Forum Activity for @Sebastian

Lecithin is an emulsifier - that is, it provides 'slipperiness' between the fat in your chocolate, and the water - for as you know, the two don't mix well. Yes, there is water in your chocolate - a little bit comes with the sugar, the milk, and the cocoa components for example, or the relative humidity in the production area. Lecithin is an ampi-phillic molecule - ie one end 'likes' to stick to lipids (fats), and one end likes to stick to hydrophillic things (such as water).

Lecithin is a mixture of lots of things, but the 'active' element of lecithin can vary. The viscosity reducing capability of lecithin depends on many, many, many things, one of which is how much of the active component is present. Total moisture content, total fat content, particle size, particle distribution, conch time, etc all factor in as well.

To your main question, lecithin is thought to 'coat' the particles of sugar, with it's hydrophillic end touching the sugar, and it's lipophillic end pointing outwards towards the cocoa butter. This provides a 'bridge' between the two, allowing for them to slip past one another, instead of forming a sticky mess.

Lecithin is known for having a direct effect in cacao butter's properties and texture when it melts and it does affect particle size and its emulsion.

I read it influences sugar behaviour, cocoa butter crystallization, crystal growth, viscosity and oil migration. One can add 0.3-0.5% of lecithin to the chocolate formula during conching. It forms like a veil over sugar crystals making them more fluid and increasing its moving capability.

A chocolate with small particle size, high content of cocoa butter and low level of lecithin will take longer to melt.

Hi friends please tell me the effect of lecithin on viscosity and its affinity for sugar i.e how it reacts with sugar?

All:

I don't have a problem with promoting your own work (though a forum discussion is not the right place to do it).

However, I do ask that members be up front when they are promoting their own work.

The book's authors are the faculty of Chocolate University Online (the OP of this thread) so I find the "I just learned" to be potentially misleading without acknowledging authorship.

:: Clay

Hi y'all,

Here's a book for chocolate lovers. It's called "201 Fun Chocolate Facts and Chocolate Trivia Quiz." Right now it's only for the Amazon Kindle, and I just learned that it will be free to download for 5 days starting this Saturday, October 13. You can get it here: http://bit.ly/PWmkVV

If you don't have a Kindle, you can download a reading app for your PC, tablet, or phone. I hope you can take advantage of this. Enjoy!

I guess you just have to try and see how it works for you, choose one and jump right in. There are so many variables you have to consider, I'll discuss it with my pillow and think about it

Thanks for all the advices!

Omar -

I think the better way to answer the question is, "You don't get what you don't pay for." While Pomati machines may be more budget-friendly than Selmi's (and FBM is in between) you need to ask why that is the case. What are the reasons for the differences in pricing?

Having looked closely at a T5 on a trip to Europe a while ago, one question I know to ask is about build quality. What are the materials used and how does the machine feel? This is far more important than how does the machine look. Many people buy the machine thinking that the looks are important ... but when the machine is in the kitchen and covered with chocolate during a long work day, looks actually are not that important!

Build quality also applies to what is inside the machine - the workmanship and materials and approach to the art and science of tempering. Here, the small details make a large difference. For example, where are the temperature sensors located? I can tell you that you want the sensor measuring the temperature of the tempered chocolate as close to the point that the chocolate is being used as possible. If the sensor is halfway up the cooling/tempering auger the machine is not measuring the temperature accurately.

Another example: I recently learned the importance of the relative size of the core of the screw pump auger to the size of the tempering pipe. If the diameter of the core is wide (compared with the diameter of the pipe) then the machine can do a better job of developing crystals in the chocolate because there is more contact between the chocolate and the cooled surface of the pipe. However, this reduces the volume of flow of chocolate. You can increase the flow by reducing the diameter of the core of the auger, but this reduces the quality of crystal formation - which is what tempering chocolate is all about.

Brian:

Thanks for your nuanced approach to this issue.

