brands of cabinets that heat food "up to 180 degrees F". But there was no information about the lowest temperature setting of these cabinets (Metro, Winholt). These cabinets are of course not made for the storage of couverture but for holding food in a restaurant, dining hall etc. I just don't find any other appliance with a lower temperature setting to store two large buckets of melted couverture. Any recommendation will be greatly appreciated. 

Ursula Schnyder

www.sweet55.com

sent my information on info@amandino.be  @ash-maki

Hi all,

Please let me me know if anyone has a Savage Bros 220V tempering machine for sale.

thanks,

Mark

Hi all,

I am looking for a used Dedy or Bakon guitar cutter.   Please let me know if anyone has one for sale.

thanks,

Mark

2007 NIELSEN TEMPA 420 ENROBER - $45,000

Professionally refurbished by Candy Machine Consulting, this enrober truly is as-good-as-new at half the price. Features all stainless construction, 16” wide belt, with new compressor and condenser, new hood and new wire belt. This unit is located in Columbus, Ohio and is available for inspection by prior appointment. Price includes professional crating - buyer is responsible for freight arrangements FOB Columbus, OH.

Pictures and video available - dominique@holls.com – (304) 615-0252

Hi,

Anyone know the chocolaterie de provence companey? How is there chocolate?

Thank you 

Raana

Hi Daniel,
I tried in the last two weeks couple of things, namely, heating the moulds, trying to mould single cube and so on, nothing helped.
I have 1mm and 0.5mm thick, but the moulds are too big, i.e 25*25cm so they won't be rigid anyway.
I should assume I need to learn to live with that?

Hi i am Melisan, i am a writer and blogger and have keen interest in baking industry. I have done minor specialization in food technology. I have joined this forum to share and gain knowledge. Hoping to my have healthy discussion with all the members here.

does anyone have any experience infinity LX tempering machine?

it looks interesting 

http://www.keychoc.com/products/infinity-lx-pumped-chocolate-moulding-machine/

I'm interested, too. SF Bay Area. 

call me. 415-609-1877

I have this problem, too, but only on the thermo moulds. My theor is that the flat surfaces are less rigid and don't release well. What i currently do is use a heavier gauge mould when i get them made. I think the standard mould is 40 gauge. I spec 60 gauge for moulds with flat surfaces. 

To minimize this, try have the moulds at 80 degrees and the room at 68. I crystallize at 55 degrees. 

Cheers.

I read the whole thread, I have the same problem (see attached), namely: weird circle that can't be avoided, happened in all the chocolate colors always, and of course doesn't exist in polycarbonate moulds.the dimentions are: 5*5 cm.

Bottom line: I have to live with that? I'm currently make an "internet research" to try to find out if there is something I can do...

Very sad to invest 600$ and to get not a perfect item:(

 14125568_1168485699888299_503840712234621402_o.jpg - 117KB

Hello guys I am new here. There is something really interesting topics which I want to know and discuss about them.

We will be exporting single origin (3 different regions) organic fine aroma "arriba" cocoa beans, nibs, cocoa liquor, cocoa butter and cocoa powder from Ecuador to two distribution centers  in Toronto and New York.
We will send 10 tons in the first container .We would like to hear from you:
1)How many tons (out of 10 tons) or percentage do you suggest for each organic item.
2)Any special request that you think the market is not offering (e.g. we will provide the beans graded in 3 sizes so you can  roast the beans evenly)

Hi Sanja,

we have been using coconut palm sugar since 2009 and you absolutely need a temper meter if you are using coconut palm sugar to ensure it is well tempered. I can say the more you utilize coconut palm sugar, the more variations of coconut palm sugar you are going to get. The temper meter is a great investment , just my thoughts , I hope it helps

trent 

Does anyone with a Rumbo have a processing time for running a full bowl?...opposed to the 40kg recommended batch.

This thread may be worth a read:

https://www.thechocolatelife.com/community/forums/new_posts/17294/aging-chocolate-what-is-the-real-taste-of-my-chocolate

Hello all. I apologize if this has been discussed, but I can't find it.  I recently purchased an  FBM K100 Melter and a FBM Unica automatic tempering machine.  I was just wondering if anyone has used these or similar machines to make bars with small inclusions.  Specifically, I want to know if I can run coarse sea salt through them without clogging/gumming up either machine. (Possible some spices: cayenne, red pepper flakes?)

Any experience or advice is appreciated. Thanks in advance.

I have made sugar free with stevia and Agava Nector - you have to be careful with the Stevia so there is no after taste and the recipients need to like dark chocolate.

Has anyone had experience using xylitol as a sweetener?

Looking for a medium-size  Automatic Temperer with the capacity to attach an enrober.   Selmi, FBM, Pomati, Gami, etc.  For bean-to-bar chocolate, so longer auger and strong motor preferred.  If it has an enrober, great...if not, I'd like it to have the capability to add one eventually.  

