Help with chocolate setting (Bittersweet) (PICS)

Hi! My name is Erica, I live in FL and I'm happy to be here! This is my First Post and I have a problem/question....I usually use Merckens Candy coating when making my chocolate, but now am experimenting with real chocolate since I now have the Revolation 2 tempering machine (as of this AM!) IM SOOOOO EXCITED. However heres my question, when I use bittersweet chocolate, it seems that it never sets. Now, I am not tempering it, I'm melting the baking chips down in the microwave in small incriments and then dipping my pretzels, oreos, etc, but b/c this chocolate (bittersweet) literally melts in your hand its not ideal for anything I'm creating. How do you transform bittersweet chocolate so that it will actually set and have the "snap" that is ideal? Will tempering help at all? Thanks in advance! Erica

Yup - tempering is the solution to your problem.

And welcome to the forums Erica.

Really that's it? I just have to run it thru the tempering machine and temper it? Great! Yeah! Thanks - will try it tonight! It seems so unreasonable how just altering the temperature can completely change the feel and consistency, without acutally changing/adding anything to the material (chocolate) Thanks!

It's all about producing the correct type of crystals in the cocoa butter so that when it cools the crystals form a nice lattice that contracts. This give chocolate with gloss, snap, the expected mouth feel and resistance to melting at room temperature.

Awesome! Thanks so much for the welcome!

Ok. well my first attempt at tempering bittersweet chocolate baking chips went relatively well except for the way they set. I let them set overnight in my kitchen, didnt put in fridge or anything. Room temp in my house was about 73-75 degrees. As you can see in these 3 pics below they have a lighter color swirling thru them that is making it look discolored, old and nasty. I think this is referred to as 'bloom'. What did I do wrong and how can I prevent this from happening?

.

So you tempered with your Revolation? What settings did you use?

I used dark chocolate setting (108 default point) then I did seed method #2 but then changed it to seed method #1 mid cycle.... maybe thats where I messed up. I shouldnt have done that.

Oh also, I used Ghirardelli chocolate, but wanted to ask if my seed chocolate could be a different brand or would that mess it up.Thanks!

I used to have a sinsation - which is what has become the revolation - but I don't recall it having more buttons than just one for milk, white and dark - so not quite sure what the seed method #1 vs #2 refers to. I assume the ghiradelli is 'real' chocolate. You can use any dark chocolate for seed as long as it is clearly in temper.

Having your room temperature at 68 degrees F is the ideal. I would suggest trying again, let the chocolate set with the room at that temperature, and see if that takes care of the problem.

Thanks for the feedback Kerry and Kathryn! I tried again yesterday and the same thing happened with my chocolate covered pretzels. I will try a different chocolate, then try the 68 degrees. Thanks!!

Thank you so much for the suggestion! Can you please tell me where I can get the "Myrcryo from Barry Callabaut" you are referring to? Thanks in advance.