Hi Daniela,

I have been following your post for some days and I was not sure you needed a company representative opinion.

But...may I introduce you a 1977 company who has some experience in tempering chocolate?

Don't want to act as a sale man so, only if it helps, you could have a look at these posts in Chocolate Life itself.

http://www.thechocolatelife.com/forum/topics/which-tempering-machine-to-purchase-fbm-gami-selmi-or-wheel-type?

http://www.thechocolatelife.com/photo/dscn5841?context=userrcommentId=1978963%3AComment%3A138087 (there is a old Fbm over there!)

http://www.thechocolatelife.com/page/fbm-chocolate-equipment

The main difference is a commercial/marketing issue!

Hmm it's kind of difficult to find someone who works in a similiar environment and has the same machine. Since I live in Costa Rica, I had to equip our shop with dehumidifiers and stuff like that. But I've heard great things about both brands and they're kind of similar.

What's your favorite brand? outside Pomati and Selmi, is there any other worth looking at?

Omar.

I understand that the Pomati is less expensive than the Selmi. WhatI recommend to all my clients when they are looking at equipment is to work with it and to talk to people who have that identical machine in their shop. Try to find someone with a similar enviornment so that you can compare apples to apples. If we pick anything exclusively on price, we tend to get what we pay for.

Hope that helps.

brian

Hi Brian, got it.

Pomati seems to be more budget friendly than Selmi. How did you like it?

Thanks,

Omar

Omar.

You are absolutely correct but I also represent Selmi's US distributor from time to time and Clay has asked that those who represent companines try to not present wholly biased opinions and I am trying to respect that by providing where much of the information can be found hence the links to Selmi's website. Having said that, I trully enjoy working with Selmi equipment. They are reliable workhorses that have minimal problems. And I believe that if you were to contact Selmi owners, they are happy with their decision to purchase and to use in their envionments.

Thanks for the understanding!

brian

Hello Brian,

It would be nice if you shared your experience. After all, this is a forum. I think communicating privately defeats its purpose. Just my humble opinion.

Thanks,

Omar

Daniela-

If you are thinking about the Selmi, you would be looking at the Color or the One. I have put links to those two machines below. But I if I can help you directly or answer any additional questions please contact me my Chocolate Life page or by email at brian@thecriollogroup.com . I have worked extensively with the Selmi equipment and worked with the Pomati as well.

brian

http://selmi-chocolate.com/eng/tempering/color-ex.html

http://selmi-chocolate.com/eng/tempering/selmi-one.html

Hi Daniela,

A really good starting point is to read the recently re-ignited thread just below:

If Selmi is the Cadalac what is a JKV and why?

Lots of helpful advice there. General conclusion seems to be, as with much in life, you get what you pay for...

Nick.

I'm thinking of buying a tempering machine, I like Pomati's T5 or Selmi, does anyone have any review on these tempering machines? What brand is your favorite? I need a small tempering machine, for maybe 7-10kilos of chocolate.

Hi! I just bought a truffle shell mold and then I realized I really dont know how to use it :S does anyone have any videos or info about this? I really want to make my own truffle shells

Hi everyone,

I'm new to the forum and really excited to get started on here! Let me introduce myself. I'm a 19 year old chocolate lover and part time entrepeneur who has recently started my own chocolate business based in the UK.

My business ideas are based around getting original and exciting products so if anyone has any wholesaler recommendations feel free to let me know! My products are luxury affordable chocolates for any occasion. Here's the link to my eBay (I'm also working on getting a website sorted too...) http://myworld.ebay.com/meltconfectioneryltd

Thanks for reading and I can't wait to hear about everyones chocolate experiences :D

Jo

Director

Melt Confectionery Ltd

OMG!!!!!! If you retail tests have been off the charts then We Can Expect a Ginormous order this Holiday Serason ))

Hi all...we have a cool innovative company that is a fusion of gourmet chocolate and timeless music hits. Our retail tests have been (no pun intended) off the charts! We need more funds to expand sales and inventory and launched our Kickstarter Camapign below. We also want to see if anyone knows of Angels or VC's who invest in early stage in our space?

http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1497809042/imagine-chocolategourmet-chocolate-that-rocks

Laura:

Inquiries like this one go in the Classifieds group, not in the home page discussion.