What do you recommend wrapping blocked chocolate in? Which will then mature for 3-6 weeks?

25 years of experience makes me say that 8-)  Unless you're using a temper meter, you're not going to be able to say with any certainty if you're tempered or not, or to what degree you're tempered.   Crystalline sugars will only vary in moisture by a few %'s max, so you're unlikely to get a significant moisture contribution from them, and even if you did, it's going to give you rheology problems instead of temper problems.  Unless you've got a 3rd variable that you didn't mention (ie oils of a different type - nuts, excess milk fats, etc) being added - it's almost assuredly a tempering problem. Thermocouples drift or go bad on those units all the time.  What worked just fine yesterday may no longer work today if you're experiencing drift in a thermocouple.

Post your exact recipe here and we'll be able to troubleshoot more effectively.  But it's tempering.

WC Smith 5" Chocolate Enrober  - $4500

Size: L7' x W2.5' x H 4.5'. Style: 315P016C, Type FHT

5" belt, water jacketed tank w/thermostat, blower, detailer, buttoning, single chocolate wheel, flow pan, 1 ft. infeed conveyor, 4 ft. wax paper discharge, 2 dust shields. Extra wire belt, hardware and 3 rolls paper.

1/4 HP motor, single phase 60 cycle, 115/230 volt motor, 5.2 amp. Wheel mounted. We can help to arrange shipping.

Please contact us to email photos. crynex@verizon.net. 856.768.0004.

Hi Sebastian,

what makes you say that? Since we started making chocolate we have used a very good tempering machine and never had problems. Yes, I realize it doesn't guarantee perfect tempering but we have used it with the same basic ingredients over a longer period of time and never had the issue. 

Do you think it might have to do with needing a different tempering curve?

The main issue is that at the same temperature, the chocolate is now significantly more liquid feeling and looking, and the end product of course is affected. My first thought was that there might be humidity in the sugar, but if you have any other pointers, I would love to know more. It does all leave me a bit baffled.

All the best,
Sanja

I'm gonna bet you a dollar that it's not as well tempered as you think it is...

Aloha Melanie! Is this machine still available? Any idea on weight to estimate shipping to Maui?

Mahalo,

Jessica

Hello;

Is this item still for sale?

Thanks.

Please take a moment today to stop and give thanks to the original Willy Wonka - Gene Wilder - who passed away today at the age of 83. Mr. Wilder, your persona was larger than life, and the inspiration to thousands of chocolatiers the world over. Thanks to you and Willy Wonka we think not what is, but what could be. Thank you for your gift of pure imagination to us all.

http://variety.com/…/gene-wilder-dead-dies-willie-wonka-yo…/

Dear chocolate community

I hope one of you can help me with this issue. We process our chocolate below 42 Celsius. Till now we always had great consistency. For sweetener, we use coconut palm sugar. I just started using a new coconut palm sugar which has a slightly darker appearance. It seems as everyone considers that a natural variation so I didn't think much about it. However, when I created a small test-batch, the chocolate turned out much more soft, melting much faster when touched. I am sure that it was correctly tempered. My first thought is that it might be due to humidity in the coconut palm sugar, but would that necessarily create that sort of effect? Any insights on this?

thanks  thomas for your kindly reply

Not gonna find a better deal really. Almost all of these beans have already been hand sorted and are in great condition. 

No sorry

I wonder how does is dry so quick and do not stick on the fingers while removing it from the the bowl - This is really scary

Hi Rahman,

In case you don't already know, here are two sites that have lots of information about making chocolate:

http://www.chocolatealchemy.com (lots of helpful info in the forums)

http://www.bean-to-bar.co.uk/

There is an online chocolate makers program by http://www.ecolechocolat.com/en/chocolate-making-from-bean.html for $455 US. I do not know anyone who has taken the program.

There was also a bean to bar class here: https://www.jmauboinechocolates.com/index.php?route=information/information&information_id=10 earlier this year. I believe it was a theee day class.

- Thomas

hi guys can anyone tell me where i can get training on bean to bar chocolate making

So, my friend tells me it's just that - gold dust in cocoa powder.  Now, it's not actually, literally gold dust, but rather the decorative stuff.  According to him not all of them work very well, and his experience is that the gold dust from albert uster imports - the one that says 'inedible' - works great ( http://www.auifinefoods.com/gold-dust-inedible-5861050000)

I've no idea why it would stick to chocolate but not to cocoa powder - my guess it's some electrostatic property, but why it's preferentially choosing chocolate over cocoa - no idea.  Someone give it a try and see how it works.  Wonder if the AU gold dust has an ingredient list on it?  While i've got a boatload of mica powders i could use, i'd pretty strongly suspect they'd just coat the cocoa powder - they're incredibly fine powders.

Thanks, Kerry. Much appreciate you sharing your experience.

Paul - when I use a melter I put the chocolate in the night before - by morning it is melted and the temperature can be turned down for the tempering process.