:: Clay

Hi Laura, have you ever thought about a small continues tempering machine?

Please, have a look at this video http://myblog.boscolo.it/en/post/2012/05/29/enrobing-well-with-a-small-machine-is-possible/

As you can see this machine is working at the customer's lab (don't want to show you a commercial video). So the main point is to understand which are your requirements. How your products are (shape and size) and how many do you want to produce with the machine and its enrober. May I know something about your chocolate too?

Consider this is a tempering + enrobing machine.

Looking to buy used enrobing machine i.e. Small enrober Bakon, Hillard or Perfect equipment. Please let me know if anyone is looking to sell

Echoing Kerry's sentiment - crystallization gives off heat and that heat needs to be removed or it will take the chocolate back out of temper. So we need to create heat exchange and this can be faster(colder enviornment) or air movement might do the trick.

Also, keep in mind, it might be the temperer. Even though other things came out "perfect". Depending on when they were in the run, the temper might be on or off.

b

Understanding (at least some of) the science definitely can definitely be helpful with chocolate work. It is absolutely a combination of art and science when working with chocolate. Knowing at least some of the science can help you troubleshoot problems from tempering to shelf life. It can also be helpful for recipedevelopment. No need to go back to school for another degree - an broad understanding of theorycan usually suffice!

You know the funny thing about chocolate is that so much of it is based on science. Not my strongest point in school but love the complexity of it all. I guess age does change things, and I ain't gettin any younger, yet!

thanks again all!

You could also try going a bit thinner on the bark as well. A 1/4-inch is fairly thick. I think that was your problem and the reason a quicker cool down worked - the overall mass (i.e thermal mass of the chocolate) was affecting things. Of course refrigeration has it's own problems... condensation leading to sugar bloom.... Sounds like you are on your way to resolving this issue. Probably a combo of different things will lead to an effective long-term solution for you. Andrea

That appears to be exactly what it was, cooling it quicker did the trick. I did a test and tried it several ways because I guess I am a geek that way? I just had to know....thank you all for your suggestions. I am blessed to be a part of a group like this that is so supportive. Not that I am preaching just happy it's finally figured out. Time for a beer to celebrate! Cheers!

I'm voting for cooling the bark quicker. The latent heat of crystallization produces a whole lot of heat and that can throw large areas of chocolate out of temper. I've had it happen.

No disrespect Linda & Victor, I've been making chocolate for years and temper chocolate everyday. That's not the issue. the chocolate is tempered as I mentioned I made bars and dipped some truffles with the same chocolate without issue, they were all perfect.

I narrowed it down I think to two things, I need to cool the bark quicker and or my X3210 is outta wack but doesn't makes sense since the other products where fine. Appreciate the feedback either way. I had a new holey baffle that I am not used to which may have been part of it. Smaller items where ok but larger barks maybe less forgiving?

I will soon find out as I am using my regular baffle this time around.....tempering now.

Oi! va voy!

If it was that simple to just melt an already tempered bar more people would be making chocolate. When you get a shipment of chocolate (whether you buy from any of the producers i.e. Guittard, you still have to temper the chocolate. Bars typically weigh 10 lbs.

You need to melt the bar to around 120F. Then you need to add a few lumps of the tempered chocolate from the remaining bar or new bar. At that point turn the temp down to 82F. At this point you need to mix the batch until it reaches around 82F. Remove the lumps and turn up the temp to around 90F. Keep mixing until you reach 90F. At that point you can begin using the chocolate. HOWEVER, you need to maintain that temperature throughout the process otherwise it will go out of temper.

Now,there is a lot of trial and error in making chocolate. You need to practice until you get it right.

Best of luck,

Linda

I am not sure what tempering machine you are using but what you are describing is chocolate going out of temper after either cooling too much or sitting still for too long. Try taking a measurement of your tempered chocolates temperature in 30 min intervals after it has been tempered and you will most likely see what i mean.

I put some dried cranberries, everything room temp. the bark itself was 1/4 inch thick. Everything was cooled at room temp, maybe that is the problem although the bark that did work out was done the same way. Maybe I will try refrigerating it for a minute or two to set it? What do you think?

Thanks for your help Andrea. For something so simple it's really frustrating me.....

What did you put in the bark? Was what you added to the bark cold or room temperaturewhen you added it? How thick is the bark? Did the temperature cool evenly? This would be based on how thick the bark is as well as the room temperature. Anything you add should be room temperature and you need to cool the bark as evenly as possible.

Andrea

I forgot to mention the truffles and bars were perfect as well...just the bark for some reason...

I have 10lbs of tempered chocolate, I make a few bars and dip some truffles. With the rest I make bark and it all blooms? Tried it again.....bloom?

I used my smaller machine, perfect. WTF? I don't get it....any suggestions cause I can't figure it out.

Ideally you want to research your area and identify all of the vendors that have the type of business/clientele that can afford higher ticket food items ( gourmet chocolates). Then you would want to ensure that your product will stand out amongst their current selection. Find out who to pitch your product to, show up with samples etc, etc, etc.

Introducing a NEW product through a major distributor would have to mean that you have the manufacturing capabilities that allow you to sell your product DIRT cheap while being 100% compliant with any and all necessary gov't regulations.

I guess I'll start...............

I've just begun trying to sell my product. Heck, I'm still working on my packaging and I'm soooo small I've only purchased set-up boxes in 25 box quantities. I've connected with a local (very upscale) florist to retail my product. Right now, I'm thinking I'd only want one retailer per suburbanneighborhood. Maybe that's a mistake, but I want to support each retailer in promoting sales and not become over saturated in any one area.

So to support my (first) retailer I've contacted two large social networks in that community and I'm making sample donations to their events. My packaging will have my label on top, on the bottom of the package with my ingredient listI'm mentioning the retailer where they can buy my product.

I can see doing similar for dozens of suburbs in my area. It obviously will take a lot of time!!! In addition, Iwant to geta website up and running where people could actually place orders and I'd ship to them. I find it hard to believe anyone will buy product offmy website if they haven't already tasted it. AND SO............I see the need to spead up this process as fast as possible. That's why I ask what you all are doing to market your products?

Wendy

I'm hoping we could share ideas and leads among us similarly minded small business owners.

Anyone willing to share how they are marketing their product? How did you begin? Clay have you written any articles on this topic for the small chocolatier?

Are you going to gourmet food shows? If so, which ones have generated business for you and which ones haven't been very fruitful?

How are you introducing your product to your general area?

Do you target specific businesses? Have you found some retailers sell more chocolate then others. For example, do florists move chocolate products? Are independent coffee shops successful retailers of chocolate products? If so, do you find that certain sizes and packaging are specific to each seperate market? Have any of you targeted restaurants or large food distributors like Sysco or US Foods?

Dear Chocolate Loving Friends,

We are a Chocolate shop, museum & more in a gorgeous 4-story mansion in St. Paul, Minnesota. We're hosting an INTERNATIONAL Short Short Story Contest. It's free to enter, and the prizes consist of chocolate & money.

For those of you who like to write - all levels of writing experience welcome & encouraged - we welcome your entries! The deadline is Nov. 15, 2012, and you can find the other details here: www.DrChocolate.com/contest

We look forward to hearing from you!
With chocolate love and enthusiasm,

Dr. Chocolate & friends

P.S. Your story need NOT be about chocolate, but about anything your heart fancies...